When I first started, I craved for a large and spacious kitchen

so I moved out to the far suburbs to be able to have one

but by the time I finished my rush hour commutes, I was in no mood to cook

Next I craved for a kitchen with fancy appliances & decor

but because of my lack of experience, it looked great but didn't have good utility

Now I have a small kitchen. But it's the one I am most effective in and enjoy the most

I've gathered a lot of experience over

5 kitchen remodels and want to share my experience

starting with an overview in this video

If you like it, please leave a comment on what you want me to get more specific about.

My current kitchen layout & organization method can be

described as 1 principle and 3 zones

and distilled all of my experiences

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00:00:51,295 --> 00:00:54,315 The principle is "Function over Features or Look"

The fundamental layout principle is

Sink, Stove, and Fridge areas should form

an equi-distance triangle to allow

the most efficient movement while cooking

The layout of an area should also be function 1st

The shorted movement to common actions is key

It's really the "Usability" principle applied to cooking

I drew the layout for my current kitchen myself

using Homebyme, an easy to use interior design software

and the best part is it's free! (this is not sponsored)

It's very quick to create your interiors using

templates if you know the dimensions

You can then add from a large library of furniture/appliances

and easily customize it in a variety of ways

You can then play with a variety of layouts and decor

to get a pretty accurate visual picture of

how your kitchen will turn out

This tools was the main secret how I was able to

self design a kitchen that I enjoy every day

00:01:53,535 --> 00:01:56,755 Now let's talk about the three areas

The 1st is the sink area

Close by the sink, you should have commonly used

items in easy to access places.

The three main "use cases" around the sink are

#1: washing & drying raw ingredients

#2: cutting and preparing ingredients

#3: washing and drying dishes

I everything needed for washing & drying vegetabls in an easy to access place

that doesn't require opening/closing doors. Wet hands will damage wood over time

either hanged our placed in open air like most professional kitchens

For trash, I like to have a bag on the counter

and then throw the bag away after I'm done

again avoiding spilling water/bits of ingredients in larger areas

I personally also like to use a steel mesh drain filter

rather than using the sink grinder to keep things cleaner

00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:53,440 Next knives, cutting boards should also be

be easy to access and ideally in the open if used daily

I use 3 cutting boards. 1 for raw meat

1 for raw vegetables and 1 for cooked food

Knives I like to use magnetic holders

It's easy to access and open to air so cleaner than wooden holders

Because it's open, it's good to put it somewhere that's hard to accidentally knock off.

Another thing I like is to have the sink below the counter line

It's much easier to clean the counter by scooping

left over ingredients into the sink this way

Next, you should consider what you need to clean / dry dishes

I like to use a more natural cleaning agent to help the environment

I prefer 1 large sink over 2 sinks to be able to fit large pans / pots

Also I love a sink with a drying platform

It makes cleaning the drying area much easier

To keep the dirty water and left overs from messing up dishes to clean

I use this steel grate. It does wonders to make cleaning more efficient!

Of course, everyone should have a faucet that can be flexible

It's easier to clean up everything after with a quick rinse

make sure to have good water pressure

The sponge and towel are easy to get dirty

So it's best to change frequently.

I like to microwave it every couple days to kill any bacteria that maybe there

One my favorite cleaning tools is the "Magic Eraser"

It's can clean off some tough stains easily because of the microfibers

I like to clean everything around the sink daily

for about 5-10 minutes. This will help to avoid

build up and unpleasantness of deep cleans

Now let's talk about the stove area

Of course, the most important items here are pots & pans

I tried to have fewer of them but

I just can't help myself since I love cooking so much

I categorize it into commonly used and somewhat used

Aside from pots, pans, and wok, placement of utensils for cooking are important as well

So these should also be place next to the stove

Chinese cooking is usually more oily

Aside from the kitchen vent, there are few tricks Iuse

One is this oil guard, it's really effective

Also use silicone cover for pans or iron skillets

Adding a Silicon Kleen Seam helps to avoid bits of food

dropping into gaps making a mess

Sauces are the next most important items

I prefer to have commonly used sauces easily accessible below the waist line

so it's easy to pick up. Overhead limits the capacity and harder to get at the back row

Liquid sauces that you use slowly would be best stored in the refridgerator to keep longer

After cooking, you will need to plate so make sure

they are also easy to access

To increase the counter space, try to leverage

vertical space to store things like the microwave,

rice cooker, soy milk machine, etc.

I finally bought the La Cornue stove that I have been wanting for a long time

for this kitchen. It's beautiful and very funcational

The oven is divided into 2 compartments

I usually only use 1 oven and use the other for storage

We are done with 2 areas now with 1 more to go

The 3rd area is the refrigerator & food storage

Storage can be divided into 3 types

(a) cold (b) dry / room temperature (c) daily access

Daily access are things like coffee, cookies, etc.

Cleaniness is key to food storage. I also try not to pack our refridgerator full of food

The longer you store, the less fresh / tasty the ingredients are

If you care about quality of food, this is key but does require more shopping trips

I like to use a small box to avoid melting liquids dirtying the refrigerator

Freezer it's ok to be more packed as they last longer

But you should clean it out once in a while as well

For microwavable ware, it's better to use glass rather than plastic.

Plastic degrades/melts over time and will mingle with the food

I tried using silicone covers instead of saran wrap to hel the environment

but with mixed results.

Now let's look at dry food storage

I like to OXO. They last for a long time

and more importantly, it's easy to use 1 handed

this is important when you are cooking and need something fast

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00:07:18,825 --> 00:07:21,565 I have a lot of ingredients and dry food types

so I usually keep a board to track what I need

to avoid running out of something at an bad time

Also, daily food like coffee

tea, and snacks I like to put mostly on hanging baskets

I got this inspiration from restaurant kitchens

I'm very happy with the hanging system I have

It is clean, flexible and relatively inexpensive

Storing daily use food here makes it really easy to access

It also look good with a homy feel and you can

detach and move around as needed

Most of these open storage ideas came from

looking at restaurants and professional chef kitchens

It greatly increases storage area and much cheaper than cabinets

So in summary you should think about how you cook

and make sure your 3 key kitchen areas are organized

in a way to make daily operation easier

If you spend a lot of time in the kitchen,

entertainament will be very important

Having a TV on a pivot with chromecast or Apple TV

will make your daily kitchen stay MUCH more enjoyable

LIKE & SUBSCRIBE if you want ot see more!

The best kitchen is just big enough to have

everything you need in an orderly way

but small enough to make your movements easier

with good enterainment options to enjoy

If you are trying to figure out what you want for your next kitchen

Spend some time and think through how you use it daily

and lay it out according to your habits

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