Must-Have Tools for a More Efficient Kitchen

Having a well-lit space and the right surface under your feet are two basics of a well-functioning kitchen—and a safe one too. If your kitchen could benefit from a little assistance in one or both of these areas, check out these ideas.

Go for lightbulbs that last. You might have already switched to LEDs, but if not, be aware that they last up to 25 times longer than incandescents (making bulb replacement a much less frequent chore). They also use 75 percent less energy and emit far less heat, according to the Department of Energy. LEDs that are about 3,000K (or kelvins, which measure how warm or cool a light is) are suitable for kitchens, with a natural look that is similar to the light from incandescent bulbs, according to Terry McGowan, director of engineering and technology for the American Lighting Association. Tip: Look for Energy Star certified bulbs for maximum efficiency, and check for rebates at the Energy Star Rebate Finder.

Invest in lighting with hands-free controls. You don’t have to be a tech wizard to get the advantages of smart lightbulbs, which you can turn on and off simply by speaking out loud to a digital assistant (Amazon Alexa or Apple Home’s Siri, among others) or smartphone app. Smart bulbs fit into ordinary lamp sockets and are dimmable, and some allow you to change the “temperature” of lighting from warm to cool. While certain bulbs require a separate WiFi hub to work, the Philips Smart WiFi LED Color and Tunable White A19 ($13, Home Depot and Walmart) doesn’t—and it’s the top pick for easy setup from Daniel Wroclawski, a CR home and appliances writer who covers smart bulbs.

Get smart about rugs. “There’s a misconception about scatter or throw rugs,” says Scott Trudeau, PhD, productive aging practice manager with the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). “It’s not always safer to have none.” For instance, a nonskid-type rug, placed in front of the sink, can quickly soak up any water spills that might otherwise make your kitchen floor slippery. He recommends rugs that have a carpetlike or woven top and a thick rubber backing to help them adhere firmly to the floor. One option: the Maples Garden Floral Accent Rug ($20 for a 2x3-foot rug, Target).

Make standing less of a pain. Rubber anti-fatigue mats, which can help prevent lower-back pain, are a favorite of restaurant chefs, who spend hours on their feet. Consider putting them in front of your most-used prep area and range. The stain-resistant NewLife by GelPro Professional Grade Anti-Fatigue Kitchen & Office Comfort Bio-Foam Mat (20x32 inches, $93, Amazon; $100, Target) and Nama Standing Mat ($79, House of Noa) are made of cushy ¾-inch, high-density foam.

Get a hand with cleaning. A robotic mop is a quick, efficient way to keep tile, vinyl, and some hardwood floors (those that aren’t harmed by water) grime-free. Many are WiFi-connected, so you can direct them to mop while you’re away from home. The Samsung Jetbot Mop VR20T6001MW isn’t WiFi-connected but holds enough water for 50 minutes of mopping and gets high scores for cleaning.

Consider kinder flooring. If you’re updating your floors, luxury vinyl flooring, in tiles or planks that click together, could be an option. It’s waterproof, and it fends off wear, dents, scratches, and stains far better than sheet vinyl. It’s also more comfortable to stand or walk on than tile, and it often has a textured surface that helps prevent falls, Trudeau says. Installed costs are $2 to $6 per square foot. Top-rated picks from CR include LifeProof Sundance Canyon Hickory HLVSPC030-C, and Malibu Wide Plank French Oak Lombard HDMLCL272RC.

Can’t always find your favorite cooking gadgets when you need them? Jeffrey Phillip, a professional organizer and interior designer in New York City, suggests assigning kitchen tools to a space based partly on how often you use them. So the measuring cups that are in regular rotation can be stored in the drawer right below your primary prep counter, while cookie sheets for an occasional baking spree can go into a cabinet over the fridge. Here are more pro pointers.

Sort your tools differently. In addition to keeping the items that you use daily, such as peelers and spatulas, close at hand, Phillip advises further organizing them by use. That means sharp cutting implements (like peelers, paring knives, and kitchen shears) go together, as do measuring devices like measuring cups and spoons and meat thermometers. If getting various gadgets to fit neatly into the same area is a challenge, you can customize drawer compartments with items such as these adjustable Bamboo Drawer Organizers ($20, Container Store). Do measuring spoons or cups tend to wander? Magnetic sets, like the 4-Piece Magnetic Measuring Cups by PrepWorks ($14, Amazon; $20, Walmart) stay together easily when they’re not being used.

