I want to be upfront: this post contains affiliate links. If you buy something through one of them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only mention things I actually own and use.
When I first went vegan, I cooked with whatever I already had in my kitchen. It worked, but some things were harder than they needed to be. Tofu that wouldn’t crisp up, vegetables that took forever to prep, baked things that stuck to every pan. Over time I’ve added a handful of tools that genuinely changed my cooking, not because they’re fancy, but because they solve real problems. These are those tools.
Air fryer
If I had to keep only one appliance from this list, it would be the air fryer, and for one reason above all others: crispy tofu with almost no effort. My method is simple. I dice firm tofu, toss it in the air fryer, and let it run while I’m working on the rest of the meal. By the time the stir fry sauce is ready and the vegetables are cooked, the tofu comes out of the air fryer perfectly crisp and golden. I dump it straight in at the end. It’s the kind of texture that used to require standing over a hot pan and babysitting, it now it just happens in the background.
Beyond tofu, the air fryer is great for roasted vegetables, reheating leftovers without making them soggy, and getting a crisp on things that the oven takes forever to achieve. It earns its counter space.
A good blender
A high-powered blender is essential in a plant-based kitchen in a way it just isn’t in a conventional one. Cashew cream, smooth sauces, salad dressings, blended soups, so much of the creaminess that dairy used to provide can be replicated through blending, but only if your blender is actually powerful enough to do it properly. A weak blender leaves things grainy. A good one makes things genuinely silky. It’s worth the investment.
Tofu press
Tofu straight from the package is full of water, and water is the enemy of texture. The old method, wrapping it in paper towels and stacking heavy things on top, works but it’s slow and inconsistent. A dedicated tofu press does the job faster, more evenly, and without the mess. Pressed tofu absorbs marinades better, browns better, and holds its shape better. If tofu is a regular part of your cooking, this is a small purchase that makes a noticeable difference.
A handheld cheese slicer, yes really
This one surprises people. I use a handheld cheese slicer, the kind you see in European kitchens to slice super firm tofu into thin, even sheets. It’s the perfect tool for making vegan bacon in the oven. You get consistent, paper-thin slices that crisp up beautifully on a lined baking sheet in a way that’s very difficult to achieve with a knife. Nobody expects a cheese slicer to be a tofu tool, but here we are. It costs almost nothing and it’s one of my most-used gadgets.
A mandoline or julienne peeler
When vegetables are the center of your cooking rather than a side thought, prep time matters. A mandoline slicer or a good julienne peeler dramatically speeds up getting vegetables into the shapes and sizes you actually want. Julienned carrots and zucchini for a stir fry, thinly sliced cucumbers for a salad, evenly cut potato slices for a gratin, these things are tedious by hand and fast with the right tool. Many mandolines come with julienne attachments, which makes them doubly useful. Just mind your fingers; a cut-resistant glove is worth adding to the cart.
Cast iron skillet
A well-seasoned cast iron skillet is one of the best surfaces for cooking plant-based food. It holds heat evenly and gets genuinely hot, which is what you need for a good sear on tofu or tempeh, a proper crust on smashed potatoes, or a stir fry that actually fries rather than steams. It goes from stovetop to oven without a second thought, it lasts essentially forever, and it gets better with use. If you don’t have one, it’s one of the highest-value kitchen purchases you can make regardless of how you eat.
Parchment paper
Not glamorous, but non-negotiable. I go through parchment paper constantly, lining baking sheets for roasted vegetables, oven-baked tofu bacon, and anything else that would otherwise stick or require excessive oil. It also makes cleanup so much faster that it functionally changes how often I’m willing to use the oven. Buy it in bulk. You’ll use it.
Rice cooker
Rice is a staple in my kitchen, as a base for stir fries, bowls, and anything that needs a blank canvas underneath it. A rice cooker removes all the guesswork. You press a button, walk away, and come back to perfectly cooked rice that’s staying warm and ready when the rest of the meal is done. It also handles quinoa and other grains without any adjustments. For a kitchen where grains and legumes are central, it’s genuinely useful every week.
The bigger point
None of these tools are exotic or expensive. The cheese slicer costs a few dollars. Parchment paper is a grocery store staple. But collectively, they represent the difference between cooking feeling like a production and cooking feeling manageable on a regular weeknight. The right tool for the right task matters, especially when you’re working with ingredients like tofu that reward technique.
I’ll be linking to the specific versions of these I use or recommend in the post, so you don’t have to guess. Start with whichever one solves your most immediate problem, and if that’s the air fryer, trust me, you won’t regret it.