Over the past several years, we’ve spent our weeks churning out new recipes for our blog. We’ve spent countless hours in the kitchen baking cookies, boiling pasta, and cutting vegetables. Although all these things seem pretty routine for a two girls who run a website that promotes recipes and refined cooking skills, we will admit that we weren’t always skilled in the kitchen.

We grew up learning simple techniques like making cake from box mixes and whipping up smoothies in the blender, but it wasn’t until we moved out of our parents house and were thrown into the world, that we dove deep into getting better at cooking. 

Whether you’re a beginner in the kitchen who is hesitant to know where to start, or have a decent skill set of cooking, there are always ways to make the process more effortless and easier. There are several kitchen tools that have upgrading our cooking (and baking) skills. We’re not gatekeeping anything — here are the 9 kitchen tools we swear by. 

9 Kitchen Tools to Upgrade Your Cooking Skills

1. A Good Knife Set

Having a good knife set in your kitchen is something that we will scream from the mountaintop for years to come. When we swapped our cheaper, beginner knife set with a high-quality knife set, it totally changed the game. It is an investment, but it will be one of the best one you’ll make for your kitchen and furthering your cooking skills.

Having good, sharp knifes will make cooking safe as well. The sharper the blade, the easier it will be to cut and chop. With a good knife set, you won’t have to be struggling to cut through something or worry about the blade getting dull quickly.

2. Get a Large Wooden Cutting Board

We have multiple sizes, shapes and materials of cutting boards, but nothing compares to our large wooden cutting board. It gives you a large surface area to chop, and super sturdy as well. 

Unashamedly, our dad influenced us to get a bigger cutting board, because we loved his so much!

3. A Set of Quality Baking Pans

If you love to bake, we can’t recommend enough the importance of having a set of high quality baking pans. A good set of baking pans will ensure that things cook properly in the oven. Plus, buying a whole set is an amazing investment for years to come. Once you have all the pieces you’ll most likely never have to replace them.

4. Large Dutch Ovens Always Come in Clutch

We swear by our large dutch ovens. Whether we’re making soup, pasta, or sourdough bread, they have made our life so much easier. You can make a large pot of soup to meal prep for the week or when your making a meal for guests.

5. Don’t Sleep on High-Quality Blenders

One item that we use almost every day is our Vitamix. We’ve bought our fair share of blenders over the years, but there is truly nothing like our Vitamix. We can trust that it’ll always get the job done. Whether we’re making a smoothie, a sauce for pasta or soup, a high speed blender can make the process so much easier and it’ll last for years to come.

6. This Cheese Grater is a Life Saver (literally)

Our least favorite thing to do in the kitchen is grate cheese—especially when we’re using a traditional cheese grater. We despise it! That is, until we bought this cheese grater from Pampered Chef. Not only does it protect your fingers, but it grates the cheese with with little force. It’s amazing!

7. A Utensil Set is a Must

Having all the utensils to do basic things in the kitchen is essential. Everything from a whisk, spatula, wood spoon, and ladle. Although you may not use these things every day, having them on hand will level up your cooking abilities when the recipe calls you to use them.

8. Meat Thermometer 

If you don’t have a meat thermometer in your kitchen, then this is your sign to purchase one today. It’s a MUST in our kitchen. Any time we’re cooking chicken, beef or fish, our meat thermometer assures us that the internal temperature of the meat is safe to eat. We can’t imagine cooking (and eating) dinner without it!

9. Cast Iron Changes the Game

Lastly, cast iron skillets and pots have quickly become our favorite and most-used items in our kitchen. When you cook with cast iron, you avoid harmful chemicals that are often present on other pots and skillets. 

Plus, there’s just something about a meal cooked in cast iron that just makes it taste so much better!