Kitchen Essential

The central counter is without doubt the recent biggest improvement in kitchen design that has come into its own! Its recent ancestors are those centrally placed ‘working’ tables found in most large kitchens in England from the eighteenth century until the 1930s. Their scrubbed sycamore surfaces coped well with all types of food preparation, and in the smaller farmhouse kitchens the tables were used to eat at as well. By the 1950s with the development of factory-made built-in units we were all put to work on laminated plastic surfaces facing walls, which was anti-social and in planning terms dispersive. By placing a piece of furniture in the middle of a room, activity is drawn towards the centre. Continue Reading »

Without doubt the farmhouse kitchen is the strongest and best loved image of a kitchen. A possible description goes like this: ‘with views of rolling countryside through latticed windows, one appreciates a large inglenook fireplace, a plethora of blackened oak beams, a large open- racked dresser stuffed with china and homely ephemera, a well-worn flagstone floor, a comfortable armchair or two, a generous-sized food cupboard, a scrub-topped refectory table, and fragrant smells issuing from an Aga which announce that something wonderful is about to be served.’ Continue Reading »

The English have a long tradition of follies. Perhaps our love of eccentricity is partly responsible. The Gothic style is at its heart. It has had as many revivals as centuries and many disguises too, secular and ecclesiastical. In the nineteenth century there was a strong connection between privacy and Gothic. The newly rich industrialists built themselves mansions or pseudo castles fortified in the Gothic style. The phrase the Englishman’s house is his castle suggests the strong sense of security derived from Gothic, since that is how castles are perceived in our imagination. Continue Reading »

The kitchen also unintentionally shares some other similarities of attitude with Biedermeier — emphasis on veneered surfaces, use of simple lines, distinct metal handles, use of inlay and no nonsense detailing. It also has, I hope, in common with Biedermeier, a sense of quiet fun, including unexpected elements such as cupboards linked into a series of intriguing repetitive small lockers, funny hats on storage pillars, doors with miniature glass windows, Continue Reading »

9 Cut the second shelf smaller, 980 mm wide by 250 mm deep, with a return coming out the left-hand side, 780 mm x 250 mm. Fix the shelf at 1810 mm from the floor on 150 mmx 125 mm brackets fixed to the wall by screwing as before. Once again, the shelf should then be primed. The third shelf is the smallest at 980 mm wide and 150 mm deep, with a return of 780 mm out of the left wall. Fix the shelf 1510 mm from the floor on 100 mm x 125 mm brackets. Continue Reading »

Although this project was built in a specific location, it incorporates many options and can easily be modified to suit individual needs and available space.

Continue Reading »

Not for nothing is the kitchen called the heart of the home.

The family tends to gravitate towards the kitchen at all times of the day and, while it must serve primarily as a food preparation area, it’s good if it also has a comfortable, companionable and welcoming atmosphere.

If there are children in the house, try to incorporate a space in the kitchen where they can play, paint and draw and, when they’re older, do their homework. It will allow you to keep an eye on them while you get on with your own tasks and, at the same time, provide them with occupation, education and company. Continue Reading »

A small kitchen may not have enough room for a permanent table at which a couple of people can eat breakfast or quick kitchen meals, but it may have a wall to which a fold-down table could be attached.

Such a table can also provide extra workspace when needed as well as a place for family and friends to sit and keep the cook company while meals are being prepared. Folding chairs, some kind of cosy lighting arrangement and a spot for a small television on a facing wall could make previously dead space the most popular spot in the house. Continue Reading »

The galley kitchen, generally a narrow room with cabinets on the two long walls, is one of the most difficult types of kitchen to make work satisfactorily.

The most awkward arrangement is when the room is essentially a passageway between the back door and the main living areas. Much less troublesome is the corridor with one completely enclosed end wall, in which the only traffic is that coming into, and not through, the room. Continue Reading »

With cabinets and appliances running in an unbroken line around three counters, the U-shape is generally considered to be the most workable kitchen design.

To create an efficient work triangle in a U-shaped kitchen, awkwardly positioned doorways are more of a problem than the actual size of the room. In the true U-shape, the line of work surfaces is uninterrupted by doors, so that the cook is undisturbed by family members continually tramping through the work area. Continue Reading »

This configuration is suitable for virtually all types of rooms, except for particularly narrow ones, or those with lots of doors.

It’s often used to create a kitchen in the corner of an open-plan living room, or in a large combined kitchen/dining room.