Let labels guide the way. Phillip recommends using labels to identify what your drawers, cabinets, and pantry shelves are meant to contain. This will help ensure that items like serving utensils get put back where they belong and that you can put your hands on them quickly when you need them. You can create labels in your choice of size and font with a portable label maker such as the Brother P-touch Label Maker TH110 ($30, Amazon and Best Buy). Place the labels in spots such as the front edge of pantry shelves or the inside of drawers. Also place labels on items you store in anything other than their original packages, so you can quickly tell, for instance, which container has the sugar and which has the flour.

Keep heavy items accessible. A regularly used small appliance, like an air fryer or a toaster or toaster oven, might “live” on your counter. But professional organizer Kay Patterson, the founder of the Organized Soprano, says it’s best to find another home for those you need less often—a place that’s tucked away but easy to get to. For instance, a sliding shelf insert just below the countertop can reduce the need to bend to lift a heavy item, like a stand mixer, which can save your back, she says. She likes the Lynk Slide Out Wood Cabinet Organizer (11x21.5 inches, $63, Home Depot and Wayfair), which a handyperson or an experienced DIYer can install.

Put vertical areas to work. If convenient cabinet space is short, consider a wall rack for cookware. Some, such as the Cuisinart 36" Rectangular Bookshelf Rack ($120, Amazon and Home Depot), have both a shelf and hooks for hanging pots. Some have areas for pot lids. If you’re lucky enough to have a storage closet with a door, you can hang a shelved rack such as the Overdoor Organizer by ClosetMaid ($62, Bed Bath & Beyond; $58, Wayfair) over the back of it. Fill it with the foods that make sense for you, perhaps canned foods and dry goods such as pancake mixes—so they don’t get shoved to the back of storage closet shelves.

Choose storage multitaskers. To save time and space, Patterson likes products that have more than one purpose. Take Stasher silicone storage bags (sets for $22 and up, Stasher; individual items for $7 and up, Amazon), which you can use to bake stuffing in the oven and store cooked foods in the refrigerator or freezer; you can wash and reuse them countless times. Sets of Souper Cubes (from $37, Souper Cubes; from $30, Amazon), which come in various sizes for prepping meals ahead of time, can go in the oven, refrigerator, and freezer. And you can forget about having to match food storage containers with their lids if you have Stretch & Seal Silicone Lids ($17 for a six-pack, Net Zero); they fit over a variety of containers and can even cover odd-shaped items, like half a fresh melon.

Make cabinets easier to open. If you’re finding that cabinet and drawer knobs are a bit hard to grip, you can switch yours out pretty easily for some that feel more comfortable. You might try the thick, rounded Amerock Cabinet Pulls (prices vary by style; find options for $8 at Amazon and $10 at Home Depot), which come in three widths. For more options, you can search online for cabinet hardware that meets the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Gather ingredients with a cart. A rolling cart is useful for moving heavy items (say, that stand mixer or air fryer) and rounding up everything you need for a recipe at one time, Phillip says. Baking a cake? Stop first at the fridge for eggs and butter. Then go to the pantry for flour, sugar, and spices, and bring it all to your prep area at once. A cart that has locking wheels can stay parked beside you as you work. One option: the Hession Solid Wood Kitchen Cart ($113, Wayfair), which also folds up for easier storage.

Extend your reach safely. For getting to items in upper cabinets, the ideal step stool should fold, and it should have nonskid treads, slip-resistant feet, and no more than three steps, says Trudeau at the AOTA. Two options: the Cosco 2-Step Household Folding Step Stool Ladder ($36, Home Depot; $31, Amazon) and SocTone 2-Step Folding Step Stool ($50, Amazon); both companies make three-step versions too. For grabbing lightweight items from high shelves or off the floor without the need to bend over or kneel, Trudeau suggests using a tool such as the RMS 34 Inch Extra Long Reacher Grabber ($16, Walmart; $14, Amazon).

