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The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

indyweek.com

21–30 of 33 posts

Re: The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

#21

"whether you're tiny, typical or tall." I love the alliteration here in place of short, average, tall. Dad is proud of this letter, the one that told him he was too innovative, even for the most Jetsons-like of dream kitchens. I think that's a cool thing to be proud of. I also wish we would kind of go in the opposite direction and find solutions that work well for most people while being simpler and having fewer movi…

This exact line caught my attention as well - despite the author's attempts to mock the copywriter's optimism, they could sure turn a phrase.

Re: The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

#22
post #5

I would say a big reason air fryers have become so successful is you don't have to bend down like an oven to use or clean. Air fryers are a good example of a post-internet kitchen change. There's nothing obviously logical about air fryers in a lot of houses. I'll use mine over my far more advanced, self cleaning oven whenever I can. Looking after your back is also big in this kitchen, which is interesting. But in the…

In most houses the oven takes much more time in relation to the amount of food cooked. When I'm cooking for 2, the air dryer gets used heavily. When I'm cooking for the full family it's the oven.

This would also correspond with the decrease in average family size over time.

Re: The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

#25
It's funny the way things have panned out vs. the 1950s suburban utopia.

Gender-wise, ladies are out working, and cooking is now for anyone. Architecturally, many houses no longer have a traditionally segregated kitchen, they instead have a shared kitchen-living space. Increasingly, many houses also no longer have a formal dining table. It is clear that in future many houses will not have any kitchen at all, instead just a sink and prep area within the living space. These changes parallel macro-trends such as reduction in family unit size, increase in rent vs own, and aging populations, which are valid across many cultures in Asia as well as the west.

Recently we've seen a huge amount of money thrown in to the commodification of last-mile delivery for ready-to-eat foods globally, as well as a COVID-concentrated invest-fest in rapid groceries. Both are hitting limits. Perhaps the future is autonomous food prep, retail and delivery, because future, post-millenial, mobile and short-term-renting consumers may have reduced cooking skills, see appliance ownership as a drag, can't be bothered planning ahead for groceries for a household of 1-3, and don't own a car. Eventually cooking your own meal from scratch will be like building your own furniture: a quaint hobby for well-resourced enthusiasts. RIP, kitchen.

Re: The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

#26
post #4

It’s interesting to me that most people, even when renovating their kitchen in a home they never intend to sell, don’t bother adjusting the counter heights to that most compatible with the user. Multiple heights are appearing in more designs now.

Most people renovating their own homes are married. There's enough height difference between most married couples that trying to optimize beyond "yeah, close enough" is a fool's errand.

Re: The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

#28

"whether you're tiny, typical or tall." I love the alliteration here in place of short, average, tall. Dad is proud of this letter, the one that told him he was too innovative, even for the most Jetsons-like of dream kitchens. I think that's a cool thing to be proud of. I also wish we would kind of go in the opposite direction and find solutions that work well for most people while being simpler and having fewer movi…

modern faucet design that handles both hot and cold with one handle. That's "modern" as in "late 40s"? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_M._Moen

They were very popular in the 70s as well. Funny how things go in cycles like that.

Re: The 1950s miracle kitchen of the future

#30
post #5

I would say a big reason air fryers have become so successful is you don't have to bend down like an oven to use or clean. Air fryers are a good example of a post-internet kitchen change. There's nothing obviously logical about air fryers in a lot of houses. I'll use mine over my far more advanced, self cleaning oven whenever I can. Looking after your back is also big in this kitchen, which is interesting. But in the…

Air fryers are cheaper to run than ovens.
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