This year’s Uproxx Gift Guides are brought to you by Sirius XM. Check out their site to find all the holiday music and content you need to get into the giving spirit.
Kitchen gifts have huge potential to be the hits of the holiday. They land in the sweet spot between functional and enjoyable. Sure, the way people fetishize food extends way beyond just “getting fed” but also being super into cooking feels productive on some level. Plus it’s good IG fodder. And, for the sly gift giver, it can actually end up with you getting some nice meals.
That’s a triple win. Making kitchen gifts wildly popular.
After rolling out our gift guide for the home, our gift guide for fitness lovers, the guide for music lovers… We’re ready for this biggie — the gift guide for your favorite food aficionado. As with previous years, we’ve included a few special ingredients, some innovative appliances, and the one cookbook we loved best in 2023.
The Global Pantry Cookbook
Price: $32.62
Plain and simple, this is what I would deem the “most functional cookbook of the year.” That’s a big award if you ask me. Rather than being full of a few recipes that don’t lend themselves to experimentation, this cookbook teaches you how to cook with pantry staples — sauces, prepared foods, canned goods, etc. Forgoing the “one dish per chapter” model, each section of The Global Pantry Cookbook breaks down a key ingredient and shares how to use it and what to pair it with.
There are recipes for each featured staple but you get the sense that the point isn’t so much following the instructions to a “t” as using them as a launch pad. I’ve seen a lot of books over the past few years focused on “The Indonesian Table” or “The Iranian Plate” but in my experience, telling people five dishes they can make with sambal olek or Persian sumac is a quicker way to make a home cook fall in love with a foodway that they might not have a ton of experience with.
A nice layout and grabby cover shift this from a “buy for it for me” pick to an excellent gift (that you’re going to want to borrow from the giftee).
BUY IT FOR:
Anyone who wants to learn more about cooking and flavor composition without having to follow rote recipes.
Typhur Sous Vide Station
Price: $999
I didn’t know at first about the size… but over these past few weeks, I’ve fallen in love with my Typhur Sous Vide. It makes the whole sous vide process more straightforward and less of a hassle. Rather than lugging out equipment each time I want to sous vide, this countertop station keeps the technique front of mind while the digital display makes the process super easy.
The Typhur website doesn’t dramatically tout this feature, but the fact that this makes the whole sous vide process so visual is super cool. If we’re being honest, much of the joy of cooking is derived from sharing it. Previous to buying this, sous vide was a thing I could tell people about but they couldn’t really visualize. Now, if I’m prepping steaks in the style of Zach Johnston, I can have them on display for my guests when they arrive — floating in their little bath.
Another feature I love is the fact that I can operate the whole device from my phone — allowing me to tweak cooking times and even pre-schedule a cook while out of the house.
BUY IT FOR:
The tech geek who wants to elevate their cooking game and likes to have the sort of gadget that fine dining chefs would surely appreciate.
CRUXGG Rotating Belgian Waffle Maker
Price: $23.99
I’ve vibed out with the Ghetto Gastro and CRUX appliances for a few years now, but in 2023 their designs are cooler than ever. This is a very affordable, functional, straightforward waffle maker — god knows we don’t need a “smart” waffle maker to tell us the “steam % before complete” or some nonsense. It also looks very cool in your midcentury modern monochrome-styled kitchen.
Design plus functionality is a nice landing spot for an affordable gift like this — especially if it’s going someplace you might be spending the night on occasion.
BUY IT FOR:
Anyone who values a good breakfast and a cool vibe in one utilitarian appliance.
Hedley & Bennett Apron
Price: $60-$120
Hedley & Bennett is the kitchen standard for aprons. It’s also the cool kid apron. And they do fun collabs, like with Star Wars. Need I say more?
Okay, fine… a tad more:
This is the exact apron I use. It’s sturdy enough to be used nightly and highly functional for someone who is cooking with various implements etc. But it also looks sharp looking for someone who might be trying to cook to impress and dress to impress at the same time.
BUY IT FOR:
Anyone who loves cooking and streetwear. Or just cooking while looking good. Or just cooking and not getting food all over themselves.
MomoFuku Pantry Starter Pack
Price: $65
As a chef who is pretty serious about cooking (although this catastrophe doesn’t further my point much), I am very into this current wave of superb chefs putting out “flavor enhancers.” This isn’t the same as a “spice mix” — which I rarely trust. This is just about deepening flavors and layering in more umami.
With that as context, I will say that I trust the Momofuku line immensely. I have been using their Savory Seasoned Salt on chicken and beef dishes with great results. Their soy is my go-to. And their chili crisp? It’s my favorite on the market — not overly heavy on the peanuts like some brands and way more in the fried onion and chili lane. As such, it’s easy to use in a wider range of dishes. The heat is very present but so is the onion-based umami.
Oh, and their hot honey? A table staple and the best way I know to elevate a fresh biscuit.
Pro tip: The Momofuku chocolate is inventive and wildly underrated. I’m giving their three packs (my favorite is the “miso potato chip”) as stocking stuffers.
BUY IT FOR:
People who love flavor and will appreciate the quality that Momofuku’s iconic peach label denotes.
