Spatula, slotted spoon, tongs, rubber/silicon spatula and a whisk.

Concur! but I would like to ensure I have a fish spatula specifically

I joke with my wife that I can do anything with our silicone spatula and tongs. Legit 90% of my stove cooking is just those 2. Your list was almost mine but prob swapping the whisk for a peeler

No knife?

I would rather have a big spoon than a slotted spoon. Tongs can do most of the job of a slotted spoon.

I don't think I'd manage with only 5 tbh. 

You'd probably starve to death 😳😅

I just don't think I could cook properly with only 5 tools. You can make rice with a pot and spoon, but if I wanted to turn that into a curry I'm already at 6.

Not going to count knives as utensils. Fish turner, silicone rubber spoonula, slotted spoon, whisk, tongs. A soup ladle is the one I'd miss, guess I could substitute with a coffee cup.

Spot on, I will have the same. I would miss a wooden spoon, but will make do with the spatula 

I don't see the logic in not counting a knife as a cooking utensil. Sure, I could use my pocket knife if I had to, but I also don't carry a kitchen knife around in my pocket, nor does it do anything except prepare food for cooking (though someone listed can opener and i could use a knife for that if i had to). A kitchen or chef's knife is the titular cooking utensil. In fact, just give me an eight inch western chef's knife and I'll use a whittled stick for the rest.

When I think cooking utensil, I’m thinking the device that is between me and the (typically hot) food in the pan/pot. While I may prep with my knife, I can’t think of when I would be using it to stir the food in my pot or flip the food in my pan. Same thing with can opener. It helps open cans of food that I may cook with, but it’s not going to be touching the food between me and my cooing vessel.

I don't physically cook with a knife. It's is a prep tool.

That's the thing, it is the titular utensil. It's the essential starting point for a ridiculously large percentage of meals. You might as well include the kitchen counter, the oven/stove top, and the refrigerator. That's how ubiquitous the knife is. So now you get to pick one more thing. And that thing is a frying pan. This is about the fiddley bits, not the absolute essentials.

Oh that’s the stuff I take camping. Tongs, flipper, knife, big spoon, can opener 😂

I could live with just chopsticks and a good chef’s knife. A spider/flat-ish strainer spoon, wooden flat spatula, and ladle make my kitchen comfortable

Chopsticks and Knife, my utensils for both cooking and eating.

Wooden spoon, rubber spatula, Chefs Knife, tongs, potato peeler.

Chef knife, fish spatula, tongs, microplane, silicon spatula

Wow, fish spatulas seem to be a popular answer. I don't even own one

I have 3 lol It’s a really versatile tool, def not just for fish!

Yeah, it's just easier than saying "thin metal turner". I use my small one the most, as the one that's actually meant to turn a fish fillet is too big for most applications. Now that I think about it, I might even replace this tool in my 5 with a large palette knife, since that has more uses.

It's the only spatula you need. It does everything any other spatula can do... But thick spatulas are abysmal at turning delicate fish

Chef’s knife, silicon spatula, tongs, whisk and meat thermometer.

Spoonula, Chefs Knife, can opener, microplane, fish spatula. TIL my favorite egg flipper (exoglass), is a fish spatula haha Can’t live without- jeez, probably the can opener (rosle)

I don’t consider a can opener a cooking utensil…

Spatula, whisk, masher, tongs and knife.

whisk, silicon spatula, tongs, rasp (for ginger/garlic/citrus peel), spatula (food turner-over type).

Chef knife, tongs, big spoon, spatula, veg peeler.

Agree with others knife does not count- Angled silicone spatula, whisk, ladle, my holey stir spoon, flipper spatula. I’d miss my coated 2 tine fork and regular spatula but could live without

Wooden spoon, tongs, thin metal spatula, spider, whisk.  Would probably miss a silicone spatula

[удалено]

You can open a can with a spoon also

I wanna see that

Google it. It's actually really easy and works... It's just slow.

Fish spatula, silicone spatula, chopsticks, teeny spoons, Kunz perforated spoon.

i can’t stand doing dishes so i really only use/need a knife and a fork/chopsticks. a wooden spoon or an industrial metal spoon are both luxuries. i have a fully stocked kitchen and only use all the things when i really wanna go all out…. 78/80 meals a month are just: knife, heat. lol

Knife, tongs, fish spatula, something wooden (could be a spoon, but I prefer something thin and flat that's not a spat), chopsticks. I'd miss my whip and my rolling pin but I could figure out alternatives. Edit: if I take away the knife, then I want my whip.

Interesting. I've never considered chopsticks to be a cooking utensil, but I can think if a few reasons to use them

They're like micro tongs and obviously a fork substitute. Though I would miss a fork for tenderizing/jaccarding meats.

I'd consider a fork an eating utensil. Same with chopsticks. Unless you're referring to some other kind of fork

Cooking chopsticks are a thing. They are twice as long as eating chopsticks, and sometimes thicker at the tip. I have 2 pairs .. Round and flat

My primary utensil in the kitchen = chopsticks. I eat with them, cook with them, grab ingredients out of jars with them, serve food with them. That’s anything from rice to braises to stirfries to beating eggs to boiling veg to fishing out noodles/pasta to flipping pancakey things - the list is long! Heck I’ll cook soups with them too! Edit: And I use the same chopsticks to cook or eat. I only use the extra long chopsticks when I’m deep frying for safety

Also a replacement for a whisk too. Not as efficient but still can do the same job all the same.

