While I’ve always loved food and have long dabbled in baking, overall, my cooking prowess has been limited. But my 2022 New Year’s resolution was to become a better cook—and at least now, nine months into the year, I’ve begun to get my footing in the kitchen. In fact, I can confidently say I’ve got a firm grasp on prepping, slicing, dicing, marinating and beyond. I owe much of that success to one particular product: the OXO Good Grips 3-Piece Mixing Bowl Set.

The OXO Good Grips 3-Piece Mixing Bowl Set has come in handy for me in a big, big way—and now, I ... [+] can't imagine my culinary adventures without it.

Generally speaking, I love all things OXO. I’ve never used one of the brand’s products and not immediately understood the hype. OXO has long been renowned for its problem-solving kitchen tools—items that are just a cut above the competition in terms of ease of use, ergonomics and general handiness. Most of their wares seem simple at first glance, but once you begin using them, it’s clear why they’ve garnered such a wide fan base—and why they cost a bit more than the average kitchen gadget, too.

In the case of the bowl set, all of the above holds true—as a matter of fact, they’re now the only stainless steel mixing bowls I use. Unlike typical stainless bowls, which tend to feel too lightweight and barely-there (and can be easy to scratch to boot), the OXO bowls are far more heavy-duty, and the manufacturer claims they’re scratch-resistant, too (a claim I’d back up). The bowls come in three sizes, each of which nestles within the next, and I use all three. The larger bowls (3 and 5 quarts, respectively) are my go-to tools for baking, marinating and storing leftovers, while the small (1.5-quart) bowl is the perfect size for a single-serve salad. It can also withstand the aggressive chopping I put my greens through right inside of the bowl—and it doesn’t so much as incur a single scratch in the process. (Fun fact: I use the OXO Good Grips Salad Chopper to recreate my favorite chopped salad recipes at home.)

The bottoms of the bowls are coated with grippy silicone that keeps them from sliding around on my ... [+] countertops.

It’s not just the fact that they’re sturdy that makes them so special, though. Each mixing bowl is also designed with a slip-proof silicone bottom, so they’re stable on my counters—and that’s true whether they placed flat or used tilted. What’s more, each stainless bowl has a heat-resistant plastic outer coating that shields hands from extreme temperatures, so you can place hot or freezing cold ingredients within them without subjecting your hands to the elements.

To top it all off, the set is dishwasher-safe—and I’ve found that it holds up perfectly in the fridge and freezer as well. Available in several different colors (all-white is offered in addition to the trio of gray and blue I’ve shown here), these bowls really do address every irritation I’ve had with traditional stainless mixing bowls. Now, I can’t imagine my time in the kitchen without them.