Finding a gift for the serious food lover who uses only the best cookware and knows where to find amazing under-the-radar restaurants can be intimidating. But a frugal shopper can delight an epicure for $25 or less. A dash of budget-savvy imagination can lead holiday shoppers to gourmet ingredients and essential kitchen gear.
Prices and availability are subject to change.
Related: Gifts for Women Who Love to Cook
$25 from Amazon
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Save loved ones from wrestling with stubborn wine corks. The Oster electric wine opener has won over thousands of consumers and averages 4.6 stars from more than 35,000 reviewers on Amazon. The opener is cordless and comes with a charging base. One charge opens up to 30 bottles.
Related: 21 Affordable Wine Clubs That Will Satisfy Even the Snobs
$20 from Uncommon Goods
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Tickle their taste buds with this collection of lollipops, each with a unique flavor such as strawberry-rhubarb and lemon-thyme. Once done, plant the stick and watch an herb or flower grow within three months.
$17 from Amazon
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Handheld blenders are especially useful for cooks who love to save time cooking and minimize cleanup. As with most home appliances there are a lot of options for price points, but good quality option start surprisingly low.
$16 from Amazon
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Make cooking and serving more fun and safer with a heat-resistant ‘Ove’ Glove — an affordable present for cooks young and old. Cooks will enjoy the extra flexibility and dexterity the glove provides, which an oven mitt doesn’t.
Related: 25 Gift Ideas for Guys Under $25
$13 from Amazon
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One of the oldest and most widely used culinary tools, this ancient form of grinding and combining ingredients taps into a primal sense. Most cooks love getting involved with their ingredients, and some even have multiple mortars and pestles for different applications. A basic one in dignified gray marble is a good place to start.
Related: Best Gifts for Men Who Love to Cook
$20 from Amazon
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Although most people keep their recipes in digital form, there's still something special about a handheld recipe book. It can inspire culinary-minded loved ones to start a tangible collection to be passed on for generations.
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$26 from Amazon
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Teary-eyed cooks will happily don RSVP International's onion goggles. The handy accessory comes in different colors and has won hundreds of enthusiastic (and grateful) reviews online.
$30 and up from CB2
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Candy, pretzels, nuts — even plain treats look elegant when they’re set out in these lidded bowls made from smoky hand-blown glass.
Related: Gifts for Sisters That Express a Lifetime of Love (and Then Some)
$21 from Amazon
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This useful gift of small-batch artisan salts adds a brilliant pop of flavor to gourmet and everyday dishes. Sea salts are blended with herbs and spices to create varieties such as Hawaiian Bamboo Jade and Garlic Medley.
$9 from Amazon
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What's salt without pepper? Tellicherry black peppercorns deliver a deep, complex flavor with a bite. A pound should last about a year.
$10 from Amazon
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This “dinner diary” is a place for frequent entertainers to record the guests in attendance, dishes served, and music played at events they’ve hosted, making it easy to recreate their most successful soirées — or simply relive them.
$13 from Amazon
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This two-in-one tool is a space saver and multitasker for cooks. The handheld device grates everything from cheese to citrus zest and slices small fruits and veggies (similar to a mandoline but on a smaller scale). The flat design makes it easy to store or take along for gourmet picnics that call for freshly grated cheese.
$10 and up from Olio&Olive
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Bacon now enhances a wide array of foods, from cupcakes to beer. Cooks often use pancetta, pork belly, or the standard smoked variety, but guanciale — cured meat from the jowl of a pig — makes a singular gift for a pork-loving foodie. Popular in central Italy but little known on this side of the pond, guanciale is leaner and boasts a more pronounced flavor than bacon.
Related: 17 Places to Order Pork, Steaks, and Other Meats Online
$22 from Amazon
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Novelty aprons may have gone out of style, but a clean and modern style is a thoughtful gift for those who love to cook without ruining their clothes. This pocketed apron will provide protection through years of messy cooking and baking.
Related: Top Bread Makers and Other Bread-Making Supplies for Baking at Home
$23 from Jacques Torres
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Chocolate aficionados will delight in "bean-to-bar" artisanal chocolate. This Classic Hot Chocolate mix will rouse the taste buds of the most jaded palate.
