Gourmet has a fascinating feature on their site right now: 20 tools and technologies that have changed our kitchens (and our cooking) since WWII. Here's a look at five of the more interesting inventions. Take a look at the whole list, too, and tell us what you think. • 1 Plastic wrap has only been around since 1953. What did we do without it? It's interesting to think of it as something that has really changed our kitchens; it preserves, covers, and seals in a way we take for granted.
• 2 Air conditioning makes life bearable in hot climates (I lived in Orlando for five years and I know from experience). Think how hot kitchens must have been in the summers before AC! But have they become less friendly since its advent?
• 3 Silpat has brought artisan pastry-making and baking to the masses, argues Gourmet. It's still the most popular silicone product for the kitchen.
• 4 Dishwashers may be controversial (water-wasting, time-sucking extravagances, perhaps) but they are enormously popular. How have they changed how we cook?
• 5 The Internet has changed the way we cook! We wouldn't be writing this for you to read without the internet, so obviously we are fans. You?
Take a look through the whole list of 20 tools and technologies here:
• Read it: 20 Tools and Technologies That Changed the Way We Cook at Gourmet
...and tell us: what was left off, and is there anything you think doesn't belong here?
Related: 25 Good Food Products and Kitchen Tools
(Images: Romulo Yanes for Gourmet)
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
Whether we like it or not I really think the microwave belongs above the silpat, air conditioner, and internet on this list.
view Niamh's profile
I think the microwave by far has to be the biggest. After living w/o a microwave for several months, I can attest that leftovers just aren't the same.
view caw261's profile
Hmmm, I looked at the 20 items, and I think the only device that has really fundamentally changed the way people cook is the refrigerator/freezer.
In general, people went from shopping every day to shopping once per week, and they were able to store perishable foods for an even longer time in the freezer.
This gave rise to the use of preservatives and more extensive packaging, the popularity of megastores with vast parking lots and huge packages of meat, etc.
I don't think any of the other items listed have had quite this much impact on the way people shop, cook, and eat.
view heather77's profile
I don't think any of the items on the list can compare to the way refrigerators and microwaves have. Especially since while I have a fridge and a microwave, I don't have a blender, food processor, dishwasher, slowcooker, tupperware (i use pyrex storage), television or plastic wrap, but I DO have a toaster oven.
To be honest, the way I cook hasn't changed from moving from a house with all of these things to the place I live now.
view inertia's profile
Some of those seem like absolute givens - timers, plastic wrap, etc - while others seem to be thrown on the list either as product placement or "controversial" picks to get people talking about the list. (I hate those kind of picks in top lists, by the way.)
Seriously, vacuum sealers? How many people really own one of those? I've never seen one in-person my entire life, and I've been in a lot of kitchens.
view Kaete's profile
Dishwashers aren't water wasting. In fact it has been proven that a dishwasher saves more water than the most careful human dish washer.
view Sol's profile
I agree that the fridge/freezer has probably had the most impact on how we cook, but I think there are a few things that we take for granted. Mechanical timers, for instance. There has never been a time in my life when these weren't in use. I can't imagine not having something ding or beep to let me know that I need to turn the burners down or remove something from the oven. I'd burn dinner on a regular basis without my timers.
Plus, world-wide shipping is a HUGE deal that most people don't think about. ATers are probably more aware of what they buy than the average Joe, but not everyone thinks about the fact that a lot of the fruits, seafood and dairy products in their grocery aisle weren't produced locally.
On the whole, though, you probably could have whittled that list down to about 5 truly significant kitchen tools.
view harlie's profile