25 Products That Could Once And For All Help You Feel Like You’re A Good Cook

No more pots of burnt rice or flavorless entrees.

1. Pre-made simmer sauces that'll really zhuzh up that plain chicken breast you have thawing in the sink. Seriously, just dump that sauce on it once it's cooked in the pan! (Psst, they're also Keto- and Paleo-friendly but IMO don't taste like it.)

Amazon

I've tried nearly all of these sauces and can vouch they dress up all kinds of stuff. If you're craving some takeout food you're too lazy to replicate at home, some of these (esp the Thai Coconut Sauce that's shown here) will help you get some of that taste without buying a million ingredients.

Promising review: "These sauces are magic. A high end trick added to our meal prep. Really tasty options. We have been doing meal prep for quite a while and the salt and pepper meals where getting old. We tried to incorporate skillet sauces into our meals and tried all the brands out there. They were ok but not very healthy. When I saw these on Amazon I had to try them (Keto and Paleo Certified) and they taste amazing. Now we have a different flavor each and every day and we can still keep the diet." —Fernando Pimentel

Get a three-pack from Amazon for $15 (available in a variety of combos).

2. A variety pack of A Dozen Cousins ready-to-eat seasoned beans, an extremely tasty recipe of a dinner staple. You only have to put the bag in the microwave for 60 seconds, which'll help you concentrate on the other parts of your meal. (I recently mixed the Trini Chickpea Curry with leftover rice for a super satisfying weekday lunch.)

Amazon

The founder based his flavorful creations off his own Creole, Caribbean, and Latin kitchen.

Promising review: "Who writes a review about beans? Somebody who loves beans but had given up on them, until now. This is a great product. Canned beans from my local supermarket are always a disappointment so I stopped getting them. I don't have time to cook beans myself but A Dozen Cousins beans are fresh and taste terrific. I am trying to eat healthier and these are a great way to do that. I've been trying to avoid packaged, processed foods but the natural ingredients make these different. I can feel good about eating them. The beans are whole and not mashed up like in cans. All of the varieties are seasoned well and versatile. I've had them on their own, in salads and in wrap sandwiches. I'm really happy to have found these and hope they continue to add new flavors and products. Do yourself a favor and order some. You won't regret it." —Amazon Customer

Get a pack of six from Amazon for $24.99.

3. A stuffed burger press for creating a no-mess meat hug around delicious toppings like you're living in the year 3020. Sometimes all ya' need is a lil' excitement to get cookin'.

Amazon

Make cleanup even easier by using plastic wrap on the tool.

Promising review: "The top has a protrusion that pushes the excess beef to the sides of the container, creating a perfect pocket for whatever toppings you care to add. Simply add some more ground beef to the top and press down with the top to create a perfect seal. The sealed burgers are easily extracted — the bottom plate can be pushed from below, allowing you to easily extract the burger without disturbing the contents or the shape. Drop them on the grill and you are ready to go. It really is as easy as that." —Christopher J. Hamilton

Get it from Amazon for $9.99.

4. A holy grail Instant Pot that, OK yes, I know you've seen in BuzzFeed shopping stories frequently BUT the Amazon reviews are full of people who are bad cooks but have turned around their skills thanks to this beaut. Plus, it won't heat up your kitchen like the oven!

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It works as a rice cooker, pressure cooker, slow cooker, steamer, sauté, and warmer. Pinterest has been all about the Instant Pot for a few years and you should really hop on this bandwagon. Just check out our full review of the Instant Pot and Instant Pot recipes that'll basically cook themselves. Still unconvinced? Look at all the yummy Amazon reviewer photos.

Promising review: "To say that I love my Instant Pot is an understatement. I've had it for only two weeks and I swear I haven't touched my stove or pans. So easy to use and so many functions. You can sauté meat, make hardboiled eggs, perfect rice and beans, steam vegetables in a matter of minutes. The Instant Pot community is large and there are always recipes to be shared. So simple to use and clean. I've made anything from perfectly hard boiled eggs whose shells just fall off on their own, to soups, Mongolian beef, and spaghetti! I am so glad I jumped in the instant pot bandwagon and cannot wait to purchase accessories in the future to make cheesecake and other things." —yestfl

Get it from Amazon for $59.99+ (available in three sizes).

