Many members of The Verge’s staff enjoy cooking — and all enjoy eating. Inspired by that admittedly obvious thought, we asked them to say which kitchen tools they most enjoy using these days.
We got a wide and fascinating array of answers. They include gadgets that need to be charged, such as electric kettles, blenders, and smart thermometers, as well as simpler, non-powered tools like egg holders, spreader knives, and wooden spoons. (Sometimes simpler can be better.)
So check out how our writers and editors hone their foodie skills, and let us know in the comments what your favorite kitchen tool is. (And feel free to check out our previous listing of favorite kitchen gadgets.)
As new parents, my wife and I heat up water a lot, whether it’s for baby formula or for our third cup of a caffeinated beverage to get us through the afternoon. We used to heat our water in a teapot on the stove — the horror — but after getting an electric kettle over the holidays, our lives have been forever changed. With this, the water heats up way faster, and the kettle turns itself off once the water is too hot, meaning it won’t whistle through the house (and possibly wake the baby).
It’s the only kitchen gadget that has a permanent spot on our counters. Maybe I’ll heat up some tea for myself right now. — Jay Peters, news editor
After realizing we’re not a family who likes to get their hands dirty while cooking (we leave that part to mixers and blenders), an automatic soap dispenser has become one of the most used devices in our kitchen. We opted for a cheap $25 option from Amazon that lets you adjust how much foaming soap is dispensed and lasts for a couple months between charges, but companies like Simplehuman sell pricier $80 versions wrapped in brushed metal or other fancy finishes that could better match your decor. We find we use less soap now that it’s always perfectly portioned out, and buying refills in bulk is much cheaper. There’s now one in every bathroom in our home. — Andrew Liszewski, senior reporter
I may take some heat for this, but anyone who tells you that frozen Junior Mints, M&M’s, or — gasp — Sno-Caps are the perfect companion for an at-home movie night is unequivocally wrong. Popcorn is the true film snack, and Presto’s basic air popper has been my go-to in recent years for quickly whipping up large batches of the timeless treat.
The PopLite doesn’t require oil, nor do you need to shake or stir it like you do traditional stovetop methods. You just toss in the kernels, plug it in, and let the hot air do the work for you. Admittedly, it’s a little loud and bigger than I’d like for a single-use appliance that sits in my pantry, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a more foolproof method of making popcorn. Well, unless you’re into prefab bags of Orville Redenbacher. Even I can’t fault you for that. — Brandon Widder, senior commerce editor
For the past few years, the Instant Pot has been a staple in my kitchen. From making rice to slow-cooking stews and even frying up chicken, it can do just about anything. The best part is that the Instant Pot can cook most recipes in a fraction of the time it would take in the oven or on the stove. Rice, for example, takes just six minutes to cook (not counting the amount of time it takes to build pressure), and there’s no fussing with covering the pot or adjusting the heat. Sometimes, it’s just easier — and much less stressful — to let the Instant Pot take the wheel. — Emma Roth, news writer
How often do you blend things? Is it never? Maybe the reason is that taking out, assembling, and cleaning up after a normal blender is just way too much work. Do you know how many sauces I’ve thickened since getting an immersion blender? This thing is small, quick to set up, and you can mostly clean it with just a blast under the faucet. You’re going to blend so many things. — Jacob Kastrenakes, executive editor
My wife and I bought this small blender to make ourselves smoothies and protein shakes. It’s now used to make purees for our baby. C’est la vie. — Antonio G. Di Benedetto, reviewer
A meat thermometer is essential in my kitchen, and I haven’t found one as easy to use as the Typhur InstaProbe. I just flip and probe, and then I have a temperature reading in seconds — there’s no need to press any buttons or fiddle with any settings. I’ve used it for well over a year and haven’t had to change its batteries once; it always just works when I pull it out of the drawer (not the case with other digital alternatives I’ve tried). It’s also waterproof, so it’s easy to clean. — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, reviewer
One of the first things I did when I got my own place was purchase a food chopper. Perhaps puritan chefs will disagree with my methods, but this saves me so much time. I like to make tikka masala, which requires dicing ginger. If you’ve ever tried to dice ginger, you know that a food chopper would come in handy. This one did break recently, so I’ll probably replace it with a fancier one. — Kylie Robison, senior AI reporter
Spreading knives are fantastic, especially if you make as many sandwiches as I do. The broad, flat blade is perfect for spreading peanut butter, cream cheese, or whatever, and the serrated edge is sharp enough for removing crusts and slicing bagels.
The one I used growing up was a Cutco, a relic of my dad’s brief, unsuccessful stint as a knife salesman. This is not that knife. That knife costs $94 today, which feels like a bit much — even if the one my parents have is still in great shape after 45 years — so I got this Wüsthof instead. The handle isn’t quite as comfortable, but it’s a quarter of the price, so I’ll live. — Nathan Edwards, senior reviews editor
My partner and I have the unfortunate habit of buying interesting foodstuffs with the intention of eventually using them — and then finding them in the back of the fridge two months later, growing something, well, interesting. To try and track what we’ve refrigerated, we tried all sorts of phone and tablet apps, but in the end, what finally worked was a simple, inexpensive, and thin magnetic whiteboard. It sticks to the door of the refrigerator, along with some dry markers, and now we record what entrees and side dishes are in the fridge. As each is consumed, the entry gets erased.