In almost every case, the L-shaped kitchen can include an eating area, even if it’s only in the form of a breakfast bar; generally, though, there’s room here for a table. Of course, it’s a very sociable set-up, ideal for relaxed entertaining and family meals, enabling the cook to join in conversation without feeling excluded. Continue Reading »

The most informal arrangement, the eat-in kitchen can fit into almost any shaped room as long as it’s not too small.

A great benefit of this layout is that the cook need never feel left out from what’s going on at the table. On the down side of things it is impossible to close the door on kitchen mess. Continue Reading »

You need more than money to create a kitchen that looks good and works well. Far more important is a sense of how you actually want your kitchen to work, plus a knowledge of basic planning principles.

The layout of the room, rather than its size, has an enormous impact on its level of efficiency. It’s worth taking your time over the planning stage to avoid what could prove to be costly and annoying mistakes. Continue Reading »

With such an enormous variety of stoves, ovens and cooktops (hobs) on the market it is essential to do a little homework before you buy.

Start by making a list of basic requirements. How much can you spend — and does that amount include installation? What fuel do you prefer — gas, electricity, solid fuel, oil? How much space do you have? Do you cook mainly for just one or two, with occasional dinner parties? Regularly entertain on a grand scale? Produce nonstop meals for the family and assorted friends? What sort of cooking do you do — baking, frying, grilling and barbecuing, steaming and stir-frying? Continue Reading »

If you take a look around your well-equipped kitchen at home, with its plumbed-in sink, its spacious oven, its four-ring hob, its refrigerator, dishwasher, electric food-mixer and so on, it is fairly clear that no portable camp kitchen is likely to match up to it for sheer convenience and labour-saving efficiency. It follows, therefore, that when you go camping you should not expect to cook and eat as elaborately as at home. Continue Reading »

Isn’t it interesting how the truly basic basics of cooking, like how to boil an egg that’s just right or cooking a perfect pot of rice, are ironically the last things we master? What we know (as with everything else), we’ve learnt the hard way. Allow us to make yours a smoother ride. If you start by getting the basics into the kitchen, mastering the cooking basics will just be so much easier.

Cooking (without waves)

If you know how to cook eggs, a pot of rice, pasta and veggies, you will survive. If you can do a decent braai, you may even thrive. So read on and see if you can master the basics. Continue Reading »

The pots and pans in your kitchen can make or break all future cooking experiments and experiences. If you’re still using your Mom’s or Gran’s discarded pots and pans, you’re going to have to replace them some or other time. On your first outing to buy a pot, you will find that there is such a wide variety that it is quite hard to choose. Here are some guidelines to help you with this treasure hunt. Continue Reading »

The term ‘china‘ is used to describe widely different materials ranging from the finest porcelain to heavy earthenware pottery. Fine china is usually kept for entertaining and a heavier duty pottery or earthenware is used every day.

Porcelain and bone china

This is the very best china and, treated carefully, will last well. Its extremely delicate appearance is deceptive, for it is remarkably robust and, unless knocked quite hard, is far more resistant to chipping than one might expect. It should not, however, be put into or on a very hot oven but should be warmed very gently. Overheating will cause tiny cracks to appear in the glaze and the lustre will disappear. Fine china should never come into contact with direct heat such as a low gas flame. Continue Reading »

Candles add elegance and romance to a table setting and throw a gentle light which is flattering to faces, flowers and food.. Light a formal dinner with several candlesticks or use one or two Candles for a more intimate romantic occasion.

The colour of the candles should be matched to china, linen and flowers and can be varied to suit different occasions. Red, white and green are ideal at Christmas, combined with holly, poinsettias and other festive items. A meal in springtime is brightened by daffodils and narcissi arranged with yellow, white and pale green candles. Try other colour combinations for different effects.

One kind that is available features a sherry-type glass with a wick and float and a special liquid that burns with a red or green flame. Continue Reading »

HIGH TEA

As high tea is a much more informal, family affair than afternoon tea, your everyday china is quite suitable. An unfussy practical setting is required, with a fairly plain table-cloth set with everyday cutlery. As hot dishes are usually served, each place setting should include a large knife and fork as well as a side plate and small knife for spreading butter and jam.

SNACK MEALS

If a very light meal is to be eaten after the theatre or in the early evening a low occasional table is ideal for arranging dishes and setting informal places. Almost any ’snack’ meal can be served in this way. If the surface is not heat-proof, any hot plates of food and coffee pots should be placed either on a heat-proof tray or large mat. Continue Reading »