Do you remember moving into the very first place of your own?
I do and I don’t think until that moment I realized how much STUFF I needed just to function day to day. Nowhere was that more apparent than those empty kitchen drawers and cabinets. Money was tight so eating out in ad infinidum was not an option, but to cook at home I knew I needed pots, pans, silverware, plates, and a ton of other stuff. I felt the few dollars I had to my name flying out of my pockets as well as the majority of several yet to be earned paychecks.
Luckily for me I lived right around the corner from the glorious home of swedish quality good on a budget, IKEA.
I’m not sure how many of you shop there but given how much most stores can charge for essential kitchen gadgets I’m assuming it’s far too few. So in order to save you some time and a few dollars I thought I would break down the BEST kitchen essentials from Ikea
Before you ask, I’m not an affiliate. Ikea doesn’t even have an affiliate program that I know of. I just love the store and couldn’t make our budget work without it, especially now that I have a family of my own.
KONCIS Can Opener
Seriously you can’t do much cooking at all without a can opener assuming you don’t have a garden out back. For only $3.99 this can opener is not only cheaper but also better made than most of the others I have tried.
Photo Credit: IKEA
LEGITIM Chopping Board
These come in a double back and have withstood the test of time in our home. The best part is the price with the set costing $3.99 at the time of this post. If you are feeling fancy or prefer a bamboo chopping board IKEA also has several options. My favorite two are the APTITLIG Chopping Board ($4.99) and the extremely durable APTITLIG Butcher’s Block ($19.99).
Photo Credit: IKEA
FÖRSLAG Knife Set
My best friend is a chef and while these may not be the best grade of knife she’s ever used, they work perfectly for household use. The entire set (3 knives) costs under 10 dollars. As someone who has used IKEA knives for most of my adult life, I will say buying the ASPEKT Knife Sharpener is a must to keep your knives sharp and extend their life.
GEMAK Colander
I have a flare for the retro things in life so when I saw this colander years ago a ton of uses sprang to mind. I thought it would make an adorable fruit holder on the counter or a place to store my Kitchenaid attachments, however in real life it has been reduced to draining our pasta and veggies (you know the whole purpose of a colander). We’ve had ours for several years and still use it on a weekly basis with no issues.
If the Gemak Colander is a bit too girly for you or doesn’t match your style be sure to check out the ORDNING Stainless Steel Colander and the space-saving collapsable KLOCKREN Colander.
VARDAGEN Measuring Cups and VARDAGEN Measuring Spoons
These Measuring cups and spoons are perfect for cooking and at less than 6.00 a per set they are well worth the cost. Be sure to also check out the VARDAGEN Measuring Cup, although to be honest while it is perfectly functional it reminds me something from my University Chem classes.
Photo Credit: IKEA
GRUNKA 4 Piece Kitchen Utensil Set
From labeling soup to sautéing veggies this set has all the basic utensils you need to get cooking. Plus they are made of stainless steal so these kitchen utensils are a steal at $4.99. If you are worried about scratching pots and pans, IKEA also offers the three piece DIREKT Set, which are made of polyamide and stainless steal. Personally these don’t work quite as well in our household due to a certain husband’s tendency for leaving utensils in hot pans.
SKÄNKA 6 Piece Cookware Set
Ikea has a wide variety of affordable pots and pans, but this is the set I bought years ago and can attest to that to has held up miraculously well. For $49.99 you get a 2 qt and 5 qt pot, a frypan, and a 1 qt saucepan.
There are so many things I love about the pieces but I’ll just highlight the top ones. (After all who want’s to read a 5-page review on a 50 dollar cookware set?)
– Truly non stick and easy to clean and boy have we made some messes!)
– Durable. They have lasted for well over 6 years and we have no plans to replace them.
– Inexpensive. Despite being the most expensive item on this list they are still half the price of many cookware sets out there.
– Functional. The 5 qt pot has a locking lid with vents so you can pour out water without the need of a colander.
Photo Credit: IKEA
IKEA 365+ Food Jars with Lids
When I had enough of the pantry insanity a few years back I bought one of these for each of our household “staples.” They come in two sizes 2 qt and 44 oz. I used the large ones for things like powdered sugar, flour, and other things we tend to use a lot of. The small ones were perfect for things like almond flour, dry quinoa, rice, and other “staples” we like to have on hand but don’t need a large bulk supply of.
PRUTA Food Containers
I saved my FAVORITE for last. My family and I have a horrible habit of going through “reusable” storage containers quickly. Either the lids get lost, my son trashes them at lunch, or after letting leftovers sit in them for a day too long, my husband chooses to chuck them instead of dealing with washing. So needless to say the idea of buying expensive storage containers is not on my radar.
At $5.99 for a set of 17 these storage containers are my favorite purchase at IKEA and I’m always sure to pick up a pack (or three) every time we go.
Photo Credit: IKEA
If you are a fellow IKEA addict be sure to be on the look out for other up and coming “Best of IKEA posts” and if you have a baby or know anyone who is expecting be sure to head over to see which Baby Essentials You Should be Buying at IKEA to save some serious moola!
