Gift guide · 12 ideas
Gifts for people who love to cook
For the cook with the basics covered and opinions about all of them: tools that make a real difference, and that they’d rarely buy themselves.
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People who love to cook are hard to buy for in a particular way. They already have the knife they like, the pans they trust and a drawer of gadgets other people gave them, and they have opinions about all of it. What’s usually missing is the next step up: the thermometer they keep meaning to get, a pan that really sears, a scale for the bread recipe written in grams. A move to a new kitchen is the best excuse to fill those gaps.
So everything here is either a clear upgrade on something they use every day or a tool they’d love and never buy for themselves, and nothing is a one-trick gadget for the back of the cabinet. Each idea comes with our pick from one of our top lists.
An instant-read thermometer
Plenty of serious home cooks still judge a steak by pressing it and the Thanksgiving turkey by the clock. A fast instant-read settles it in a second or two, and it’s as handy for bread, caramel and frying oil.
ThermoMonster 0.5 Sec Instant-Read Meat Thermometer (HT09)
$10–$20
A thermocouple tip gives a reading in half a second, to within half a degree on ThermoMonster’s NIST-certified figure, and the big screen turns itself the right way up in either hand. Pick it up and it wakes; put it down and it sleeps.
What owners say: The quickest and clearest thermometer many owners have had, with a big screen and numbers they trust; several say it has stood up well to regular use.
A closer look: Push the tip into the thickest part of the meat, away from the bone, and press the lock before you pull it out of a hot oven so you can read it at arm’s length. It runs on one AAA battery, which comes in the box along with its calibration certificate.
- Reads in 0.5 seconds
- Accurate to ±0.5°F
- Wakes when picked up
A spice grinder
Cumin, coriander and peppercorns toasted in a dry pan and ground a minute before they go in taste nothing like the jars on the rack. A small blade grinder kept just for spices does it in seconds, and it ends up on the counter for good.
BLACK+DECKER One Touch Coffee Grinder (CBG110S)
$20–$30
A compact stainless steel blade grinder with one push-button: short bursts give a coarse crack, a longer hold a fine powder. The blades only spin with the lid locked in place, and it takes whole spices, herbs and grains as readily as the coffee it’s sold for.
What owners say: Fast, turning beans fine enough for espresso in about 20 seconds, and quieter than many, owners say, with plenty of kitchens using it for spices too. Some had one stop working early, and cleaning is a sticking point for others.
A closer look: Hold the button in short bursts and give the grinder a gentle shake between them for an even grind; a few seconds suits a French press and longer gives a finer grind for drip. Brushing the bowl out with a dry pastry brush after each use stops old grounds turning stale inside.
- One-button blade grinder
- Holds 2/3 cup of beans
- Hold longer for finer grounds
A one-pot multi-cooker
Chili, short ribs and Sunday sauce all start with browning the meat, and a good cook hates washing a skillet and a stockpot for one dinner. Most make do until someone gives them a pot that does both.
Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker PRO 8-in-1 (8.5 qt)
$150–$200
Sears, sautés, steams, braises, bakes and slow cooks in one 8.5-quart pot, which then goes in the oven and onto the table. It heats from the base and the sides, so it can simmer and brown like a pan on the stove.
What owners say: Owners like that one pot can sear, slow cook and boil, find the controls easy to work out and say there’s room for a big family. The nonstick coating chipping early is the worry a few raise.
A closer look: A full rack of ribs or a whole brisket fits in the pot, and the glass lid lets you check on it without lifting. Ninja suggests washing the nonstick pot by hand to keep the coating at its best, and the base is about 16.5 in wide, so measure the counter first.
- 8.5-quart pot
- 8 cooking functions
- Heats from base and sides
A tri-ply stainless skillet
Most kitchens run on nonstick, which suits eggs but never browns meat the way bare steel does. Anyone who’s only had coated pans will taste the difference in the first steak and its pan sauce.
All-Clad D3 Stainless Steel Fry Pan with Lid (12 in)
$100–$150
Uncoated tri-ply steel with an aluminum core bonded all the way up the sides, so it heats evenly, sears well and, with no coating to wear out, can go under the broiler or into the oven at up to 600°F. All-Clad has made its bonded pans in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, since the company began in 1971.
What owners say: Owners rave about how evenly it heats and how well it browns steaks and chops, and find it roomy enough for a family meal. Some find cleanup easy and others a chore, and a few have had food stick.
A closer look: Bare steel asks for a different habit from non-stick: heat the pan on medium for a couple of minutes, add the oil, then let meat sit until it lets go on its own before turning it. Washing by hand keeps the polish, and a soak in warm soapy water lifts anything stuck on.
