10 Kitchen Accessories every home needs

We've rounded up ten of our most sought-after kitchen accessories that will enhance your culinary experiences.

1. Coffee Machine

When you need a decent cup of coffee to start your day with, you need a great coffee machine to make it. We’re purists here and love the traditional style machine using ground coffee, the same way your favourite café makes them. Rancilio has been coffeeing the world since 1927 and specialize in machines for domestic and commercial use. As you’d expect from an Italian company with a single focus, their coffee machines are carefully considered and cleverly created. Of course, if traditional style machines are not for you, we have plenty of automatic options from Nespresso and Breville to make the day start with ease. Shop our selection here.

2. Pasta Machines

There’s nothing like fresh, homemade pasta. It tastes better and feels far easier to digest. It’s also a lot easier to make than you'd think. The trick is to use high quality flour, good eggs and to really take time to knead the dough, the longer the better so you get that smooth, silky texture. One of our most popular machines and voted numerous times by experts as the best home pasta machine you can buy is the Maracato Atlas 150. It has numerous attachments for various pasta shapes, plus you can also buy an electric motor. Another favoured Italian brand is the Imperia Pasta Machine.

3. Lockdown loaves are so much easier with a good bread maker. Emile Henry have perfected this with their ceramic bakers ensuring a crispy crust and soft inner. You can cook all different kinds of homemade bread and the variety of their ceramic baker shapes is perfect for each loaf type whether its round, baguette, ciabatta or loaf plus it’s great for rye, gluten-free or sourdough. The secret is in the domed lid which creates the perfect level of humidity for a traditional French or Italian bread made at home.

4. Every cook needs a heavy based pan and Lodge is renowned for having the best cast iron skillets in the world. They are perfect for on the stovetop, in the oven and on the grill. You can fry, bake, sear and brown a variety of food. It’s perfect for getting a sizzling sear on meat. These pans come pre-seasoned to keep the iron from rusting and they do require seasoning after use if you wish to keep them in tip-top condition. They come in a variety of sizes and even have a lighter carbon steel skillet which is ideal for vegetables and eggs. They will last a lifetime making them the perfect gift.

5. Legacy brand Le Creuset is famed for its enameled cast iron casserole dishes of which it has specialized in since 1925. The round or oval casserole dish in its many sizes and variety of hues is the French brand’s iconic piece and you’ll often see it pride of place in kitchens. Enameled cast iron has slow heat distribution and strong heat retention making it great delicious one-pot cooking over medium and low-heat. Think slow cooking meats, roasting vegetables or baking rich desserts. It has a smooth interior which encourages caramelization plus it prevents sticking and is easy to clean. Use on all heat sources whether electric, gas, induction, outdoor grill and in the oven. There are other options if you can’t stomach the Le Creuset price tag, like the very popular La Cuisine or Chasseur. Regardless, a stoneware enameled casserole dish is a must for every kitchen.

6. If you’re a budding or keen baker you’re going to love having a stand mixer. The top of the line is the Kitchen Aid which might seem like a huge investment but are worth every cent. Those who have embraced this sturdy piece of equipment become evangelical in their worth – they knead, mix and cream mixtures saving your arms (and time). There are a variety of brands to choose from so you can be assured of finding a stand mixer to suit your budget. This stationary, motor-powered mixer consistently churns ingredients for long periods of time at a consistent pace. Think airier, lighter mixes with no fear of toughening.

7. Expand your repertoire with a Moroccan tagine, another one-pot dish that creates melt in your mouth slow cooked dishes. It’s an odd-looking dish but the cone-shaped lid traps steam during cooking and returns the liquid to the clay pot, resulting in a moist dish with concentrated flavours. The result is dishes that are rich, slow cooked stews of meat, poultry or fish. We have a selection in varying sizes to suit most household needs.

8. A guaranteed crowd pleaser there’s nothing like being able to make homemade pizza – even better if you’re making the dough from scratch too. The key to a crispy base is a pizza stone, most of which can be used in the oven or BBQ.

9. What was once in the kitchens of raw food enthusiasts is now making its way into mainstream and that’s dehydrators. Perfect for turning fruit and vegetables into healthy snacks, dehydrators remove the moisture from them making them tastier and able to last longer. Think dried banana chips, apple, berries for topping on desserts or granola. Even tomatoes, zucchini and kumara are delicious dehydrated.

10. Whether you’re a smoothie enthusiast, love making soups, hummus or hollandaise sauce a blender is a super handy kitchen accessory to have. Nutri-bullet own this category for affordable and reliable blenders but Vitamix are truly the best money can buy. Somehow that engine can withstand frozen berries and banana.

All of these must-haves are perfect for gift registries whether its a wedding or for a new baby.