15 Kitchen Utensils That Will Give You Abuela-Status Cooking Skills

Taking those first few steps away from the family home into some sort of adulthood is a painful process. As the keys on our ring multiply, things get complicated: there’s the expense, the responsibilities, the interminable laundry. The cruelest gut-punch of them all may well be having to abandon all that good home cooking: the rice and beans, the tostones, homemade salsa. If you work all day or live on your own or — gasp! — are the one in charge of getting dinner on the table, there is nothing more comforting and nostalgia-satisfying than the smells of home from your own kitchen right now.

Of course, you don’t have all day to simmer stock for the pozole or fold tamales, so make sure you grab a box of stock and pre-ground masa at the store. Below, we’ve got you covered with all the gadgets you will need to make the dishes you crave at home. Some of them are the same the same utensils the abuelas use, while others are updated versions of classic tools that will make your life even easier. No one is suggesting that it is even possible to top your abuela’s ajiaco, but that shouldn’t stop you from trying

8  Herb Scissors

Herb Scissors Kitchen

With so much cilantro to chop, a set of herb scissors makes precise work of it. While a dull knife will bruise your greens causing them to lose their aroma and color, a set of herb scissors is the gentlest way to make sure the green specks in your ceviche stay bright. In kitchens with tight counter spaces, it’s nice not to have to put out a cutting board, and have one less thing to clean.