Tiny Kitchen Talk

[PMG]

Tiny kitchens can be so badass.  Share yours?

Successes? Frustrations? Tricks to using space well while prepping good food and saving money. Photos, floor plans, links and recipes welcome.

I’m in a 190 square foot apartment with my kitchen along one wall.  My counter space is approximately 16 inches by 24 inches between the sink and the stove. It was not designed well, honestly they used old cabinets and just made them fit. The only way to make it work is to be neat and clean and do dishes constantly.

I practice the no flammables on the stove rule.  I have a shelf above the sink that I try to keep empty so it is easy to stage ingredients there and work back and forth from shelf to counter.  My desk is just a step away from my counter, so the desk and stools often get used to hold things from the oven or the dish drainer.  That is just temporary space though, when I finish cooking I am quick to move food back to the kitchen space. 

I’ve considered the cutting board over the sink idea (where would I store it?) and building some extra shelves in an oddly shaped corner, but I’m 1.5 years into what I expect will be 2 - 3 years in this apartment.  I don’t think it’s worth it to invest too much.

I have only one small cupboard for food storage, plus the refrigerator.  It has influenced how and what I eat, but more on that later. 

Tell us about your kitchen?

[Dollar Slice]

I have a normalish sized 1BR apartment (for Manhattan) but the kitchen is tiny, just a niche off the main room with a tiny window looking into an air shaft (so no actual light comes in). They put in nice appliances (for a rental, anyway!) - full size fridge, extra nice gas stove, a dishwasher. But the price I pay for this is that I have almost no counter space (just the space on top of the dishwasher and another 10" or so next to it) and the sink is in a really awkward location. You can't have the gas stove on while you wash dishes or your elbow will light on fire... and you can't open the dishwasher while standing at the sink, so loading it is quite a chore.

The best part: my kitchen doesn't have a single drawer. It's a real PITA to find a place for all of the small kitcheny things: flatware, vegetable peeler, bottle opener, mixing spoons, spatulas, corkscrew, etc. etc.

The counter space over the dishwasher has a caddy to hold all my flatware (because: no drawers), a knife block, the smallest toaster oven I could find, and has just enough space left to fit either a cutting board or my Instant Pot. The IP lives in another room and only gets brought into the kitchen when I'm actively using it.

I have one cupboard for dishes and another for food storage. I usually end up putting some of the food into the dish cupboard because the food cupboard is poorly placed and I can't reach parts of it. Those parts stay mostly empty. Some half-size cupboards above the fridge and stove, only half of which are in use (I can't reach the ones over the fridge) - those store bigger, non-fragile items like mixing bowls and tupperware. I use part of what is supposed to be a coat/linen closet for a lot of my kitchen stuff - I put in some shelving and use it to store pots and pans; plus, I have some plastic containers in there to store all the small kitchen implements that would normally go in drawers.

I could probably get rid of half of my kitchen stuff at this point without missing it, just because there are things you don't do in a tiny kitchen ("fun" baking projects are no longer fun). I made 5 dozen cookies for a fundraiser last week and I had them cooling on trays all over the sofa in the livingroom, because there's simply nowhere to put them in the kitchen.

[marielle]

I live with a 2br/1ba 810 sqft apartment, I will have to post pictures later of how I manage to store everything. It's a bit...unsightly. Not sure if my kitchen counts as "tiny" but it sure does seem like it when you double or triple 4 different recipes in the span of a few hours on a Sunday. Bowls/trays of food get stored on the couch, floor, everywhere during food prep. Also, I have a LOT of dry food like beans, bread flour, rice, nuts, seeds, etc. It gets crazy. Currently looking for a house to rent and I refuse to use a kitchen like this ever again...which is fair I think because 95% of meals are home cooked.

[Inaya]

Posting to follow. Hoping for rental-friendly (i.e., no nails or permanent fixture additions/changes) tips for adding storage without adding additional furniture. It's already like navigating through a Tetris game in there.

