The $4 kitchen tool Ina Garten uses 'all the time' might surprise you (2024)

Among the items I'd expect to find in Ina Garten's kitchen? Le Creuset cookware, certainly. A Lodge cast iron skillet? For sure. But one tool I didn't have on my Barefoot Contessa bingo card? A humble ruler. That said, an 18-inch ruler is one of Garten's must-have tools, and it makes sense — as a former professional baker, I know firsthand the importance of accurate measurements. My recommendation: the Westcott Acrylic Clear Ruler, a kitchen-friendly option that'll set you back a mere $4 at Amazon.

"There are two items that people don't usually have in their kitchen that I use all the time," Garten says in an interview with Glamour. "The first is an 18-inch ruler. A lot of people don't have a ruler in their kitchen, so they don't know whether a pan is 8 or 9 or 12 inches. And I always have a kitchen scale for measuring and weighing things. They're both inexpensive, and I use them all the time."

Rulers come in handy for more than measuring pans. As a baker, I'm always measuring dough once I've rolled it out to ensure it's the correct length and thickness. Plus, some recipes call for meats and vegetables to be sliced into pieces of a certain thickness, and simply eyeballing it can affect cooking times.

What makes the Westcott Acrylic Clear Ruler ideal for kitchen use? It's easy to clean, and it features both inch and centimeter measurements. Plus, it's transparent, allowing you to see any markings you might have made. That said, the brand also makes a metal version with nonslip cork backing, though it's a bit more difficult to clean. Both have holes, so you can hang them from a hook for easy access.

More than 1,000 five-star Amazon customers say this multitasker rules, indeed.

"I use this for baking (measuring rolled-out dough)," shared one shopper. "I like it because it does not have a cork backing, and it is easier to clean with just soap and water (no food particles stuck in the cork!). I think that makes it more sanitary."

"Exactly what I needed," wrote another. "Sturdy. Clear. Easy to read. [It's] not just flat, which I like a lot. Easy to pick up off the paper. That sounds ridiculous, but easily moving it around is important."

"The item is heavy enough so it does not fly around and get lost," said a third. "It has metric and U.S. units and is clear, so you can see through this. I use this in painting, so I need the see-through feature."

"Overall, I like it," wrote a generally satisfied reviewer. "It's bendy by a bit, but I'm sometimes scared it will snap and it scratches me easily."

Several buyers shared this user's complaint: "One thing I didn't like is the ridiculous amount of packaging it came in — an enormous box." (Er, remember to recycle!)

Oh, and about that kitchen scale — this is the one Garten uses:

If you have Amazon Prime, you'll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And by the way, those without Prime still get free shipping on orders of $35 or more.)

The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.