The Japanese kitchen () is the place where food is prepared in a Japanese house. Until the Meiji era, a kitchen was also called kamado (; lit. stove) and there are a number of sayings in the Japanese language that involve kamado as it was considered the symbol of a house. The term could even be used to mean "family" or "household" (much as "hearth" does in English). Separating a family was called kamado wo wakeru, or "divide the stove". Kamado wo yaburu (lit. "break the stove") means that the family was broken.

Early history

In the Jōmon period, from the 10,000 BC to 300 BC, people gathered into villages, where they lived in shallow pit-houses. These simple huts were between 10 and 30 square meters and had a hearth in the center. Early stoves were nothing more than a shallow pit (jishōro 地床炉),

However, early post-war housing projects were often poorly designed. Sometimes architects simply copied plans for American or European housing projects, with only minor modifications to better suit Japanese families. Kitchens were small and soon became cluttered with new electric appliances. The "System Kitchen" approach to design was intended to make the kitchen easier for the average housewife to use. Since most families cook multiple types of cuisine in their kitchens, a streamlined cooking process was studied, focusing on how the kitchen was actually used. In a system kitchen, the refrigerator and other electrical appliances were placed in predesigned locations, and storage spaces were subdivided to house pots, pans and kitchen utensils.

Contemporary

right|thumb|A typical Japanese kitchen.

A typical modern Japanese kitchen includes the following:

  • Counter: Countertop is usually made of cultured marble, but wood or natural stone is used for higher-end kitchens and stainless steel are used for commercial or lower-end kitchens.
  • Large sink
  • Cabinets
  • Refrigerator and freezer: Especially in smaller kitchens for apartments, the top is usually low enough to use as an additional surface, particularly for appliances, similar to Western dormitory-sized refrigerator/freezers. In larger kitchens, full height refrigerators are common.
  • Gas or induction stove: In smaller kitchens, there are only one or two burners, while more often it is three to four burners, with a narrow grill underneath for fish or vegetables. In the low-end apartments, stoves are often not built-in but rather a counter-top appliance, which is attached with a hose to a gas or power outlet. In case of earthquakes, the gas tap is to be turned off to prevent fires.
  • Electric rice cooker: Over 95% of Japanese houses have one.
  • Electric water boiler or kettle, particularly for making tea, but also instant ramen
  • Toaster oven
  • Microwave oven or convection microwave
  • Extractor hood or fan

Notably absent are large ovens and dishwashers. Large gas ovens are found in some kitchens, particularly in higher-end dwellings, but in most kitchens, convection microwaves are used instead. Dishwashers can commonly be found in the kitchens of houses and condominiums, but rarely in apartments.

Portable vacuum flasks are popular for carrying home-brewed tea, particularly hot tea in the winter and cold tea in the summer, particularly cold oolong tea.

See also

  • Mizuya
  • Kamado
  • Housing in Japan
  • :Category:Japanese food preparation utensils

References

  • Entry for daidokoro at JAANUS (Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System).
  • JAANUS entry for kamado (stove), with a good image.
  • Kamado Barbecues

ja:台所