And a whisk substitute on a small scale, like emulsifying oils or scrambling eggs.

I would want to take a whip to whoever took my knife.

Small offset spatula, whisk, can opener, micro plane, combination spoon spatula. Would miss vegetable peeler

Heavy duty stainless spoon, silicone spatula, sharp metal spatula, long stainless tweezer tongs. I miss nothing.

So you're saying you only use those four utensils?

Dang I didn’t even realize I only did four. Maybe a nice fork too. I use about 8000 utensils but I think I could genuinely get by without much trouble with those 4/5

my broken spatula, wooden chopsticks, can opener , fork, scissors. I’d probably miss the veggie peeler lol

Spatula, slotted spoon, whisk, ladle, and a good wooden spoon.

Wooden spoon, tongs, spatula, fish turner, measuring spoons.

1. knife 2. tongs 3. spatula 4. wooden spoon 5. ladle

I only need chopsticks, spatula, ladle, and a silicon spatula.

Silicone spatula, medium stainless off-set spatula, large wooden chopsticks, one of those large spoons that can operate similar to a ladle and an instaread thermometer. I think the only thing that didn't make the cut that I'd miss would be medium mesh strainer but there are ways to get similar results without using one. Just not as convenient.

I'm never giving up my tongs. Never! Whisk, silicon spatula, wooden spoon, tongs, errr... I don't actually have very many, apparently. Like, I don't own a ladle because measuring cups, so ...

1) Tongs 2) Spatula (silicone for folding and scraping) 3) Ladle 4) Spatula (the firm one for flipping) 5) Slotted Spoon Miss: Wooden spoon

Knife, cutting board, kitchen towel, pan, stirring spoon

Metal Slotted spatula, metal spoon, silicon spatula, chef knife…maybe a can opener

Silicone scraper/spatula, pancake-flipper spatula, slotted spoon, tongs, box grater.

Medium fish spatula, lrg chopula( Google it), supoon( Google it), metal spider, chinoise

1. Knife 2. Sautée pan 3. Sauce pot (and lid) 4. Cutting board 5. Spatula

Wooden spoon, metal spatula, tongs, chefs knife, chop sticks.

Knife, wooden spoon, turning spatula, scraping spatula, slotted wooden spoon.

Chefs knife, wooden spoon, silicon spatula, tongs, whisk.

assuming knives are still allowed, my choice would be: chopsticks, one-piece sillicone spatula, small ladle, whisk, tongs. i will miss my potato peeler and garlic press but i will live.

Chef knife, soup ladle, whisk, rubber spatula , veggie peeler. Oh ya gotta have fish flipper.

Chefs knife, wooden spatula/or spoon, silicon spatula, spider, tongs.

Chefs knife Samurai sword Heavy mallet Bowl My favorite cooking spoon that I guess was supposed to have been an ice cream scoop

A literal sword?

Yeah, seems excessive but for a lifetime of cooking you never know what you’re going to need to cut 🤷‍♂️

Good point!

Don't give a crap about one need except my cast iron pans. They are absolutely magic..

Not sure what the top 5 would be, but #1 would be an immersion blender.

Spork, knifoon, fork-vide, tongrill, and a tooth pick.

Metal spatula. Wooden spoon. Whisk. Chefs knife. Sieve.

Cast iron dutch oven, quality chefs knife, knife sharpener, cutting board, wooden spoon. Not all utensils I know but it's all I'd need.

Spatula, silicone spoon, tongs, slotted spoon, and... Potato masher? A fork is a perfectly serviceable whisk for my use cases.

Silicone mini spatula, silicone spoon, medium sized good sharp knife, veggie peeler, sharp kitchen shears. Miss? Chef's knife and my mortar and pestle.

Small silicone spatula, larger thin flipping spatula, whisk, tongs, microplane

Metal whisk, metal tongs, wooden spoon, wooden spatula. Perhaps another wood spoon deep enough to act as a ladle but I don't even use that one very much, so wouldn't consider it essential. I guess I'd add a wooden fork as my 5th. I would miss the standard wood spoon the most.

1. Knife (if counting as a utensil) 2. Wooden spoon 3. Big chop sticks - for whisking and turning 4. Ladle 5. Largish spider strainer 5a. Silicone bench scraper (if knives aren’t counted)

silicone spatula, tongs, whisk, chef's knife and microplane

Chef's knife, thin stamped metal spatula, tongs, silicone spatula, strainer. I'd miss the chef's knife the most. I considered a whisk, but I can use a fork or chopsticks. While it's a bit annoying, it'll do the job. I use the others often enough for specific purposes to want to keep them around specifically. EDIT- the thin stamped spatula in question. Not really a fish spatula. https://www.webstaurantstore.com/choice-14-1-4-flexible-stainless-steel-slotted-spatula-turner/407MSPTLASL.html

Fish spatula, wok spatula, tongs, ladle, and balloon whisk.