Whether you’re on a budget or looking to bust one, finding the perfect gift for the gourmet in your life need not be a hassle.

That’s because The Associated Press has done the heavy lifting for you, elbowing through crowded shops and sifting through stacks of catalogs and Web sites to find great goodies to get merry with.

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STOCKING STUFFERS

• Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons by Oxo ($9.99)

With measuring spoons, measuring cups, mixing bowls and wooden spoons, a home cook never can have enough. My gadget drawer has at least six sets of measuring spoons, which spares me from having to wash and dry repeatedly as I cook.

This heavy-duty set by Oxo pairs the company’s signature comfort grip with thick stainless steel for a satisfying heft.

• Butter Cutter by Linens & Things ($7.99)

The perfect gadget for impatient bakers such as myself. When a recipe calls for adding butter cut into small pieces, I rarely have the patience to slice it up. Which might explain a few of my results.

This device, which resembles a bottomless butter dish with piano strings stretched across it, does the work for you. Press the cutter down over a stick of butter and you get perfect pats. Also good for slicing logs of goat cheese.

• Avocado Slicer by Chef’n ($5.99)

There’s no such thing as a perfect technique or tool for peeling and slicing avocados. But this device gets it close.

The slicer looks like a small plastic hoop with teeth. Scoop the hoop through an avocado half and it skins and slices the flesh in one motion. Only flaw is that it can mangle particularly soft avocados (not an issue if they are destined for guacamole).

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AROUND $20

• “834 Kitchen Quick Tips” by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated magazine ($16.95)

A huge helper in a small package. This book gathers and alphabetizes the many tricks and tips printed in Cook’s Illustrated over the years. It’s a handy reference that is well organized and thoroughly illustrated.

Among the many lessons, learn how to use old wine corks to store sharp utensils, five ways to pit a cherry and how to clean a cheese grater.

• “A Wine Miscellany” by Graham Harding (Clarkson Potter, $16.95)

A random and fascinating collection of wine trivia. Has gems such as the story of George Plantagenet, a man who supposedly chose to die by drowning in wine in the Tower of London, and the per acre value of vineyard land (if you’re shopping in this price range, you can’t afford it).

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AROUND $40

• Balsamic vinegar. A really good balsamic vinegar.

It’s possible to spend thousands of dollars for top stuff, but an excellent aged vinegar can be had for between $40 and $60. This is not the stuff of salad dressing. This is rich, luxurious and should be doled out sparingly.

These vinegars are excellent drizzled over Parmesan cheese and vanilla ice cream, or even consumed — in small doses — as an after-dinner drink.

• O2 Series kitchen hand tools by Art and Cook ($18 to $40)

These tools — there are  49 of them, from meat tenderizer to egg whisk — have serious sex appeal. They are heavy, forged from zinc, finished with titanium and fitted with soft ergonomic handles made with pockets of pressurized air.

I tested a bunch and loved the tenderizer ($40), which was well-balanced. The potato masher ($40) had similar heft and appeal. The citrus reamer ($40) worked beautifully and is so strange looking it doubles as a conversation starter.

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AROUND $60

• “The Oxford Companion to Food,” second edition, edited by Alan Davidson and Tom Jaine (Oxford University Press, $65)

No serious foodie should be without a serious food reference book. How else to know your kecap (pronounced KETCH-ap) from your ketchup? (Both are condiments, one made from tomatoes, the other from soy beans.)

Unlike the similar “Larouse Gastronomique,” the Oxford text is approachable and lacks the sometimes overwhelming French bias of the former. This is a great resource for deciphering the increasingly international American palate.

cabinetry, but with toddler-friendly door panels treated with chalkboard paint.