Prepping Your Kitchen
Tips and tools for the locavore’s success in the kitchen.
Things are coming to life in the garden and the start of CSA farm shares approaches. While I’m salivating in anticipation of the local abundance to be had, it’s worth checking in with my kitchen to see if it’s ready to accommodate the bounty!
A well-stocked kitchen needn’t be full of gizmos and gadgets. A few basic kitchen tools will help you enjoy the flavors of the field.
KITCHEN TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT
A few key pieces of equipment to keep in your kitchen:
Large bowls for washing veggies, mixing salads and countless other kitchen tasks.
A good sized colander for rinsing and draining.
A sharp knife, preferably of a larger size to handle burly vegetables (think rutabaga, kohlrabi, winter squash).
A large cutting board to maximize your work space.
A vegetable peeler, not only great for removing the skin from older veggies (e.g. carrots stored over the winter) but wonderful for creating thin strips of vegetables to add to your dish.
A few quality, heavy-bottomed pots and pans. Number and size will depend on your household size and cooking tendencies. I have three sizes of cast iron skillets that are used for the lion’s share of cooking in my kitchen. I avoid cooking tools made from plastic or coated with various non-stick materials. Plastic doesn’t mix well with heat, and non-stick items are easily scratched.
There’s a good chance that you already have these kitchen staples on hand, in which case you are well equipped to manage the onslaught of seasonal veggies! If you are working to build your kitchen and are limited financially, second-hand stored usually have a thriving kitchen department from which you can likely hunt down most of these items.
Specialty tools to consider:
Salad spinner. To spin or not to spin? Garden City Harvest staff members share their thoughts in this video.
Small, serrated knife for slicing soft fruits. Different from a paring knife, this knife prevents squishing of extra-delicate items (think strawberries, tomatoes, and peaches).
Preserving equipment — Many of these items are available to check out through the MUD Tool Library!
Canning tools
Fermentation tools
Dehydrator
Freezer bags
Mortar and pestle, great for small batches of pesto, grinding spices, and crushing garlic
Food Processor -- grating, slicing, pureeing large batches of food (grated zucchini, winter squash, pesto)
VEGETABLE STORAGE
Since most of your vegetables are destined for the refrigerator, now is the time to stop procrastinating and give your fridge the deep clean it deserves! Clear out the half-eaten jars of who-knows-what and use up (or compost) those partial vegetables hanging in plastic-bag-limbo. By giving yourself a fresh start you will at once clear your mind and make space for the influx of fresh veggies.
Most vegetables store best in airtight conditions.
Plastic bags of all sorts and plastic clamshells from store-bought greens are great reusables for keeping veggies fresh.
Some items do well without refrigeration.
Herbs like parsley and cilantro are happy on the counter in a glass of water. Not only does this free up space in the refrigerator, but it serves to remind us to add herbs to our meals! Green onions also store well this way.
A useful tip from Genevieve: make a list of your veggies before you put them in the fridge. Use this list to help with meal planning and reduce the likelihood of letting things go bad. You can write it directly on most fridge doors with a dry-erase marker!
ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS
In addition to vegetables, keep your kitchen stocked with the fats, proteins and spices you’ll use to create delicious, healthy meals.
Buy staples in bulk
The Good Food Store has a vast selection of bulk options, including bulk grains, dry beans, spices and oils.
Pro tip: you can bring your own containers to refill, great for oils and vinegars!
Butterfly Herbs and Meadowsweet Herbs also have incredible selections for bulk spices and herbs.
READY, SET, COOK!
We hope that you’re as excited to dive into another season of local food as we are, and we dare you to try some new things this year! Making your own stock? Trying out a new method of food preservation? Cooking more meals from home? Whatever your comfort level in the kitchen, there’s always more to explore.
Here’s to another delicious season of farm-fresh veggies!
”There is [a] fundamental joy in cooking, born of the pleasure of using our senses— moving our fingers through a bunch of herbs, listening to the sizzle of onions, watching the colors brighten while vegetables cook, inhaling the fragrance of aromatic oils. This sensual involvement draws us into the process of cooking and teaches us about it[…]Because these small but stellar moments occur even when cooking the simplest foods, they’re present for the beginning cook as well as the expert.”
-Deborah Madison, The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone