One of the easiest ways to eat healthier is to make dishes at home. With the proper kitchen tools, you can whip up a satisfying meal using fresh ingredients. Filling your kitchen with easy-to-use tools will help you cut down calories and fat. Once you start grilling, steaming, and slow-cooking foods, you will stay be encouraged to experiment with healthy recipes. Here’s a list of 10 kitchen tools to make healthier eating easy without breaking the bank or costing you your entire inheritance.

1. Slow Cooker/Crockpot

Prepare fresh ingredients in the morning and let them simmer in a slow cooker during the day. Toward the end of the day, you will have a nutritious meal to greet you. Food retains vitamins and minerals when cooked slowly. * Use a slow cooker for beans, soups, stews, and vegetarian chili recipes

2. Indoor Grill

The trend of indoor grilling has increased in popularity as consumers look for healthy cooking options. Indoor grills lock in foods’ natural juices and eliminate the need to cook with butter or oil. Since extra fat drips off foods, it is the perfect tool for making quick, light meals. * Grill fish, chicken, green peppers, pineapples, and mangoes

3. Blender

This master mixer is an essential gadget for healthy meal preparation. It whips up drinks and soft foods within seconds. The smooth texture makes low-calorie vegetables easier to digest. Additionally, blended foods like broccoli and cauliflower are high in volume and help decrease hunger pains. * Mix smoothies, pancake batter, and tomato soup recipes.

4. Cast Iron Skillet

Using a large amount of oil is not only bad for your heart, it doesn’t help your waistline, either. Cast iron skillets require less oil for cooking. Additionally, the process of cooking foods in this type of skillet enriches foods with iron. Foods cook evenly and release effortlessly. * Try a cast iron skillet when baking cornbread, making sauces, and sauteing vegetables

5. Mandoline Food Slicer

Make meals more attractive with this handy device. It cuts foods into thin slices and fun shapes. Most mandoline slicers feature blade attachments to create julienne strips, waffle cuts, crinkle cuts, and more. * Slice vegetables for salads. Cut fruits and add to a water pitcher. Top off roasted chicken or grilled fish with lemons or vegetables.

6. Steamer

Fix light, healthy meals in a hurry. Since the steamer barely makes contact with water, foods retain their nutrients, taste, color and structure. Also, steaming food removes the fats from meat, lowering calories and cholesterol. * No oil or other additives required.

7. Salad Spinner

No one wants gritty, soggy leaves or mushy fruit in their salad. With a salad spinner, water and dirt drop away, leaving you with crisp salad ingredients. It’s a better option than the paper towel method. * Cleans and dries foods thoroughly

8. Grater

Graters have sharp, tiny holes that are used to enhance the flavor of your favorite recipes. Use it to shave hard cheeses, zest citrus fruit, shred onions, and grate fresh ginger. * Liven up steamed vegetables

9. Parchment Paper

This meal-in-a-bag technique lets you bake a healthy, low-calorie meal quickly. Place a protein like fish or chicken inside the parchment along with your favorite vegetables and place it in the oven. Once the parchment puffs up, the meal is ready. * Goes straight from the oven to the dinner table with very little clean up involved.

10. Measuring Set

Control your calorie intake with measuring spoons. Having an accurate set of measuring devices will help you in your quest to create healthy meals. Sizes range from 1/4 teaspoon to 1-cup.