Gilly’s Thoughts on Why Good Kitchen Tools Matter

April 12, 2021.

Let’s talk about tools and the importance of good tools in the kitchen. Here’s a story about Gilly in the kitchen from many years ago.

I once had a skillet I’d been using since college and never gave its quality a second thought. One day, I rinsed it while it was still hot, and it bent radically. I had to laugh, as I also realized I needed to buy a new one soon.

I had purchased high-quality kitchen pots and pans for a friend who loved Calphalon, but I had never felt I could be that extravagant on myself. I was using some pretty crappy tools in my kitchen. However, now I needed a new pan, and Williams-Sonoma was having a sale, so I purchased three sizes of Calphalon pans for myself. It’s been 23 years since that day, and I’m about due for some new ones.

Immediately, I noticed my cooking improved. It blew me away. Now my eggs cooked evenly, didn’t stick to the pan, and I wasn’t worried my skillet would buckle or burn the food on one side. When I purchased high-quality cookware, cooking became more enjoyable, and the meals tasted significantly better as a result.

I have a version of that same story on every object in my kitchen, from blenders to knives to my favorite wooden spoon. Each story is funny as it continues to inform my decision to buy the best and keep it for years to come, if not keep it for life in some cases. My recommendations are not only based on my personal preferences but also on research on the subjects. I love research and am always open to ideas and suggestions.

At the end of my recipes, I list purchase notes with a few of my favorite things. It is wise to prepare yourself for success. Cooking should not be complicated. Good tools make things simple. Yes, you will spend more today, but I guarantee that the joy you get from using high-quality products is no comparison to the money wasted on buying junk that won’t last. I have learned this from personal experience.

Check out my Purchase Essentials page. You will see what I use, and feel free to ask me why I prefer using a particular thing if I haven’t mentioned it already. You will notice which items you may need and what items you may already own, but (like my terrible pan) some deserve to be replaced.

Food is fun, so let’s get cooking!

Chat soon,

Gilly 🍴

Footnote: Since this posting, my Amazon Affiliate Sponsorship was cancelled, and so every painstakingly made choice, link, and post for either a kitchen tool or ingredient VANISHED one day from my blog because my site, which had only been up for six months, didn’t have enough traffic. I still can’t explain to this day how it pains me to think of all the work I did for them, really. And it’s gone.

Please help me get my traffic up!

Gilly 🍳