[marielle]

Posting to follow. Hoping for rental-friendly (i.e., no nails or permanent fixture additions/changes) tips for adding storage without adding additional furniture. It's already like navigating through a Tetris game in there.

Most rentals allow small holes like for pictures, etc. I may have went excessive at my apartment but I'll ask if I have to fill them in. My lease specifically mentions that nails are okay. Check yours.

[Dollar Slice]

I have a few things hanging on those allegedly-removable sticky hooks. I like to hang potholders on them since you often want to grab one quickly and I'd otherwise have to store those in a closet. I also use them for hanging paper items like grocery lists and recipes I want to consult as I cook. I hang a little clip over the hook and slip the paper into the clip.

[MicroRN]

When I lived in a postage stamp apartment, I had a cutting board with a silicone collapsible colander that was really handy. It fit across the sink and basically added a little counter space for me.  I stored it behind the sink, standing up on edge.  I also then didn't need to store a separate colander, and it was the only cutting board I had.   

Like this:  https://www.everythingkitchens.com/island-bamboo-over-the-sink-board-40716.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cse&utm_term=40716&gclid=CLq2yJ_J3tECFYeCfgodpCQIpw

[PMG]

I have the sticky hooks inside my food cupboard door to hold measuring cups/spoons and under the sink for the dish brush. 

When it's not in use I hang my dish drainer up on some cup hooks, but those could be sticky hooks as well. 

I store a lot of my dry/bulk food and empty storage containers in the refrigerator.

I buy less.  Part of this is due to some dietary changes and walking to the grocery, but I just don't buy and store as much food as I used to. I cut back on the variety of ingredients I keep on hand.  One kind of flour, one kind of sugar (and a small jar of molasses). 1 lb of rice takes up less space than 1 lb of pasta. I buy fewer packaged things (oh cheez its, how I miss you). 

I got rid of extra flatware, I have it packed away and just have a few sets in a jar in the cupboard next to the bowls.  I can't spare the drawer space for it.

I got rid of extra tea towels.  I realized I only use 2.  I kept a couple to replace these with when they are tired, but they are up in the cupboard where I can't reach them.  I got rid of the hot mats.  I was always using a tea towel anyway.

I have one mixing bowl.  If I'm making multiple things (which I often do) I just layer the flavors accordingly, or wash it between mixes.

I use a fork for mashing and smashing and blending.  I do have a single beater that I can use in my drill, but it's rare I need it.  I'm tempted by a stick blender, but a fork is pretty dang effective.

I don't have a microwave or a toaster oven. I still miss the toaster oven sometimes, but I've adapted. I have a stove top kettle instead of a counter top one which I would prefer. 

I have a full size stove and fridge (though it is a small one).  I'd be happy with smaller appliances.

I very rarely eat out, but I often only cook real food twice a week and eat leftovers and raw food through the week.

[Spork]

Thankfully, I no longer live with a tiny "kitchen".  (I am legally obligated by contract with my wife to always use quotes or air quotes when I refer to our previous tiny "kitchen.")

We lived in a tool shed for about 6 years.  It is now my shop.  The living space was 600 sqft.  The "kitchen" was roughly the size of most cubicle offices I have inhabited in my work career.  Fridge,  awful low cost stove, sink with no disposer that drained to the ground outside, a few cabinets, roughly twice the counter space of the OP.  (We had a couple feet left and right of the sink.)  No dishwasher.  (More correctly, a Spork powered dishwasher.)

I put in as many shelves as I could.  We had 2 layers of about 4ft each above the stove.  We had one layer way up high in the dining room.  I had various Elfa-type shelving thingies on any wall space that had a hole for spices, etc.  Anywhere there was an empty spot of drywall, there was a screw in the wall with a pot/pan hanging off of it.  It was like a ship.  (If you look at Julia Child's original PBS kitchen, it was like that, too.)

I have to tell you:  We had 6 years of gourmet meals out of that thing.  It can be done.   (Google for images of famed cookbook/food writer Mark Bitman.  It's tiny, too.)

