A LOT OF THE APPLIANCES and other recommended pots, pans, cooking utensils or other kitchen tools mentioned on this page come right out of my cookbook, Who's Hungry?
SO, IF YOU EVER WANTED TO COOK LIKE ME or make any of my meals or party beverages, then consider getting them. When you see a certain dish or beverage you’d like to prepare, you’ll know what you need to buy.
ALSO, MAKE A LIST OF WHAT YOU WANT/NEED and shop around. There are deals at certain Asian market stores and Dollar stores for pots, pans, utensils, and the rest. Below is what I have and use.
Do note, I DO NOT RECOMMEND YOU HAVE OR USE A MICROWAVE. I never use a microwave for anything except for the built-in timer it offers. That said, get the following items for your kitchen if you don’t already have them ...
TOASTER OVEN
I do not like using microwaves to heat up my food. I prefer a toaster oven. Toaster ovens are also great for cooking things that you don’t want to cook in the oven. THIS IS A MUST-HAVE to prepare some of the recipes inside my cookbook. For example, I'll toast my hamburger buns, my sandwich, unagi, among other items that I like to heat up quickly.
FOREMAN GRILL
This is my go-to grill of choice when it comes to cooking chicken, salmon, swordfish, etc. Quick to grill, easy to clean, in and out in minutes. How many are in your household? You might get the family size and/or a smaller size grill if it’s just you. The medium-sized grill is best for all occasions.
RICE COOKER
This is how I cook rice for my world famous fried rice. Don’t even waste your time cooking rice the old fashioned way. Rice cookers cook rice faster, tastes better and stores it when you’re not eating it. That said, spend no more than $30-90 on a rice cooker. I’d go for something priced in the middle.
JUICER
If you like to juice fresh fruits and vegetables like I do, then you might get yourself a juicer. I’ve tried a lot of juicers in my time, and to date, I came across this brand of juicer that I really dig. It’s fast, powerful and has a tall (and wide) neck to drop lots of fruit/veggies into without having to cut them up into small pieces. Easy to clean too!
NINJA PERSONAL BLENDER
If you make protein shakes in the morning, there are a lot of really nice blenders out there for just this task. Have you tried the Ninja blender? Wow, this one rocks and comes with a small and large cup to blend your protein drinks in. Add a top and you’ve got it to go! I also use this blender to my famous "hair shakes!"
I also make my party drinks with this blender, such as my world famous "Barty (Party) Smoothie," Piña "Bart-Ladas" and my Very Berry Frozen "Bart-A-Ritas".
NINJA REGULAR BLENDER
I typically like to make my world famous party smoothies in a blender because I can make enough for everybody at a party. If all you have is a blender, then you’re good. If you don’t have a blender, you should consider getting one.
SMOOTHIE BLENDER (OPTIONAL)
If you want to get all fancy and stuff, get yourself a smoothie blender with a spout. BUT, know this... while having a spout is nice, you won’t be able to fill up cups quickly like you can if you just poured them out of the pitcher. So, keep this in mind.
DOS SUEÑOS MEXICAN
16 OZ. HAND BLOWN
MARGARITA GLASSES
Each Mexican blown glass is handmade by skilled artisans using techniques handed down from generation to generation. These traditional blue rimmed margarita glasses showcase iconic Mexican style. Approximately 7" tall and 4.5" in diameter; each glass holds 14 fluid ounces.
BELGIAN WAFFLE MAKER WITH
REMOVABLE PLATES
This is how I cook my amazing, world famous pecan Belgian waffles at home. With easy removable plates, cleaning your waffle iron after use is a snap.
5.5 QUART SAUTÉ
PAN WITH LID
You’ll definitely need a large frying pan with a lid to make many of my dishes, such as the sautéed sweet potatoes, fried rice, Japanese yakisoba stir-fry noodles, soft tacos/burritos mix, among others.
FRYING PANS
To make my world famous omelette or sautéed sweet potatoes or to warm up black beans or anything else, having large, medium and small sized frying pans on hand is a must. ALSO, I highly recommend these 11”, 10” and 9” orange, non-stick pans WITH LIDS. I got mine on Amazon.
COMPLETE SET (POTS + PANS)
Here’s a complete pot / pan set if you’d like to buy them all in one set.
16" MESH PIZZA PAN
Forget stone pizza pans or any pan without holes in it. Holes in the pan are a must, yes, but what's better than a metal pizza pan? Mesh, or screen, design! Why? Because the screen design helps cook the crust to a crunchy golden brown. Others leave the crust soggy and quasi-undercooked in the middle every time. Been there, don't do that, any more. Also, you're going to want to get/have two (2) of these pans on hand. You never know when you'll throw a party and need to make two (2) pizzas. Get different sizes too, if you like. 16" is the largest and what you want if you love pizza, have a family, roommates, etc. Other sizes are nice to have around as extra in case you need that size.
