If you want to outfit your vegan kitchen with the must have essential cooking tools, then you will find everything you need right here! These are tools that we use ourselves and love!
Want to Save This Recipe?
Enter your email & we'll send it to your inbox. Plus you’ll get great new recipes from us every week.
Whether you decide to make every recipe on this site or you are just looking for guidance, this essential cooking tools for a vegan kitchen will guide you through everything we think you need to have a well established kitchen for vegan cooking.
You may be a seasoned chef or maybe you are just starting out in your first kitchen, but when you add in vegan cooking, there’s a few things that we think are must haves to level up your vegan recipes from good to great!
We want you to walk into the kitchen every time feeling confident that you are going to rock whatever recipe you choose to make!
You’ll figure out quickly that when it comes to cooking, having the right tolls can make all the difference in a stressful versus seamless and enjoyable experience.
To be honest and upfront, do you NEED these things? Probably not. Are they extremely helpful? Absolutely. And we truly believe they make the cooking experience better.
Think we missed something that is on YOUR must have list? Let us know in the comments! We’d love to check it out.
Now let’s elevate your cooking experience!
Jump to:
Must Have Cooking Tools for a Vegan Kitchen
Appliances for a Vegan Kitchen
If you are wondering what our vegan must haves are when it comes to appliances, then here you go! These are the appliances that are actually in our vegan kitchen and we use on a regular basis.
These four items – a blender, food processor, stand mixer and instant pot are the small kitchen appliances that we use most often.
- Vitamix – One thing we are asked a lot is if our Vitamix was worth the cost and we say a resounding yes every day. We use ours almost daily for 2 years now. It is more powerful than any other blender we have ever own and likely the only blender we will ever use.
- Note: Before having the Vitamix, we had a Ninja professional system and it was a better price but still worked really well. It broke and that’s why we got a Vitamix. We loved it and would definitely recommend if you need a better blender but a cheaper price.
- Food Processor – If you make your own sauces or hummus or just want a faster way to chop things like onions, then a food processor is your best friend. We use ours a few times a week usually.
- Instant Pot – We never used our Instant Pot as much as we did once we went vegan. It takes cooking dried beans from hours to under 1 hour. And makes it easy to make one pot meals faster. A must have!
- Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer – To be honest, we always wondered if these were worth the price. We had a much much cheaper version and while it was okay, it is not the powerhouse that the Kitchen Aid version is. If you make a lot of baking recipes, it is a must have!
- Waffle Maker – If you love waffles then a nice waffle maker is key. The main one we use is a Faberware 4 slice waffle maker, but we haven’t found much difference across others brands that we have tried in the past. We do also have a Belgian waffle maker that we love when we are wanting thicker waffles as well.
- Crockpot – Especially in the fall and winter months, a crockpot is a must. You can cook soups, stews, and so much more.
- Air Fryer – We love love love our air fryer. We have one for about 7 years now. We originally had the ones that looks like an egg shaped fryer; however, we have upgraded to the Ninja Foodi 10-in-1 that we have linked here. It serves not only as an air fryer, but a second oven, toaster, and so much more. We absolutely love it and for us it has been worth every single penny. It’s truly our must used vegan kitchen appliance!
- Immersion Blender – I’ll be honest, I never understood the point of an immersion blender until I had one and used it. Now it’s one of my favorite tools for make creamy soups perfectly without a huge mess!
Cooking Tools for a Vegan Kitchen
When it comes to vegan kitchen essentials, then you definitely need a few cooking tools. Pots and pans are an obvious one, but we have a few other tools that really help us out around the kitchen, that we think are vegan must haves!
- Set of Pots and Pans – We typically prefer stainless steel or we have a few GreenPans that we really love using! We always recommend at least 2 sizes in pots with lids and 2-3 different size skillets. Buying a set is usually the cheapest option to take.
- Cast Iron Skillet – While you make have a set of skillets, we still recommend everyone having a cast iron too. One if you are making something that needs to go into the oven, it’s perfect to just put in and not use another dish. But cast iron cooking also puts iron into your food which is great being vegan.