Everything is a juggling act.  Cooking/cleaning means moving stuff from here to there to there to there.  We had TV dinner trays we'd set up just to have a place to put a pan while cooking/cleaning.

[Zikoris]

We have a tiny kitchen - well, a tiny apartment in general. It's great. No running around looking for shit. There are definitely a few things I do to keep it highly functional.

1. Having minimal kitchen stuff, especially appliances. Over the years I've figured out exactly how little I can get away with, and I just got rid of everything else. Whenever something wears out, before buying a replacement I always ask myself if I own something already that I could repurpose.

2. Simplifying ingredients kept on hand. For example, I usually only have one type of pasta at a time, one type of rice, etc. I also created a standardized oatmeal muffin recipe, which provides most of our snacks for the week, but is easy to customize - add blueberries, or carrots, or chocolate chips. By having one simple base recipe, I can get away with having a much smaller arsenal of baking supplies. (recipe's on the first page of my journal if anyone's interested - it's really good). We just generally try to plan meals to use similar ingredients, which frees up a lot of space.

3. Being really vigilant about cleanup. In a small kitchen, dirty dish pileup can render the space unusable remarkably quickly. Same goes for putting things away quickly. We have a general rule of "sink empty by bedtime". We also put groceries and dishes away promptly.

4. Careful planning for where to keep things. I find being selective about only keeping things out that I use a lot helps me be way more efficient in general.

[BrightFIRE]

I've had a couple of tiny apartment kitchens. I put larger enameled cast iron pots stacked inside each other in the living room on top of the bookshelf. There was an open spot under the counter where I fit a metal microwave shelf to give me 2 levels. No excuse not to use shelves/cabinets up high - that's what chairs or folding stepladders are for! I stacked things on top of the refrigerator and on window sills. I also have a collapsible sink strainer. At one point, I also had one of those ceiling mounted pot racks, but it was a pain to use because I had to balance it with equally weighted items to keep it level. You can use the space all the way in the hard to reach areas - you have to be committed to pulling things out and replacing them and rearranging things. It's not that much work, it's mostly the mental "ugh, I have to do x, y, and z, just to make spaghetti sauce".

A stick blender is a wonderful multi-purpose tool - I'd give up a lot of other things before that. You can make mayonnaise, dips and spreads, puree soups and sauces in the pot, make a smoothie... You should check out European kitchens - super tiny. David Lebovitz's older posts were all made in a postage stamp kitchen in Paris.

[letired]

My best tiny kitchen trick was to put my microwave on top of a re-purposed bedside table, then put a large wood cutting board on top of the microwave. This was in a tiny 'galley' style kitchen that was maaaaybe 4 paces from one end to the other. That setup doubled my 'counter' space and meant I could do chopping while having space for other 'prep'. The stove was an old gas model with a pilot light, and it got so warm I was afraid to actually keep anything on the stove.

Also doing dishes constantly.

Also leftovers. If I was going to cook, I was going to have extra food so I didn't have to do it again immediately.

[marielle]

Adding some pictures! The containers are a huge life saver but not super frugal if you need a lot. If anyone is interested, they are called tillsluta from IKEA. Sometimes Aldi has really similar ones though. The collapsible measuring cups are worth their weight in gold. Like I mentioned, I wouldn't consider it "tiny" but it sure seems like it when you cook a week's worth of food for two adults in one afternoon. And I keep a LOT of food in the pantry.

[rachael talcott]

This is obviously not something you could do in a rental, but I knocked down a wall to open up a small kitchen.  That destroyed overhead cabinet space, so I built two cabinets into the wall.  So each is the width of the space between the studs and the depth is the thickness of the wall. Standard size cans fit, but I use it mostly for spices and things like baking powder and my collection of olive oils and balsamic vinegars. 

