Well, simply for the sake of being a contrarian I'll call out two in particular that I think are nice but not necessities - and expensive to boot: The FP and the enameled cast iron dutch oven.

I cook almost every night, but find myself using the FP twice a month at most. 95% of those times it's only to save a couple minutes, not because the task can't be done equally well with other kitchen staples. My mom just turned 80, cooks every single night and has my whole life, and has never expressed an interest in having (or a regret for not having) a FP.

My lovely Le Creuset dutch oven gets used even less. Maybe a half dozen times a year? Mom doesn't have one of those, either.

I guess it just comes down to your style of cooking. I don't think there'll ever be a one size fits all list.

I would agree with 7 out of 8 choices.

I have to disagree with FOAS. I can't imagine not having a FP. Moe bought me my first Cuisinart when I was 24 or 25. I might not use it every day but I wouldn't be without one.

And a cast iron dutch oven is another must. I have a variety of sizes and they get used on a regular basis. Last night's fresh ham/pork roast was roasted in a large Staubs Dutch oven.

My Cuisinart ice cream maker died a couple of years ago and I never replaced it. So that wouldn't be my wild card choice.

I would add a microplane as a "must-have". I have at least a half dozen various Microplanes and at least one of them gets used on a daily basis.

Ann

I use both the FP and my Dutch oven several times a week. If I was going by what my mother used, I'd own a can-opener and a pot to heat up whatever came out of the can.

I would disagree with the FP. In my kitchen, my kitchenaid mixer is indispensible. I have and could live without the FP.

Tracey

If I was going by what my mother used, I'd own a can-opener and a pot to heat up whatever came out of the can.

I can assure you that's not how my mom cooks, and that if it were I wouldn't have mentioned her.

Just like any other "one size fits all" list, this one doesn't. I only recently acquired a dutch oven and do use it occasionally but could live without it. I don't have a full size FP, mine broke years ago and instead of replacing it, I got a KA mixer which I LOVE and (now) can't live without. I do have a junior size FP though which I use mostly for shredding cheese.

My mother cooked practically every night for a family of five without any expensive pots, utensils or appliances. No FP, MW, KA mixer, etc. She had a 27" oven and a tiny kitchen. And she was a wonderful cook. HOWEVER, that doesn't mean I want to live without those things. She didn't have much choice AND that was what she was used to. Yeah, I'm spoiled, but I like it that way.

So you know, "must have" is always relative.

I do have a food processor and use it regularly, but I could do fine without it, I got my first one for my birthday nearly 3 years ago.

I use a dutch oven all the time but it sure doesn't need to be enameled. I use my Lodge cast iron dutch oven regularly, but the enameled one mostly sits on the shelf, Elery likes it a lot. So I agree on the dutch oven, but not the enamel.

I need a good wooden spoon, though, and that isn't on the list. I guess it could be my "wild card appliance", LOL.

Annie

Good list. I have all of them, and a few more that I don't use often, but, boy, when I want them, I'm glad to have them.

Quesedilla maker - my grandkids will eat almost anything if it looks like a "dilla".

The other two FP - medium and small.

The alligator food chopper - making salsa is a breeze, now.

My FP is yellow with age and sits in a cupboard. I use the chef's knife all the time. Probably will pitch the FP and never miss it.

I pull out the mandoline before the FP because it's easier to clean. I only use the FP for making pie dough and shredding.

I agree with annie on the wooden spoon. Those high heat spatulas just can't get the fond of the bottom of my pans.

And if you're a baker, a KA or similar is essential.

Finally, while I have and occasionally use my LC DO, I could live without them.

I've never had a food processor and don't really want one. But then again I don't have a dishwasher either and have been living without one for so long I don't really want one of those either. I agree with the knives and heavy bottomed pots. Like Annie, I wouldn't want to do without my wooden spoons.

I favor the mandolin over the FP as well, but I couldn't get through canning season without the FP, so for me, it's a necessity. But I can get by without it on a day-to-day basis. I totally agree with the dutch oven, good knife, and silicon spatula though.

FOAS you reminded me about my mother, who is in her 70's and she has never owned, nor ever wanted a dishwasher, something most people wouldn't want to live without.

I can't wrap my head around her choice, and whenever I try to convince her otherwise, she gets very annoyed. She's convinced that a dishwasher can not wash dishes to her satisfaction!

My grandmother in Germany also lived without a refrigerator her entire life. Sometime in the 80's when my grandmother was not well enough to make frequent trips to the market, my mother insisted she get a fridge so that food would keep longer. When my mother returned to visit the next summer, she found the fridge unplugged and being used for dry storage!

I have everything on the list but my least used is the FP. I hardly ever use it. My Dad got a kick out of the ice cream maker last week. He was visiting and I made him fresh strawberry ice cream. He was in heaven.

My new must have is at Sur La Table. Purple Le Creuset! I got my first piece today with a couple of birthday gift cards. I got the 7 1/2 qt round. I have to pick a new recipe to break it in.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pretty in purple

Sushipup,
I'd have to agree with you... the list would work fine with me. Though I tend to use the mandoline and hand grater and pastry blender tool and whisks more often than I use the FP (I like doing things by hand.) If I had to pick a minimal set of items, the FP would accomplish many tasks.

