Kitchen goodness. What’s in your cook nook?

February 21, 2009

Wandering around the kitchen, I realized that there are at least three – and maybe as many as 1100 – things I can’t live without. This list is limited to the stuff in my kitchen, but your selection might be quite different based on how well stocked your kitchen is or what activities you deem appropriate for this special room.

Here’s my list. Please share yours in the comments. Keep it to five for the purposes of letting everyone have a shot. Thanks.

Scissors. That’s right, scissors have an undeniable spot in my kitchen because they help me get into all types of containers that would otherwise remain sealed to my culinary advances. The delightful foil pouch of cheese that comes with the box of Macaroni and Cheese. *Do you remember when the cheese came in a little can? I do.

Paper towels. I understand that when they’re all used up they will no longer be in my kitchen. But I say DARN to the environment, paper towels are the best way to dry yourself after a shower, to pick up spilled gravy when you’re eating an open-faced turkey sandwich, and perfect for drying hands after ‘someone’s’ bouts of OCD real hand washing.

A fan. Unlike the bathroom where a fan serves three purposes – to mask bad sounds, to unfog the mirror and to remove odors – the kitchen fan has one role. It’s there to keep the smoke detector from going off. The other day, when I nearly melted my teapot from Italy in a distracted moment, the smoke detector screamed like a banshee. No fan would have helped that situation, but in most cases of simple burning the fan will certainly help.

A large magazine like ESPN or Wired. This is necessary for the times when the fan isn’t enough and the smoke detector continues to howl. I’m hoping I haven’t conditioned myself and those around me so well that during a house fire we all rush from our rooms with periodicals in our hands to shut up the detector.

Finally, I cannot live without a dishwasher. Aside from having the paper towels to dry dishes if they ever need to be hand-washed, I contend that you’re an idiot if you own dishes that can’t go in the dishwasher. Note the OCD mention above, I abhor vacuums and getting my hands all icky and foodie and wet. This might go back to my days as a pearl diver (that’s what they used to call dishwashers in restaurants) when I had to support myself for three long days in the bittler Vermont winter of 1984.

But I digress. Got a horror story or a great item that I should adopt for my list? I want to hear it. Leave your comments here. Thanks.

More to come…