Just moved out of parents house and realized I have zero cooking tools

Just moved out of parents house and realized I have zero cooking tools.

any recommendations on where to get quality cooking tools at reasonable prices?

also any advice on essential tools? im really new to cooking and have nothing.

I like tfal for nonstick.
knives are a nightmare to talk about, the only thing I reccomend is the colorful kuhn rikon shit if you need to bring a knife to a potluck or someplace else it might be lost or abused.
buy cast iron that is old at random, just avoid lodge shit. it's easier to earn the money to buy a bunch of junk to try out than it is to learn how to pick out something nice.

Good non-stick pots and a frying pan, go for a good brand name, such as tefal.

Get a good stainless steel roasting tray, should cost around £8, this will let you roast meat, bake veg and make pasta bakes etc.. Plus can go on the stove to reduce gravy. Ideally get 2.

Look at Kitchen Devil brand knives, cheap, comfy and good steel, the blade angle is generic, so most cheap "sharpeners" will work well with them . Make by Fiskars of Finland. You only need a chefs knife, a bread knife and a small paring knife really. Get a veg peeler also.

Look for good quality silicone utensils, you only really need a few, serving spoons and spatulas are the ones you'll use 90% of the time. Buy a few cheap wooden spoons.

Get a pair of steel tongs (£1.50 max), Oven gloves are useful and cheap. Get plenty of towels.

A good large plastic chopping board can be had cheaply, and get a cheap metal trivet to stand hot pots on when out of the oven or not on the stove top.

With all that and a few other essentials (mixing bowls etc..) You can cook mostly anything

If you have an ikea near you, their kitchen stuff is outrageously cheap for what it is, and has a huge selection.

>buy cast iron that is old at random, just avoid lodge shit.

Explain.

>knives
Chicago Cutlery, cheap as shit and good value. Just get a pull-through sharpener, worry about fancy knife shit later.

Lodge is fine, but you should sand it first. The reason vintage cast is so highly regarded is because it was sanded before it left the factory. Buy Lodge and smooth out the inside with a paint stripping wheel and you'll have something much more comparable to vintage Wagner/Griswold without paying $100 a fucking pan for it.

Quick seasoning primer: Season with Crisco, bacon fat/lard, or flaxseed oil. Wipe the pan down with a little bit, then use a paper towel and remove as much oil as you can while still keeping it wet.
Bake that shit at 450 in your oven until it stops smoking.
Seasoning = polymerized fat, aka burnt-on grease on baking pans. You're literally burning thin layers of grease onto your pan, i.e. if it's not smoking when you bake the pan, you're not doing it right.

old cast iron is mostly better quality than modern stuff, which is usually very thick and with a rough surface (--->Lodge). Also, sometimes nice stuff can be found on flea markets. I once got a really old (all raw cast iron, from before they dipped everything in emaille), but unused and like new Le Creuset skillet - for five dollars.

I second the other user's recommendation about IKEA, they have got some really nice stuff. Good enough for real cooking, but not so nice it will make your heart bleed if you have to give it away after a few years or throw it in the trash because you want nicer stuff. Their 365+ 20cm chef's knife is pretty good.

You could start with a trip to Goodwill/salvation army and get what you can from there. They usually have a nice selection of dishes, pots, pans, cooking utensils....I found a food processor once for $5.

You exaggerate about Lodge.

Have you seen Old Mountain stuff? It's like sand paper itself.

I'm aware the older pans were sanded in the factory but some of them are red dusty hunks of metal when you get them, absolutely fixable, but it requires more work than just sanding a new lodge since you'll probably have to sand and season that old one all over.

I would recommend getting a brand new $10-$15 Lodge and sanding it's inside if you're really irked but it's not even necessary. They are sufficiently preseasoned and if something sticks it isn't the end of the world.

Going to flea markets is always great, but it's always also the luck of the draw. And this piece of advice, going out to garage sales and whatnot, looking for old cast iron is all over now.

I mean, targets fine for someone who just moved out. get yourself what you need. for pans, I honestly just reccommend saving money and spending it on pans that can last you a lifetime. couple all-clad stainless or a cheaper version of them, a cast iron, maybe one good nonstick for eggs and pancakes, etc.

>They are sufficiently preseasoned

agree with everything but this. they are not sufficiently preseasoned. shit will stick. after a little more than a year of having one, I've finally got mine where I want it. I've fried a couple eggs on it. for the first 6 months or so I couldn't do that without it being a bit of a problem. and I had seasoned it quite a bit myself.

you are right about sanding though. completely unnecessary.

I can't attest to that.

I don't use my cast iron for eggs.

yeah I mean, I don't very often either, but I will for like a one pan breakfast sort of thing. If I make someone int he house some bacon I'll fry their egg in it too. not gonna dirty another pan because this fuckboy over here wants an egg.

what DO you make in your cast iron? soon I want to try making my own pizza dough and doing a pan pizza. I'm kind of afraid of dough, since I've fucked up baking things more than once. gonna try it soon though.

I make different stuff, coincidentally:

Pan pizza from last night

My wife's. Sweet peppers and onion.

damn. that looks fucking great user. the crust turn out as good as it looks? mind if I ask where you got the recipe for the dough?

OP, you can safely ignore the cast iron autists ITT. From your post I'm guessing you aren't super into cooking as a hobby. So while cast iron is really nice, it will almost certainly require more fiddling than you're interested in dealing with.

Just go with decent quality anodized aluminum or stainless steel, stick with major brands, and you'll be fine.

Mine, chorizo cantimpalo.

Pizza dough isn't a big deal at all, try store bought first if you like, but I think I like it dryer.

That's a lodge pan, BTW. That one did both pizzas

Go to seriouseats.

I brushed the crust with olive oil and garlic then sprinkled Parmesan on it.

>I don't use my cast iron for eggs.

Huh really makes you think. I use my cast iron for my eggs pretty much every other day.


Guess I keep a good season on mine though, and it's a mid late 20's Griswold, so it's been around.

>Seasoning meme

Not a meme senpai, I cook bacon and eggs literally every other day at least in my cast iron.

Sticking isn't even close to an issue.

Dude. That's my exact setup during the student years.

+mismatched bowls, mugs and cutlery from charity shops for like a quid each

yeah I certainly can now, but I find it hard to control the temp of the pan to get a perfect egg, which I'm sure you could understand. not to mention everyone int he house likes their egg cooked differently. once the pan gets too hot, it's too hot. it's just easier in a nonstick.

oh yeah fair enough, if you aren't cooking with it ALL the time, it can be more difficult to judge your temp for sure.

Remember it's best to spend ~5-10 mins finding your proper temp and THEN adding your food so it doesn't stick, and so you don't scorch anything.
Now that I'm looking at my cast iron though, I haven't applied a new season to it in 5-6 years, I might sand it down and start fresh soon.

I don't.

Can't see a reason.

I want eggs done quick. I'm not waiting for cast iron to warm up.

I mean, after bacon there's no way they could stick. My pan sees regular use to its well seasoned. I just like to use the right tool for the right job, I don't only have cast iron.

Dont you prefer the taste of your eggs in bacon grease?

I like to crisp up some bacon and then just toss an egg or two in there.

Then I just quickly rinse it out and dry it off and if i know i'm not using it for lunch or similar, i'll coat it with a small layer of oil.

Sometimes. I don't always have bacon with my eggs, but I've saved the grease on occasion.

I don't like my scrambled on bacon grease as much as I like over easy.

I'll do an omelette on bacon grease though.

I like over easy and over medium.

I always cook in bacon grease.

To each their own however.