Technology is moving fast in many spheres of our life, including in food preparation, with kitchen appliance makers revving up new technologies to provide new and better ways for home cooks to get tasty results in half the time. The new gadgets were unveiled during the Eurocucina fair in Milan last year and quickly became the talk of the town. Here’s a look at some of the most outstanding offerings reaching our shores.
W COLLECTION BY WHIRLPOOL
With its sixth Sense technology and Internet connectivity, the W Collection of appliances is designed for seamless performance. The collection includes hobs, hoods, ovens, fridge freezers and a dishwasher. The built-in ovens, for example, come with intuitive control and a 4.5-inch TFT My Smart Display. You can also search for recipes and cooking cycles, and follow step-by-step guides. An app lets you choose recipes, and manage and monitor your cooking progress from your gadgets. You can also steam food with the oven.
FRENCH DOOR REFRIGERATOR BY SUB-ZERO
A highlight from Sub-Zero is the 36-inch French Door Refrigerator. It is equipped with an air purification system inspired by Nasa technology. What it does is clean the air of mould, viruses and bacteria every 20 minutes to ensure an optimal environment for storing fresh food. Its magnetic door seal system, one-piece construction and heavy-duty insulation also help lock in cold air. Its French door design is ideal for small spaces.
COOKTOP EXTRACTOR SYSTEM BY BORA
The founder of Bora had a vision to eliminate the ubiquitous extractor hood. Using cross flow suction that is greater than the rising speed of cooking vapours, Bora’s design combines the hob with the hood so that cooking vapours and odours are drawn away at the source – as they arise from boiling soups and sizzling pans. Not only is it a quiet technology, but it is also more pleasant – allowing a clear view of what’s cooking. It’s available at Kitchen Culture in three ranges – Bora Basic, Bora Classic and Bora Professional – to cater to specific needs.
VACUUM DRAWER BY WOLF
Among the offerings by Wolf are a ceiling-mounted hood, French door fridge, vacuum drawer and convection steam oven. The built-in appliances fit into any kitchen design with ease. The vacuum drawer, for instance, lets you seal food to lock in flavours, for sous vide cooking. It can also be used to preserve frozen food effortlessly. For convenience, position it near the steam or convection oven.
DIALOG OVEN BY MIELE
The Dialog Oven is Miele’s star product at Eurocucina – and for good reason. The oven, designed with new technology, is set to revolutionise baking, roasting and cooking. It allows food of different textures to be cooked together – perfectly well too – so you don’t have to spend more time in the kitchen. The oven uses electromagnetic waves at various frequencies to detect the food and adjust the cooking intensity to match the ingredients. That way, you get perfectly cooked vegetables with your roast.
THE NEW LINEA SERIES BY SMEG
Fans of this stylish and hip kitchen brand will no doubt be familiar with its award winning Linea collection. Renowned for the clean lines and minimalist look of its design, Linea now comes in a new collection with a classic silver facade and polished steel handles. Added innovations come in the form of a vacuum drawer, blast chiller, a wine cooler with a sommelier drawer, as well as a pizza oven that ensures pizzas are evenly cooked.
COMFORT LIFT DISHWASHER BY ELECTROLUX
For ultimate ease, the Comfort Lift dishwasher raises the lower basket so that loading and unloading it is easy. The mechanism then lowers the basket to its normal position safely. Other notable features are the Airdry technology, and the Flexiwash and Flexispray features. The Airdry technology automatically opens the door slightly near the end of the drying to enhance drying and eliminate humidity inside the dishwasher. With Flexiwash, you can choose from different settings to suit the content and load. Lastly, Flexispray has five spray levels and mobile arms for thorough cleaning.
WATCH&TOUCH OVEN BY CANDY
Candy’s latest multi-function oven (available at Mayer) combines the latest technology with an app, a high-definition video camera, and a Full Touch Total Control Screen door with a 19-inch user-friendly interface. The video camera lets you monitor the cooking process despite a closed door. The display will also show the time left, the internal temperature and the progress – so you have control. The 78-litre oven provides a range of cooking options, including personal programmes and video recipes equipped with tutorials that you can watch on the oven touchscreen.
FULL FLEX INDUCTION HOB BY V-ZUG
Swiss brand V-Zug showcased several key products, including its Combi-steam ovens and the Refresh-butler. The latter is a product that sanitises and prepares clothes to be crisp and ready to wear. V-Zug’s Full Flex induction hob was also a highlight, thanks to its features derived from professional kitchen standards. These include a specially designed teppanyaki plate and a space for up to six pots which the hob automatically detects.
Lyndon Craig, design director of Electrolux Asia Pacific, on the future of kitchens
What is a significant trend set to emerge?
An exciting, emerging trend that will have a major impact on the way future kitchens look and work is the rise of ambient tech – where technology is instead seamlessly integrated into your kitchen. By incorporating functional technology into the kitchen, it leaves kitchen counters and surfaces clutter-free, and allows more widespread use of natural materials, giving your high-tech kitchen a more natural feel.
How are these trends changing the way we use kitchens?
With kitchen spaces evolving based on our habits, another development is the “reveal-conceal” trend. Apartments are being designed with open concept kitchens, and in those kitchens, countertops, appliances and cupboards are concealed behind large cupboard doors that completely integrate with the interior of the home. Folding walls, as well as sliding tops that cover sinks and stovetops when not in use, all allow the kitchen space to be transformed from a place for cooking to a place for studying, relaxing, or entertaining, simply by sliding a door.
What should homeowners look for when choosing appliances?
Your appliances should make your life easier and allow you to achieve better results, whether it’s making tastier food for family or friends with a steam oven, or taking better care of your meat, fruit and vegetables in special zones in your refrigerator. Make sure the capabilities of your chosen appliance match your own ambition for how you want to use it. Finally, your appliances should also reflect what is important to you. If you believe in environmental responsibility, choose a machine with the best energy and water ratings, or with low energy consumption.
Text ROSSARA JAMIL