- 12-inch tri-ply stainless steel
- Oven safe to 600°F
- Steel lid included
A digital kitchen scale
American recipes run on cups, but bread, pastry and European cookbooks work in grams. A scale makes a recipe come out the same every time, with one bowl to wash instead of a stack of measuring cups.
OXO Good Grips 11 lb Stainless Steel Food Scale with Pull-Out Display
$50–$75
The display pulls away from the base, so a wide mixing bowl or a dinner plate never hides the numbers. The stainless steel platform lifts off for washing and resists fingerprints, and it reads in 1/8 oz or 1-gram steps up to 11 lb.
What owners say: The pull-out display is what owners rave about, especially under big plates and bowls; they also like the large, clear numbers, how accurate it is and the platform lifting off to clean, though not everyone thinks it justifies the price.
A closer look: The unit button switches between ounces, pounds, grams and kilograms, so a recipe from a British or European cookbook is as easy to follow as an American one. When you’re done, the display slides back into the base, and OXO’s Better Guarantee promises a repair or replacement if anything goes wrong.
- Weighs up to 11 lb
- Removable stainless steel platform
- Pull-out display
A Japanese mandoline
Paper-thin potatoes for a gratin, radishes for a salad, matchsticks for slaw: faster and more even than the best knife work. It’s a tool most home cooks would happily use and rarely buy for themselves.
Benriner No. 64 Japanese Mandoline (2.5 in blade)
$30–$50
A light, plain Japanese slicer with a razor-sharp blade: a dial on the base sets the thickness from 0.3mm to 5mm, and three comb blades slot in for fine, medium or coarse julienne.
What owners say: A professional-quality slicer with a very sharp blade, by most accounts, quick to assemble and easy to rinse clean under the faucet. Its size splits opinion: right for most vegetables, too small for some.
A closer look: Turn the dial before slicing and try a spare piece first, as the thinnest end gives almost see-through slices of cucumber or radish. The julienne combs slot in and out for matchsticks, and the finger guard takes over once the vegetable gets too short to hold.
- Slices 0.3 to 5mm
- 3 julienne blades included
- Made in Japan
Heads up: Wash it by hand and dry the blade right away: Benriner’s US agent says hand-drying keeps the edge sharp longest.
View on Amazon See our top 5 mandoline slicers →A guided knife sharpener
A good knife goes dull in most kitchens, because freehand sharpening takes practice nobody has time for. A cook who winces as a tomato skin slips under the blade can fix that in an evening.
Work Sharp Precision Adjust Elite Knife Sharpener
$100–$150
A clamp holds the knife while you sweep diamond stones across the edge at any angle from 15° to 30°, set in single degrees, so a Japanese santoku, a Western chef’s knife and a hunting knife each get the edge they were made with.
What owners say: A consistent edge, knife after knife, and a setup most people work out quickly; the weak spot some mention is the clamp, which can let a blade shift during a long session.
A closer look: The first sharpening takes a while, as you set the angle and work through the coarse plate; after that, a few strokes on the fine plate and the strop bring the edge back. Check the knife is seated firmly in the clamp before each pass. It suits someone with a block of good knives and some patience.
- Set any angle, 15–30°
- Clamp holds the knife
- Finishes on a leather strop
A carbon steel wok
A real stir-fry needs more heat than nonstick is made for, and a carbon steel wok thrives on it. It darkens and grows slicker with every use, so it’s a present that gets better the more they cook.
Souped Up Recipes 12.5-Inch Carbon Steel Wok with Lid
$30–$50
Natural, uncoated carbon steel, pre-seasoned so it’s ready for a first stir-fry, with a flat bottom that sits steady on electric, induction and gas stoves. It takes fierce heat and metal utensils, and comes with a wooden lid, a steel spatula and a link to Souped Up Recipes’ video recipes.
What owners say: Owners find it works well even on glass-top stoves, heats evenly and cleans up in seconds, and like how light it is for carbon steel. The pre-seasoned surface divides them: holding up for most, chipping or flaking for some, with food sticking for a few.
A closer look: Heat it until a drop of water skitters across, then add the oil and cook in small batches so the food sears rather than steams. With the wooden lid on, it steams dumplings and braises too. Leave tomato and vinegar sauces until the patina has darkened, since acids strip a young seasoning.
- 12.5 in carbon steel wok
- Works on induction
- Pre-seasoned, ready to cook
Heads up: Wash it by hand and dry it right away; like any bare carbon steel, it rusts if it’s left wet.