5. And some slow-cooker liners to make cleanup a total cinch. Sometime a super easy cleanup can help motivate yourself to cook (or maybe that's just me).

Amazon

I use these and they're THE BEST.

Get a box of six liners from Amazon for $2.94.

6. An EveryPlate subscription, aka an extremely affordable meal kit that includes not-a-million ingredients and will be ready to eat in about 30 minutes. Yes if I can handle it, YOU can handle it.

@everyplate / Via instagram.com

I, dear reader, am not a seasoned cook (though you betta BELIEVE I *do* season my food). I tried out this service awhile back and made some super tasty stuff with recipes I held onto and feel like I could replicate easily from my own grocery shopping.

Sign up for EveryPlate for $2.99/serving + 20% off your next two boxes.

7. A rapid egg cooker to help you nail down a protein source in lots of different ways! Or just fix yourself a big batch of deviled eggs, which IMO could make for a great dinner. I for one have yet to master a hard-boiled egg and know there are others out there!

Amazon

Promising review: "I love hard-boiled eggs for protein especially when I’m on the go as a student/worker but it’s hard to wait for the water to boil then put In the eggs and get ready all at the same time. This cooker is amazing!! Saves me time, it’s quick and I don’t have to watch it while it cooks I can go get ready and then I hear a loud buzzer notifying me when the eggs are done! (The buzzer is really loud sounds like a basketball game buzzer) I was surprised how fast the eggs cooked and was afraid they were still raw." —OnAJourney

Get it from Amazon for $16.99+ (available in five colors).

8. A *zesty* seasoning from BuzzFeed's Tasty that'll transform your weeknight dinners. I own this and often use it to season chicken for salads to make them feel like something I paid $15 for instead a rando combination of the contents of my fridge.

Amazon

Seriously though, the Tasty seasonings really boost the flavor of your meals, especially if you're horrible at grocery shopping and meal planning like me.

Get a 12-pack from Amazon for $16.71 (also available in Savory and Hearty flavors).

9. And a small-batch spice sampler pack to help open all kinds of doors before you invest in a bigger set of spices. Seriously these gourmet spices are non-GMO, Paleo-friendly, have no artificial flavors, and are about to change your LIFE.

Amazon

Promising review: "I enjoy cooking but am sometimes too exhausted to drum up some imaginative dish. That’s where these bad boys come in. I appreciate the blends because the work is done for me. I can add these to meat or vegetable dishes and instantly elevate my cooking. Bought these last year for myself and some for holiday gifts. Just reordered. They’re fresher than what I typically find in stores and delicious. Sometimes I just sprinkle them on an avocado. Highly recommend!" —Amanda

Get it from Amazon for $13.99 (available in five flavor combos).

And if you really wanna commit you can grab an 18-pack of the spices for $89.99. It was one of Oprah's favorite things for 2019!

10. A couple of pot minders to prevent some spill over that always seems to ruin a cooking session, even if you fully recover after!

Amazon

Promising review: "Are you a terrible cook? If you are, buy this! I can't cook. Every time I try to boil something, it's EVERYWHERE. These things are a lifesaver." —jenna

Get a set of one small and one large from Amazon for $16.99.

11. And a splatter guard so when you turn up the heat just a bit too high all is not lost and you're not caught with piping-hot sauce all over your hands and clothes.

Amazon

Promising review: "This is a game-changer for my attitude toward pan-frying foods — especially fish. I no longer worry about oil and juices splattering all over the stove and surrounding floor. It's also very handy to use when sautéing leafy greens, since the 'wall' adds height and keeps the greens from escaping as you stir. We've put it through the dishwasher several times already, and the fact that it folds up makes storage so much easier." —Kathryn A. Riggs

Get it from Amazon for $24.60.

12. An excellent chef's knife to help you cut up those whole ingredients with finesse so that's one less thing you've gotta worry about. ICYMI, cutting with dull knives is extremely dangerous!