15.5" x 20" Cookie
Baking Sheet
I've used a lot of different types of cookie sheets having baked over 10,000 cookies in my lifetime. That said, the best type of cookie sheet is one without the walls on them and not with walls. I like these flat kind with a little handle-grip on one edge. These types of pans make it easier to slide cookies (or other items) off the pan onto any other service (or another pan) with ease. Dump those cookie sheets with walls on them and get these instead.
OVEN GLOVES
These are my favorite oven mitts (gloves) to use when handling things in and out of the oven. Just slap ‘em on and grab what you need! If the pair isn't available, the single glove might be.
VEGGIE CHOPPER
For those in a real hurry who need to whip up a salad in SECONDS, then this is what you get. It’s super inexpensive and found at most department stores. It will slice and chop your salad into a pile of quickly edible and digestible pieces.
STRAINER
You know what this is for... to drain the hot water from pasta and other noodles you might cook after boiling them. Make sure you have one. Steel or plastic is fine. Your choice.
HANDHELD SILICONE
COLANDER
This is a really convenient item to have when you want to wash anything that doesn't really require you dragging out the big colander. I'll use this to wash black beans before I toss them into a soup or my chicken thigh burrito rice 'n' bell pepper mix.
CHEESE GRATER
I use this to grate carrots for my "world famous" Japanese Yakisoba stir-fry noodles or shred cheese for my homemade burritos if I don't already have shredded cheese bought from the store. You can use a flat grater or I like to use this tall one like the one you see above.
STEEL KNIFE SET
It’s always good to have a nice, sharp set of cutting knives for your use in cutting anything from breads to vegetables, fruit, meat, you name it!
48-PIECE SILVERWARE
SET WITH STEAK KNIVES
If you don’t have a complete set of silverware, why not treat yourself to a set like this one.
DISPOSABLE CHOPSTICKS
Whenever I make my Yakisoba stir-fry noodle dish, I love to eat that meal with chopsticks and not a fork. Well, here's a huge pack of disposable wooden chopsticks perfect for dining on any Asian meal and for very low cost. They are easily separated by hand to allow for a quick and comfortable dining experience.
REUSABLE CHOPSTICKS
Maybe you’re serving one of my elegant Asian dishes to company; well, skip the disposable chopsticks and make a wild impression with these reusable chopsticks. Choose among silver and other flamboyant colors and designs all available on Amazon.
![Delamu Sushi Making Kit 27 in 1 [Parent-Child] Sushi Kit, for Beginners/Pros Sushi Makers, with Bamboo Sushi Mats](https://images.groovetech.io/-tAH-JdiqI_7zkA9G7a1oR4TTY05D7EW98itk8zAVJ8/rs:fit:0:0:0/g:no:0:0/c:0:0/aHR0cHM6Ly9hc3NldHMuZ3Jvb3ZlYXBwcy5jb20vaW1hZ2VzLzVmODc2NWYyMGRlNjFiMDA2ODJjNDVmNi8xNzE5ODIyNzYzX3N1c2hpa2l0LmpwZw.webp)
SUSHI MAKING KIT
All-in-one kit for making sushi and sushi rolls. The kit includes a bazooka sushi roller, bamboo sushi mats, animal-shaped/triangle/nigiri/gunkan sushi maker, sushi knife, avocado slicer, oil brush, chopsticks, chopstick holders, sauce dishes, spreader, rice paddle, and the guide book - you name it.
If you really want to take your sushi making to the next level, check out this 42-piece all-in-one sushi making kit. It even comes with a rice cooker. If you don't have one, don't worry. It comes with one.
Brown Sugar Saver
& Softener Disc
This food-safe brown sugar keeper softens hard brown sugar. All you have to do is soak the disc in water, pat it dry, and store it in your brown sugar container or kitchen canisters.
ELECTRIC CAN OPENER
Here's the electric can opener. What's nice about these is you can set it to open the can, turn your attention elsewhere for a few seconds to do something else (i.e., meal prep, gather other ingredients, etc.) and voila! The can is opened automatically for you.
SILICONE “SCRAPER”
I use this for a lot of things, but my favorite use is to flip my "world famous" Omelette. I could use a spatula, but I prefer a scraper.
SPATULAS
Be sure you have a spatula and different designs. If plastic or Teflon, replace it with a new one if it shows wearing or peeling or at least every 3-6 months. Truth is, you can pick many of these up at your local dollar store. That's what I'd do.
PANCAKE SPATULA
For many uses, I also like to have a very large/wide spatula for flipping pancakes of relocating cooked pieces of chicken off my Foreman grill onto a plate so I can slice 'em up for faster cooking.
TURNER SPATULA
I love this type of spatula. I like its extra wide design which makes it easier to turn fish in a pan, scoop up a slice of pizza, you name it!
KITCHEN UTENSILS SET
Here's a 7-piece kitchen utensil set which includes a slotted spoon, a slotted turner, a fish turner, a turner, a soup ladle, a solid spoon, and a pasta server.
