Professional chefs keep reaching past thousand-dollar gadgets for their grandmothers’ tools — and will tell you why. Here are five old-school winners.
The Cast Iron Skillet
A well-seasoned cast iron skillet sears harder than most nonstick and lasts generations — chefs call it the last pan you will buy. The secret: polymerized oil built up over years. Keep it dry, oil lightly after use, never soak.
The Box Grater
Chefs still reach for it: fresh-grated cheese melts better, and frozen butter grated into flour makes flakier pastry. Hand-wash immediately, chefs say — dried food in the teeth is the only drawback.
The Wooden Spoon
Chefs prefer wood: it never scratches pans, never conducts heat, never melts into risotto. Olive wood resists staining best. Replace when deeply cracked — at a few dollars, the cheapest tool in the kitchen.
The Manual Can Opener
The vintage butterfly design rarely breaks, leaves smooth edges, and outlives electric models. Chefs say the decades-old gear mechanism was never improved upon. A drop of mineral oil keeps it turning.
The Mortar and Pestle
Hand-ground spices release volatile oils that grinders heat away — chefs insist you taste it in pesto and curry pastes. Heavy granite does the work. Rinse with water only; soap soaks into stone, chefs warn.
Sources: America’s Test Kitchen, Serious Eats