If I wanted to outfit a new kitchen from scratch, what pots, pans, tools, implements, etc. are absolute necessities for general, day-to-day good cooking? I guess we should also include basic pantry stock as well? So, what is it that I should absolutely not live without?
SC
A damned good set of pots and pans- at least 2 frying pans (I have 3); 1-qt, 2qt and maybe a bigger sauce pans (having 2 “medium” sizes is always helpful0; a good stock pot (I have 2). Don’t forget baking sheets.
Utensils- a few wooden spoons/spatulas just in case, but I try to stick to metal (less potential contamination)- a big solid spoon, a big slotted spoon, two spatulas, a pasta thing (spoony-thing with teeth), a pair of tongs, and a couple of those silicon spatulas for getting cake batter out of the bowl. Also a 1-cup and a 2-cup liquid measuring cup, a set of dry measuring cups, and a set of measuring spoons.
Some specialty pots & pans- a good quality wok, an electric frying pan (I have my grandma’s and it still rocks).
Mixers & blenders- a hand blender (that stick thing), a standard blender, a hand mixer and a stand mixer. Each of these serves a specific purpose and if you need one, it can be difficult to substitute another.
Pyrex- at least 3 or 4 Pyrex glass bakers with lids (I have my mom’s).
Knives- I am a firm believer in great knives. A good basic cook’s set should run you well over $100, but don’t scrimp- nothing sucks worse than a shitty knife. Also get a specialty set for paring and a good set of steak knives.
Cutting boards- I rarely use wooden cutting boards anymore (contamination issues). Rather, I have a set of flexible plastic cutting boards that I use for prep (and everything else- one lives on my counter). Some are color-coded for specific foods (meat, fish, veggies) but I don’t bother with that- I just wash & bleach them in between jobs. A spray bottle of bleach solution near the sink is handy for all sorts of things.
Appliances- a toaster, a coffee maker, at least one tea pot, a juicer.
Fun stuff- extras like loaf pans, food mills, milk shake machines, indoor grills- handy but not necessary (except the grill- if I didn’t have a BBQ, I couldn’t live without it).
I’m sure I’m forgetting a bunch of stuff, but the Dopers will catch me up! 
Dishes- enough to eat for at least two days without having to do dishes! 
A set of 8 place settings is standard for 3 or more people, and then you have enough for company (12 would be extravagant unless you have a need, probably). You should also invest in a completer set with your dishes- serving pieces, etc. Your mom will be very impressed if you don’t serve the veggies in a Tupperware…
A set of tempered glass dishes, either graduated sizes or all one size (I prefer graduated sets of 12). They should be dishwasher, microwave and oven-safe.
Tupperware- a decent set should suit at first. Later you will know which sizes you need most and you can buy more of that size.
Flatware- no need to splurge, but get some decent stainless at least! I would get a set of 8 place settings, with two forks, a knife, and two spoons each. Also a couple of big spoons for serving.
Basics in my pantry/storage-
Dry pastas of several shapes, rice, dry beans if you eat them (we don’t).
Oils- extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil at the very least. Maybe some Pam too.
Soups- several cans of favorites.
Energy bars, Pop Tarts, & the like.
Canned goods (includes jars)- olives, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce & paste, artichoke hearts, pasta sauce, cooking sauces, pickles. Also some shelf-stable foods and meals from Trader Joe’s!
Breads- bread, tortillas, cous cous, croutons.
The fridge- salad veggies, dinner veggies, milk, meats & cheeses.
The freezer- meats, kid food (pizza, fish sticks, chicken strips), desserts, microwavable prepared foods.
I’m sure that’s not all…
Get two (or more) sets of measuring spoons, and two sets of your dry and liquid measuring cups. Once you’ve used a teaspoon for the vanilla, it’s much nicer to have a dry one on hand for that baking soda you need to add than to have to go wash it.
Nobody mentioned coffee production equipment, but that’s very personal and not something one is likely to forget, at least not after the first morning!
Ikea sells a good starters set. You could buy that one, or take cues from it; I suppose they put some research into what the set should consist of.
Three knives: a paring knife, a chef’s knife, and a cleaver. Carbon steel, not stainless steel, and a sharpening stone. Get this right first, rather than spending a lot of money on knives that “never need sharpening”–there’s no such thing–and realizing way too late in life how much money and frustration you could’ve saved during your life if you’d just listened to my grandfather. (N.B.: you may need to scour the Goodwills and Salvation Army stores to find them, but then you’ll get them that much cheaper. A great carbon steel cleaver can be found for next to nothing at a hardware in any “Chinatown” district. Buy your sharpening stone there too, for like $6, instead of paying $30+ for the same thing at a kitchen store.)
And a 1960s or 70s edition of The Joy of Cooking.
Are there any specific brands to buy or avoid?
And which types of pots and such should a kitchen have? Cast iron, steel, that speckly blue and white type stuff? Moving into the first apartment/house soon, so i LOVE this thread!
There are so many different kinds of pots and pans, and everyone has their favorite. My advice is become a regular at your local Goodwill and Salvation Army and try different types cheaply. Me, I’ve settled on the following (more or less):
[ul]
[li]A large cast iron skillet[/li][li]A small cast iron covered pot[/li][li]4 glass bread pans[/li][li]2 glass pie pans[/li][li]2 glass lasagna pans[/li][li]2 cookie sheets[/li][/ul]
These are copper-bottomed Revere:
[ul]
[li]A giant soup pot[/li][li]1 large sauce pan[/li][li]2 medium saucepans[/li][li]1 small saucepan[/li][/ul]
Uh . . . I’ll probly remember what I forgot later.