Related: 25 Candymakers With Treats Almost Too Pretty to Eat
$14 from Amazon
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Truffle flavor is incorporated everywhere from pasta and pizza to fries and even high-end sushi. Truffle mushrooms are expensive, because they must be sniffed out by trained hogs or dogs, but truffle oil is a cheaper alternative.
$13 from Amazon
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Unleash the barbecue beast within and give the gift of meat claws. Strong enough to shred slow-cooked, grilled, or smoked meat, the claws can also be used to pick up food and carve large pieces of meat without slippage.
$18 from Amazon
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Every kitchen lover should have a spiralizer that turns vegetables into noodles of different shapes and sizes. While the larger versions cost closer to $35, handheld versions such as this OXO offer a high-quality handheld introduction to the world of spiralizing.
$10 from Amazon
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Inexpensive silicone ice trays, such as a jumbo cube version, make a thoughtful gift to enhance the quality of drinks all year round. Given the price, consider giving a couple of sets.
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$25 from Amazon
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Any chocoholic will love making sweet creations with this gizmo. Use the accompanying molds to create yummy multicolored chocolates shaped like animals, toys, or freeform designs all your own. Top cupcakes or enjoy the chocolates on their own.
Related: The Best Chocolate-Themed Advent Calendars for Serious Sweet Tooths
$8 from Crate & Barrel
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This specialty item adds class and sophistication to any spread. Surprisingly inexpensive, the slate cheese board is cheap enough to give a set of two. Complete the gift with some chalk for labeling the cheese on the board.
$19 from Amazon
These colorful baking mats get stellar reviews from buyers, and come in multiple sizes and buying options. Made of silicone, these make popping cookies, macarons, and more in and out of the oven a breeze.
$24 from Amazon
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A bottle of pure maple syrup from Canada makes a wonderful gift. This can be used on pancakes, waffles and in drinks, and foodies will appreciate its delicate velvety taste.
Related: 34 Beloved Local Eats That Can Be Shipped as a Gift
$12 from Target
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Mostly known as a cocktail flavor enhancer in the United States, aromatic bitters are actually considered a food flavoring in most of the world. Recommended uses on the classic Angostura label include adding a few dashes to soups and sauces or morning coffee. A secret blend of botanicals gives it a unique flavor and it makes a low-cost option for foodies. They're a handy gift for someone who likes to keep a well-stocked bar.
$10 from Amazon
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Whether you're baking, grilling, or frying, an instant-read thermometer will guarantee that food comes out perfectly cooked every time. This one's a top seller among Cheapism readers.
$16 from Amazon
Every bacon lover knows what a pain it can be to clean up after cooking a batch of bacon. Don't pour that grease down the sink! Pour it into this 1-cup silicone Bacon Bin and save it for later use.
$21 from Amazon
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Good measuring cups like this highly rated Bellemain set are invaluable for prepping dry ingredients. Reviewers love the sturdy handles, which don't have any crevices where sugar and flour can collect.
$9 from Nuts
Shake it on popcorn. Make your own Kraft-like mac and cheese. Sprinkle it on broccoli or baked potatoes. If your giftee is obsessed with Cheeto dust or cheese in general, he'll wonder how he lived without this big, fun bag of cheddar powder.
$14 from Amazon
Is your cook a seafood fan? He can make his homemade crab leg and lobster meals feel more like a restaurant experience with these cute butter warming crocks. Tealights included.
$24 from Uncommon Goods
As the description says, “chew and chill”. These vegan, wine-flavored (but alcohol-free) gummies are a delicious way to take a moment, whatever the time of day and wherever you may be. Lovers of both wine and candy will be in heaven.
Related: Delicious International Candies That Can Be Shipped to Your Door
$20 from Uncommon Goods
This simple blend of cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice, and star anise turns a regular red wine into a Spanish getaway in a glass. Each container yields 3 gallons of sangria.
$37/month and up from Cratejoy
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If international or healthy snacks aren't your thing, Munchie Crate sends an assortment of 15 snacks each month that you'll almost certainly recognize: Pringles, Cheez-its, Skittles, Oreos, Swedish Fish … you get the idea.
$37/month and up from Grill Masters Club
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This subscription will deliver a pitmaster-curated selection of rubs, spices, sauces, wood chips, grilling accessories, and more each month, and each shipment also includes a new recipe.