[Mrs. PoP]

About 10 years ago, I was in a 400sqft studio apt with a teeny kitchen.  Stove/oven and fridge were both undersized (and clearly no dishwasher), and I bought a teeny microwave to go in it as well.  Saved space with collapsable large bowls and strainers and dish drainers - I especially liked the cutting board with collapsable strainer that fit over the sink.  But I also tried never to leave anything out on the counter if I could avoid it.   There was precious little counter space (maybe 12-15" on either side of the sink) before you hit the stove or the fridge.  Also studiously avoided single purpose tools.  Made an early mistake of buying a potato ricer to make homemade mashed potatoes for friends-giving, and regretted the amount of space that thing took up way too often! 

The space was tiny - nowhere to sit, barely anywhere to lean.  Not to mention that it was the furthest part of the apartment from the tiny box AC, so when it got hot (in Miami in the summer), you really didn't want to be stuck in the kitchen.  So I went for recipes that didn't require much babysitting.  I could start something, set a timer and go back out to the main area while I waited.  It's do-able, and definitely makes me feel like my current kitchen is super luxurious by comparison now that I'm remembering how tiny that one was! 

Oh god, and now I'm remembering that the gas stove (with the electric lighter) would try and light itself randomly when I was asleep sometimes if I left it plugged in...  click, click, click... Crazy, but I loved that little apartment.  =)

[Gerard]

Everything everyone else said, especially about having fewer tools. Some things I've done, some things I wonder if people have thought of trying:

-keep some prettier or hide-able kitchen stuff (clay pot, lidded tin box with rarely-used tools and spices, cookbooks) on a bookshelf in another room (I also once hung my bamboo steamers on the living room wall as "art"!)

-get something flat that goes over two of your four stove burners and can be used as backup prep space... I very rarely need more than two burners at once

-because my fridge is rarely full (no sodas, eat leftovers fast, few condiments), I sometimes store stuff in there that can handle being cold (flour, rice)

-avoid specialty items -- same bowl to mix dough and to serve salads, 3 pots and a frypan for everything, no toaster, no electric kettle, no full-size blender (I do have a stick)

I guess the biggest thing for me, though, is that I cook with ingredients. Premade things (frozen dinners, canned complete meals) take up a lot of room and aren't very flexible. Beans, grains, things like that, you can stuff in anywhere, and then fresh stuff sorta forces you to use it because it sits there saying "I'm gonna rot!"

[pbkmaine]

When I had small kitchens, I used kitchen items as bookends in my bookcases. Pitchers. Teapots. Gravy boats. Fruit was in a big pretty bowl on the dining table.

[PMG]

Here is my kitchen!  I admit I did hide the wet dishcloth. That plant is also temporary, I just needed a place to put it while I’m working on a project, however it looks so dang cute on the shelf I might have to reconsider making the move permanent.

I store all pots and pans and baking items, including a few glass baking dishes in the oven or the drawer under it.

Under the kitchen sink holds my bread machine, my pressure cooker, dish soap (marie kondo suggests…), and my power tools, drill, saw and huge collection of spray paint, and a couple flashlights and a fire extinguisher.  I am shocked at how much can fit there.  Probably not the best storage place for expensive items, but it’s what I have. 

The drawers are crap.  The top one is difficult to open, so it holds things I rarely use, like wax paper and tin foil.  Second one holds all cooking tools, spatulas, that kind of thing. Third holds my collection of nails, screws, drill bits, etc. Fourth holds plastic bags for trash.  Lots of extra room in that drawer. hmm.

I already mentioned that I store dry goods like grains, legumes, flours, seeds and nuts in the fridge and freezer, along with empty (or full!) containers. I also keep some stuff on top of the fridge.  The wire shelves hold baking supplies and empty containers. 

The left cupboard holds random crap up high, lightbulbs, window plastic.. anything I don’t want regularly. Reachable I have tea and coffee supplies and bowls.

Middle cupboard is food storage. 

Right cupboard holds glassware and booze. 

The basket holds my spices.  I love being able to see (almost) all of them at the same time.

[pbkmaine]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

[Dicey]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

[PMG]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

Yes.  I've looked at it, but the fridge came with the rental so I don't want to touch it!  I suppose I could mention it to the landlord. Hmm.