As for the enameled cast iron pot... Couldn't live without a couple of sizes. I've had a few pieces of Le Creuset for more than 20 years. I use them so often, I suspect they've cost me on a per use basis less than any other item in my kitchen!

My list will be:

1) Kitchen Center - it does chopping, dicing, slicing, mincing, beating, and kneading but not food processing.

2) Oster blender - I use it a few times daily to make smoothies, sauce, and soup.

3) Coffee grinder - I don't use it to grinder coffee beans but to grind nuts, seeds and other things.

4) Toaster - we eat toasts every day, can't go without it.

5) Slow cooker - use it once or twice a week, a real lifesaver when I am busy

Al

Al, that's funny, I think the toaster is the least used appliance in my house...

Just goes to prove that everyone's list is different, I guess.

Spacific, I like the mechanics of doing some things by hand. Yes, it's probably strange but I kind of like the process of whisking dough or cutting in butter.

Annie

Me too... DH bought me a wonderful kitchenaid mixer for Christmas a couple of years ago, but he's the one that uses it. I mix all my doughs and batters by hand. I'm a bit of a Luddite at heart.

Annie, isn't that interesting? Honestly, I didn't realize how often I use the toaster until I saw this post. There I was, sitting in front of the computer, thinking the most often used gadgets in my kitchen. I was surprised the toaster actually made my list.

I used to do things by hand too. These days, I try to do many things at once so I depend on gadgets a lot. Like today, I was making two loaves of sourdough coconut breads while preparing vegetables for a crock-pot chicken curry dinner. At the same time I was also making two dozens of muffins for little man's school. I had the SD dough in the Kitchen Center and that freed my hands to peels, sautee, and season the ingredients for the crock pot. Once the crock pot curry was going, and the dough was still in the Kitchen Center, I whipped up a batch of muffins for the oven. Without the Kitchen Center I couldn't have done all these in such a short time. But I sure appreciate the satisfaction from making things with our hands.

Al

I know the feeling, Al. I'm going out of town for a couple of days so I put rye bread in the bread machine, started making food for Cooper while I'm gone. While the bread machine was kneading and Cooper's beef was sauteing I emptied the dishwasher and refilled it, got the last of my clothes in the dryer, packed my suitcase and wondered what in the world I'd forgotten.

Somehow, though, the action of doing things by hand is soothing to me sometimes, because I do have to slow down and pay attention.

Annie

I think this link from the chef's knife photo is interesting, too. The article is by Mark Bittman.

Judi

Here is a link that might be useful: A No-Frills Kitchen Still Cooks

Oooooh, that purple! It would just go exactly perfectly in my kitchen. Thanks a lot joanm! I want the braiser, $200, so if any of y'all are wondering what to get me for my birthday...

Foodonastump--I've frequently referred to my mother's lack of cooking skills, ("tastebuds in her feet") in this forum over the years. It's a joke, not meant personally.

I'd have a FP for making fresh bread crumbs, even if I never used it for anything else. But I'd go for a couple of sheet pans and a Pyrex casserole dish instead of the deep baking pans in the photo. The only glaring omission I noticed was a good cutting board.

--Doug

Interesting, but mainly just a wish list.

I don't think a food processor is a must have, but I'm mighty glad I have one. The Dutch Oven is definitely not a must-have. Two or three years ago I decided I just had to have one even though I have lived to a pretty good age and got by without one. Little did I know that the cheaper they are, the heavier they are. I thouhgt I had found a really good deal on Mario Batali's. It's so heavy I used it once or twice and it went into the garage and never came back. My DH is very strong and works out daily. He even hated to have to lift it. I have other heavy bottomed pans that work just as well, aren't heavy and were not expensive.

I find far more important things I have to have in my kitchen that some of these items. For example a heavy six quart pot, a two or three quart pot and a large stockpot. Those things I can't do without. And I believe I have to have a metal slotted turner, paring knife, can opener, and strainer/colander before I do a high heat silicone spatula or a dutch oven or a food processor.

Love that purple Dutch Oven Joanm!

Thanks ideefixe - I realized afterwards that I probably misread the tone of your post. Sorry. Actually if I took my original thought a step further I'd say you don't need a chef's knife either as she uses nothing but a paring knife for all cutting except breads, for which she has a bread knife. I never understood that one but hey, it works for her!

My mom's the same! A 1930's kitchen (but with a modern fridge and stove) a paring knife, and that's about it! She still has the same pans she got when she was married in 1946! She never had any storage in her kitchen so she never bought anything extra. She does have a microwave and a toaster oven and coffee pot, but that's about it!

I'm not a gadget junkie, but there are certain things I use all the time - my FP being one of them! I don't use it every day, not even every week, but when I make certain dishes I need it. I puree soups, make dips, chop things, make bread crumbs, etc. I like working dough by hand, but I use the FP to cut in the fat.

Lisa

I wouldn't turn down any of them, but "must have" seems a bit overdramatic. It's still the most reasonable list I've seen to date.

I've lived so far without a Dutch oven or food processor. Would love both, but those are luxuries and I can't justify the expense. My wildcard would either be a stand mixer (although I don't have one of those right now either and my life still goes on) or maybe my Microplanes. Those get a LOT of use around here.