I go back and forth between nomadic minimalism (just a good knife and a frying pan in a backpack) and settled minimalism.

Realistically though, a settled-minimalist kitchen, but not in a backpack, is what I probably want. Something close of hermit level. If I didn't have to work, and could turn cooking into a true Zen-like meditative activity, I'd like the following kitchen in a spartan mountain log cabin, designed for 1 person :)

1. 1 knife and 1 cutting board
2. 1 single burner stove
3. No fridge (all fresh ingredients only). In fact no electrical appliances at all.
4. 1 large wooden bowl to eat out of
5. Small wok and stirrer to cook in (stir fry, soups...)
6. Pot to make rice in
7. 1 medium cast-iron frying pan and spatula
8. Kettle, cloth tea bag and a box of loose leaf tea, 1 cup
9. A basic spice box (I use one with about half a dozen containers within right now, for my most common spices), 1 container of rice, one of flour, 1 of lentils, 1 bottle of oil. No cabinets. This should all fit on the counter.
10. 1 mortar and pestle
11. 1 sink, 1 compost bin, no trash can (zero-waste model), 1 bottle dish detergent (no dishwasher... all hand-wash)
12. 1 small outdoor garden for growing seasonal stuff
13. 1 bottle of a good Irish whisky (heh heh!)
14. ... maybe an extra bowl and cup for visitors :)

This is the minimum I could get by on right now. It isn't actually unrealistic. In fact it is lavish by the standards of traditional hermit cultures around the world. I've gotten close to this level on a couple of rent-a-cabin type vacations, and they have been the happiest cooking episodes of my life.

I have one friend who is almost at this level already.