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Promising review: "I was a butcher for years and always used good knives for my work. Now, I love to cook but can't afford pricey knives. I saw the other reviews here and was very skeptical. After using this knife for two months as my main kitchen knife, I couldn't be any more impressed with it. I use and abuse it, throw it in the dishwasher and use it and abuse it again, and it keeps coming back for more. I use it on bone-in meats, veggies, tomatoes... whatever, and it retains its edge and still looks brand new. I haven't had to sharpen it at all yet, and it is still razor-sharp. I highly recommend it." —HSHS Dad

Get it from Amazon for $14.49+ (available in eight colors and several sizes/types).

13. And some cut-resistant gloves because nothing can throw a wrench in dinner plans like spurting blood. These'll keep your digits safe and instill more confidence.

Amazon

Promising review: "I just used these gloves with a SHARP mandolin to make razor-thin shallots for a made-from-scratch green bean casserole for the holidays. I'm SO happy I bought these because they WORK exceptionally well! I set my mandolin to the thinnest setting and used these gloves to get the finest thinly-cut shallots. Love, love, love this product." —Anne

Get them from Amazon for $11.49 (available in sizes S-XL).

14. A foldable cutting board so you don't have to sacrifice another single mushroom slice to the fiery pits of your gas stove. Wait, do you have your own cooking show?

Amazon

Promising review: "My wife really likes this item. She was using our two large glass boards to cut everything on. Cleaning those larger boards took some effort. She chops a lot of small items on it and likes the way it folds in half, which makes it easy to pour the chopped items into other dishes. She then puts it in the dishwasher for washing. Would be very easy to hand-wash as well." —P. Stein

Get it from Amazon for $8.12+ (available in eight colors, three sizes).

15. A rotating counter top oven for ~evenly~ cooking all sorts of frozen goodies without overcooking them because "cooking" sometimes means clearing out your freeze of the stuff that's been in there awhile.

Amazon

Like I needed another reason to ingest more DiGiorno's. Don't @ me. It's good.

Promising review: "When I saw the first Pizzazz come out on the market my first reaction was 'Great! Another novelty kitchen gadget. Yeah, I will pass on that one.' Years later, my faithful counter toaster oven dies. Too weak for toasts, I did cook lots of meals for one or two in there without warming up the house, which is desirable during the Arizona summer. As I was researching some models with the desired features, the great reviews on this came up, and I was wondering why so many seemed to love it. We rarely eat pizza or anything fried for that matter. I use my oven to bake and broil lean proteins and vegetables. It turns out, it does that just fine! So far I have cooked chicken and fish fillets, stuffed salmon, stuffed mushrooms, refrigerated cinnamon rolls, pizza, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, melted cheese on top of broccoli and cauliflower, and of course, I make great sandwich melts from time to time. It works wonders for warming up buns for burgers or pulled pork sandwiches. I love that you can add the ingredients as food cooks and you can monitor progress easily. The disc is easy to clean but I often use parchment paper for speedy cleaning." —Anania

Get it from Amazon for $49.90.

16. And silicone baking mats so you don't have to scrape those sheet pans clean or worry about your meal getting burnt. Folks use this for everything from cookies to pies to pizza to roasted veggies. They'll also help you seriously cut down on aluminum foil and parchment paper usage.

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Promising review: "Used for the first time last night to bake some salmon stuffed with crabmeat. The mat worked, kept everything clean, and the meal came out perfect. These are much easier to clean than my other baking mats that are textured too." —Molli

Get two from Amazon for $13.99.

17. An aluminum sheet pan for roasting a pan full of veggies or finally putting all those sheet pan dinners to use. (I promise you that roasting veggies is v easy.)

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Promising review: "Heavy for its size, it did not warp in a hot oven. I love sheet pan dinners. One pan, held four chicken breasts, potatoes, onions, assorted bell peppers — all roasted to perfection in one pan. Use a good quality oil and just brush it on the inside surface of the pan. The stainless-steel pan cleans easily! Also, makes great cookie bars." —Mamalus

Get a set of two half-sheets from Amazon for $21.99.

18. TJ's everything bagel seasoning to dump all over your scrambled eggs, sandwiches, really most whatever. It'll take your impromptu DIY meals up a notch with a shake of your wrist.

Samantha Wieder / BuzzFeed

I may or may not have dumped this alllllll inside a breakfast sandwich that's made with an everything bagel to improve its already-pretty-good taste! OK, I totally did this. But I'm not the only one who loves this stuff. My colleague Samantha Wieder has been a fan for years. Check out her full review of Trader Joe's Everything but the Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend.

