I’m always trying to eat healthily, some days I fail, and on others, I succeed. Eating healthy food also implies cooking healthy food. And that’s not always the easiest task. Especially since unhealthy food is just so damn accessible and yummy! It’s simply easier to opt for some junk for lunch. In an attempt to encourage a healthier diet, and help you eat better, we’ve curated a collection of kitchen appliances that makes healthy cooking easy and simple! From an electric bamboo food steamer to a smart fridge that helps you achieve portion control – these super cool kitchen appliances will help you achieve the health regime you’ve been dreaming of!
1. The Panasonic HomeCHEF 7-in-1 Compact Oven
The Panasonic HomeCHEF 7-in-1 Compact Oven has functions such as Steam and Steam Convection. These two promise healthier dishes since they’re able to preserve more nutrients compared to other cooking methods. That brings the number of functions to seven (hence the name), including Air Fry, Convection Bake, Slow Cook, Sanitize, and Ferment.
Why is it noteworthy?
The Panasonic HomeCHEF 7-in-1 Compact Oven is expanding its size and its features in order to also expand the number of healthy dishes one can prepare at home. Although it doesn’t completely remove the work that needs to be done to prepare these meals (not to mention the cleanup afterward), it tries to reduce the number of cooking appliances you have to juggle. It’s easy enough to downplay these conveniences, but ease of use and reducing the friction to get started go a long way in setting people on the right track to healthier living.
What we like
- The Steam and Steam Convection functions preserve more nutrients compared to other cooking methods
What we dislike
- Calling the HomeCHEF 7-in-1 “compact” might be a bit of a stretch, at least when compared to its siblings. This newest addition to the lineup is larger to accommodate the more spacious 20L capacity and bigger 800ml water tank
2. The 4T7 Smart Chopping Board
The key to making a product smart is to figure out how technology can enhance its core abilities. To that very end, a smart refrigerator that connects to your social media may be a terrible idea… but something like the 4T7 Smart Chopping Board actually makes a world of sense. With functions and features that make meal prep much easier and more streamlined, the 4T7 Smart Chopping Board helps with every stage of meal prep, and then some more.
Why is it noteworthy?
4T7 breaks meal prep into its different components, adding good design and tech wherever necessary. The board comes with 4 distinct parts, a main bamboo chopping board, a secondary silver-ion anti-bacterial board for veggies to prevent cross-contamination, a third heat-conducting defrosting tray that helps rapidly thaw frozen foods, and lastly, the 4T7’s base, which has its own built-in weighing scale. The only part of the 4T7 experience to exist outside the actual board is its smartphone app, which counts calories as you weigh your ingredients. Once your prep-work is done, the digital display on the 4T7 can also function as a kitchen timer, while the board itself becomes a magnetic knife-holder.
What we like
- All of 4T7’s components are designed to be wonderfully functional as independent items
- The board works equally well for fruits/veggies as well as for meats
What we dislike
- No complaints!
3. Electric Chopsticks
Chopstick innovations and redesigns have been presented, but nothing like this project introduced together by Kirin Holdings and the Miyashita Laboratory (Meiji University Dr. Homei Miyashita Laboratory of the Department of Frontier Media Science, School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences). The chopstick device comes with an electrical stimulation waveform that together work to adjust the taste of low-sodium food.
Why is it noteworthy?
The chopsticks can make low-sodium food taste salty. So you can enjoy the food more but sans the high sodium content. This idea can benefit those who need to go on a low-sodium diet. Right now, chopsticks can be used, but other utensils can also take advantage of the system. Salty taste enhancement is possible with electrical stimulation on a utensil. With the goal of improving the electric taste sensation, more people can enjoy what they eat even with reduced salt.
What we like
- The device uses a weak electrical current in transmitting sodium ions from the food to the mouth
- Creates a sense of saltiness
What we dislike
- It’s still in the prototype stage!
4. The Bamboo Food Steamer
Compared to traditional bamboo steamers, this product is cleaner, more portable, and easily accessible for consumers who are less familiar with Chinese culture and cooking techniques. The steamer seems very-user friendly, as it only has one control: a circular LED timer. Simply plug in the device, and set your timer- no extra on/off switch is needed. These small touches make the Bamboo Food Steamer the easiest purchase you could make in order to support healthy and environmentally-sustainable choices.
Why is it noteworthy?
But what is the advantage of using the Bamboo Food Steamer? First off, bamboo steamers have been a staple in Chinese cuisine for over 5,000 years. They consist of stackable layers with slatted bottoms, making it possible to cook multiple items simultaneously. The bamboo also absorbs excess steam, which keeps vegetables from becoming too soggy. As a bonus: the Bamboo Food Steamer promotes environmentally-friendly practices in addition to healthy eating because, unlike trees, bamboo stalks grow back after being cut and require minimal effort from their farmers.
What we like
- Encourages steaming of food – one of the healthiest methods of cooking
- Promotes eco-friendly practices as its made from bamboo
What we dislike
- No complaints!
5. MULTO
Meet MULTO, a vertical kitchen farm that occupies the same amount of space as a regular shelf. With multiple tiers that can grow as many as 60 plants together, MULTO lets you create a farm-to-table setup right within your home!
Why is it noteworthy?
Prêt à Pousser’s most significant achievement with the MULTO is its new hydroponic technology. Referred to as their ‘Ebb & Flow’ system, MULTO’s water reservoir comes with a discreet pump that periodically pumps water to the roots, and then drains it out – similar to an ocean’s tide. Working similar to a hydroponic gardening system (but engineered to be better), this enables the circulation of nutrients and allows the plants’ roots to absorb more oxygen, creating a better yield. How much better? Well, Prêt à Pousser’s founder Romain Behaghel claims that MULTO’s Ebb & Flow increases your plant’s yield by 200%, giving you twice as many fruits, veggies, or leafy greens.