- Knife Block Set – If you are an experienced chef, then you’d likely recommend just having 3 or 4 speciality knives that cost a lot more than this simple knife block set that is perfect for most homes and much more affordable.
- Kid’s Knife Set – if you have kids, we’d also recommend having a set of Curious Chef kids’ knives. We’ve used these for 5 years and they are perfect for letting little ones help in the kitchen without fear of sharper knives.
- Reusable Nut Milk Bags – If you are ready to try to make your own plant based milks, then you must have a nut milk bag. These double as a great way to grab produce while shopping so you don’t use plastic. Comes in a set of 3 different sizes.
Baking Tools for a Vegan Kitchen
Even if you don’t think you are a baker, but especially if you are a baker, then there are vegan baking essentials that we think need to be in every vegan kitchen. Our vegan baking must haves if you will. Some obvious choices like measuring cups and mixing bowls, but the power of other great baking supplies like a bundt pan and donut pans will really up your vegan kitchen goals!
- Baking Pan Set – Whether you are making a cake, loaf of bread, or muffins, or just roasting vegetables, you need a good set of baking pans.
- Measuring Cups and Spoons – If you are doing any sort of baking you need to measure properly the ingredients.
- Mixing Bowls – There’s nothing worse than not finding the right size mixing bowl whether you are baking or making a large salad. We linked ones with lids because they double as storage which everyone can use.
- Spatulas – So many uses! But a must have in any kitchen. If you are new to the kitchen a full set of kitchen utensils may be more beneficial.
- Donut pans – When we went vegan, Larisha refused to give up donuts. Thankfully, having some donut pans on hand tremendously helped us get it the right shape. We also have these fancier donut pans.
- Bundt pan – we think everyone should own at least 1 fancy designed bundt pan. You can bake almost any cake inside if you have enough batter and the end result is a showstopping conversation piece that will make you look like a baking genius. We also have this bundt pan.
Helpful Gadgets for a Vegan Kitchen
The best cooking gadgets for vegans need to be in your house and we are here to hook you up! If you get nothing else, do yourself a favor and splurge on the tofu press. It has been a game changer for us in our home and we use it so often, it easily pays for itself if you eat tofu!
- Tofu press – If you eat tofu and you don’t have a tofu press, then this needs to be the first thing you grab off our list! No more trying to figure out wrapping the tofu with something and then placing enough heavy items on top. This tofu press makes it easy and quick for you to get all the water out.
- Kitchen Scale – Whether you are converting measurements or you need evenly size dough pieces and so much more, we use our kitchen scale way more than we would have ever thought.
- Lemon/Lime Squeezer – We use a lot of lemons and limes, but the acid doesn’t always agree with our hands, plus it’s just hard to squeeze sometimes. A citrus squeezers makes getting the fresh juice a breeze.
- Sieves – We use sieves for sprinkling powdered sugar, draining and rinsing beans, straining oil and so much more. A set of 3 is a good way to go, but if you don’t want a lot, opt for the large size.
- Can Opener – Even if you use dried beans a lot, there’s probably still a lot of use of cans. A nice can opener is a must.
- Zester – Speaking of lemons and limes, if you do a lot of cooking or baking with them then you likely need zest. Grab one! We like this one because the zest stays in the little container attached to it and doesn’t go everywhere.
- Grater – You could opt for just this and skip the grater, but we do have both. Grating blocks of vegan cheese versus buying the shreds tends to have them melt easy (these no anti-caking agent is one reason why). But we use it for a lot more.
- Candy Thermometer Spatula – We have found this digital candy thermometer spatula to be hands down the best candy thermometer we have ever owned. Not only is it great for candy making but even just properly checking for oil temperature! We love it so much, a must buy for our kitchen!
- Peeler – A good peeler goes for so much more than just potatoes. And we use ours a lot! We like this one because it has more than one function.
Storage Tools for a Vegan Kitchen
Our last category for our vegan kitchen must haves is what to store things in! We love our glass containers and silicone bowl covers. They are necessities in our own vegan kitchen!