View on Amazon See our top 5 woks →A food processor
Pesto, salsa, hummus and pie dough in a minute, and a pile of sliced vegetables before the oil is hot. A lot of good cooks chop everything by hand because the old processor died years ago and never got replaced.
Ninja PrecisionPro Food Processor (9-cup, BZ601)
$75–$100
Four Auto-iQ presets, for chopping, slicing and shredding, purée and dough, take the timing out of the job, so pizza dough or a bowl of hummus comes out right without guessing how long to run it. The 9-cup bowl has a large feed chute, and 1000 peak watts gets through hard cheese and raw carrots.
What owners say: Owners say it speeds up meal prep and comes apart easily for washing, and one turns a wedge of Parmesan to crumbs in about two seconds. The weak spot is the shredding disc, which has broken for some, and durability in general is mixed.
A closer look: Every attachment works in the one 9-cup bowl, so the kit stays a small stack in the cabinet. Press Dough for bread or pizza and let the preset decide when to stop, and feed vegetables down the chute with the pusher, keeping the pressure steady for even slices.
- 9-cup bowl
- 4 presets, 3 speeds
- Handles hard cheese and carrots
An ice cream maker
For the cook who already makes a good custard, a churn turns it into ice cream, gelato or sorbet: peaches in August, pumpkin at Thanksgiving. It’s the dessert nobody at the table expects to be homemade.
Cuisinart Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Ice Cream Maker (ICE-30BCP1)
$75–$100
A double-insulated 2-quart bowl, frozen ahead, and a single on/off switch: pour in the mix and soft-scoop ice cream, frozen yogurt or sorbet comes out in under half an hour.
What owners say: Quick batches and an easy cleanup come up again and again, along with soft serve straight from the bowl; a few find it louder than they expected.
A closer look: Turn the machine on before pouring the mix in, as Cuisinart’s booklet says, and keep the freezer at 0°F so the bowl freezes solid. It comes out like soft serve, so spoon it into a lidded container and give it time in the freezer if you prefer it firm.
- Makes 2 quarts a batch
- Freeze bowl 6–22 hours first
- Ready in under 30 minutes
A pizza oven
Anyone who already makes their own dough knows a kitchen oven can’t get hot enough for a blistered crust. A backyard oven gets there in minutes, and pizza night turns into a party.
Ooni Karu 12 Multi-Fuel Pizza Oven
$200–$300
Real wood or lump charcoal straight out of the box, with the flavor that goes with it: the fuel tray is built for airflow, so the flame stays strong enough for 950°F, and it’s ready about 15 minutes after lighting. Ooni’s gas burner (sold separately) adds propane for nights with no time to tend a fire.
What owners say: Owners rave about the wood-fired flavor and how evenly it bakes, with one comparing the results to a restaurant’s. Running a live fire takes practice, though, and some burned a pizza or two while they learned.
A closer look: Let the first fire settle into a bed of glowing embers, then feed small, dry pieces of hardwood a few at a time for the hottest, cleanest flame. With the legs folded and the chimney off, it packs down small enough for a campsite or a friend’s backyard.
- Burns wood or charcoal
- Cooks pizza in 60 seconds
- Folding legs
A high-powered blender
Silky soups, sauces, nut butters and frozen desserts that an ordinary blender leaves gritty. Serious cooks talk about one for years and still put off buying it.
Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender (48 oz)
Over $300
A 2-horsepower motor, ten variable speeds and hardened stainless steel blades built for years of hard blending, backed by a five-year full warranty that covers shipping both ways. Vitamix has been run by the Barnard family in Ohio since 1921.
What owners say: Owners say it blends frozen berries, seeds and leafy stems completely smooth and practically washes itself; noise divides them, and a few had problems early on.
A closer look: Start on the lowest speed and work up to the highest for the smoothest result, using the tamper through the lid to push thick mixtures down. To clean it, blend warm water and a drop of dish soap for 30 to 60 seconds, then rinse.
- 1,400W motor
- 5-year warranty
- Blends hot soups
Tips for buying for a serious home cook
- Ask whoever they live with what’s missing. It’s common to find a cook with a drawer of good knives and no thermometer, or a stand mixer and no scale.
- Check what they cook on before buying a pan: an induction cooktop needs one a magnet sticks to, and a round-bottomed wok wants a gas burner.
- Spend on one very good tool rather than a boxed set of average ones, and go in with siblings on the big ones, like the pizza oven or the ice cream maker.
Photos are illustrative, some computer-generated. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. It costs you nothing extra. How we pick · How this works.
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