The Sturdy Kitchen Towels Chefs Can't Get Enough Of

Some chefs can talk for hours about their favorite wooden cutting board or special chef's knife, but let's take a moment to pay tribute to the underrated tools of our kitchens. The humble potato peelers, old wooden spoons, dirtied aprons, and our trusty kitchen towels. While some people might not see much value in these simple items, they are just as important as anything else in a chef's toolkit — towels especially. These trusty fellows can be used for anything from holding a hot plate, cleaning a spill up off the countertop, acting as a stellar dishwashing companion, and much more. They're the protector of our fragile pans and bodies alike. Versatility is a kitchen towel's middle name.

An essential part of the kitchen experience, this is all a significant reason why you should be paying more attention to the type of kitchen towel you're buying. Instead of settling for a random rag or cheap fabric, invest in your kitchen towels so you can use them repeatedly, trusting they'll get the job done. If you'd like a tip for what kind of towels to buy, how about considering these sturdy kitchen towels that chefs can't get enough of?

Compared to other types of towels, from baths to the beach, kitchen towels are incredibly durable. While they come in all shapes, styles, sizes, and more, a tightly-woven cotton towel is generally known to be the most absorbent kitchen towel material. The soft cotton makes it perfect for lifting smudges off of fragile glass cups and countertops alike, while the tightly woven fabric keeps it strong enough to last a long time.

The two main types of kitchen towels are tea towels and dish towels, and yes, there is a difference. Tea towels have been around the longest, originating in 18th century England when tea was a daily ritual. Dish towels came later from America during the Great Depression when families had to craft towels themselves using recycled material from old flour sacks. Dish towels come from thicker materials, and are usually best left for the one task of cleaning dishes, while tea towels are thinner and much more versatile. That's what makes a tea towel the best choice to always have on hand in your kitchen. Out of all the tea towels out there, most chefs seem to prefer ones, especially from this brand.

According to chef Molly Baz, home and professional chefs are drooling over this one well-rounded kitchen towel in particular: the Utopia Kitchen towel, via Food & Wine. "Sturdy kitchen towels like the Utopia Kitchen towels can function threefold: as an oven mitt (for grabbing hot pots and pans from the oven), as a cleaning rag, and as a dinner napkin," she said. These towels are professionally hemmed to last longer, which sets them apart from other towels, not to mention they are made of that highly desirable 100% woven cotton. Plus, since it's made especially to be durable, it'll last longer than other choices.

Durability aside, these towels have affordability on their side too. Instead of paying an arm and a leg for fabrics bound to be stained with oils and spices, these towels sit at just $1.42 per towel or $ 12 for $17. As Chef Baz puts it; "they're cheap, so buy lots of them and use them as I do: with abandon." According to Amazon, the product has been rated 4/5 stars by thousands of users in categories including versatility, material quality, durability, and absorbency. So if you're running low on this kitchen essential, give the Utopia kitchen towels a try for yourself.