The secret of their success: 12 cool kitchen tools chefs swear by

Keen to take your cooking to the next level? Those in the know share their most useful utensils to fulfil their every kitchen need.

Rotem Papo, L'Hôtel Gitan
For making a perfect circular crack around the top of an egg, I always use my Eggshell Topper Cutter. It is important to apply just the right amount of pressure for a perfect line without extra cracks. I'm using it right now for my homage to soupe a l'oignon. I simply make a clean cut around the top of the egg using the cutter, empty it, then bake to pasteurise. Using the yolks, I make an onion custard, then bake the mixture in the egg in a bain marie, before topping with gruyere espuma and toasted brioche.

Tinka Lander, Tinka's Fine Food Emporium
A premium quality bottom-heavy balloon whisk is mandatory in my kitchen. We make our apple cider vinegar hollandaise every day with one. Because the whisk is heavier than the handle it doesn't fall out of the pan. When buying, be sure to invest in the best quality possible.

Janet DeNeefe, Casa Luna and Ubud Food Festival
My essential is my vicious coconut grater! It's basically a small plank of wood absolutely covered with tiny nails for easy and quick coconut grating. Proceed with caution though - it can be easy to shred your fingers too!

Katrina Sykes, Soiree Catering
My microwave silicon popcorn maker is my favourite kitchen hack for popping corn quickly, easily and without mess. Because it's light and collapsible, it takes up minimal space in the kitchen too.

Scott Pickett, Estelle by Scott Pickett, Estelle Bistro and Pickett's Deli
One of my favourite tools is my hand held digital thermometer. It has an infrared probe that sprays a red laser beam and tells you the temperature of what you are cooking. We specifically use it to check the fire in our binchotan and the heat of the coals.

Lola Migliore, Hola Con Lola
I love my mortar and pestle, especially for preparing our special tomato sauce. I crush garlic and salt in my mortar until it is a lovely smooth paste, then add parsley sprigs, two grated tomatoes, pepper to taste, and vinegar and olive oil to emulsify. I love the process of grinding it myself with a pestle. It gives me more control over the sauces consistency than a blender does. This is a great sauce to serve as vinaigrette with snails, vegetables and salads, and atop Catalan bread for tapas and pinxos.

Eamon Sullivan, Bib & Tucker, May Street Larder
I can't live without a domestic Sous Vide and a Vacuum Seal. The Sous Vide guarantees I am cooking meat and fish to its specific temperature, and the Vacuum Seal I use in conjunction with the Sous Vide and for preserving food.

Adrian Li, Commune Group
My Morning Glory Shredder is essential when I am preparing soups and garnishes. Its metal rod contains sharp blades that quickly and perfectly cut vegetables in different shapes.

Dai Duong, Uncle
I love my versatile chef tweezers. The most obvious use for them is garnishing micro herbs when plating up, but I also use them to pick out ingredients from pots or bowls, like bay leaves from stews and spices, and roots from stocks. They're great for turning steaks or proteins in a pan, and for serving noodles or long pasta. Kids even use them as chop sticks!

Daniel Natoli, Neptune
To prepare the different types of authentic Italian pasta we offer, our team use an efficient hand-cranked Cavatelli Maker. I also love our meat-slicer. It is set up in the dining area where we slice the meats in front of our guests. It's not only efficient, but our guests enjoy the theatre of it.