When less is more in the kitchen

Kitchen has become the heart of every home, conjuring up images of a cosy space where the whole family congregates to enjoy peaceful meal times. However, not everyone is fortunate enough to have a big kitchen. For those living in apartments in major cities, kitchen can be a small cubbyhole, meant only for cooking.

Just because space is a constraint, doesn’t mean that you can’t have your dream kitchen? Prominent interior designers across the world have always advocated the art of minimalism. Creating a clutter-free and airy area that capitalises on the natural proportions of the room is paramount.

Trendy appliances

Design has evolved considerably in recent times. Modular kitchens are important for creating a seamless and polished look, with well-designed storage space. These days, leading kitchen appliance brands have started introducing multi-purpose products that can give a clean and streamlined look to your kitchen.

This is vital for small kitchens, as you don’t have to buy many appliances that take up a lot of space. Some of these gadgets include the juicer-mixer-grinder, which is an essential component of any kitchen. The question is why waste kitchen space as well as the extra money to buy a separate juicer when a mixer-grinder can do the work for you easily?

Another important gadget is a multi-utility pressure cooker. Whether you’re short on counter space or simply want a handy kitchen appliance that can be used for several tasks, a multi-cooker is a solid investment. Many offer a wide range of features such as the ability to cook rice, sauté or steam food or even make curd and oatmeal. Some multi-cookers have a large capacity, while others can cook enough food for two people.

Smart cooking

Preparing healthy meals invariably means that you’re going to be spending a lot of time chopping veggies. Instead of having a plethora of different knives, opt for vegetable cutters and dicers with sharp blades, that have space-friendly storage capabilities. This is going to be one of the most useful items in your kitchen.

Kitchen appliance brands have gone a step further with the introduction of the ultimate space saving gadget, which is the microwave-pressure cooker. In India, our microwaves are not utilised for full capacity. Somehow, the concept of cooking in a microwave, which is popular in the West, is yet to take off in India. However, microwave cooking is healthy and is the perfect antidote for tiny kitchens that don’t even have a gas stove. The microwave-pressure cooker is smaller, making it easier to store and clean.

Store it right

Creating a minimalist look in the kitchen is possible by adding to the aesthetics of the room. It just requires smart planning and a bit of ingenuity when it comes to design and storage of gadgets.

Designers suggest getting rid of wall-mounted cabinets, when space is a constraint. Instead opt for clean lines and angular shelves which don’t eat into an already tiny space. Experts also recommend the strategic placement of windows, which will help create a well-lit and airy kitchen. With a bit of careful consideration, kitchens can be configured to have bigger windows, which give the illusion of space, because of the sunlight that filters into the room.

So there you have it. It is still possible to have your dream kitchen no matter how tiny the space is. You just have to get creative, use light-coloured countertops and cabinets and enjoy the multitude of dual-purpose kitchen gadgets that will really help in reducing a cluttered and messy look.

(The author is executive vice president, TTK Prestige Ltd.)