You’ve bought a grocery cart full of healthy foods including lean meats, fish, and fresh produce. Now what? Plain baked chicken, salads, and boiled veggies can get rather boring. Luckily, you don’t have to make that the only options if you have the right tools.
Herbs and spices instantly change the flavor of a dish. They can make the same chicken breast into Mexican (chili, cumin), Italian (rosemary, thyme, basil, oregano), Indian (curry, cumin), or anything you want without adding calories. Mrs Dash has several different blends that are salt free. When I was living in the dorms, I carried a small bottle of the Table Blend in my bag to use in the dining hall instead of salt.
Onion and garlic are great antioxidants. When sauteed in a little olive oil, they can add pizazz to veggies, sauces, or casseroles. Throw in some mushrooms and rosemary for a great way to top meats like pork cutlets. You don’t even need to buy a garlic press or chop garlic . You can buy jars of minced garlic. Avoid garlic salt, though. You don’t need all the sodium.
A good non-stick fry pan and/or cast iron skillet is a must. Don’t buy cheap pans. They don’t cook or last as well. You’ll use less oil for healthy meals. Only use plastic or wood utensils in your non-stick pans to keep from scratching them. If you cut meats to check doneness, remove the piece to a cutting board first. A word of caution is that teflon (the coating that makes pans non-stick) can emit dangerous fumes for pet birds and young children if allowed to overheat or burn. If that is a concern for you, a cast iron pan would be a good investment. Just don’t submerge a hot pan in cold water. It will crack. Another good thing about cast iron is it can go from stove top to oven for one pot meals.
Another useful pan to get is a steamer pot. Steamed veggies taste so much better, are healthier, and use less water than boiled. Don’t just get one of those flimsy drop in steamers. Sure, they are cheap, but they don’t last. Plus, because they have short legs, you can’t put much water under them for steaming larger amounts of veggies or harder veggies like carrots and asparagus. I usually ended up either boiling the pot dry or having the things on the bottom get mushy from adding too much water so they boil instead of steam. A steamer pot has 3 parts. One is the larger, lower pot for water. The upper basket drops in and lid fits over it all. A good one will cost $30-$60, but is worth the investment. Mine is a 3 quart from Farberware. Since getting the steamer pot, I rarely boil veggies anymore except potatoes.
A recent addition to my kitchen in a crock pot/slow cooker. Mine is a 3 quart pot given as a gift by my brother, but they come in smaller and larger versions too. You can put meat, beans, or veggies along with seasonings in it to cook on busy days while you are out. They are especially popular on Sundays. People load them up then go to church. A hot meal is ready when you get home in the afternoon. However, they can easily be used any day.
Various sauce pans. Again, don’t buy cheaper one since they don’t cook as well or last as long. Make sure at least one has a good fitting lid for cooking rice. You don’t necessarily need a special rice cooker, especially if you have limited space. I actually had one, but never used it. I finally gave it away. It was just taking up counter space.
A kitchen timer. This can be built-in your microwave or stove or separate. I like mine separate because it will work during a power outage along with the gas burners. Don’t rely on a regular clock. Yes, you can check the time and figure when something will be done. However, it’s too easy to get busy, distracted, or just plain forget and burn whatever you’re cooking. Someone once told me they could burn anything, even plain water. I always laughed, until it happened to me (pan boiled dry before I remembered to add whatever I needed to the water). Always set the timer. If you are cooking things that need different times, set it for the one that gets done first. Then set it again for the time remaining on the next item after the first is done.
A good set of kitchen knives including scissors. A serrated knife, paring knife, carving knife, and bread knife. I actually have a few different sizes of serrated knives depending upon what I’m cutting. Several of my paring knives I’ve gotten over the years at store promotional events. You know, those presentations in the stores where they cut a penny then a tomato and give away a small paring knife to tempt you into buying the full set. I also included kitchen scissors in this list because scissors are sometimes more useful than a knife for trimming fat or opening a package. However, do not use your kitchen scissors on paper or paper/cloth scissors in the kitchen. Get scissors specifically designed for kitchen use and only use them in the kitchen.
So there you have all the basic tools to cook healthy, interesting meals. You can add other fancy gadgets and gizmos, but the ones I’ve listed above I’d consider necessary to any kitchen.
Keep it moving! Once you start…”
That’s unacceptable. I need to push play today.
It’s the first time in months I’ve been able to break through into 160′s. Turbo Fire is supposed to help break through plateaus, but I wasn’t expecting it after just the first workout. Hopefully it wasn’t just a fluke. However, it’s great motivation to keep going with the exercise and healthy eating.
