What Are Wet & Dry Kitchens?
Find out whether it makes sense to split a single kitchen into separate wet and dry kitchens for your home
Pooja Khanna Tyagi
17 September 2019
Houzz India Contributor. An Architect , Interior Designer, Valuer, a Marathon Runner, and love Writing Poetry and Creative Stories on Building Design. Have been practicing since the year 2000 with specialization in the field of Corporate Interiors with projects extensively published in journals of national repute. Recently honoured with the reputed A3 Foundation award for Journalism for the year 2016 an for architectural poetry in the year 2018. Currently practicing and residing in Delhi and Noida.
Website: www.khannaenterprise.com, Email: poojakhanna224@gmail.com, M:9891993392
Houzz India Contributor. An Architect , Interior Designer, Valuer, a Marathon Runner,... More
The Indian kitchen has evolved from a conventional carpentered kitchen into a factory-manufactured modular kitchen and it is evolving further. One of the emerging trends in modern kitchen design is to have separate wet and dry modular kitchens, especially in posh urban Indian homes. These kitchens are segregated into two sections, where one section is used for light cooking within an interactive space while the other section is used for heavy-duty cooking and is located within a confined space. Here is all you need to know about wet and dry kitchens. Read on.
What is a wet kitchen?
- The wet kitchen is a highly functional kitchen that is used for cooking full meals, which involves a lot of boiling and frying, along with the release of smoke and heat.
- Just like a conventional kitchen, a wet kitchen is used for storing groceries, other kitchen ingredients, cutlery and utensils.
- A wet kitchen has tiled walls, a kitchen chimney, an exhaust fan, a dishwasher, natural ventilation through windows and deep sinks for cleaning dirty utensils and vegetables.
- The wet kitchen is enclosed with a hinged or sliding door in materials such as glass or plywood which separates it from rest of the home.
Pros
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- The main advantage of a wet kitchen is that since it is within a confined space, it is not visible from the formal areas of the home. The smoke and fumes do not enter the other areas of the home.
- The foul kitchen odours are vented out through the kitchen chimney and exhaust fan.
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Cons
- As the name suggests, the wet kitchen is one of the moisture-laden areas of the home which may result in the growth of mould and mildew.
- The wet kitchen looks untidy and messy due to activities that include cooking and chopping vegetables, and the presence of dirty utensils which need to be washed periodically.
- Wet kitchens produce a lot of grime which tends to stick on the walls and kitchen cabinets. Hence, a wet kitchen requires a lot of effort for cleaning and maintenance.
- The wet kitchen is not air- conditioned.
What is a dry kitchen?
- The dry kitchen is designed as an extended part of the living or dining room and matches with its decor.
- This kitchen comprises a small kitchen countertop with a shallow sink for basic hand washing and knife cleaning. There may be provision for a microwave, a blender, a toaster and a cooktop (optional).
- It is a smoke-free kitchen and is only used for light and simple meal preparation which includes breakfast, easy snacks, baking, making sandwiches or cutting fruits.
Pros
- The dry kitchen is comfortable as it is usually air-conditioned and forms an interactive part of the living and dining area. One can easily chat and prepare meals together with family, friends and children.
- The dry kitchen can do double duty as a bar counter and a breakfast counter, with provision for bar stools and chairs, like in the image above.
- You can be very creative with the design of the dry kitchen and incorporate trending countertop materials with expensive cabinet finishes such as acrylic because the dry kitchen is very small and is easy to maintain.
- The dry kitchen needs less cleaning up in comparison to a wet kitchen.
Cons
8 Modern & Efficient Kitchen Designs
Indian Kitchens: 8 Modern Designs for City Life
Tell us:
What do you think of the wet and dry kitchen phenomenon? Share your thoughts in Comments below.
- The dry kitchen is much smaller than a wet kitchen.
- Most of the urban apartments in multistoreyed buildings are not planned with separate wet and dry kitchens in the interior layout. Therefore, the dry kitchen needs to be scooped out from common areas of the home and it results in a smaller living or dining room.
8 Modern & Efficient Kitchen Designs
Indian Kitchens: 8 Modern Designs for City Life
Tell us:
What do you think of the wet and dry kitchen phenomenon? Share your thoughts in Comments below.
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I think it is a good idea for working men & women who have cooks at home. Cooks can take care of the wet kitchen and the owners of the house can enjoy cooking along with the family in the dry kitchen.
Didn't know this, thank you. I like the chairs on the second foto. Somebody knows a brand name?