It’s a simple solution, and it’s not perfect. We still occasionally find a scientific experiment blooming in the back of the fridge, but it’s made us a lot less likely to waste food. — Barbara Krasnoff, reviews editor
I never realized how much joy I could get from a grater until my partner and I picked up a Microplane last year. Whether I’m zesting lemons or creating big, pillowy clouds of grated parmesan for my pasta, the Microplane is an absolute pleasure to use. We still keep a big, blunt box grater around for the occasional vegetable, but the Microplane’s sharper blades are better for absolutely everything else.
It’s not just us, either — we’ve since gifted this twice, to rave reviews. And if you know me in real life, then I’m afraid it’s only a matter of time before a Microplane comes your way, too. — Dominic Preston, news editor
It’s kind of weird how much I like our Gripstics. Bag of chips open? Quick, grab a Gripstic. Kids vibing between two different cereals this week? A well-placed Gripstic will ensure they don’t get all squishy. Tiny package of chocolate chips you used for a recipe that is now kind of open in your cupboard for who knows how long? Just fold the top over, slide a Gripstic on it — the small blue one, thank you — and stop worrying so much.
I don’t know about you or your family’s shopping and eating habits, but try as we might to shop on the outside walls of the grocery store, we inevitably come home with many products packaged in single-use plastic bags. That in and of itself is a frustration, only compounded by those same products going bad if they’re not stored properly. The Gripstics are a simple solution to this universal problem, and one that I’m certain has paid for itself many times over. — Christopher Grant, group publisher, The Verge and Polygon
Pretty much every meal I cook includes garlic, so I genuinely don’t know why it took me so long to get a simple garlic press. But ever since I threw one in the cart absentmindedly on a recent IKEA run, it’s become one of my most-used kitchen tools. I still have to peel the garlic, which I find interminably annoying, but I haven’t had to slice or mince garlic since adding it to my utensil drawer. The press turns the garlic into a kind of mush, and it’s not consistent in the pieces it makes (sometimes larger slivers of garlic get caught around the edges of the press), but for my needs, which is mostly just tossing garlic into a sauté pan or a soup, it’s a dream. — Kristen Radtke, creative director
I love a humble piece of bread and butter, but I hate spreading cold, hard butter on bread. Luckily, I haven’t had to since June 2023, when I finally got an airtight ceramic butter dish to store room temperature butter indefinitely. Am I recommending you do the same? No — I’m not prepared to debate anyone on the science behind keeping butter from spoiling. (The FDA says it can be left at room temperature for only one to two days.) All I will say is that the combination of salted butter, an airtight container, and a pair of kids who help me go through it one well-buttered grilled cheese sandwich at a time, has been more than enough to address my own fears.
There are many options like the small Sweese that I use. It just happened to be the first Amazon pick I didn’t return, because it was the first that fit a single block of Kerrygold almost perfectly. — Sean Hollister, senior editor
My mom bought me this strange-looking juicer. I was skeptical at first, but I love how it folds flat so that it doesn’t catch on the shallow drawer that I store my kitchen spatulas in. And, of course, it works well as a juicer and is pretty easy to clean. — Helen Havlak, publisher, The Verge
Once you get a set of narrow measuring spoons, you’ll never go back. Rather than having to carefully pour a teaspoon or tablespoon of spice into a round measuring spoon that doesn’t fit through the neck of your spice jar, you can just scoop directly from the jar. I absolutely love mine for recipes that require a lot of different spices. This stainless steel set from King Arthur Baking feels solid and has held up well for me despite frequent trips through the dishwasher over the last five years. — Helen Havlak, publisher, The Verge
If you’re a backyard chicken owner (or live in Europe or Asia), this elegant countertop egg holder is an excellent way to display your ladies’ efforts and have easy access to eggs. The Hovico Egg Skelter’s metallic spiral design pushes the oldest eggs to the end so you can use them first. It’s then easy to add the newly laid (or purchased) ones to the top. As a bonus, it doubles as a nice decorative piece for your kitchen counter. (Note: fresh, unwashed eggs do not need to be refrigerated as they have a natural coating.) — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, reviewer
We have a drawer full of silicon spatulas in our kitchen that I use exclusively for flipping eggs and nothing else. For any other cooking task, I use my beloved wooden spoon. I love that it’s firm but doesn’t scratch ceramic pots and pans, and there is nothing better for deglazing a pan than a wooden spoon, which perfectly scrapes up all the delicious brown bits of a sear after you add a little vinegar or alcohol. While my other spatulas and spoons have broken or the silicone has begun to tear, my wooden spoon is almost indestructible. Bury me with it. — Kristen Radtke, creative director
