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37 Gifts for Meat Lovers That Are a Cut Above the Rest

For sous vide, grilling, and searing, these presents are for savoring the juiciest cuts.

By
Summer Rylander
Summer Brons Rylander Serious Eats
Summer Rylander
Summer Rylander is a food and travel journalist based in Germany. Her work has appeared in Food & Wine, The Kitchn, Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, Salon, HuffPost, and more.
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Updated December 05, 2024
Gifts for meat lovers we recommend on a blue grid background

Serious Eats / Amelia Manley

From burgers to barbecue, steaks to sous vide, chicken thighs to chopping boards, there’s a meat treat or groovy gadget for just about every gift-giving occasion. While these are our favorite gifts for meat (and grilling!) enthusiasts this year, nearly all of them are versatile enough to find a home in any kitchen or backyard—meat-eater or not. 

And the best part of food-centric gifts? They’re totally appropriate all year round! Birthdays, anniversaries, cute little “just because” moment. These are a few (ahem, 37) of our favorite things to give meat lovers.

This budget-friendly cleaver chopped its way to the top of our list our test thanks to its sharp blade and durable build. And looks cool, which definitely doesn’t hurt when you’re giving it as a gift. 

the victorinox cleaver on a marble backdrop

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

It’s a little bit of a splash-out gift, but we love this customizable carving board that is spacious enough to hold a turkey and looks good enough to live on your countertop. Or, rather, the countertop of your lucky loved one.

A wooden carving board on a marble surface

Serious Eats / Taylor Murray

If you really want to impress a meat lover this year, wrap up a Wüsthof knife to go along with that fancy carving board. Or, just give this carving knife on its own, because the deft blade and comfortable handle are more than enough to please even the most discerning chef. 

A person slicing meat using the Wusthof Classic Carving Knife

Serious Eats / Taylor Murray

Both of these immersion circulators stood out in our tests and are sure to inspire new cooking projects in the hands of your meat-loving mother-in-law (or, you know, whomever). They’re also both “smart” appliances that can pair with a smartphone app, so they’ll double as a fun gift for a meat eater who loves niche tech. 

The Breville Joule Turbo Sous Vide boils water in a pot

Serious Eats / Russell Kilgore

It’s not every day we have co-winners in our vacuum sealer tests, but that’s a good thing—because, yikes, testing vacuum sealers on a daily basis would be a lot of work. Anyway, either of these two is a great choice and would pair beautifully with one of the sous vides above.

A person using the Anova Precision Pro vacuum sealer's built-in bag cutter to trim a bag off of a roll.

Serious Eats / Nick Simpson

If your favorite meat-eater happens to have a KitchenAid stand mixer but doesn’t yet have the meat grinder attachment, well, that’s perfect. Gift-giving has never been easier. 

Person installing food tray of KitchenAid KSMMGA Metal Food Grinder Attachment

Serious Eats / Nick Simpson

Charcoal grills make a great gift. They’re impressive (a whole grill?!) yet budget-friendly and this classic model from Weber won’t take up anyone’s entire backyard. Way to steal the show with your thoughtful gifting!

A person grilling a steak on a Weber charcoal grill.

Serious Eats / Russell Kilgore

While it’s probably true that any meat person worth their salt already has a cast iron pan, there’s always room for one more. Lodge has long been our go-to for affordable cast iron quality, and this year is no different. 

Lodge cast iron skillet on a white surface

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

We’ve tested oodles of steak knives and Messermeister came out on top with excellent performance at a great price. They also look so nice as to have been described as “sexy” by our team, so, take that as you will.

cutting steak on a plate

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

A Pair of Grippy Oven Mitts

Food 52 Five Two Silicone Oven Mitts, Set of 2

Five Two Silicone Oven Mitts
PHOTO: Food52
View on Food52

These oven mitts are some of the best. They’re ultra-flexible and super-grippy—perfect for pulling a roast out of the oven. And because they’re so flexible, they work well with hands of all sizes.

the five two oven mitts on a marble surface

Serious Eats / Eric Brockob

Delicious Sauce

Bobbie’s Boat Sauce Gift Pack

Bobbie’s Boat Sauce Gift Pack
PHOTO: Bobbie’s Boat
View on Bobbiesboatsauce.com

If you haven’t tried Bobbie’s Boat Sauce yet, you’re missing out. This spicy, tangy, well-balanced sauce goes on absolutely everything—needless to say, it’s marvelous on meats. 

Baking sheets and cooling racks aren’t just for bakers—give the gift of easy dry brines, bacon drains, and the perfect spot on which to let meat rest before digging in. You can give either of these as a gift, but we’d spring for both and make it a practical pairing. 

a closeup shot of the grid format of our favorite cooling rack

Serious Eats / Irvin Lin

Everyone loves to snap tongs together, and it’s especially satisfying with a fresh pair like these from OXO. The stainless steel tips mean these are equally at home over the grill or the skillet, and they’re comfortable to work with. We like them so much that we named them the best tongs after our extensive tests.

Tongs turning a steak that's cooking in a cast iron skillet

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Does anyone actually need a special spoon just for tossing hot butter over steak? Probably not, but the better question is indeed why not? And since half the fun of gift-giving is to give things people aren’t likely to buy for themselves, an extra-large spoon is just the ticket—especially if you’re on a budget this holiday season. 

using a sauce spoon to pour and spread sauce on a plate before topping with roasted vegetables.

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

We’re pretty adamant that every home cook needs a great thermometer, and ThermoWorks has been making our favorites for quite a while now. Instant-read thermometers are especially important for cooking meat properly, and we like ours as fast and accurate as possible. Splurge on the Thermapen One or give the handy ThermoPop 2—both are sure to be well-received.