[Dicey]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

Yes.  I've looked at it, but the fridge came with the rental so I don't want to touch it!  I suppose I could mention it to the landlord. Hmm.

Don't waste their time. It's so easy. Check out You Tube. Really. Just be gentle so you don't scratch or over-torque anything. I'm amazed at how often I see an "after" with the doors opening bass-ackwards. I think people just don't realize how easy it is to change. Looks like your LL might be one of them. You can do this!

[Caoineag]

I have cooked some pretty elaborate meals in some minuscule kitchens. And my husband always cooks with me. Always. My best friend said that watching us two cook in our apartment kitchen was like watching a ballet. She had no idea how we always managed to move around each other without crashing (floor space was 3ft by 4ft).

Rule #1 The microwave belongs in the living room not the kitchen. You only use the microwave to reheat things or thaw things, neither is required within the kitchen. This usually means some sort of kitchen cart or cabinet in the living room. Appliances that can be plugged into an outlet can live in the living room as well. After all, there are more outlets there to plug into.

Rule #2 No one trick pony items. If its not a tool that you can use daily and/or substitute for something else, it doesn't need to live with me.

Rule #3 All cooking utensils need to be near the stove. A more broad view of this is everything should be placed based on usage. The more you use it, the easier it needs to be to access it. Items used for mixing need to be near the countertops, infrequently or less frequently used items can be on more inaccessible shelves or outside the kitchen completely. Silverware can be kept near wherever you eat instead of where you prepare you dishes.

My personal feeling is that I don't need a large couch or even a large table, but I must have sufficient space for my vital kitchen tools. Even though my kitchen is 3x the size of my previous one, my microwave, coffee prep items and all mugs live on a kitchen cabinet in my living room. After all, the microwave is used most for reheating drinks, the coffee grinder and coffee pots only get used to make coffee that I drink while sitting on my couch and the mugs are for holding hot liquids that I drink while sitting on the couch. Why should they take up space in the kitchen? The kitchen is for meal prep and gets used accordingly. By breaking everything out this way, we find that we experience very little aggravation on fetching items to cook with.

[joninnyc]

Check out this video from Brothers Green (best YouTube cooking channel) about their kitchen organization: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKqsIs0y7Ws

[With This Herring]

Everyone's kitchens are so impressive!  I am mostly posting to follow as I am lucky enough to have a large-for-an-apartment kitchen.

Note that Marielle actually demonstrates another principle of small-kitchen living with her storage box pictures:  Don't buy big cartons of broth/stock when you can get a little container of bouillon cubes or a jar of bouillon paste.  :)

Apartment-dwellers, would any of you be helped by using powerful magnets to stick things to your refrigerators?

For those who have the space for shelves but can't make permanent changes, I got a big utility shelf at Aldi a while ago.  It's designed for tools or a garage, but it is great for holding my pantry items, slow cooker, etc.  It looks like this (Home Depot $60 version), but I paid $40 (before tax) at Aldi on March 30, 2013.  Aldi home items seem to reappear every year, so keep an eye peeled from March to April if you are interested.

Some space-helping things I do:

• My kettle and cast iron pan live on my stove.
• Teas and strainers live on a shelf in front of DVDs in the living room, as that's where I drink tea.
• Big utensils (whisks, wooden spoons, various spatulas) go in a very heavy glass vase (free, someone got flowers and was chucking it) with glass "stones" in the bottom.  (I think the stones are meant for fish tanks, but oh well.)
• I don't eat enough lettuce to own a salad spinner, so once it is washed I put it in a tea towel, gather up all the edges in my hand, and spin it around wildly, flinging water around the kitchen, until it (lettuce, not kitchen) is less wet.  :)

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

WHAT.  I thought you meant only that one fridge model, but I just checked my fridge.  The handles are completely different, but I definitely see the holes and setup for switching!  That is so cool!

[PMG]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

Yes.  I've looked at it, but the fridge came with the rental so I don't want to touch it!  I suppose I could mention it to the landlord. Hmm.