A5 Miyazakigyu Japanese Wagyu
Price: $139.99
Okay, so… I had slightly mixed feelings about cooking with Japanese A5 Wagyu the first time I tried it. It’s delicious. But also, it’s so fatty and cooks so very fast that the last time I tried it, I made too much and had to put it in the fridge overnight and then the fat congealed and you can’t exactly just warm up A5 in the microwave…
It was still pretty great — you’re dealing with the best steak on earth so there’s some margin for error (I sliced my leftovers into ramen broth) — but I still wondered, “Should I be cooking with this or am I just going to mess it up?”
I tried it one more time a few weeks ago after reading a few articles online. Here’s what I learned in a nutshell:
- Unlike most steak, you shouldn’t bring this out of the fridge and let it come to room temp before cooking — the fat will melt on your cutting board and you don’t want to lose that fat. This is crucial if you want a rare steak. If you want medium or well-done steak… why would you spend so much money on A5 Wagyu?
- Make smaller pieces. Way smaller. Like… I paired this steak with a scallop (surf and turf!) and gave a whole table of people one scallop-sized piece. That was plenty. No one complained.
- Do not butter your pan — you don’t need more fat.
- Pair it with an acid. You need something to lighten the fatty flavors here. Otherwise, it’s too dense to appreciate fully after a few bites.
Following those simple rules, I am so glad I tried this again and plan to do it as often as I can afford. Because let me tell you: This is the most spectacular beef on the planet Earth and it will bring an astounding amount of pleasure into your kitchen.
BUY IT FOR:
The hedonist who wants to max out the joys of unctuous, fatty beef in the most decadent way possible.
Tumbler Diamond Rolling Knife Sharpener Set
Price: $98
The tricky thing about knife sharpening is… it’s tricky. Using a metal bar can dull your knives or scratch them if you don’t do it right. But at the same time, your knives are going to need sharpening. Especially if you’re anything like me and occasionally throw them in the dishwasher because you’re feeling too lazy to wash them by hand.
I really dig the Tumbler because it uses magnets (!!!).
Also because it’s very very easy and, no offence to me, but that’s what I need. This instructional video sums how to use the Tumbler up, paired with some jazzy music.
And here’s the thing you realize when knife sharpening gets exceedingly easy: It’s great to have super-sharp knives. You end up sharpening them all the time. That’s the vibe in my kitchen these days and my cooking is better because of it.
BUY IT FOR:
The person who appreciates the precision of sharp knives but doesn’t know how to sharpen them. Then force them to watch the instructional video so they fully get just how easy this product makes sharpening.
Our Place Dream Cooker
Price: $199
I have been resistant to multi-cookers and slow cookers and rice cookers and… all the cookers. I just generally use pots on the stove. But they’re so time consuming!
And then I locked in, slowed down, and taught myself how to use the Dream Cooker. And it’s just too easy and good to deny. In a few short months, I’ve totally become one of those “set it and forget it” slow cooker people. I am also finally a person who gets his potatoes tender way faster by pressure cooking them, instead of roasting them. And I’m making rice right every time without accidentally leaving it mushy and having people say “How can you be such a cook and screw up rice?”
So it’s wins all around, for me!
I know I just said a few entries ago that I have space for a massive sous vide on my counter but (perhaps because of that!) space is currently at a premium — so the compact size of this all-in-one cooker is a plus. On the design front, I love the sleek, clay look. It pairs nicely with my kitchen (and will for anyone else trying for that austere/ minimalist energy!).
BUY IT FOR:
The person who makes stews, roasts, rices, and other simmered or pressure-cooked dishes the slow way and also appreciates design. Walk them through the instructions and let them see just how easy the Dream Cooker makes it!
Breville Barista Express Impress
Price: $719.96
Confession time. I was spending… gulp… earlier this year, I was dropping $300 a month on coffee. No joke. And I don’t have that sort of money. Not even close.
My order is a quad mocha with 1/4 th chocolate and after a tip that’s $9.00 even at Starbucks. 10 dollars at hipster spots. And I was doing it every day.
Is that ridiculous? Sure. Wildly reckless? Def.
But every morning my body wanted the dang thing so… I was stuck paying for it. Then I looked at my credit card statement once month, thought about “working smarter, not harder,” and bought the Breville.
Is it an investment? Obviously. But in the months since, everything has changed. I care about coffee beans now. I have a roast preference. I get all technical with how I pull my espresso shots. I’m snobby about which chocolate I use. And I’ve never enjoyed coffee more.
It’s a joy to make my quad mocha each morning. It’s the closest thing I have — as a non-religionist — to a daily sacrament. It’s not tough and there are plenty of videos online to clean the machine or help tweak techniques. As for the cost savings? They. Are. Immense.
Of all the kitchen gifts we’re profiling this year, this is the one I can’t imagine life without. I still go to a shop once a week — but that’s just to see people and support local businesses. The other six days, I make my own.
BUY IT FOR:
Anyone who loves coffee and is (foolishly! expensively!) outsourcing the production process to local shops. They won’t just appreciate you the day they get the gift. They will ping you randomly over the course of months and years to say thanks!