What we like
- MUTLO’s multi-tier system comes with a modular design that can grow multiple plants at once
- Capable of growing everything from microgreens to root vegetables
What we dislike
- No complaints!
6. The Fresh Fridge
Ditching trendy diets for mindful eating, the Fresh Fridge designed by Tati Feruccio is paired with an array of technical features that encourage a health-conscious lifestyle. The Fresh Fridge is a sort of smart refrigerator that analyzes each user’s distinct eating and health habits to portion out nutritious meals throughout the day. The main technical detail that stands out is the Fresh Fridge’s digital interface that’s located just above the small refrigerator.
Why is it noteworthy?
Broadcasting mindful facts and cooking recipes from its screen, the digital interface is like your own personal cooking show for various meals throughout the day. Just below the interface, allocated space for meal preparation feels intuitive and makes following along with recipes while chopping up produce items easier than ever before.
What we like
- Encourages mindful eating over trendy short-term diets
- An integrated digital interface
What we dislike
- We don’t know how well would the fridge’s analyzed portions work for everyone
7. STEAMIE
STEAMIE, designed and developed by award-winning Mindsailors Design Studio, reintroduces steam into mainstream cooking. Steam has a way of cooking food without diluting its flavor, giving you healthy food that’s rich in nutrients as well as packed with great taste. The tabletop appliance uses this power to help prepare food that’s both nutritious and tasty. The layered appliance houses a water bath below, and food (be it veggies or meat) is placed in perforated trays above.
Why is it noteworthy?
STEAMIE was created by Mindsailors, a Europe-based holistic design studio that designed and engineered the appliance around the technology developed by STEAMIE Ltd. The appliance comes with its own in-built scale that helps you measure your food before you cook it, and even has a bamboo-wood lid that doubles up as a cutting board for food prep. A frosted-acrylic food bowl helps you watch your meal be prepared, while an intuitive display on the front allows you to input and check preparation times, giving you unprecedented control over your food prep.
What we like
- Uses a unique turbo convection method to rapidly steam-cook the food
What we dislike
- Bulky and heavy form
8. Balance
Balance, a plant cultivator designed by Designer Dot, is designed for those of us who’d like access to a personal supply of fresh produce at home without the hassle of tending to a garden day-in, day-out.
Why is it noteworthy?
The pandemic proved that having access to your source of produce should be as commonplace as having access to clean drinking water. Still, the majority of us rely on grocery stores and delivery apps to get our produce and fresh greenery. While keeping our eyes peeled for buzz words like organic and local harvest is a personal choice, there’s no way of knowing exactly under what conditions and where our produce is harvested. When creating Balance, the team at Designer Dot sought to conceptualize an at-home plant cultivator that’s compact enough to fit into any modern kitchen and inconspicuous in its minimalist design to adapt to any interior design scheme.
What we like
- The drawers can be removed to allow ceiling height for taller plants to grow
- Gives access to a personal supply of fresh produce at home
What we dislike
- Bulky form
- Cleaning all the different drawers could be a task
9. The Kefirko
The Kefirko makes pickling easy, with a glass bottle that holds your veggies and brine, a weight to keep the veggies completely submerged, and an auto-burping mechanism that allows carbon dioxide to pass through a one-way-valve to release pressure. What’s more, the pickling jar even comes with a daytimer on the top that counts down the number of days you’ve kept your veggies to pickle. The one-of-a-kind fermentation station makes it ridiculously easy to pickle practically anything, from veggies to kimchi, or even some sauerkraut!
Why is it noteworthy?
The Kefirko fermentation station comes in two sizes, and with an easy-to-use setup that allows even the most amateur pickers to master the art of fermentation. The glass jar acts as an inert container, allowing the brine and veggies to ferment without reacting with the walls of the jar. To make sure the veggies are completely submerged in the brine (any air contact can ruin the pickling process), a spring-loaded glass weight helps press them down, creating a volume of air on the top that can easily be pumped out by pushing a button on the top of the lid. As CO2 builds up into the jar (a natural by-product of the fermentation process), one-way air-valves help ‘burp’ the jar too, by letting any extra air out to prevent too much pressure from building up inside.
What we like
- The features make pickling veggies extremely easy
- Each pickling jar even comes with its own handbook with over 25 recipes
What we dislike
- No complaints!
10. Yumme
Designed to function primarily as an IoT household product, Yumme is a smart food tray that analyzes the nutrition facts and calories of each food item that makes up your meal.
Why is it noteworthy?
Conceptualized in three different forms, Yumme’s plate options vary depending on the user’s diet. The first tray comes with five different food compartments for users who’d like to explore the full spectrum of a balanced meal. Embedded sensors are located inside the food tray to analyze each meal’s contents. Split into two parts, Yumme’s top lid is made from Tritan, an eco-friendly and heat-resistant material, while its bottom module is coated in silicone to avoid slipping. Another food tray features only three compartments for users with a more limited diet. Finally, a third food tray split into two layers hosts compartments for four different food items and keeps a portable size to bring lunch with you on the go.
What we like
- Comes with an accompanying app that tracks and analyzes your every meal so you can always stay on top of your health
- You can connect with other Yumme users through the integrated social aspect of Yumme’s application
What we dislike
- It’s still a concept!