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Seafood Tools for Every At-Home Chef

Seafood Tools for Every At-Home Chef

If you love fish and seafood, you’ve probably tried to prepare it at home at least a few times. You might have discovered that while delicious, these types of food are a little tricky to prepare and serve. The best things in life always take a little more work! 

Fortunately, there are some seafood tools and equipment that make it all a little easier. So, let’s take a closer look at what you need in your seafood utensils set. 

A Shrimp Deveiner

While you’re building your seafood utensils set, make sure you include a shrimp deveiner. This little tool makes one of the yuckiest tasks of prepping seafood quick, easy, and mostly mess free! 

Yes, you can do this with a knife or even a toothpick, but a good shrimp deveiner does the job faster and more thoroughly. There are even shrimp deveiners that have built in shears or scissors, so you can cut through the shell while you work. 

A Fish Knife (or two) 

Your collection of seafood tools and equipment should actually include a few knives specifically for preparing fish. A strong, rigid knife to descale fish is a must, as is a flexible blade for filleting and cleaning fish. Make sure they are sharp and buy the best quality you can afford. 

If you want to keep your fish knives (and all the rest of your knives) in the best possible condition, invest in a proper knife sharpening tool. Using a blunt knife to prepare fish and seafood can not only damage the food’s delicate flesh but could also lead to more cuts and injuries while you’re cutting. 

A Fish Cutting Board

You should always cut different food on different boards. The best cutting board for fish is one that won’t slide over counters and has some grip on the surface to hold the fish while you work. Buy the best cutting board for fish you can afford, and make sure it’s easy to clean – no one wants a fishy smelling board in their home! 

Even if you can’t get the best cutting board for fish, you can use coarse salt on a high-quality board of your choice to create a surface that grips the fish while you work. 

A Fish Skillet

Yes, there are skillets that are made just for fish! Add one of these to your fish kitchen accessories collection for perfectly crisp fish skin. They’re also designed to release fish easily, so you won’t ever have to deal with fish that’s stuck to the pan! They do this with a clever dimpled surface, that’s unique to this kind of pan. You can use a regular skillet for fish, but you might still struggle with this problem, so it’s worth upgrading if you cook fish often. 

Choose a skillet that is large enough to cook enough fish for your family or guests without crowding the pan. Look for a heavy base, which is less likely to warp and will distribute heat more evenly. 

A Crab Mallet

Crabs and other crustaceans are delicious, but notoriously difficult to prepare. Add a crab mallet to your seafood tools and equipment collection for easier preparation of all kinds of shellfish. 

Crab mallets are designed to break the shell of crabs, lobsters, and other such delicacies without smashing the shell into the meat. So, you will spend less time picking parts of their shell out of your meal when you’re ready to serve. 

Seafood Forks

If you’re still struggling to pick the meat out of crab or lobster shells with a kitchen fork, you need to invest in a set of seafood forks! 

These are must haves for any seafood tools and equipment! They’re double sided, with a sharp, pronged, hooked “fork” on one side, and a spoon like device on the other end. Depending on where the meat is lodged in your seafood, they’re able to get right into the crevices and make sure you get it all out. 

An Oyster Knife 

Whether you love them raw or Rockefeller, there’s nothing quite like an oyster. But to really get the best, freshest oyster flavor, you really need to prepare them yourself. If you’ve ever tired to shuck an oyster with an ordinary knife, you already know why this is on the list of essentials for your seafood utensils set! 

Oyster knifes are short, thick, and strong, to get between the two sides of the shell and give you enough leverage to twist it open. The very best oyster knives also have a tiny “hook” on the blade, so you can twist the knife into the tiniest opening with ease. 

Claw Crackers 

If you love lobster, then you’ve probably wrestled with a claw or two in your time! Let’s just say there’s reason lobster restaurants always give you claw crackers along with the bib! 

You can have the same experience at home though, by adding claw crackers to your seafood utensil set. These tools look like oversized nutcrackers, but they’re made to make short work of even the toughest claws. The best models out there have different size claws, so can handle small claws, large claws, and everything in between! 

Fish Turners or Slices 

Your usual spatula is not designed to turn fish. Which is why, when you try, you probably make a mess of those delicious fillets! 

A proper fish turner or fish slice is made for fish. It’s long, flexible, and usually has some slots in it. You can slide it under the fish easily, and it will hold most or all of the fillet for easy, careful turning. If you don’t already own one, add it to your fish kitchen accessories shopping list! 

A Seafood Steamer 

Steaming is one of the best ways to prepare all kinds of seafood. It’s quick, easy, and healthy since you’re not adding too much fat. Even better, it keeps the seafood moist and tender, so it’s definitely one of the most important pieces of seafood tools and equipment you will ever own. 

A Cedar Plank 

If you’ve never had cedar planked salmon, you’ve never truly lived. That might be a slight exaggeration, but trust us, it’s worth the small investment. Makes sure when you’re adding this to your seafood utensils set that you get one that’s actually for cooking! You can’t simply use any piece of cedar wood to prepare food! 

A Kitchen Timer

This is not, strictly speaking, specifically a fish kitchen accessory. But it is one that will improve your seafood and fish cooking! Most seafood is very delicate, and overcooking is the worst thing you can do. So, get a good kitchen timing, and be sure to set it according to your recipe when you cook fish or seafood. It will transform the results!

Goodies and Gadgets Make All the Difference
There’s no denying that you can cook anything, including fish and seafood, without too many fancy tools. But there’s also no denying that if you don’t have them, it will be harder, and your results may vary. So, if you love cooking and eating fish and seafood, consider investing in the seafood tools and equipment we’ve mentioned here. You’ll enjoy the process a lot more, and your guests and family will love the results! Check out our selection of fresh seafood online today to put those goodies and gadgets to use!

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