Kitchen Tools Under $10: Functional and Affordable Equipment We Love

Save $$, cook better No Images? Click here   Essential Kitchen Tools for $10 or Less​ Good cooking doesn't require pricey tools. Some of our favorite pieces of equipment cost $10 or less. These inexpensive tools make cooking at home simpler, more streamlined, and more delicious. Get the full story here. A Paring Knife Paring knives aren't so pivotal that you need to shell out for a high-end brand. Instead, we recommend buying one that’s affordable, like this Victorinox model. You can read our review of paring knives here.   A Pie Plate When it comes to pie plates, cheaper really is better. Stick with simple tempered glass, which heats more quickly than stone, for a flaky, golden crust. A Silicone Turner Extend the life of your nonstick pans with a silicone spatula, which won't scrape away the Teflon like its metal counterpart. This one from OXO is a steal.    Vegetable Peelers We've often waxed rhapsodic about why Y-peelers are the best type of peeler for your kitchen. Their carbon steel blades are super sharp, they work well for lefties and righties, and a three-pack costs less than $10. An Oven Thermometer An inaccurate oven can undo all of the hard work you put into your baked goods. Our advice? Invest in this extremely affordable thermometer, and show your oven who’s boss.   A Bench Scraper A bench scraper is an essential tool for any cook, which is why it’s pretty cool that you can get one for under $10. Use this one to portion your pasta dough, transfer chopped vegetables into a big pot, and more. See the rest of our picks and read more equipment reviews here! Essential Kitchen Tools for $10 or Less The Best Immersion Circulators for Sous Vide Cooking The Best Way to Store Your Knives The Best Leave-In Probe Thermometer Serious Eats 88 35th St Ste 602 Brooklyn, NY 11232 Click Preferences to control which emails you receive from Serious Eats. Clicking Unsubscribe will remove you from all Serious Eats emails…which would be sad. Preferences  |  Unsubscribe

Why Some Foods Are Just *Better* At Room Temp

What's new on Serious Eats No Images? Click here FEATURES The Case for Room-Temperature Foods Some foods are best served straight out of the oven or right from the refrigerator, but there are many dishes and delicacies that benefit from being served at room temperature. Read Now TECHNIQUES ​ XO Mazemen: Mix It Up With a Broth-less Ramen Mazemen is a soup-less variety of ramen. This version, made with XO sauce, comes together in about five minutes. Read Now RECIPES Skewer This: 19 Kickass Kebabs for Your Cookout Kebabs are the perfect cookout food—they're infinitely variable, easy to prep ahead of time, quick to cook, and pre-portioned for easy serving Read Now Email Continues After Ad Below THE KITCHEN ESSENTIAL Stainless Steel Skewers Single-use wooden skewers are fine if you don't grill very often, but if you kebab your dinner more regularly, a set of sturdy reusable skewers is a sound investment. Shop Now FEATURES Rejoice! New Catch Holland Herring Season Is Upon Us New catch Holland herring, also known as Hollandse Nieuwe, are a spring delicacy that hails from the Netherlands. Luscious and buttery, the fish is worth seeking out when in season. Read Now TECHNIQUES No-Churn Mascarpone Ice Cream Makes an Easy and Elegant Summer Dessert Where most no-churn ice creams call for a can of sweetened condensed milk, this recipe relies on fresh mascarpone instead, giving the ice cream a light but creamy richness and a nuanced dairy flavor. Read Now   Serious Eats 88 35th St Ste 602 Brooklyn, NY 11232 Click Preferences to control which emails you receive from Serious Eats. Clicking Unsubscribe will remove you from all Serious Eats emails…which would be sad. Preferences  |  Unsubscribe

The Best Air-Fried Chicken Wings: Partner Recipe

Sponsored   Sponsored The Definitive Guide to Perfect Air-Fryer Wings Well, it’s safe to say that we’ve fully jumped on the air-fryer bandwagon. Aside from making conventionally fried foods healthier, air-frying cooks food evenly and quickly, without requiring that you heat up a full-sized oven or pot of oil. But can air-fryer wings compete with their deep-fried counterparts? We set out to find the answer. (Spoiler alert: It's yes.) Our air fryer of choice is the Cuisinart Digital AirFryer Toaster Oven. Unlike single-use air fryers, this is a true kitchen workhorse: It’s a spectacular air fryer with a generously sized basket, but it's also a toaster, oven, convection oven, broiler, and dehydrator. Plus, it comes loaded with a host of useful presets, including one for air-fryer chicken wings.  To start our wing journey, we referred back to The Food Lab. Years ago, Kenji discovered that he could make crispy yet juicy wings in the oven by first coating them in salt and baking powder, then letting them chill uncovered in the fridge overnight. The baking powder adds crunch by increasing surface area, while air-drying helps the wings crisp up faster in the oven. To try this out, we did several rounds of tests, each involving multiple batches of chicken wings. One batch had been coated in kosher salt and baking powder and air-dried, one was coated in just salt and air-dried, and one consisted of wings straight from the package. To begin, we relied on the Cuisinart Digital AirFryer Toaster Oven wings preset, which air-fries the wings at 400°F (200°C) for 25 minutes. They were all amazing—each version had perfectly crispy, salty skin, and each was delicious on its own or smothered in sauce (more on the sauce soon). There were small differences between the three versions. The two versions that had been air-dried had a crackly, almost paper-thin skin and a nice crunch. The third one, which we salted right out of the package and threw into the air fryer with no other prep, had a slightly meatier bite to the crisp skin and a nice crunch, but the meat inside was juicier. One theory behind this is that since the air fryer specifically works to circulate air and draw out moisture as it cooks, you don’t need the extra step of coating the wings in baking powder and air-drying. The wings produced by this extra step weren't bad by any means, but why make the extra effort when the simplest path produces such stellar results? Next, we set out to challenge the wings preset on the toaster oven. Would an appliance really be smarter than us? As it turned out, the preset produced perfect wings every single time. Experimenting with different times and temperatures, or starting low and then cranking up the heat, produced subpar wings. The Cuisinart preset knows what it’s doing. Did we mention you don’t even need to flip the wings? Because air circulates all around the mesh basket, the wings get crisp on all sides, with zero extra work on your part. Air-Fryer Chicken Wings Active time: 5 minutes Total time: 30 minutes Yield: Serves 4 Ingredients Nonstick cooking spray 2 pounds (900g) chicken wings, cut into drumettes and flats 2 teaspoons (8g) kosher salt Directions 1. Line the Cuisinart AirFryer drip pan with aluminum foil. Place the Cuisinart AirFryer basket into the pan and coat with nonstick cooking spray. 2. Thoroughly dry chicken wings with a paper towel, then toss with salt. 3. Place chicken wings in prepared basket, leaving a tiny bit of space between each wing (cook in batches if necessary). Insert into the top position of the Cuisinart AirFryer. Select the AirFry – Wings preset function and cook. 4. When the time is up, the wings should be golden and crispy. Remove pan from Cuisinart AirFryer. Serve wings immediately on their own, or dip in a sauce of your choice. Get Your Digital AirFryer Toaster Oven Today   Serious Eats 88 35th St Ste 602 Brooklyn, NY 11232 Preferences  |  Unsubscribe