Kitchen Essentials for Cooking Vietnamese Food at Home

If you want to cook more Vietnamese food at home, you're in luck—your everyday kitchen equipment will work fine! But if you DO want to invest in a few key pieces, we have suggestions.

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Cambria Bold
Cambria Bold
Cambria Bold
Cambria has over 10 years of experience as a director, editor, and writer. She has held senior editorial roles at Apartment Therapy, Kitchn, and Simply Recipes.
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Updated August 24, 2021
Cambria Bold
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Nick Evans

Ready to cook more Vietnamese food at home? We are, too! But what about specialty equipment?

Thankfully, according to Vietnamese cooking expert and Simply Recipes contributor Andrea Nguyen, you probably already have everything you need. "You don't have to outfit your kitchen with unusual gadgets," she writes in her cookbook, Vietnamese Food Any Day.

So what do you need? Here's what Andrea recommends—both basic and upgraded picks!

Essential Kitchen Tools

You'll be set to start cooking Vietnamese food at home if you have most of the following items in your kitchen:

  • Digital scale
  • Food processors (small and regular size)
  • Blender
  • Pressure cooker or multi-cooker, like the Instant Pot
  • Microwave
  • Small 1- to 1 1/2-quart saucepan
  • Medium 2- to 3-quart saucepan
  • Large 4-quart saucepan
  • Small 8-inch skillet
  • Medium 10-inch skillet
  • Large 12-inch skillet
  • Cast iron stovetop grill pan
Stir fried vegetables with sauce poured on top to make a One Pot Vegetarian Stir Fry.
Jessica Gavin

Specialty Kitchen Tools (If You Want!)

If you'd like to invest in some specialty equipment for cooking Vietnamese food, Andrea recommends the following.

BAMBOO STEAMER BASKET

Andrea recommends buying a bamboo steamer basket with steel rings, because the metal helps keep the bamboo straight and in place.

UNSEASONED CARBON STEEL WOK

"This $40 wok [from Helen Chen] is similar, if not better than the one I started with," says Andrea. Helen Chen is the daughter of famed chef and author Joyce Chen, whose original cookware line Andrea loves. Andrea's favorite wok is this Joyce Chen wok!

You will have to season it yourself, though! Here's how to do that.

NONSTICK CARBON STEEL WOK

If you don't want to worry about seasoning your wok, Andrea recommends the Helen Chen Excalibur nonstick wok, which has a strong, durable PFOA-free nonstick coating already on it. Watch a video of Helen talking about this wok!

CARBON STEEL SKILLET

Carbon steel pans are lighter than cast iron, heat quickly, and are very easy to cook with. "I work my pots and pans really hard, and [the carbon steel skillets] keep coming back," Andrea says. "Carbon steel is really easy to season and keep seasoned. They change color, and they are beautiful to watch."

Try These Delicious Vietnamese Recipes!

And check out our Beginner's Guide to Cooking Vietnamese Food at Home.