PASTA SERVER
In case you don't have one of these and you just need to get this one item, here it is. I use this to scoop out pasta or my Yakisoba Japanese stir-fry noodles. A must-have. Again, you can buy these for real cheap at most Dollar Stores and similar.
GLASS CUTTING BOARD
If you can find one and can afford it, I’d suggest using a glass cutting board. Plastic and wood cutting boards ultimately erode leaving tiny slivers of wood and plastic in your food as you slice them over time. Not so with a glass cutting board. Plus, you can easily put the glass cutting board in the dishwasher unlike a wood cutting board or even plastic. Just a thought.
MIXING BOWLS WITH
POUR SPOUT, SET OF 2
I love these types of mixing bowls because they have a handle and a spout to pour out whatever is in your mixing bowl. They’re light-weight too. I have three of them. You can get these on Amazon.com.
PLASTIC FUNNELS
These different sized funnels are great to have on hand when you need to pour liquids or even powders into bottles of water, for example, or anything else you can think of.
STEAMER BASKET
While I don't use these as much anymore to steam just the few vegetables (i.e., broccoli, cauliflower and carrots) I might put in my salad or as a side dish, they are nice to have on hand when the need arises and you wished you had something like this in your kitchen.
MULTI-PIECE POT,
PAN & UTENSIL SET
You don’t have to shop for kitchen tools one by one. You can find whole sets on Amazon.com. So, look around!
15-PIECE NONSTICK
KITCHEN POTS, PANS &
COOKING UTENSILS SET
Again, search Amazon.com for great deals on sets of pots, pans and cooking utensils. As you can see, you get several cooking essentials in this kit: It’s non-stick kitchen cookware set in safe and durable aluminum for all kinds of everyday cooking activities. Even the kitchen tools, such as pots and pans are included. You also get 5 heat resistant non-stick cooking utensils. This set was about $50 at the time of this printing. So, look online at Amazon.com.
CHEFMAN ELECTRIC KETTLE WITH 1-TAP START/STOP & AUTO SHUT-OFF
A MUST-HAVE water boiling appliance if you want to save time and boil water FAST! Forget the stove and boiling water in a pot and you can definitely forget boiling water in the microwave. THAT is a BIG NO-NO. NO MICROWAVES. Anyhow, this electric water boiling kettle is genius and simple. Add water, tap lever to begin boil, prepare your tea if you like, and within two minutes, your water is ready to pour into mugs or a tea maker pitcher like the one I have below.
Takeya Premium Quality 1
Quart Iced (or Hot) Tea Maker
THIS IS A MUST-HAVE if you want to make iced or hot tea conveniently. This pitcher keeps your tea cold or hot for at least an hour or longer. I LOVE THIS PITCHER! It's safe for use with hot water and can withstand boiling water. After boiling my water in my electric water kettle (above), I'll pour my hot water into the pitcher then insert the lid with tea bag container. Let it sit for 30 minutes, come back and you've got the perfect tea waiting for you. My pitcher serves 2 cups of tea easily. Can be stored in the fridge door if you want to keep your tea chilled.
TEA STATION ORGANIZER COUNTERTOP STORAGE
Efficient organization: Keep your tea collection in order with this tea bag organizer, designed to declutter small spaces like your pantry ...
Easy accessibility: The open design and removable drawers provide clear visibility, allowing you to quickly select the desired flavor without any hassle ...
Secure and stable: Even when fully filled, the removable rubber feet prevent the organizer from tipping, ensuring stability and peace of mind ...
Customizable tea storage: With nine drawers specifically designed for tea bags, you can categorize them by flavor, brand, or caffeine content. Additionally, two extra bottom drawers offer space for sweeteners, stirrers, and creamers ...
PERSONALIZED APRON EMBROIDERED CHEF ANY NAME DESIGN ADD A NAME
(FOR MEN & WOMEN)
Add that personal touch with a custom name embroidered on the front of this chef apron. A unique gift for any occasion! This chef apron is inspired by professional chefs and their aprons. Choose what color apron you want and font for your text. Machine embroidered with great detail, this apron will make you stand out in the kitchen! Made with cotton / polyester for superior comfort and durability, this chef apron will last for years. With two pockets, it's perfect for storing your cooking utensils or supplies. Made in the USA.
PERSONALIZED CHEF
NAME EMBROIDERED APRON
WITH CUSTOM TEXT
(FOR MEN & WOMEN)
Add that personal touch with a custom name embroidered on the front of this chef apron. This chef apron is inspired by professional chefs and their aprons. Choose what color apron you want and font for your text. Machine embroidered with great detail, this apron will make you stand out in the kitchen! Made with cotton / polyester for superior comfort and durability, this chef apron will last for years. With two pockets, it's perfect for storing your cooking utensils or supplies. Made in the USA.
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