Not sure what to get for the person in your life who loves to cook? Whether they're a professional chef or a home cook, we've put together The Cook's Holiday Gift Guide to make your holiday shopping a little easier.
1. Hitohira Imojiya HG Tsuchime Knife Series - Carbon Knife Co
"The Hitohira Imojiya HG Tsuchime series is an excellent value for home or professional cooks. This series is produced in Seki, Japan using high carbon stainless VG-10 steel with a hammered "tsuchime" finish. The hammered finish not only looks beautiful but provides the knife with better food release and performance. We love this series not only for the price tag (all sizes under $99) but for its smooth cutting feel and ease of maintenance."
2. Teakhaus End Grain Cutting Board
Not only is their Butcher Block End Grain Collection stunningly beautiful, it's functional too. Teak's high oil content is naturally moisture resistant making maintenance easy, while the end grain hardwood will keep your knives sharp for longer. Durable and heavy duty with nine different styles and shapes to choose from, it's hard to go wrong with a cutting board from Teakhaus.
Shop Teakhaus End Grain Collection
3. Carbon Steel Farmhouse Skillet by Smithey
We love a do-it-all skillet. Hand forged by Charleston blacksmith Robert Thomas Iron Design, this 12" carbon steel skillet from Smithey is a work of art that can be taken from burner, to oven, to table. Half the weight of cast iron, easier to season, and with greater temperature control, this beautiful artisan cookware is a gift that will be around for decades. For an extra special gift, get it engraved!
Shop Smithey Carbon Steel Farmhouse Skillet
4. A Cookbook from Now Serving
In our opinion, cookbooks are the perfect gift. Now Serving, a cookbook store out of LA has an expansive collection that is also available online. From fermentation and sourdough to International cuisine and soul food, you are sure to find something to please the cook in your life. They also have a signed cookbook section for that extra special gift.
Shop cookbooks from Now Serving
4. A Sourdough Bread Subscription from Rize Up Bakery
There are few things better than fresh baked sourdough bread (especially when it gets delivered to your door) and Rize Up Bakery does it right. Azikiwee Anderson founded Rize Up as a home based quarantine project, but he quickly out grew his backyard oven and the end is nowhere in sight. He hopes to inspire young Black bakers to think outside the box.
Choose from some of the most unique and delicious flavors like the popular Ube loaf, "K Pop" Gochugang, or the sausage stuffed 9th Ward. All of Rize Up's loaves are naturally leavened and made with high quality, organic ingredients. Available as a subscription or a single loaf and shipped nationwide.
4. Hot Sauce from Sam Sa'House
We love a good hot sauce and Sam Sa'House makes some of the best. Started by chef Samuel Hastings, Sam Sa'House is crafted in small batches with peppers Sam grows himself. Inventive flavors like Pina Danada (charred pineapple with ginger) and Thai'Ga Style (lemongrass with galangal) have just the right heat and the perfect flavor to go with just about everything. We recommend picking up a 2-pack as a stocking stuffer.
6. Magnetic Knife Holder from wooDsom
One of our favorite additions to our kitchen was a magnetic knife holder. If you cook a lot, it's so nice to have your knives off your counter top, but still within easy reach. Available in various sizes, the magnetic knife holders from wooDsom come in a variety of hardwoods including cedar, alder, and walnut. Handcrafted in Minnesota, we think these knife holders will make the perfect gift for the cook in your life.
Shop Magnet wooDsom Knife Holders
7. Wine Club from The Storm Cellar & Sauvage Spectrum
What to give to the cook who seems to have everything? We love the idea of offering the perfect pairing for their culinary creations. There are lots of wine clubs out there, but we are partial to our local wineries right here in Colorado.
The Storm Cellar, started by two Denver sommeliers, Steve Steese and Jayme Henderson is one of our favorites. At their stunning, high-altitude Hotchkiss vineyard, they produce insanely delicious whites and roses. They offer two wine club options: 6 and 12 month subscriptions, which are shipped out twice a year -- spring and fall, but we think this is a gift worth waiting for!
If you're looking for a wine club option that includes red and sparkling wines, we recommend Sauvage Spectrum out of Palisade, Colorado. A collaboration between Winemaker Patric Matysiewski and Grapegrower Kaibab Sauvage, this high desert winery produces a wide variety of high quality, low sulfite wines. Their wine club offers, 3, 6, or 12 bottle subscriptions that are shipped out quarterly.
8. A Premium Chef Apron from Valentich Goods
Maybe we're biased, but we think a high quality chef apron from yours truly would make an awesome gift for anyone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen. All of our aprons are handcrafted in Colorado, utilizing premium denims and canvases. Durable, stylish, and comfortable our aprons come in a variety of colors, styles, and sizes.
For a professional chef, we recommend one of our OG style aprons with grommeted cross-back straps. Our signature slanted chest pocket ensures their sharpie and tweezers will stay in place even when bending down, and the cross-back straps relieve pain and stress on the neck - perfect for long hours in the kitchen.
Shop OG Chef Apron by Valentich Goods
For the home cook, we love our Deluxe Chef Aprons. Our deluxe chef aprons are all about the pockets. A divided full chest pocket includes two slots for your sharpie/pen/tweezers and a slanted waist pocket has an added slot for a pen, wine key, or spoon. We also added a towel loop to help keep you organized and efficient. The Deluxe Chef Aprons come with your choice of classic or cross-back straps, so these also make a solid choice for the pro.