A full two thousand years have gone by between 1st-century Apicius’ “De Re Coquinaria” (“On the Subject of Cooking”) and the contemporary cuisine of the Michelin Guide chefs. Twenty centuries of evolution in kitchenware, cooking methods, equipment, ingredients and, naturally, humans. Food preparation has moved from spit roasting to molecular gastronomy, from wood fires to induction hobs, from Roman garum to spherification. Modern-day man has progressed from survival eating to savouring exquisite dishes and choice wines.
The art of gastronomy has also seen a qualitative leap in kitchen hygiene, however. We need only look back to the magnificence of Louis XIV ’s France, where lavish banquets for 1500 guests were served at Versailles with little regard for contamination-free conditions in food preparation areas. Leonardo da Vinci’s inventions to sanitise renaissance kitchens seem rather primitive to us nowadays. In the ancient world, slaves scrubbed and scoured the patricians’ kitchens in almost the same way that our mothers did until only recently.
But things are changing. And a lot! Leading-edge technologies in food safety are laying the groundwork for a new concept in kitchens. Novel materials and coatings plus new utensils and home appliances are enhancing safety and hygiene, which allows everyone to focus their gastronomic efforts on the creative aspect of the process.
The 21st century kitchen means plenty of things (as we’ve already seen in the 20th century), but should be built to attain hygienic levels not previously achieved in history. Whether humble fare such as sandwiches or sophisticated cuisine and elaborate dishes, food should always be handled with careful attention to hygiene. There’s no use in preparing “Poultry Cream with Thyme Sabayon” or “Cucumber and Mint Foam with Trout Caviar” if meticulous care and hygiene cannot be ensured throughout the process.
Cooking can’t exist without hygiene, just as there can’t be a meal without bread. Hygiene is a foundational value for the 21st-century kitchen.