25 ‘Amazon’s Choice’ Kitchen Products That’ll Help You Suck Less At Cooking

Amazon’s Choice products — recognizable by the little black bar underneath the product name — are, according to Amazon, identified as “highly-rated, well-priced products with Prime shipping.”

In other words, they are products backed by Amazon based on price and reviews, which are the only things anyone looks at when buying stuff off there anyway. Furthermore, I can personally attest to the usefulness of a bunch of the products below.

I’ve always enjoyed cooking, but have only very recently gotten ~serious~ about it, and by ~serious~ I mean I made sure to have all the proper ingredients to recipes, and I made sure to actually follow the recipe instructions rather than getting bored halfway through and winging it. But working a full-time job and coming home to cook was sorta hard and time-consuming, and meal-prepping was just not something I ever had the energy or foresight to do.

That’s when I realized that saving time wherever possible while cooking was a total game-changer. Saving several minutes at a time just by having the proper tools added up to quite a hefty chunk of time when all was said and done, which made me A) a better cook and B) have a fuller tummy, faster. Here are 25 Amazon-approved products to help you become a kitchen wiz in no time at all:

25. A professional-grade apron decorated with a bunch of handy cooking tips you read upside-down so that you don’t have to sully your phone/laptop trying to figure out measurement conversions:

Promising review: “I was scared to purchase this, as novelty items like this tend to be of poor quality and bad workmanship. I’m very pleased with what I received though! I got an easy to read, large durable apron. It even has well-stitched pockets on the front, and long strings to tie behind or around your waist. I’m considering buying another for a gift!” – Joubes

Get it on Amazon for $23.65.

24. A pair of heavy-duty herb scissors to guarantee you never sacrifice flavor in the interest of time:

Promising review: “I like to grow herbs and use them in salads, soups, and many other recipes. I received these Jenaluca Herb Scissors as a birthday gift, and can’t believe how fast and easy it is to cut up cilantro, basil, parsley, lovage, etc.” – Lucille P. Nawara

Get them on Amazon for $13.97.

23. A microwave rice cooker that’ll save you time and energy and provide perfectly cooked rice every time:

Promising review: “I’ve had this for 7 months now, and I think it’s still my favorite tool in my entire kitchen. I eat a ton of rice, and I love how easy this is to use and how easy it is to clean. I put in one cup of white rice and two cups of water, and microwave it for 15 minutes. It comes out consistent every time.” – C. Stone

Get it on Amazon for $14.99.

22. An acrylic cookbook stand that’ll protect your beloved book from stains:

Promising review: “I don’t know how I lived without this for so long, it’s made cooking while trying to follow a recipe MUCH easier. Even my larger cook books fit easily in it and it’s very simple to wipe down after splashing flour, melted butter, and all other sorts of delicious ingredients all over its face, which I do regularly. If you’re debating getting this product, don’t, it’s inexpensive, lightweight, durable, easy-to-use, and will make your like so much easier in the kitchen.” – Chris

Get it on Amazon for $12.32.

21. A hanging trash bag holder that you can attach to nearly any surface for convenient garbage disposal:

Promising review: “I love this product because Im always chopping vegetables and cutting up meat. I would be making several trips to the trash. Now I’m able to make meal prep quicker and easier and cleaner! A good way to use up some of those plastic bags from the grocery store too!” – Ellen Holcomb

Get it on Amazon for $6.99.

20. These squirrel rice paddles, because cooking should be functional and fun:

Promising review: “Love that they stand up on their own. Had to buy them as my daughter is obsessed with squirrels. Great to use on non stick pans. Cute as hell!” – Mike B.

Get them on Amazon for $6.29 each.

19. An affordable knife-sharpener that’ll treat the oldest or newest of knives, because not only does cutting stuff with dull knives totally suck, it’s also dangerous:

Promising review: “I’m so glad that I purchased this item – I’ve gone through 2 other knife sharpeners in the past, and finally found one that I like! I’ll be gifting this one to family members now because it actually works! Hallelujah.” – Chris and M

Get it on Amazon for $5.50.

18. A rolling pin that actually makes it easy to get dough the exact thickness you need:

Promising review:

Get it on Amazon for $19.95.

17. A super handy (and super cute) little crab multi-tool that can open whatever you need him to with ease:

Promising review: “Very good quality. I was surprised. The knife is very sharp and the scissors cut.” – Christina

Get it on Amazon for $15.95.

16. A silicone spatula spoon (“spoonula”!) for those

Promising review: “I had seen this item mentioned on America’s Test Kitchen. Frankly, given how it looked, I couldn’t understand how it could be better than spatulas and large spoons I already used in cooking. How wrong I was. This has become my favorite cooking tool and one I use most often for sauteing, scrambling, etc.” – IRG

Get it on Amazon for $8.24.

15. A Silpat silicone baking mat, to turn ANY pan into a non-stick surface.

Promising review: “Excellent. Baked with it several times. Great quality. It was easy to wash. I hand washed it. And had it in the oven at 200 degrees C. No problems at all. I also did the silicon pinch test on it. Not white marks at all.” – Gemma L

Get it on Amazon for $13.60.

14. This garlic prepping set, so that…

Promising review: “Wow, those rave reviews are actually credible!! This thing is amazing. You rock the metal piece left and right with malicious elbow grease like you do with an imaginary foe, and voila, out comes the beautiful minced garlic.” –rododosea

Get it on Amazon for $8.99.

13. A snap-on colander that attaches directly to all your pots, pans, and bowls for hands-free straining:

Promising review: “After many years of failing to drain skillets and pots by using a lid, I search for and bought this guy. Wow! I can’t believe I lived without this for so long. It’s a dream to drain water from pasta, and grease from meat. No slippage, and it works great.” – R. Higgins

Get it on Amazon for $11.99.

Written by Texts From Last Night

Texts From Last Night is a regularly updated blog featuring funny lists, trending stories and re-posts of short text messages submitted by its users.