I couldn't live without…: chefs' favourite kitchen kit – in pictures

Fergus Henderson St John , St John Bread & Wine and St John Hotel , all London: “A wooden spoon: you can stir food, spank those who need spanking, conduct… A wonderful tool, ergonomical, and a beautiful object when lying dormant.” Photograph: Rex Photograph: other Tom Kerridge The Hand & Flowers , Marlow, Buckinghamshire: “My Homer Simpson bottle-opener, a present from my PA, Zabrina. Each time I open a bottle, it goes, ‘Mmmmmm, beer.’ ” £5.95, from gadgets.co.uk Photograph: other Clare Smyth , head chef, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay , London SW3: “My Big Green Egg barbecue. You can put whatever you like on it, pull down the lid and leave it for hours without having to do anything at all. Good food made with ease and no stress.” From £450, from biggreenegg.co.uk Photograph: other Syke Gyngell , Petersham Nurseries , Richmond: “My most invaluable utensil is my ice-cream maker – I make ice-cream or sorbet every day. Mine’s a professional brand, a ­ Robocoupe , which is very pricey, so go for one you can afford. It’s a lovely way to showcase fruit in season, and you can play around with combinations and tastes.” Kenwood IM200 ice-cream maker, £35.99, from amazon.co.uk Photograph: other Anna Hansen The Modern ­Pantry , London EC1: “I was in Sri Lanka recently and bought a coconut grater. It’s genius: a rotating dome of formi­dable blades that grate fresh coconut into fluffy, ­supplicant perfection.” Coconut grater, £14.99, from coconutty.co.uk Photograph: other Jamie Oliver : “An empty jam jar: super-cheap and super-useful, for anything from salad dressings and salsas to ­storing pulses and spices.” Photograph: other Pierre Gagnaire , Sketch , London W1; Pierre Gagnaire , Paris: “A cast-iron casserole, such as a Le Creuset . Great for low-heat cooking, and the thickness is good for slow cooking.” Photograph: other Mark Hix , Hix Oyster & Chop House and Hix , both London, Hix Oyster & Fish House , Lyme Regis, Dorset: “I wouldn’t be without my KitchenAid Artisan mixer. I have one in Dorset and one in London, and use them weekly for my sourdough.” From £377.10, from johnlewis.com Photograph: other Tom Aikens : “The Microplane grater is, for me, the best and simplest piece of kitchen gadgetry. You can now get them with all sorts of blades and graters, and they’re great for everything from cheese and veg to truffles and frozen flavoured ice.” From £13.45, ­from hartsofstur.com Photograph: other Bill Granger Granger & Co , ­London W11: “My favourite gadget would have to be the humble mandoline. It’s a very simple tool, but a versatile one, and I don’t know where I’d be without it. It not only saves time, but requires much less effort than agonisingly trying to create uniform slices with a knife. It also gives your dishes that polished, cheffy appearance. Just mind your fingers.” Oxo Good Grips hand-held ­mandoline, £12.69, from lakeland.co.uk Photograph: other José Pizarro , Pizarro and José , both London SE1: “A wooden pestle and mortar – my mum and grandma always used one, so it reminds me of them.” Olive wood pestle and mortar, from £14.99, from naturallymed.com Photograph: other Stuart Gillies , The Savoy Grill , London WC2, Bread Street Kitchen , London E4: “Easy: our popcorn maker at home. Salt and vinegar for my wife and me, butterscotch for our boys.” American originals popcorn maker, £15.99, from amazon.co.uk Photograph: other Russell Norman , co-owner, Polpo , Polpetto , Spuntino , Da Polpo , Mishkin’s , all London: “Without a doubt it’s my Presso manual espresso maker . As well as being elegantly designed, it simply requires freshly boiled water, coffee and elbow grease to make pretty passable espresso without the need for an expensive, George Clooney-endorsed machine .” £69.96, from coffeecavern.co.uk Photograph: other Jane Baxter , Riverford Field Kitchen , Buckfastleigh, Devon: “No contest – my red Victorinox tomato knife. It’s great for general veg prep, especially for dealing with tough squash skins and other root veg. In fact, it’s good for most jobs. It has to be the one with the red handle, because there’s less chance of it being chucked in the bin along with all the peelings.” £2.69, from Nisbets Photograph: other Dan Lepard , Guardian Weekend columnist : “Electronic 1g kitchen scales – they’re as essential for me as your iPhone is for you.” Salter digital kitchen scales, £14.99, from argos.co.uk Photograph: Full Stop Photography Trish Deseine : “My favourite kitchen utensil – and this is great for chocolate – is a silicone spatula. I adore its smooth, velvety, supple feel around a baking bowl and how cleverly it picks up every trace of chocolate or cake batter, or whipped cream. There are so many brands to choose from – just pick one to suit your taste and wallet.” Silicone spatula, £7.50, ­from debenhams.co.uk Photograph: PR shot Shaun Hill , The Walnut Tree , ­Llanddewi Skirrid, Abergavenny “My favourite and most used gadget is a liquidiser. Unlike a food processor, which merely chops stuff up, this ­centrifuges liquids along with oil or butter into silky sauces and soups – it’s almost miraculous. I always buy the cheapest and ­crappiest, ­usually a Kenwood or Moulinex, and rarely pay more than £20 or £30, because there is no discernible ­difference in the results between these and glossier, more elegant and ­expensive models.” Kenwood liquidiser, £29.99, from amazon.co.uk Photograph: PR shot Felicity Cloake , G2 columnist , author, Perfect (Penguin, £18.99): “My silicone tongs – they’re incredibly handy for turning bacon, tossing pasta and generally fiddling with hot food in a professional sort of way. I even take them on holiday with me.” £10.95, from divertimenti.co.uk Photograph: Full Stop Photography Laura Santtini, author, Flash Cooking (Quadrille, £20): “My Wet-N-Dry spice grinder. It is a great little gadget for making ‘flavour bombs’ because it blends anything from tough spices to smooth pastes and delicate finishing salts. Unlike a traditional coffee grinder, the bowl is ­dishwasher-safe, so there are no lingering flavours.” £36.99, from lakeland.co.uk Photograph: other