Get it a two-pack from Amazon for $4.50.

19. A produce dicer that'll make onion tears and food prep mess a thing of the past! This way you won't waste so much energy on spiralizing or chopping, a fool's errand! (Jk, but this'll make it way easier.)

Amazon

Promising review: "I love this veggie chopper. I often use it to make veggie soups and to make hashbrowns with onions and peppers. (Before this I would view that as far too much work due to the need to chop everything so finely.) I also use it to make zucchini spiral noodles for veggie 'spaghetti.' I appreciate the fact that it is easy to store the spare parts inside the spiralizer. Also, the brush is handy for cleaning." —SLC

Get it from Amazon for $21.69.

20. A Pig of the Month Club subscription – it comes with lots o' meaty options that are all but ready for ya'. You don't have to start from scratch when it comes to cooking! Here's to the hard work having been already done for some amazing ribs.

@pigofthemonth / Via instagram.com

I recently tried this out while staying with my parents (who are big meat eaters and aren't afraid to tell me when they hate food... which they've been vocal about when I've tested other edible goodies for work). They are BIG fans.

You can buy items a la carte here or get a three-month subscription from Pig of the Month for $225.

21. And while we're on the subject, some tangy Memphis-style BBQ sauce you'll want to pour over basically everything on your dinner plate.

Pig of the Month

This stuff, also from Pig of the Month, is mouthwatering. My parents and I went through the initial bottle pretty quickly and then my mom bought two more.

Get it from Pig of the Month for $6.95.

22. An air fryer a colleague swears by to dupe those fast-food favorites that have kept you from learning how to perfect some homemade recipes.

Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed

My colleague Hannah Loewentheil has tried most every kitchen gadget and trick, and is a huge fan of this one. Here's what she has to say:

"I can honestly say it's become the hero of my kitchen. It preheats quickly, it's large enough to a good amount of food at once, it's easy to clean, and it makes food taste crispy on the outside and moist on the inside without any oil."

And you can check out our full review of the Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 Air Fryer here.

Get it from Amazon for $119.99.

23. A fish turner to help you FINALLY make a decent salmon filet at home that still looks presentable. It'll also be clutch for transferring hot gooey cookies from the baking sheet.

Amazon

Promising review: "This is my go-to turner when I'm cooking for anything — not just fish. I'm pretty particular about turners, which sounds odd, but if they aren't thin enough at the edge, it's hard to get them under the food. Metal is important so it's not floppy, and the length is great because it can hold larger pieces of food. Worth it." —Mary Schumann

Get it from Amazon for $12.99 (available in two sizes).

24. A rice cooker big enough to make 6 cups of rice but take up just a teensy bit of counter space. If you've ever messed up a pot of rice 1) I can relate 2) this story is for YOU.

amazon.com, amazon.com

It also moonlights for fondue, noodles, soups, and hot pot! Get some dinner inspiration from 21 Unexpected Things You Can Make In A Rice Cooker.

Promising review: "This little rice cooker is small enough for my tiny space in my kitchen, but big enough to do enough rice to feed our family of six using proper portions! The ability to cook veggies on top is just awesome and so far I've tried carrots on their own and a stir fry, while cooking rice. The stir-fry veggies came out amazing and tasted better than when actually stir fried and I cooked veggie bites, (like chicken nuggets but full of broccoli), in the steamer while rice was cooking, too!" —Go Bronson

Get it from Amazon for $21.62.

25. And if all else fails you can try some Fresh & Ready Sun Basket meal kits you just simply pop in the oven, then do some very low-lift effort to finish it off like combine it with a sauce or sprinkle with a freshly cut lime. It's almost *too* easy.

Sun Basket

Like most other meal kit subscriptions, there are options that include more meal prep. But the meals marked as "Fresh & Ready" (available in each week's menu!) already come prepped and ready to put in the oven or microwave in a container.

Check out all the meals and the butter chicken with basmati rice pilaf shown above here. I've made this very recipe and it's extremely tasty!

Say buh-bye to former you:

20th Century Fox Television

Reviews have been edited for length and/or clarity.