Too Many Cooks Spoil the Kitchen? These Four Tips Make Multi-Chef Kitchens Bearable

Renovating a kitchen can be tough enough when only one person is going to be cooking at once, but it can be much harder if multiple chefs will be involved. Of course, most family homes will have kitchens that can get a little busy, but you'll generally find only one larger meal is cooked at once. If you live in a shared house with friends or have a partner who is equally into culinary exploration, you might find that the same kitchen is being used to create two or more main meals at once, and that can put the users at loggerheads in no time.

If it's to be a shared kitchen, just follow these four handy design tips.

1. Incorporate a Central Island

Probably the wisest thing you can do if your kitchen is going to cater to more than one cook at once is fit a central island. Even if you need to remove some of the benchtop that's flush with the wall, this is a very good idea. All the space will be utilized since one person can stand on each side of the island and have their own dedicated working area.

2. Make Storage Options Match 

If you're going to be sharing cooking space, you're also going to be sharing storage space, and it's a good idea to make sure storage areas match up so nobody feels like they're getting the short straw. Use even instead of odd numbers across your drawers and shelves to give everyone plenty of individual room. It often helps to install equally sized cupboards below and above your counters.

3. Make Things Moveable

A kitchen that is going to need to make space for multiple cooks at once is one that's going to need to be versatile, so try keeping things as moveable as possible. For example, you should avoid inbuilt appliances – it's far easier to be able to move items around as and when certain people need them. Your sink fixtures should rotate to accommodate more people, and you might even want to think about picking up a freestanding hob.

4. Consider a Double Oven

If you have the budget and the space, you can install two sinks, two dishwashers, and two fridges. Of course, this is unlikely to be a realistic option, but what you can do is buy a double-oven. These are a little larger than standard ovens, incorporating two separate cooking areas. It only makes sense to prioritize the oven since you'll probably need to cook items at different temperatures on a regular basis, and their flavours might not prove complementary.