Those of us who spend time on food preparation and cleanup are putting in, on average, a bit over an hour a day in the kitchen, says the 2022 American Time Use Survey from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It’s surely plenty more for holiday and other celebratory meals. These steps and expert-recommended gear can help you be more comfortable as you cook, and save time too.

Relieve leg and back strain. If you find it easier to sit than stand while doing at least some of your food preparation, make sure the table you use is the optimal height for chopping and cutting: between 28 and 34 inches high, with enough space so that you can easily slide a chair underneath.

Give your hands a break. Have you ever avoided a recipe just so you didn’t have to struggle with your peeler or that hard-to-open jar? Some simple tools can help. Compared with traditional vegetable peelers, Y-shaped models are easier to grip, says Trudeau of the AOTA. And he adds that ergonomic peelers come in all different sizes, shapes, and handles, and are fairly inexpensive. One good candidate is the Oxo Good Grips Prep Y-Peeler ($10, Amazon and Oxo), which features a built-in tool for removing potato eyes. For those stubborn jar lids, consider using a helper tool such as the Tenura Jar Gripper $10, Amazon). It also comes in a smaller size for opening twist-off bottle tops. You can make opening cans simpler and safer with the Oxo Good Grips Smooth Edge Can Opener ($26, Amazon and Oxo); it has an ergonomic handle and makes a smooth cut on the side of the lid, rather than inside it.

Lift pots with less effort. If you’re replacing your cookware, you might think about purchasing some pieces that have two handles. The benefit: These pieces can be lifted with both hands, which distributes the weight more evenly. The Kenmore Elite Devon Stainless Steel Cookware Set features a large sauté pan with two handles. Steamer baskets with an extendable center handle, such as the KitchenAid Universal Steamer Basket ($20, Amazon), let you remove foods from the pot more easily after cooking—without the need to haul a pot of hot water to the sink. To protect yourself from hot handles on your pots, silicone handle covers like the Lodge Deluxe Silicone Hot Handle Holder ($10, Amazon and Target) are a vast improvement over cloth pot holders.

Slice and dice trouble-free. A mezzaluna knife, such as the Kitchendao Rocker Knife ($10, Amazon) works with a gentle rocking motion and allows you to chop items like vegetables and fresh herbs without having to lift your arms. When you’re tackling a large amount of hard-to-cut vegetables such as carrots, you can pull out the food processor, of course. But if you’d rather not do that, consider using a hand vegetable chopper, a tool with a small, square grid of metal blades that cuts up produce as it’s pushed through the grid. CR recently evaluated six of these, and of the group, the PL8 Pro Veg Chopper was the editor’s choice for its stability and the evenness of its cuts. The DuoGlide Duo-Edge Carving Knife ($29, ArthritisSupplies.com) has a large, comfortable handle and air pockets in the blade that reduce friction and make it easier to slice a roast or a cooked turkey. And if using a garlic press is literally a pain for you, the Chef’n Garlic Zoom ($10, Amazon) might change that: As you roll the tool along your countertop, it will mince any garlic bulbs you’ve placed inside it.

Speed up preheating. A toaster oven preheats more quickly than one that’s full-sized, says CR home reporter Tanya Christian. But many regular ovens now have a rapid preheat setting, which can save you time when roasting meats or veggies. Skip this for baking, because it heats the oven less uniformly than the regular preheat.

Air-fry this way. Placing only one layer of food in your air fryer will help it cook more evenly and quickly, with fewer disruptions for flipping it (once, halfway through, is usually adequate). Also, give your items a spritz with an oil sprayer/mister. This will help food cook a bit faster. See our ratings for top-rated air fryers and toasters that double as an air fryer.

Select the best burner. To get water boiling more efficiently, cover your pot and set it on the stovetop’s most powerful burner (it’s usually the largest, located in the front right position). This burner’s ideal for stir-frying and sautéing, too, says CR home and appliances writer Paul Hope, who is also a trained chef.

Turn to the convection setting. Many ranges, wall ovens, and toaster ovens have a convection feature—which uses fans to circulate hot air, shortening cooking times by up to 25 percent. Some microwaves have this function as well.

Use the warming drawer. To warm rolls in a couple of minutes or hold hot dishes without wasting oven space, pop them into this drawer—if your range has this feature. These typically have a default temperature of about 170° F.