Kitchen gadgets haven’t really changed that much in the past two decades. Technology in the kitchen doesn’t evolve that easily. Pots are still pots- they just cook faster. Convection ovens become air fryers. However, this doesn’t mean there isn’t any change happening in the kitchen. If you look deeper, there are visible changes in the technology in the kitchen.
This article discusses the different innovations you must include in your kitchen. Read on to know more.
What Defines a Smart Kitchen?
The term “smart kitchen” is more than just a catchphrase. It represents a kitchen integrated with devices that can be controlled remotely using apps on a smartphone or tablet. A smart kitchen isn’t just about having a smart refrigerator or oven; it’s also about the synergy between all the kitchen appliances and how they can make a homeowner’s life easier.
Why Should Homeowners Use Technology in Kitchens?
With the heart of the home undergoing such rapid advancements, there’s a lot to gain. Kitchen technology can reduce the amount of time in the kitchen preparing and storing food, automate mundane tasks, and even help homeowners monitor their food consumption for healthy living. Plus, even if you’re not a tech guru, modern technology in kitchen designs ensure user-friendliness.
Here’s the Technology in the Kitchen You Must Have
How the kitchen functions has changed drastically. With AI at the helm of technological innovations, people should expect major shifts in meal preparation and how people generally convene in the kitchen.
Backsplashes Become Digital
It is worth adding this one here even though it is not technically a gadget. Gone would be the days when you need to install tiles as backsplashes. Instead of boring white and black mosaic tiles as decor, you will have touchscreen wall that can showcase recipes, cooking shows and other displays you want. This makes your kitchen an interactive space. You can even use the backsplash to control other kitchen appliances.
Countertop Kitchen Projector
A countertop projector is your mini laptop of some sort for the kitchen. This would control all other kitchen appliances, provide you with decorating ideas (could even show you how the food could actually look on your plate), and provide you with nutritional facts and a time frame on how long your menu cooks. What’s great about this gadget is its space-saving feature. You attach it to the base of your cabinet, giving you more space to do some kitchen work.
Green Sinks
There will be an emphasis on less wastage, particularly with water usage. Used water would not be discarded right then and there. It would be separated so you can water plants with it. Contaminated water, on the other hand, goes straight to the sewage treatment plant. Solid waste would also be segregated so that the organic ones could be used as compost fertilizer.
Robotic Kitchen Assistant
Photo by Kindel Media
Who would know that this day would come that a standalone robot would come and provide a helping hand. This robot can even store thousands of recipes, which you direct the robot to create in no time.
Smart Scale
Nowadays, scales don’t just weigh your food; they can also break down its nutritional value, Some smart scales can be integrated into healthy living apps so you can keep track of what you eat. This is particularly helpful if you want to meet your daily dietary needs. In some designs, the smart scale can provide you with information about replacement ingredients if you are short on the required set found on the cookbook.
Smart Trash Bins
With smart trash bins, you can keep track of the items you throw away. It can even take note of products you frequently purchase so it’s easier for you to pick them up at the store. It can also identify the kind of garbage you throw away and put them in its appropriate categories for proper disposal.
Multifunctional Tap Faucet
It would be a d ream to have just one water tap for boiling, cold and sparkling water, right? Fret no more. You can have this water drinking system soon. Aside front he fact that you can have three different kinds of water in just one source, a multi-functional tap faucet system eliminates plastic use. That’s one more household being environmentally friendly.
Steam Oven
Photo by Raspopova Marina on Unsplash
Steaming is a healthier alternative to frying. That’s why many home chefs look forward to such products as the steam oven. With the steam oven, you consume less oil, keep more nutrients and avoid contamination.
Automatic Food Composter
A green thumb would definitely love this gadget on their kitchen counter. An automatic food composter is a table-top compost-making gadget. It turns your organic crap to beneficial organic compost that your plants prefer. Creating compost with this gadget is easy-peasy- with a tap of a button.
All-in-One Food Processor
If you are a home cook, you’d know how frustrating it can be to use the blender, juicer and food processor individually. And to think you need to wash all three at some point. Well, having a three-in-one food processor might be the answer to this. Not only will this help you save time, but it would also free up space occupied by three appliances. This kind of food processor would be a wonderful add-on to your kitchen.
Finger Touch Ovens
Instead of knobs, you can monitor the temperature by simply swiping or touching the pad. The futuristic ovens would have small pad sensors where you control flame height and temperatures.
