Saturday, October 27, 2012

my tiny kitchen

Our apartment is a 2LDK (That is how they refer to apartments in Japan: 2 rooms with a living, dining & kitchen). It is 60 square meters or 600 square feet.

Of the 2 rooms, 1 is where we sleep and the other is like a big walk-in closet (with our television in it).

Our bath is also where our washer is (can you believe in Japanese apartments that they only have cold water for the washers?! in the winter it is like washing your clothes in ice water...). The toilet is in a separate space, literally a "wash closet".

Thought you might like to see my kitchen. It's about 2 tatami mats big...that's about 35 square feet.

It is in the shape of an upside "U", but only because I made it that way.

Actually, my kitchen is connected to my living and dining area. You don't know how many times, Satoshi and I have moved furniture around to "change the atmosphere".

I think right now, we've got a pretty good layout.

Previously, I showed you the inside of my refrigerator here.

Our refrigerator can open from either the left or right side, which is pretty cool.

But the freezer is quite small, only two drawers.

On the side of my refrigerator, I have a magnetic notepad to write down things I have run out of that need to be replenished.

There is also a calendar and another magnet to hold recipes.

Next to the refrigerator is the sink.

The only time I use that drying basket over the sink is when my other drying containers (I have 2) are full of dishes.

Above the sink and stovetop are some cupboards, I keep items that I rarely use at the very top and some cups and spices in the more accessible areas. Usually if I can't reach something, I try to grab it with a pair of tongs, lazy yeah?!

Also, we don't have a garbage disposal, so I use a basket to gather peels and stuff then empty it out frequently so it won't smell.

I also use an old tofu container to collect the used coffee & tea, separate from the peels so that it won't go down the drain.

Below the sink, is where I keep sugar, honey, vanilla extract on one side.

And cleaning stuff on the other side.

This is my really small counter. See it is only about the size of a folder paper (8" x 11"). Next to it is the stovetop.

I'm lucky because I have 3 burners.

Right below the stovetop is a "drawer" to grill fish, but I've never used it because I really don't want to clean it after using it.

Some gadgets that can't fit into my gadget drawer are hanging along the wall there.

Below the fish grilling drawer, is a cupboard where I keep cooking and baking pans.

I also keep extra saran wrap and ziploc bags there too.

There is also a really skinny cupboard to the left of that, but only trays fit in there...

At the bottom of the "U" is where the oven & rice cooker are.

There are also spices there too.

To the left of that is where I keep most of our dishes, most of which I bought at the 100 yen store.

I made the cover for the rack so that the dishes won't get too dusty.

To the left of the dishes is a rack where I dry dishes (in 2 containers) because they can't stay on the "counter" to dry.

My pantry is also on this rack. I have most items in baskets so that I can pull them out like drawers.

(After I drew that rack in my journal back in 2010, I revised what items are there.) This rack also has a cover but this one I purchased with the rack.

So that's my kitchen, everything has its place.

14 comments:

islandgirl1223 said...

I guess we should all appreciate what we have after looking at your tiny kitchen. =) But it looks like you use your space pretty efficiently. Sometimes it's good to have limited space because then you don't buy unecessary things =) Have a good weekend!! BTW, love your sunset pics on Instagram!!

K and S said...

I still want a KitchenAid stand mixer, Islandgirl1223, though I have no idea where I would keep it...

Take care.
Kat

Nami | Just One Cookbook said...

I truly think this is why a lot of people in Japan don't bake like how Americans bake. Don't you think? Like you said, not too many people have stand mixer, and who has a big oven to bake so many cookies?! My mom has oven/microwave-in-one (how do you call it?) but it's only one layer. I have no idea how baking can be done in efficient manner... Or am I just making excuse that I don't have a baking gene... LOL.

K and S said...

lol Nami, I just cut my recipes down a lot :) hey, you have a big oven, you should bake more ;)

Take care.
Kat

genkitummy said...

Thanks for sharing! I did not realize how small kitchens are in Japan. I wish my kitchen was bigger, but after seeing your kitchen, I cannot complain now.

Rowena said...

Geez...whatsup with blogger? This is the 2nd time my comment got replaced with an error and an apology.

600 square feet sounds like a lot on print but from the pics it looks like you have made the best out of limited living space. My 3-in-1 kitchen, living and dining room totals 280 square feet, and was it ever a tight squeeze when I hosted 12 people for Thanksgiving a few years back. I would love to have another small dog to accompany our 2 but MotH says we don't have enough space. :-(

KirkK said...

Wow you make really great use of your space Kat!

K and S said...

I hope you get a bigger kitchen Genki :)

I notice my comments disappear on those forum type comments, Rowena, didn't know it was happening on this type too. I hosted Satoshi's staff a couple of times, 10 + us is a very full house! hope you get your little one soon!

Thanks Kirk, I try :)

Take care everyone.
Kat

Phil said...

Hi Kat!

Thanks for sharing your kitchen with us. You have certainly made good use of the space you have. My kitchen is also tiny with hardly enough prep room and just two electric hot plates. It's very frustrating at times.

Have you checked out the new food levels of Hankyu department store?! I had a quick look today, will try to explore it in more detail next weekend. That whole area of Umeda has opened up a lot and seems to be much easier to get from A to B.

Hope you're well

K and S said...

Thanks Phil! I haven't checked out Hankyu yet, too scared of all the crowds, have been hanging out at Lucua where the crowds used to be, lol.

Take care.
Kat

Anonymous said...

It is not important how big your kitchen is. It is more important what is happening in your kitchen. I know people with huge kitchens, and they do not cook at all. What is then the point of having a huge kitchen? Neither do I have a KitchenAid stand mixer. Not because I do not have enough room! My kitchen is big enough for it. It is because I do not want it. I cook a lot, make my own bread, make cookies, etc...but without a stand mixer. :)
Take care...Sandra

K and S said...

good point Sandra :)

Take care.
Kat

K said...

It always amazes me how much can fit (and still be organized) in Japanese kitchens! Everything really can have its place, haha.

K and S said...

you're so funny K :)

Take care.
Kat