If you work full time I would say a microwave & a crockpot are essentials! Also nice to have is an electric wok.
Has anyone mentioned a toaster? If not, then I will!
Good answers everyone. But I guess maybe I should elaborate a little bit. I’m a 40-something year old male, married for 20+ years, but my wife really doesn’t cook much, and I’d like to start being more serious about it myself. We’ve got a basic selection of pots & pans, etc., but it’s mostly pretty cheap, low-end stuff. I’ve been watching a lot of cooking type shows lately, Top Chef, Good Eats, etc. and feel like it’s time to step up my game.
That said, I’d like to start over with most of our kitchenware. I’ve got a good 10" cast iron skillet (well seasoned - yay!), a medium sized non-stick frying pan, several sauce pans of various sizes, a couple of Pyrex and ceramic baking and casserole dishes, a Chef’s knife I dearly love, and a couple of cheap cookie sheets & pie pans. I like the idea of the hand-blender mentioned by EJsGirl, and I can definitely see the value in multiple sets of measuring stuff as suggested by bink, but what about double boilers, rice steamers, and mandolin slicers? What should I get if I want to get SERIOUS about my cooking?
SC
A mandolin is a PAIN in the ASS, but it opens up an entirely new universe of cooking options. It takes nine times as long to set up, break down, and clean, than it does to turn five pounds of potatoes into perfect shoestrings, but you just can’t make hashbrowns any other way once you’ve got one.
A double boiler gives you options that you wouldn’t otherwise have too, but if you have two saucepans of just the right size, you can fake it.
A rice steamer is great if you eat a LOT of rice. I eat a lot of rice (not a LOT), but I use my rice steamer to make soup. It’s awesome for making a 25¢ packet of ramen noodles taste like a million bucks. I may buy another rice steamer and actually use it for rice . . .
So, lissener, just how do you make soup in a rice steamer? I’m intrigued.
On another note, is a stand mixer and a food processor must haves for serious cooking?
If you’re on a desert island with your mandolin, you can live without your processor. But it makes a lot of things much easier. Again, only if you don’t count cleanup time. But I’ll never make pie crust or biscuits again if something happens to my processor.
A stand mixer is one of those luxuries–like a dishwasher or a cell phone–that you can along fine without, until you get one. Then you’re screwed.
Stock your freezer when meat is on sale. Freeze individual pieces of chicken to thaw for a meal. Boneless, skinless breast can go with just about anything, and doesn’t need to be completely thawed (in fact, it’s usually easier) to cut up and use. Chicken thighs and legs are often on available at low prices and will add some fat and depth to meals based on chicken breast. Big packages of pork chops go on sale regularly–again, freeze them individually and pull out what you need for a meal. Ground beef and ground turkey in large amounts can be portioned out and frozen. Bacon, sausage, kielbasa-- all can be frozen before or after cooking. My freezer is full of this stuff! If you see something that’s a real deal (ooh, pork tenderloin! ooh, thin cut steaks for sandwiches!), buy it and freeze it.
I buy quart-sized, ziptop freezer bags and label/date everything with a Sharpie. And I don’t have a dedicated freezer. Just the top shelf of my regular fridge/freezer. Add a variety of items from your pantry, and dinner is easy.
Yes, shopping at Costco and freezing meat has been a Godsend.
A flexible, plastic bowl scraper, costs anywhere from $1 to $2. You will be amazed.
a potato masher… i didnt realize how much i needed one until i didnt have it… perfect for potatoes or mashing fruit toppings for shortcakes, waffles, etc…
Serious cooking is, IMHO, about simple but top quality tools and know-how. I would focus on upgrading your pans. Key things to look for are heavy enough weight to avoid hot spots, sturdy handles, good-fitting lids, and a mix of non-stick and conventional. Your cast iron is a great start! Having the right pan for the job is important, too, so get varied sizes and shapes. Having some that can go from stovetop to oven is convenient (no plastic or wooden handles).
As mentioned, good knives are also important.
You are really 90% there with good pans and knives.
The next is to focus on cookbooks that teach technique. Cooking shows are good at selling the sizzle, but I don’t think they’re the best way for you, personally, to step up your game. Joy of Cooking is great. I’m also a fan of How to Cook Without a Book by the America’s Test Kitchen/Cook’s Illustrated folks. A subscription to Cook’s Illustrated is also a great idea. I don’t actually have it, but Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything is another highly recommended cookbook.
Some little things - If you don’t already have a cheese grater, that’s a must. Pre-grated cheese is expensive and lower-quality. A microplane grater is nice. Also, a gravy separator is useful for making your own gravies and stocks.
Wooden spatulas or rather wooden spoons with flat ends. I have four of various shapes and I rarely use any other shape now. They are great for cooking meat, stirring sauces, whatever, a flat ended spoon is the best choice.
If you are talking about getting serious, then you probably do need the food processor and the stand mixer. A cheesecake is a bear without a stand mixer. Breads and cakes and cookies are a lot easier with one as well. Food processors are the best way to make pestos, dressings, mayonaises, and yes, buscuits. (I love doing biscuits in mine too.) I rarely even pull out the grating/slicing attatchments for mine. That’s not why I have it.
I’m also very fond of my “chef’s” pan. I’ve also seen them called “everyday” pans. They are like a frying pan but larger with two small handles rather than one large handle. They always come with a lid. You want one at least 12" but a 14" is better.