Don't waste their time. It's so easy. Check out You Tube. Really. Just be gentle so you don't scratch or over-torque anything. I'm amazed at how often I see an "after" with the doors opening bass-ackwards. I think people just don't realize how easy it is to change. Looks like your LL might be one of them. You can do this!

I've looked at it thoroughly and watched a couple YouTube videos and now believe that it is as easy as you say!  Thanks so much!! However, I need a socket of unknown size to remove several hex head screws. I'm asking around to see if I can borrow, but most people I know here live in dorms, so chances are slim!  There is a dollar store nearby, I might check it out, I don't need high quality. But I'd rather wait and borrow. I had been resigned to that door but now that I know it can change I am irritated by it!

[With This Herring]

*snip*
I've looked at it thoroughly and watched a couple YouTube videos and now believe that it is as easy as you say!  Thanks so much!! However, I need a socket of unknown size to remove several hex head screws. I'm asking around to see if I can borrow, but most people I know here live in dorms, so chances are slim!  There is a dollar store nearby, I might check it out, I don't need high quality. But I'd rather wait and borrow. I had been resigned to that door but now that I know it can change I am irritated by it!

Dorms = Colleges = Possibly a theater department/group/club that would have a LOT of tools for set-building.  Maybe they will lend you some?

[Dicey]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

Yes.  I've looked at it, but the fridge came with the rental so I don't want to touch it!  I suppose I could mention it to the landlord. Hmm.

Don't waste their time. It's so easy. Check out You Tube. Really. Just be gentle so you don't scratch or over-torque anything. I'm amazed at how often I see an "after" with the doors opening bass-ackwards. I think people just don't realize how easy it is to change. Looks like your LL might be one of them. You can do this!

I've looked at it thoroughly and watched a couple YouTube videos and now believe that it is as easy as you say!  Thanks so much!! However, I need a socket of unknown size to remove several hex head screws. I'm asking around to see if I can borrow, but most people I know here live in dorms, so chances are slim!  There is a dollar store nearby, I might check it out, I don't need high quality. But I'd rather wait and borrow. I had been resigned to that door but now that I know it can change I am irritated by it!

Chances are it's an Allen head bolt. Any cyclist worth their salt will have at least one set of Allen wrenches. You can often get a crappy set at a Dollar Store, but that should get the job done.

[With This Herring]

Oh, another space-saving/less dishes thing:  Re-write your recipes!  I find so many tasty recipes on AllRecipes.com and other sites that are really poorly organized so that you end up with more dirty dishes (which take up counter space).  So, Step 5 will be "Add cinnamon, vanilla, clove, oil, paprika, and oregano to the bowl, then mix" and the ingredients will list:

• 1 tsp cinnnamon
• 1 Tbs vanilla
• 1/4 tsp clove
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 Tbs paprika
• 1 tsp oregano

(Yes, this is a made-up list and would be a terrible flavor combination.)  So, first it's usually easiest to do all you measurements with one spoon first, then your measurements with the next spoon.  Second, it is a LOT easier to measure all your dry ingredients with a spoon before the wet ingredients for that same spoon.  Yet all the time I see recipes like this where liquid vanilla, that requires the same spoon as dry paprika, is listed first, and the two tablespoon measurements are intermingled with the teaspoon measurements (which mix up the order of oil and oregano) to no apparent benefit.  Yes, you can mentally reorder them, but if you are trying to make a dish in a hurry it is easy to forget and then either pull out your second set of measuring spoons (if it exists) or rinse and dry the wet spoons or, worse, skip an ingredient by mistake.

I also rewrite recipes so that they use fewer bowls/pots sometimes, but that is not always practical.

[Zikoris]

We just did a little television clip about saving money on groceries, and our tiny kitchen is featured in it! I think it gives you a pretty good idea of the size, since it has us standing in it. http://globalnews.ca/video/3221616/how-to-save-money-on-food

[pbkmaine]

Cute clip!

