Best Homestead Kitchen Tools
When you are cooking from scratch and using produce that is in season, it’s important to have a well armed kitchen. Here are some of the best homestead kitchen tools I use on the regular.
What makes a good kitchen tool?
It’s easy to quickly fill your house up with kitchen tools and gadgets that are supposed to make your life easier. In my mind, there are a few things to consider before bringing a new “wonder tool” into your kitchen.
Frequency of Use
I have in my house an entire lefse making kit. I only make lefse at MOST once a year. It’s big and bulky and lives in the basement 95% of the year. Now, lefse is a traditional Christmas thing that we descendants of Norwegian immigrants like to make. So the lefse stuff gets a free pass. Anything else that gets used MAYBE once a year and takes up a lot of space? Probably not worth it.
Size
I will never have an InstantPot. Why? Because it’s huge and to me just not worth taking up that much space with something that really won’t make a difference for my cooking.
Cost
My husband wanted to buy a fancy coffee maker on Black Friday. It was around $200 on sale. I thought, sure. It’ll grind the coffee and probably has a steamer too for making lattes and stuff. Oh, oh no. This was just a drip coffee maker. For $200. What?? Hard pass. I’m not opposed to spending more money on a well made item that will last for years. But a drip coffee maker? Come on now.
Quality
It’s a much better investment of your money to buy a good quality item than a cheap one. Often before we add something to our kitchen we’ll check out America’s Test Kitchen (who is insanely thorough in testing out products) or Wirecutter. There’s not point in buying a knock-off version that is going to crumble after a few uses.
Versatility
Going back to the coffee maker, I’m all about versatility. If one tool can serve multiple purposes then it is more likely to earn a spot in my kitchen. Anything that has one use for just one dish, say a yogurt maker for example, just isn’t worth the space.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.
The Best Homestead Kitchen Tools
Now that I’ve waxed on about my rubric for a good kitchen gadget, here’s my list of useful items I have in my kitchen.
Cast Iron Dutch Oven
I adore my cast iron dutch oven. It’s heavy and big, but it is well worth the space. I love a dutch oven because you can start a recipe on the stovetop and shove the whole thing in the oven to finish it off.
Not only can you use a Dutch oven for kick-butt stews or a slow cooking roast, but you can also use them for making crackly sourdough bread.
Roll Up Metal Rack
I received this excellent gift from my mom a year or so ago. It’s a lightweight metal rack that rolls up for easy storage. The ends have rubber on them so they grip. This can be used as a cooling rack or can be placed over your sink to create extra counter space. It is heat safe so you can stick a hot pot on it, too.
Garlic Roller
This nifty gadget is a small miracle. It’s an incredibly simple design. It is comprised of is a slightly smooshed looking rubber cylinder with ridges inside. You place a clove of garlic inside the tube, then press down on it while you roll it. After about three second of rolling, the garlic pops out with all the skins completely off. Check out the video below to see it in action. These are about $8 on Amazon. Considering how much garlic I use it might be number one of my best homestead kitchen tools.
Herb Scissors
If you cook a lot with fresh herbs these are very nifty. Basically it is four or five sets of scissor blades attached to one handle. If you need to cut up herbs it works slick. They are $16 on Amazon.
Knife Sharpener
For years I made a solid effort at using the knife sharpening stick that came in our knife block. God help me I couldn’t ever get it to work right. Maybe the angle was off or maybe my stick was defective, whatever reason I just never got it to work well.
A few months ago I finally invested in a knife sharpener. And when I said “invested”, I mean spent eight bucks on a sharpening tool. I wish I had done this years ago. It just takes a few swipes of the knife through the little ridges and you’ve got a knife that can easily slice through paper.
Pie Crust Protector
Another simple kitchen tool is a crust protector. If you have a quiche or a pie where the middle isn’t quite set and you need it to bake a little longer, you can place this crust protector on the edges and they will keep them from burning. My two-year-old daughter also likes to wear it as a scarf for dress up.
Jar Gripper
The one I have was a freebie when I ordered some jars for a skincare product. It’s just a thin rubbery piece of material but 9/10 times I can open a tough jar with this. They are about $7 on Amazon.
Thin Spatulas
The first of my favorite spatulas is one I got at a garage sale for a buck. It is incredibly thin and long. It’s almost sharp, that’s how thin it is I can easily scrape homemade french fries from a backing sheet or flip a delicate crepe.
The next spatula I love is a small green one that has a very thin piece of metal inside, layered over thinly with silicone. This also is great for just about any cooking. It also can be used for baking because the flexible silicone can scrape out a bowl with ease. Here’s where you can pick one up.
One Handed Sifter
I first saw this style sifter on an old episode of Julia Child. I love that it holds about 1-2 cups and is used one handed. It’s also way easier to sift than the big cannister sized ones. The exact one I have was a find at thrift store after YEARS of keeping an eye out for one. I believe it is vintage from the 1950s and I love it. You can get a pretty similar one on Amazon.
Magnetic Knife Strip
I absolutely LOVE having a magnetic knife strip. Not only does it free up counter space but it makes it super simple to grab the right knife every time.
Watch and Learn
To see some of these best homestead kitchen tools in action check out the video below!
Pin it for Later