A person using a thermometer to take the temperature of chicken thighs roasting in the oven

Serious Eats / Russell Kilgore

A Different Type of Fancy Thermometer

ThermoWorks Smoke Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer

ThermoWorks Smoke Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer
PHOTO: ThermoWorks
View on Thermoworks

This thermometer was made for pitmasters. It features two probes—one for the meat, one for the pit—and includes a receiver so you can keep an eye on temperatures without having to spend the afternoon hovering over the grill. What’s better than the gift of a worry-free beer and a bathroom break?

ThermoWorks Smoke Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer is displayed

Serious Eats / Russell Kilgore

The nice thing about cookbooks is that good ones never go out of style. From learning how to select the right cuts to their perfect preparation—and coming up with Very Important side dishes—there’s no shortage of meat-centric books to choose from.

Is my editor tired of seeing this on my gift guides? Probably. But meat people take their salt seriously and showing up with a bucket of the good stuff is guaranteed to impress. Just like a few of these fabulous flakes on a sliced ribeye.

Nothing declares a serious backyard barbecue like a big cooler full of frosty drinks. Yeti doesn’t play around when it comes to insulation, and the Tundra 45 is one of our favorites. It makes a great gift, and you can do something cute like fill it with beer or grilling accessories. 

a yellow YETI cooler filled with ice and drinks

Serious Eats / Derra Burreson

Alright, so your meat-loving recipient will also have to be the outdoorsy type to appreciate such a gift, but if they're into hiking and camping, they’re sure to appreciate this portable powerhouse. 

jetboil stove on grass

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

Speaking of going places with grills, if a camping stove isn’t quite the right fit, maybe this larger, real-deal Weber portable gas grill is. This is a grill perfect for tailgating or loading up and bringing over to a friend’s house when they’re hosting a backyard party but don’t have a grill (maybe gift them this grill?).

A Weber portable grill cooking burgers and asparagus.

Serious Eats / Russell Kilgore

We recently tested a bunch of indoor herb gardens, and this one came out on top, delivering lush herbs that will pair beautifully with—you guessed it—meat. From basil to rosemary to sage to thyme, a tidy little hydroponic system will let anyone grow fresh herbs at home, no outdoor garden required.

an aerogarden herb garden with herbs in it

Serious Eats / Irvin Lin

Two things are true about grills: They’re hot, and you eventually have to clean them. Pick up a part of high-heat grilling gloves and Riddley’s favorite grill brush for a practical, effective gift set.

A person using a grill brush to clean a hot grill

Serious Eats / Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm

No shade to air fryer people—we know they’re convenient! We know they cook food really well! Including and perhaps especially meats! We just wanted to make sure they weren’t going to be a passing fad before we invested time and resources into testing air fryers. The Vortex Plus yielded the crispiest, most evenly cooked food (including chicken wings), so we’re happy to recommend it. The price isn't bad, either. 

The Instant air fryer on a kitchen countertop.

Serious Eats / Will Dickey

For serving roasts (or whatever), grab a good serving platter. One of our favorites from Le Creuset looks fancy, but it’s also durable and has handles! 

the le creuset platter, which was just large enough, on top of a much larger (too big) platter

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

A Cubano made on a panini press? We’ll take two! (Or three…) 

Two sandwiches cooking on a Breville panini press.

Serious Eats / Ashlee Redger

For slipping in between joints, you’ll need a nimble boning knife. This one has a nicely flexible blade, isn’t too expensive, and sports a grippy handle. 

holding the victorinox boning knife trimming the fat

Serious Eats / Ashlee Redger

The Best Salt Cellar

Zero Japan Bee House Salt Box

Amazon Zero Japan Bee House Salt Box
PHOTO: Amazon
$33 at Amazon

Meat needs to be seasoned. This is why a cellar for holding a vat of kosher salt is a necessity. This one has a bamboo lid that flips upright and a large opening.

our favorite salt cellars with their lids open

Serious Eats / Grace Kelly

In that same vein, a big ol’ steak practically screams for a smattering of freshly cracked black pepper. Grab our favorite pepper mill, tie a bow on it, and be done gifting.

The Peugeot pepper mill beside a few samples of ground black pepper.

Serious Eats / Abigail Clarkin

For transforming tougher cuts of meat quickly, a pressure cooker is the way to go. And make it an electric pressure cooker, which is infinitely easier to use. Our favorite Instant Pot has a steam release switch (no more poking at the valve with a spoon) and handles on the cooking pot that anchors it in place.

A person holds thermometer near Instant Pot Duo Plus 6-Quart 9-in-1 Pressure Cooker

Serious Eats / Russell Kilgore

An Actually Worthwhile Roasting Pan

Misen Roasting Pan

Misen Roasting Pan
PHOTO: Misen
$134 at Amazon $134 at Sur La Table View on Misen.com

Most roasting pans stink: Their too-high sides inhibit browning. But not this one from Misen! It’s thoughtfully designed and solves all of our roasting pan qualms. 

two handles grabbing onto a roasting pan's handles (the roasting pan has meat, potatoes, and fennel in it)

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

FAQs

What do you get someone who loves to cook meat?

This gift guide should give you some great ideas! Our go-to, budget-friendly gifts for meat lovers include an instant-read thermometer, a cast iron skillet, or a comprehensive cookbook.  

What do you get someone who loves to grill?

Meat and grills go hand-in-hand, so, again, you’ll find lots of inspo in this guide. But a few quick suggestions might include a grill brush, a remote thermometer, or a fresh pair of tongs.

Why We're the Experts

  • Summer Rylander is a writer who's been contributing to Serious Eats for years.
  • Her work has also appeared in Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure, and more.

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