What’s been going on in the kitchen?

Kitchens The New Zealand kitchen in the 20th century by Helen Leach paperback, full colour,  332 pp. Otago University Press ISBN  978-1-877578-37-3, $49.95 Rapid social change in the 20th century impacted on domestic life, not least in the domain of the kitchen. In her new book, Kitchens: the New Zealand kitchen in the 20th century, Helen Leach charts the kitchen revolution decade by decade. This is the first detailed exploration of the kitchen as a functioning hub within the New Zealand home. ‘What was going on in the kitchen,’ says Leach, ‘went through remarkable changes. Prior to World War I, for example, knives were made of steel – there was no stainless steel. A great deal of time was spent keeping knives in condition: if you didn’t have a knife-polishing machine they had to be polished individually on a knife board after being washed.’ Stainless steel, the introduction of new plastics in the 1950s and the invention of soft touch electronic equipment have all affected how kitchens look and how they are used.   ‘The kitchen in 1900 was a functional private area; guests never went there. To be found in someone else’s kitchen would have been a disgrace. By the 21st century the kitchen has become the most expensive room in the house — no longer hidden away but admired and shown off,’ says Leach. Each chapter in Kitchens also samples the dishes prepared during the decade, and discusses family menus and the structure of meals. Leach’s survey of kitchen equipment and design reveals just how far the kitchen has moved from the practical functionality of past times to a sophisticated personal statement. ‘It is interesting to note,’ says Leach, ‘that as the kitchen gets bigger the number of people who use it gets smaller and the number of days per week it is used gets fewer.’ Kitchens: The New Zealand kitchen in the 20th century goes to the heart of our domestic life. It is a wonderful treasury for the general reader and a must read for devotees of culinary and social history. Stunning colour images from the world of the kitchen across ten decades will trigger numerous memories for readers. Below - some of the advertisements that especially appealed to me in the book:

                            

Fig. 6.18  In 1940 Neeco advertised pastel-coloured electric stoves in Enquire Within, before war work halted stove manufacture.

(Anon [1940], p. 53; H. Leach collection.)

Fig. 6.19  The New Zealand-made Moffat E37 was in production for only one year before government regulations prohibited the import of key electrical components in June 1942.(Anon [1941], p. 29; H.Leach collection.)

Fig. 7.9  The November 1958 issue of the short-lived magazine New Zealand Food and Cookery featured a 6.2 cubic foot Frigidaire made by General Motors at Lower Hutt
(p. 20). It had thinner walls than earlier models and a flat top.

(H. Leach collection.)

Fig. 7.25  Sunbeam’s chief competitor was the British-made Kenwood Chef table mixer. It was a heavy but sturdy machine, with a long life span. This brochure came with a model A700 bought about 1950.

(H. Leach collection.)