Touch-to-Open Cabinetry
Photo by Max Vakhtbovych
Expect that cabinets would be opened with a touch instead of pulling them open. It’s a more convenient way to move around the kitchen by spending less time pushing and pulling cabinet shelves.
Built-In Vacuum Sealers
Unless it’s vacuum-sealed, you’d have to second guess a fruit or vegetable’s freshness. Unlike the vacuum sealers of the past, modern ones are built into the cabinet so reaching out to keep your food fresh is now easier to do.
The Latest Trends in Kitchen Tech
Do you want to know what changes to expect in the next decade or so? Know about them here.
Real Gadget Autonomy
What gadgets we have now are not really autonomous one. These are only Wi-Fi connected and you need to click the button on the smartphones app to turn it on. In the future, appliances would be able to “communicate” with each other; there is total integration and automation between devices. What’s about this is everything is totally customizable, artificial intelligence is here to stay, after all.
Think of an integrated coffee maker. You set the timer for brewing and the device will take care of everything, from getting water for the tap and keeping the brew until needed. This is one less task to think of in the morning.
Better Refrigeration
Photo by Polina Tankilevitch
People think that the bigger the fridge, the more food it can store. The truth of the matter is, bigger fridge means more food goes to waste. That said, refrigerators of the future would not only preserve food but also would also focus on to sustainably conserving food.
Remote Software Updates
Furthermore, you can easily update your smart ovens and ranges with over-the-air application updates so you won’t have to buy a new set of ranges to get the most advanced settings in the market. Plus, automated appliances can be updated, thus, making them smarter than ever.
Smart Lighting
Smart bulbs would be easy to install. Customizable and voice-controlled, you can easily control how light plays in the room, creating the kind of ambiance you want.
Shift to Induction Cooking – Making Cooking Easier and More Efficient
Smart kitchen appliances like the smart food scale or the smart coffee maker are not just about automation; they’re about enhancing the overall cooking experience. From helping measure ingredients accurately to brewing your morning coffee to perfection, it’s clear that technology hasn’t just entered the kitchen — it’s revolutionizing it.
While the technology is not new, more and more people are shifting from gas cooktops to electric ones. Moreover, newer systems allow cookware heated through the countertop surface, allowing for a better use of space instead of having a dedicated area for cooktop space.
The Modern Cooker: Not Just for Rice
Today’s smart cookers go beyond just boiling rice. They can sync with your phone, adjust cooking settings based on the dish, and reduce food preparation time significantly. With built-in sensors, these appliances ensure food is cooked just right, every time.
Virtual Reality to Showcase Kitchens for Real Estate
Virtual reality has seeped through real estate. This allows real estate professionals to showcase prefab kitchen so customers can view how their kitchens would look like even before purchasing and building them.
Is AI Technology in the Kitchen Really Useful?
If there is one room in your home that is full of technology, everyone would agree that it would be the kitchen., Compare this to, say, the living room. Aside from Alexa or Google voice commands, the living room isn’t that technologically advanced. Go to the kitchen and you see all sorts of electronic gadgets and, you guessed it right, has cutting-edge technology. This is where the predicament comes in. Yet, the kitchen is slow to embrace smart technology. Many experts feel home automation (smart technology) isn’t necessary in the kitchen. Does one really need to have a fridge with an interior camera? Do people even use this device to check their fridge’s contents.
Photo by Sidekix Media on Unsplash
Smart kitchens are for tech-savvy homeowners, somebody who has previous knowledge on how AI works. Otherwise, people can’t utilize smart appliances to their full potential. Additionally, experts argue that by adding AI technology in the kitchen, old-age techniques would be lost. Take for example how to properly knead the dough. If you rely on the robotic kitchen assistant to create the perfect pasta noodles, the traditional skills you need to create such material manually might be lost; nobody wants to learn how such a thing is traditionally done.
But one can’t deny that the day would come when everyone would embrace AI technology in the kitchen, primarily because of the convenience it provides. For example, it would greatly help a visually impaired person cook the turkey without burning it. Or assist an elderly in his groceries.
Smart Technology in the Kitchen
Gone are the days when appliances stood out like sore thumbs in home designs. Kitchen designers now prioritize the integration of smart kitchen technology, ensuring aesthetics aren’t compromised. Features like digital backsplashes and built-in tablet countertops are blending technology seamlessly into kitchen design.
To End
It’s time to step into the future and consider getting better kitchen technology. Which among these products do you think would help you? Share with us your thoughts in the comments section.
