Spotlight

Kitchen Makeover

My family and I live in a pretty new home — a corner unit townhouse in the master-planned, suburban city of Irvine. It was a brand new home when we moved in at 2005. The house smelled like a new born baby, the fresh paint was spotless, the carpet was soft and plushy, and the kitchen was equipped with new standard appliances (no upgrades). Everything was almost perfect.

Seven years later, with an enterprising home business (read: the Rasa Malaysia blog plus a cookbook), the house needed a makeover, or more adequately, my kitchen needed a makeover. What they say is right — most equipment needs maintenance, fine-tuning, or replacement after 5 years of heavy usage. I was no longer happy with my kitchen. Don’t get me wrong, it was still completely functional and efficient, but I was no longer satisfied with the performance of the appliances that I use heavily on a daily basis. The range no longer lived up to my expectations: thick and stubborn grease was filling up the vent, the paint work around the range was chipping off, the heat output was no longer ideal, and the oven delivers uneven roasts. My dishwasher also caused a couple of minor flooding incidents in the sink area. Since we are not moving to a new and bigger house anytime soon, I decided to have a kitchen makeover this spring, and replace my gas range and the dishwasher.

It must have been my lucky star, but a casual email with my contact at KitchenAid earlier this year had pretty much changed my entire kitchen makeover plan. To support and enhance my cooking, baking and blogging experiences, KitchenAid would provide and install its major appliances to my home. I was thrilled beyond words when they told me that they would replace ALL the major appliances for my entire kitchen. What’s more, I could even pick out an outdoor grill for my patio! I pinched myself to make sure it wasn’t a dream. The dream came true for my kitchen makeover project.

We browsed and researched the KitchenAid website and placed the following orders and got all the appliances installed just a couple of weeks ago. With my new kitchen, I couldn’t help but feel excited – and utterly inspired – entering the kitchen every day.

Here is the kitchen with the old gas range and microwave. They had served me well, but it was time to say goodbye.

Say hello to the new KitchenAid gas range and microwave!

KitchenAid Double Oven Range allows me to cook and bake several dishes simultaneously, and the oven delivers the most even baking across all racks. The upper rack is perfect for quick baking, such as my favorite cookies, while the lower rack will be great for roasting chicken.

I can use the interchangeable cast-iron griddle or center grate with the oval burner in the center of the cooking surface. This burner allows me to use my oval French oven efficiently without taking up the whole surface. I am also looking forward to making quick breakfast such as pancakes, bacon, and sausages using the griddle.

This microwave is the perfect companion for the gas range. They look dashing together. I especially like the four-speed motor that offers adjustable ventilation for my Asian/wok cooking, which is smokier and greasier.

Now, let me introduce you to the side-by-side refrigerator, which stands tall and handsome and will always smell good thanks to its FreshFlow™ technology that absorbs food-spoiling gases and reduces common food odors.

Meet the extremely quiet dishwasher. I will be honest, I was never a big fan of dishwasher because it’s always so loud that I could hear it in my living room and dining room. The first time I had it on, I couldn’t hear a thing, my home was so quiet I could watch TV without the dishwashing noise in the kitchen. It was amazing!

Now it’s time to go outside: my empty and boring patio that I never spend any time in.

But that is all going to change starting this summer with this KitchenAid grill. When I went to my local Lowes store to pick up the grill cover, the store manager was so jealous of me as this is the top-of-the-line grill. I can’t wait for my BBQ party in June where friends gather around and have a fun BBQ session in the patio.

Isn’t she such a beauty? I love the side burner, which means that I can fire up my wok outdoor and cook to my heart’s content when the weather is nice, while waiting for my barbeque to cook.

I wanted to thank KitchenAid for their generosity. I remember standing in my kitchen ogling these gorgeous appliances the first day they got installed. It really is a kitchen dream come true, and I promise to handle them with tender, loving, and care. For the readers and fans, I promise you that more delicious recipes (including more baking recipes) will be coming soon to Rasa Malaysia!

Disclaimer: KitchenAid provided me with the above appliances. I was not compensated monetarily for this post. My opinions expressed here are my own.

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