[With This Herring]

Now we know your secret real name.  ;)

[Zikoris]

Now we know your secret real name.  ;)

Oh, yeah. I'm pretty open about my identity on my blog and in interviews, so it's no big deal. I just have a general policy of not posting stuff online that I wouldn't want my boss/mom/landlord/priest to know, and that serves me well. Actually, I don't have a priest as a non-religious person, but the concept stands.

[Goldielocks]

Adding some pictures! The containers are a huge life saver but not super frugal if you need a lot. If anyone is interested, they are called tillsluta from IKEA. Sometimes Aldi has really similar ones though. The collapsible measuring cups are worth their weight in gold. Like I mentioned, I wouldn't consider it "tiny" but it sure seems like it when you cook a week's worth of food for two adults in one afternoon. And I keep a LOT of food in the pantry.

But show me more about the cat platforms / tree.

[Drifterrider]

My kitchen is 11 feet X 18 feet.  It came with the house.

[marielle]

Adding some pictures! The containers are a huge life saver but not super frugal if you need a lot. If anyone is interested, they are called tillsluta from IKEA. Sometimes Aldi has really similar ones though. The collapsible measuring cups are worth their weight in gold. Like I mentioned, I wouldn't consider it "tiny" but it sure seems like it when you cook a week's worth of food for two adults in one afternoon. And I keep a LOT of food in the pantry.

But show me more about the cat platforms / tree.

I don't want to derail the thread too much...But the picture basically showed everything. Here's another view. I tried for weeks to find a cat tree on Craigslist, finally gave up and build this for a lot less money.

[With This Herring]

But show me more about the cat platforms / tree.

I don't want to derail the thread too much...But the picture basically showed everything. Here's another view. I tried for weeks to find a cat tree on Craigslist, finally gave up and build this for a lot less money.

That is so cool!  I like that top-kitty appears to have his platform floating in midair because of the bracket positioning.

[PMG]

Love the clip! 

I think a cat tree can be a valuable part of a tiny kitchen.  It reduces time sharing the counters and cupboard with the cats. Right?

@DianeC, my fridge door now hinges on the left!  I am ridiculously pleased. I was able to borrow the socket I needed (3/8) from a young woman at school who was delighted to borrow my drill to install a knife rack in her kitchen. It worked out for both of us. Thanks for your encouragement.

Now, it will take me a minute to get used to this. The fridge contents feel backwards.

[Noodle]

Of my five kitchens from the independent living phase of my life, I am currently in the middle one size-wise...not tiny, but still small. (It drives me crazy to visit folks who have giant kitchens and stuff all over the place. They could have so much more space!)

What I have learned over the years, echoing other posters in part:

1. Not everything has to go in the kitchen. My cookbooks are on the living room bookshelves (LR is quite spacious) and my Le Creuset pots (all yard-saled or clearanced) are on display on top of a storage hutch. I have a cart for the stand mixer, food processor, a basket for all the dish towels and cloth napkins, and a few small appliances. The microwave is also on a hutch in the dining nook.

2. Stackable shelves and pullout drawers. I turned a big cupboard that I guess was meant for large pots and pans into a baking cupboard with a double pullout drawer. My kitchen is weirdly divided into small, shallow shelves, which I use mostly for food, and very deep high cupboards which I use for cooking utensils, the crockpot, and food storage containers.

3. Knife strip screwed to the wall instead of knife-block on the counter. I keep all my spoons, whisks, etc in a shallow drawer instead of in a crock on the counter.

4. I got rid of all my stained mismatched food storage containers and bought a matching heavy-duty set that all stacks together. Thus it fits into an old IKEA bin which can easily slide into the cupboard.

[Dicey]

Love the clip! 

I think a cat tree can be a valuable part of a tiny kitchen.  It reduces time sharing the counters and cupboard with the cats. Right?

@DianeC, my fridge door now hinges on the left!  I am ridiculously pleased. I was able to borrow the socket I needed (3/8) from a young woman at school who was delighted to borrow my drill to install a knife rack in her kitchen. It worked out for both of us. Thanks for your encouragement.

Now, it will take me a minute to get used to this. The fridge contents feel backwards.

