Passover approaches, and it’s time to take stock of what you need to prepare for the holiday. Whether you are making a bigger meal or small and simple, having the right tools during Passover can make the job of cooking and prepping so much easier. Here are some tools that always make our Passover cooking easier, and perhaps even more delicious.
A Good Food Processor
I use a good food processor like this Cuisinart one so much during Passover week, especially leading up to the seders. I use it for potato kugel, haroset, chopped liver, latkes (yes, latkes for Passover!), or even to make a batch of homemade mayo or aioli, which is perfect for salad dressings and dips during the holiday. Some people like to have a small one on hand, especially if you change over your kitchen for Passover. But if you can swing it, I suggest investing in a good one that can handle large batches and will last for years and years.
Vegetable Spiralizer
Veggie noodles have been increasingly common for years now. But Passover is a great time to try your hand at them. You can make salads with spiraled beets and carrots. You can make a hearty meat — or vegetarian — bolognese to pour on top of zucchini noodles, or even spiralize some potatoes and sweet potatoes for fun-shaped fries. Most spiralizers have different shapes to try, and they are reasonably priced typically between $10-$30.
Soup Socks
You can’t have Passover without some kind of chicken soup, and one tool that makes chicken soup so much easier is a SOUP SOCK! Throw all your ingredients into the sock, and when it’s time to strain them, just pull your soup sock out. Beautiful, clear soup or stock with a little less work.
Hand Mixer
Passover is truly the holiday of whipped egg whites, especially when it comes to desserts. Having a good hand mixer handy makes all those desserts much easier. And when all else fails, fresh fruit and whipped cream is the perfect sweet ending — especially when you have that hand mixer nearby.
Here are some of my favorite Passover desserts.
Lemon Juicer
I am constantly squeezing fresh citrus juices for dishes during Passover. I like using a simple wooden juicer like this, but you can also get fancier with one that catches the juice on the bottom, like this stainless steel one.
Baking Dishes
Pyrex or ceramic baking dishes can be used for making kugel, roast veggies, keeping some roasted vegetables warm in the oven, and even for re-warming and serving the brisket.
Crumb-Cleaning Brush
Matzah makes a lot of crumbs. I find it annoying to clean up, don’t you? Try a special crumb cleaning tool for your table.
Lots of Mixing Bowls
This may seem obvious, but I cannot overstate how many mixing bowls you need during Passover. You need to whip egg whites for the cookies. And make the matzah balls. And marinate the chicken. And combine the ingredients for the kugel. And, and, and. These bowls even come with lids!
