The prosecution: Paul
We have a tiny kitchen and Billie doesn’t even use the stuff that’s already cluttering our counters
My girlfriend of six years, Billie, is really into cooking and can’t stop buying appliances. We have a tiny kitchen which is full to the rafters of things she no longer uses.
Billie gets these cooking obsessions and suddenly we have to buy something new to satisfy them. We currently have a pizza oven, ice-cream maker, blender and breadmaker, all sitting unused, as well as a coffee machine, microwave and all the usual appliances. Which means we have zero counter space, so I’ve put my foot down. She is the main cook, but I also enjoy it – I bake and love making dinner. I just don’t want our kitchen crammed full of clutter any more.
The final straw came when Billie recently bought a rice cooker. She went behind my back and ordered a silly small one. We both love rice, but I usually cook it as Billie messes it up. She said she never knows how much water to add, even though I’ve taught her.
I’m not opposed to a rice cooker – I’m half Indian and lots of my family use them – but it’s just the size of the one Billie bought. It offends me. She chose the most impractical one going, a tiny little pink thing off Amazon that can’t cook rice for more than two people. It takes up yet more space that we don’t have, and since we often have friends round for dinner, it’s totally pointless.
I don’t think all these appliances are necessary for cooking, and buying things for our kitchen should be a joint decision. Billie also wants an air fryer but I think the time has passed for those – they’re so uncool now. She says it will help make our cooking more efficient but we don’t have the space. Also, that’s what she said about the rice cooker – and it’s categorically untrue.
I want her to run appliance purchases past me from now on. It’s not a control thing, but I need to know before she buys anything else, because we need to move things around to make space. She’s taking it too far now.
The defence: Billie
You need the right tools to make good food, and as I do most of the cooking, I like to make life easier
Cooking is my creative outlet. I love baking cakes for friends and running bake sales in the local community. I guess I get a kick out of making new recipes and buying appliances that help me with my cooking.
Paul and I share cooking duties, but it’s still largely my domain. He gets stressed when I buy new appliances without running them past him, but I don’t think I need to. We’ve been together six years and he knows what I’m like by now. Making delicious food requires the proper tools.
When I cook, I’m at peace. Each gadget is a way to learn something new, try something different. I didn’t grow up in a household where cooking was joyful – it was functional, often frantic, so I’m probably overcorrecting.
The rice cooker has become a point of tension. I’ll be honest, I did buy it secretly. Not because I wanted to be sneaky, but because I was tired of being told I’d mess up the rice again. It is precise, consistent and small. Paul says we don’t have space for it and that it’s impractical, but it’s so tiny that I can easily make space for it on the top of the fridge. It makes just enough rice for two without me having to worry about how much water to add.
The air fryer is next. I’ve always wanted one but Paul says I have to throw something out to make space. I think an air fryer will be great for cooking meat and quick lunches. Paul says they are incredibly uncool now and that we don’t have space.
Yes, we have a lot of appliances, but two of them – the pizza oven and the coffee machine – were actually his purchases. I don’t drink coffee and I rarely make pizza. Perhaps we should clear the counters together and let go of the gadgets that we both don’t use. But that would be uncomfortable for Paul as he’d realise that he is also responsible for the lack of space.
I don’t think I should apologise for the rice cooker because it makes my life easier – and I do most of the cooking. Paul needs to check what he buys, too, and realise that the purchases I make also make his life easier.
The jury of Guardian readers
Should Billie’s appliances get out of the kitchen?
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As soon as I read that Paul purchased the pizza oven, it became clear that this is a joint issue that they need to sit down and sort out together. Paul needs to take some blame for his part in the clutter and accept that whimsy has an integral place in the kitchen. Long live pink appliances!
Abigail, 19
Billie loves cooking and should be free to buy the gadgets she wants, and she bought the tiny rice cooker because Paul was critical of how she cooked rice. He needs to chill and recognise he’s part of the problem, as he bought the pizza oven and coffee machine. Billie has suggested a way forward – that they jointly do a declutter and make some more space. Paul could embrace this gesture.
Jacquie, 56
Paul should understand that cooking is a hobby and an outlet for Billie. The rice cooker was a genuine attempt to make life easier for them both. If space really is the issue, find somewhere to store the appliances outside of the kitchen.
Meaghan, 24
It’s ridiculous to have so many appliances. Just learn to cook rice! It’s not nice being in the kitchen when every time you pick something up you also knock something over.
Jerome, 44
Paul has a pizza oven, for God’s sake! He is in no position to lecture Billie. Just use the rice cooker when it’s the two of you – and Paul, you can prepare and cook the rice when you have friends around for supper.
Andrew, 37
Now you be the judge
In our online poll, tell us if you think Billie should declutter
The poll closes on Wednesday 3 September at 9am BST
Last week’s results
We asked whether Farrah should stop burning incense.
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