Oh, I am so proud of you! <clapping> I knew you could do it! <more clapping> May we have a new picture, please?

[aetheldrea]

Wow! That is an incredibly efficient kitchen.

It sure is! Do you know you can reverse your fridge and freezer door handles to open on the right side for even more efficiency? That's why there is a white plastic dot on the right hand side of the door. Just takes a screwdriver and a few minutes time. Easy-peasy. If you're unsure, I'm sure there's a dozen You Tube tutorials. More life-changing than Marie Kondo.

Yes.  I've looked at it, but the fridge came with the rental so I don't want to touch it!  I suppose I could mention it to the landlord. Hmm.

Don't waste their time. It's so easy. Check out You Tube. Really. Just be gentle so you don't scratch or over-torque anything. I'm amazed at how often I see an "after" with the doors opening bass-ackwards. I think people just don't realize how easy it is to change. Looks like your LL might be one of them. You can do this!

I've looked at it thoroughly and watched a couple YouTube videos and now believe that it is as easy as you say!  Thanks so much!! However, I need a socket of unknown size to remove several hex head screws. I'm asking around to see if I can borrow, but most people I know here live in dorms, so chances are slim!  There is a dollar store nearby, I might check it out, I don't need high quality. But I'd rather wait and borrow. I had been resigned to that door but now that I know it can change I am irritated by it!

I flipped a fridge door at work during my lunch hour once, it was set up to open against the wall just like yours. I had very few tools, one of which was multi-screwdriver, where you flip the bit over to get phillips or regular. The hex head bolt on the fridge was exactly the size of the bit, so I could use just the screwdriver without the bit. If you have one of those, give it a try!

[horsepoor]

This isn't as tiny as many of you are working with, but here are pics of the galley kitchen in the apartment I'm staying in temporarily.  It's actually surprisingly functional for someone used to a larger kitchen.  The knife magnet above the sink is really handy.  The pot rack is key, and there would actually be room to have two and hang all the things, which I might do if I lived here.  Also, if I lived here, I think I would really make use of the pass-through next to the stove. It could have a magnet or hooks for cooking utensils closest to the stove, some hanging baskets for fruit, and shallow shelves for spices, oils and vinegars on the other side.  I would probably also add a book shelf to hold canisters of beans, rice and other dry goods under the pot rack, and move the can for recycling elsewhere and have a small trash can under the sink.  I keep my Instant Pot and an electric kettle on the counter, but removed the coffee pot and knife block that were on the counter when I arrived.

[pbkmaine]

If I were there permanently, I would put in a narrow counter on the side where the pot racks are. You could tuck the trash cans and a couple of stools under it and have more counter space and functionality.

[PMG]

Love the clip! 

I think a cat tree can be a valuable part of a tiny kitchen.  It reduces time sharing the counters and cupboard with the cats. Right?

@DianeC, my fridge door now hinges on the left!  I am ridiculously pleased. I was able to borrow the socket I needed (3/8) from a young woman at school who was delighted to borrow my drill to install a knife rack in her kitchen. It worked out for both of us. Thanks for your encouragement.

Now, it will take me a minute to get used to this. The fridge contents feel backwards.

Oh, I am so proud of you! <clapping> I knew you could do it! <more clapping> May we have a new picture, please?

Here is a photo at last! 

One weird thing I do is keep kitchen trash in the fridge.  I have a gallon vinegar jug that I cut the top off of and line with carrot bags, or whatever I end up with.  It sits in the milk jug slot in the door of the fridge. Why would I have a big bulky trashcan taking up floor space or getting smelly, or something that I had to buy bags specifically to fit?

I'm also dealing with a tiny apartment.  The only other trash can is in the bathroom which is about 6 steps away. If I have recycling or something awkward I just take things out to the bins promptly (or... yah know.. not so promptly... but I'm trying to look good here...)  Generally I empty the little kitchen bin once or twice a week when I cook. 

[Dicey]

I just saw that you mentioned this on another thread. Hooray!