In 2019, we reviewed lots of products—and we already rounded up every single top-performing kitchen product that we tested this year (read about them here). Here, we've compiled a list of the products each of our editors enjoyed using, over and over, to put dinner on the table or coffee down our gullets, in our own home kitchens this year. Because, in the end, isn't that the greatest way of all to test a product?
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A Carbon Steel Skillet
"I have switched to carbon steel for my everyday pan and I can't imagine ever going back. Solidteknics makes gorgeous cookware that, once seasoned, cooks as well as stainless steel or cast iron. Plus, it's basically non-stick—I even use it for eggs. And no rivets means easier cleaning."—Joe Sevier
A Reusable Bottle
"I have a bottle the size of a Big Gulp on my desk, but earlier this year, I realized I needed a more manageable size for to-go coffee and tea. That's when I found this Takeya. At 17 ounces, it's big but not ridiculously so, and the safety lock has meant zero spills in transit. I'm not surprised this one is such a winner: the brand's insulated water bottlewon our product test." —Lauren Joseph
A Sous Vide Wand
"When I'm hosting a dinner party, I love knowing that my salmon will be silky and moist, that my leg of lamb will be perfectly pink all the way through, even if my guests are late. (And my guests are often late.) I use sous vide cooking for proteins, mostly, and then focus my creative energy on sauces and side dishes. "—Maggie Hoffman
A Mushroom Brush
"I received this as a gift and thought it was one of those things I would never actually use. I was very wrong. If your goal is to make well-browned, caramelized mushrooms, you can’t rinse them with water, because they end up soggy in the pan. This brush lets you swipe away every last bit of offending crud while keeping your shrooms dry."—Wilder Davies
Produce Bags
"During busy weeks, I rarely make it to the store except for on Saturdays. Buying sturdier produce (cabbage, broccoli, boy choy, fennel) and storing it properly has made a huge difference in my cooking—I'm no longer fishing swampy greens out of the crisper drawer come Thursday evening. Roomy Vejibags are to thank: They protect fresh vegetables against the harsh drying effects of the fridge, and cut down on plastic waste at the same time."—Lauren Joseph
A Travel Mug
"2019 was the year, embarrassingly, that I actually kind of got it together to remember my travel mugs and stop using so many disposable cups at coffee shops. The way I did this was simply to acquire a massive quantity of them and give them a designated, easily-accessible bin in prime real estate in my kitchen, so that even if I left one at my desk or demonstrated my remarkable ability to lose things once again, I'd still have more. That doesn't mean I didn't have my favorite. This mini Hydroflask carries exactly the amount of coffee I want to drink in the morning and feels less cumbersome than the standard-size models. Plus, it makes me feel young again."—Emily Johnson
An Electric Wine Opener
"Some people find joy in manually opening bottles of wine. I'm not one of them. After working at restaurants for over a decade, I have a few too many broken-cork stories to tell, and I wouldn't mind if I never had to use a manual opener again. My mom sent this Secura Electric Wine Opener to my boyfriend as a birthday gift—he isn't into it, but I LOVE it."—Tiffany Hopkins
