Sometimes it's not what I thought it'd be years ago.

Mine, in pseudo-order:

1. Microplane grater (red handle, it's stylish)

2. Cuisinart immersion blender (also red, I call it "the stick")

3. My inherited cast iron skillet. Brand unknown due to buildup of carbon. But it's smooth as a fresh-zamboni'd hockey rink and pre-Lodge Machining. (no tiny pock marks)

4. My FUCKIN' KIWI KNIFE. Y'all. Maybe I'm still just a pleb in the kitchen but I got the half-santoku half-cleaver version of the Kiwi for $6 at my local Asian mart and I've never looked back. My Victorinox Fibrox now sits in the drawer. I don't mind honing daily so I love that the cheap metal takes an edge quickly, even if it loses it just as much.

5. This one yellow awesome juicer my step-mom got me from William Sonoma. Sorta but not really joking, it's the top one that Cook's Illustrated picked because it has double gears in the joint allowing for a better squeeze. But yeah once I figured out flavor building I had no idea how much more citrus I'd be squeezing into my meals. So I use it at least 2-3 times weekly.

Honorable mentions:

• The wire resting rack. Great for pastries, fried chicken, sweating slices of eggplant, etc

• The hotel pan I inherited from a drunk friend who told me I could keep it. Wow, you're huge and you don't fit in my sink, but I've abused the hell out of you. I can roast large amounts of meat in you and I've destroyed you. Thank you for your service.

Edit: Now that I've been 5 years in the home cooking game, huge pot and pan sets confuse me a bit. I do see the niche uses for some, but what if people live in a small space? I have a tiny space and everything I listed fits into a drawer and a cabinet. And it cooks most of the stuff I do in my kitchen. It really seems like a money grab for wedding registries. And I've been at those folks' houses (I cook for them sometimes) and I'm in awe of the amount of amazing cooking utensils they don't use!