Create a chef-style kitchen in your home

Some people use their kitchens as a family dining area or place to make lunch in the morning, but for others it’s more of a workshop. Kitchens can become spaces for amateur chefs to explore their culinary arts, making delicious baked goods, innovative stews and fantastic dinners for family and friends. Many people who use their kitchens for elaborate and frequent cooking, baking, broiling, simmering and everything else enjoy a kitchen renovation that upgrades their space and equipment.

Alure Home Improvements’ kitchen design expert Brian Curry talked about a few of the most important aspects to consider when designing a chef-style kitchen in your home.

Make it as customized as possible 
When you’re redesigning your kitchen to become your own personal workspace, don’t sacrifice the details you want. Curry explained that when he works with people who want a professional-style kitchen, he tailors its design to them.

“Their kitchens have to be designed specifically to their lifestyle,” Curry said in an interview. “How they cook. How they entertain. Everyone has a different cooking method “¦ Whenever I design a kitchen for someone who’s very, very interested in cooking, I just have to make sure it’s going to cater to their specific needs as a chef.”

One of the biggest ways a designer can customize a kitchen design is to create the layout with handedness in mind. Curry explained that right-handed chefs are more likely to prepare their food on the right, so locating and designing more space between the range and sink on the right side may make sense.

If you’ve always wanted a professional-style range, additional outlets for appliances, microwave drawers or other gadgets or features, tell your designer and he or she will help you make a stylish, functional space.

Plan ahead with a professional range 
If part of your new kitchen design involves a bigger refrigerator, Curry reminded homeowners to ensure they have a safe ventilation system to go along with it. The most important aspects of installing an appliance like this during the design process is to make sure there’s enough space and hookups for the range and ventilation system.

Think about storage
Curry explained that in many chef-style kitchens, people opt for separate ranges and ovens. Wall ovens make cooking easier and more convenient by eliminating the bending aspect, while a separate cooktop can add useful storage.

“If someone is really into cooking, they might want a separate range top and wall oven,” Curry said. “If you do a scenario like that, design-wise, you’ll typically put drawers below the cook top so you can have your pots and pans and other large items more accessible.”

Go with quartz and stainless steel 
When it comes to chef-ready countertops, Curry recommended quartz. This virtually maintenance-free surface is scratch, scald and stain resistant, allowing you to place hot pots and cut vegetables right on it. Additionally, it won’t grow any bacteria, like granite can if improperly sealed.

Curry said the classic stainless-steel sink may be best to put up with the wear and tear of an amateur chef’s constant use. Some people may even want to talk to their designer about installing a pot filler above the range as well.

Curry’s biggest advice, however, was for homeowners not to wait before tackling this project.

“Just do it,” he recommended. “It’s going to be an upgrade. Work with a professional who can take your ideas, your intuition, your lifestyle and really put some thought behind a design.”