The 6 Very Best Kitchen Utensil Sets

Whatwe’relookingfor

Number of pieces:3, 6, or 11| Materials:Mix of silicone and stainless steel

Hedley & Bennett introduced utensils about six months ago, a new category for the brand in its ever-growing lineup of kitchen gear. I’ve been using many of the pieces since the launch, and though you can buy them individually, I think the curated collections — made of three, six, and 11 pieces each — are all well rounded. In fact, the choice of size and makeup are two reasons I decided to crown it our best overall pick.

The midsize six-piece option comes with a silicone spatula, flat turner, spoonula, and ladle, plus stainless-steel tongs and a utility spoon. This ladle is the only piece I can knock at all. It works fine, but I’d prefer a sleeker stainless-steel one (I see no benefit to the use of material here). But the rest are great. The tongs have a good grip. The turner is perfectly angled so that it slides under food with ease. The utility spoon is surprising, in that not a lot of sets I’ve found come with something like it, but it’s an incredibly versatile tool I use for basting, skimming, stirring, and even serving. The spatula is solid, and the spoonula is even better: It’s become my go-to for daily eggs because the edge is thinner, wider, and more flexible than other spoonulas I’ve tried, which makes for very graceful scrambling. It swoops across the slopes of skillets beautifully. All of the handles are comfortable to grip, and each piece has held up perfectly so far, with many runs through the dishwasher.

As I mentioned, you can also purchase athree-pieceset that includes just the flat turner, spatula, and stainless-steel tongs. Or you can opt for a much larger11-piece, which has some useful additions: a slotted spoon, a zester, a bench scraper, kitchen shears, and a stainless-steel fish spatula.

[Editor’s note: These sets are all currently sold out, but I’ve confirmed with the company that they will be restocked very soon. You can also sign up to be notified when this happens.]

Number of pieces:5| Material:Mix of stainless steel and silicone (with a few plastic parts on the handles)

Made In’s set comes with only five utensils — but they are five essential ones that will get you far. Since I’ve tested both this and the Hedley & Bennett pieces side-by-side, I’ll give some direct comparisons. I prefer the Hedley & Bennett spoonula, which I find is a bit more flexible, though Made In’s is still solid. I like the ladle of this set much better since it’s stainless steel. And these tongs have much longer handles, which isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing. It comes down to personal preference and what you happen to be cooking (longer tongs are helpful for the grill and extra-hot skillets with splattering food; shorter ones are nice for flipping smaller ingredients when you want more control).

The Made In set is a favorite of recipe developerHailee Catalano, who likes that there’s nothing frivolous included. “You’re always going to need each of these things,” she says. “These are comfortable to hold. And they’re very well made — like they’ll last a long time.”

Number of pieces:15| Material:Stainless steel (with a few plastic parts)

OXO is another brand that consistently delivers. This set comes recommended by Jocelyn Delk Adams, the cookbook author and recipe developer behindGrandbaby Cakes, because it’s “truly comprehensive,” she says. It’s the largest on the list with multiple spoons, several different spatulas, tongs, a whisk, pie server, can opener, swivel peeler, and pizza wheel, housed in a matching holder. While I don’t own the full set, I do have all the smaller items (the whisk, can opener, peeler, and pizza wheel), each of which has wide rubber handles that are soft to the touch and no-slip, even when they get wet.

Delk says the stainless steel is super high-quality, and I agree. “Kitchen utensils take a beating,” she says, “but these have held up great for the last few years I’ve been using them. And I run them through the dishwasher, too.” She also likes that the steel gives them a streamlined appearance. “If you’re a person who likes your kitchen to look clean and elegant, these will do that for you,” she says.

Number of pieces:10| Material:Silicone, plus a stainless steel whisk

GIR makes the best siliconespatulasaround, favored by Strategist editors (including myself) and professional chefs and bakers alike — and their ten-piece kitchen utensil set includes five of them. There’s the Ultimate Spatula, a middle-sized one I’ve tested myself that can tackle pretty much any task; a tall and skinny model to get into the corners of containers; a mini size I turn to regularly, perfect for reaching the bottom of jars and mixing small batches of ingredients; a spoonula that can scrape, scoop, and serve; and a flat one for lifting and flipping. “They’re all just a bit flexible but still very sturdy,” says recipe developer and food stylistChloe Walsh. “And they’re also so durable. I’ve had them for about a year now, use them all the time, and put them in the dishwasher. They’ve held up great.”

I’ve found the same: I’ve owned several for even longer than Walsh and they look as good as the day I bought them. The set also comes with a silicone ladle (it’s relatively shallow, Walsh says, so she uses it for brothy beans and stews more than super liquidy soups); two proper spoons (one big, one small); a stainless-steel whisk; and stainless-steel peeler (both made with that same comfortable-to-hold silicone material for the handles).

Number of pieces:2| Material:Wood

Since I worked on the first iteration of this story quite a few years ago, I’ve been looking for a great wooden utensil set (or at least a set that includes a wooden piece or two). But it’s been surprisingly difficult to find such a thing. The Goldilocks collection below has a singular wood spoon, but it’s very large and therefore best suited for someone who is starting from scratch. Another smaller all-wood set I tried from a reputable company was a big disappointment (some of the additions there, like tongs, felt more gimmicky than useful).

To that end, I’ve decided to include a simple set of two Earlywood spoons here — one it calls a “cooking spoon” and the other a “scraping spoon,” which is quite similar but with a straight edge. The collection is small, but in the end, all you really need.

The brand does, in fact, make gorgeous wood utensils all around. I have several of its geniusflat sautés, which are versatile mixing, flipping, tossing, and serving tools (and it has a few other pieces I’ve tried and like, as well). But for those in the market for more traditional spoons, these are a great bet. They come in right-handed or left-handed versions: The edge slants so that when you’re handling the spoon — stirring, getting in the corners of pots and pans, scooping, or anything else — it’s more naturally aligned with the bent of your hand and wrist. The handles are long, nicely rounded, and comfortable to hold, and the wood itself is solid and smooth.

Number of pieces:5| Material:Stainless steel

This Misen set is also all spoons: five pieces made from stainless steel. A recent favorite of senior editorWinnie Yang, it includes a scraper spoon, slotted spoon, measuring spoon, serrated spoon, and plating spoon. If that sounds like overkill, Yang assures it’s not. Each has a distinct enough design to be truly good at its designated task. Still, she reaches daily for a couple in particular: the measuring spoon, which she uses for stirring, serving, and tasting while cooking, and the scraper, which works great as a spatula — especially with carbon-steel or stainless-steel pans. “I love the satin-y finish on these,” she says. “Each spoon has a substantive heft to it, and the handles on them are comfortable and sit well in your hand.”

Number of pieces:2, 3, 4, or 8| Material:Stainless steel

While a dedicated serving set differs from the cooking utensils above, I believe it’s an incredibly useful kind of collection to invest in. Such pieces are easy to overlook; often, you don’t realize you’re missing them until you have a dinner party and you’re forced to use regular too-smallflatwareas a substitute.

This collection from designer Robert Welch is classic and simple and comes with what I think is a perfect array of pieces. Depending on what you need, you can go with a smaller number: The two-piece includes a fork and a spoon, the three-piece comes with a slotted spoon, and the four-piece comes with a cake server. Or you can opt for the much-larger eight-piece set, with an added extra-large spoon, small and large ladle, and butter knife. Everything is made from stainless steel, but you can choose from a shiny mirror finish or a “satin” one that looks brushed. Either way, they’ll go with absolutely everything, whether awooden salad bowl, a decorative cake stand, or astoneware platter.