10 Brilliant Kitchen Innovations That Changed How We Prepare Food

Pressure cookers were first introduced in 1679. Originally, the product was named Papin's digester after its inventor Denis Papin. Years later, the equipment would adopt its current name.

Since the product can generate high heat levels, it's handy for those living in high altitudes. The heat speeds up the cooking time without losing the food's nutrients. 

Chilling food and drinks has always been one of the most common ways to preserve food. While ice boxes and evaporation techniques were common in the past, their use became less frequent after introducing more advanced insulation systems during the 19th century.

Markets began selling different types of refrigerator models throughout the 1920s, with the original design courtesy of German engineer Carl von Linde.

Herbert Johnson introduced the first commercial stand mixer in 1908. In its original design, the product was scaled as an 80-quart electric stand mixer meant mostly for large bakeries.

Over time, Johnson developed smaller models after renaming his brand KitchenAid.

Pierre Verdun designed the first food processor for professional use in 1960. Unlike a blender, the product carried more adaptability with its interchangeable blades for mincing and pureeing. In 1973, Carl Sontheimer created and brought a homemade version to the United States.

The microwave is an accidental kitchen innovation. In 1941, Percy Spencer's experiment involving magnetrons melted a chocolate bar in his pocket.

While Spencer initially wanted to find a way to mass produce magnetrons, the results enabled him to create a product that could heat and cook food using microwave radiation. He called it the "Radarange," a contraction of the words radar and range (or stove), which became the first compact microwave oven.

The process of pasteurization was first discovered in 1862 by Louis Pasteur, who was commissioned by the emperor of France to prevent food from being contaminated during export. Pasteur conducted multiple experiments with wine to see if microorganisms could be removed using controlled heat. His experiments proved successful, and the rest, as we say, is history.

Nowadays, pasteurization is mainly used to treat dairy products, water, and canned goods to prevent illness and diseases like salmonella.

Distillation has been around for over 2000 years, yet refining this method did not happen until the 9th century. Researchers and alchemists like Arnaud de Villeneuve and Jabir ibn Hayyan studied distillation for years and eventually discovered its benefits for producing alcoholic beverages.

Today, restaurants use this process to develop house wines to complement their menu.

The fermentation process has changed how many foods and drinks are served today. Apart from extending its shelf life, it can also add new flavors and textures to food.

While it is a method that has been present as early as 6000 B.C., the modern understanding of fermenting food products was not established until 1789 by Louis Pasteur—the same man responsible for pasteurization.

Threshing machine from 1881

The first threshing machine was invented in 1778 by Andrew Meikle to help him speed up the process of removing grains from its husks. However, because it was the first model he designed, the machine had several flaws that kept it from efficiently doing its work.

A few years later, Meikle discovered a more effective design using a rotating drum and separate sorting pipes. Nowadays, these machines can separate anything from wheat and soybeans to any other small-grained crops.