- Silicone Stretch Lids – These set of 6 lids, makes sure that you no longer have to use plastic wrap or foil to store something in the fridge. Easy to use and easy to wash.
- Glass storage containers – Not only are these great for meal prepping and storage, but the glasses containers are easier to wash and don’t leak, and make it easier to see what’s inside. Comes as a set of 5. Other sizes available.
- Water Infusion Flavor Pitcher – We don’t know about everyone, but we started drinking so much more water when we went vegan. Having a infusion pitcher allows us to make it flavored more easily.
Let us know if you have a must have cooking tool for your vegan kitchen that we haven’t listed in the comments!
This post was originally published on 10/13/2020, updated on 1/13/2022, and again 9/6/2024.
Love the green pans!!! Was thinking about getting a waffle maker although how often would I actually use it? Green pan has a beautiful one🤔 these mixing bowls you show look great. Also really the stand mixer?? I don’t know if I have room for it but for dough it’s probably best?? Thanks for sharing all of these I think I’m going to go look into that waffle maker are these the ones that are on your follow-through if I click the link I did get the mitts lol love them thank you oh and one last thing the candy thermometer do you need that to make the Snicker bars that you guys have? I have to get around to making those they look amazing yeah I guess I’ll get the thermometer too 😁
Love the green pans!!! Was thinking about getting a waffle maker although how often would I actually use it? Green pan has a beautiful one🤔 these mixing bowls you show look great. Also really the stand mixer?? I don’t know if I have room for it but for dough it’s probably best?? Thanks for sharing all of these I think I’m going to go look into that waffle maker are these the ones that are on your follow-through if I click the link I did get the mitts lol love them thank you
Don’t forget the colander! Whether it’s pasta or a bunch of grapes, every kitchen should have one. The one I have is, sadly, plastic and not stainless steel, but what I like about it is that it’s square with an overlapping lip/handle, so it’s perfect for kitchens with square sinks! Cooling racks for cookies, cakes, and breads are also a must-have. I have a set of three that are stackable, for if you’re making a large batch of cookies, but the legs also collapse down so you can just plop one on the counter for that strudel or loaf of challah. Insofar as bakeware, don’t forget the pizza pan! While a heavy-duty cast iron skillet is perfect for a deep dish (especially Chicago style), a nice Brooklyn crust makes for a definite crave-worthy pie! you COULD put it directly onto the rack, but you first need to pre-bake it a bit for it to hold its shape, and for that? You need a pan (or stone).
Thought of a couple of others that are not necessarily a MUST have, but are nice to have, and a couple that are just fun to have. A juicer. Not for citrus, as just a lemon/lime citrus squeezer is sufficient for that, but for vegetable juices. Carrot, kale, spinach and the like – perfect for your “Wow, I coulda had a V-8!” moments, or to make some green smoothies, or just a glass of carrot juice in the morning with your maple pecan waffles. Then there’s an immersion blender. This for me IS a must-have. Mine broke, so I’m picking up another one in the next few days, for everything from soups and gravies to the perfect vegan custard. A mandolin for creating awesome seitan deli slices? Always a bonus. Even the more professional, “industrial” slicers are affordable if you don’t want just a plastic doo-hickey with a blade. (Saw some on Amazon that were from about $50 to $200 – and up, of course, but if you’re not planning on opening your own restaurant, there isn’t a need for the humongous beasts, just something that can sit on your counter and shave the vegan cheeses, seitan turkey, and so forth). Now, for the fun ones! A spiralizer – ESPECIALLY if you have kids that are bored with their regular pasta. How about zoodles? From another plastic doo-hickey that can barely manage a sweet potato to the attachment for your KitchenAid Stand Mixer (which also has a built-in Yankee corer/peeler). And lastly, a bread machine. I’ve used mine so often that I don’t even bother buying bread at the store anymore. I can make anything from bagels to calzones to pumpernickel and pizza dough. A nice, crusty French bread? No problem. Standard loaf shape or take out the dough and stretch it into a baguette. Incredibly versatile…if you have the recipes, of course.
These are great too!
Great ideas!