Using the kitchen with vision loss can bring new challenges. But it doesn’t need to mean giving up the dishes you love or the joy of cooking.
With a few adjustments, you can make your kitchen work for you.
7 tips to help you work in your kitchen with vision loss:
- Cut on a surface that contrasts your food. A dark mat for light-colored foods, a light mat for dark foods—whatever helps your ingredients stand out.
- Give your knife a “parking spot.” When you’re done chopping, slide your knife behind the faucet with the blade turned away from you. No surprises when it’s time to clean up.
- Pour and measure over a tray or baking sheet with high sides. This catches any spills. Have both light- and dark-colored trays to contrast your cup or bowl so you can see a little better what’s happening.
- A place for everything, and everything in its place. Keeping your space organized—with specific spots for tools and ingredients—means less time hunting and fewer surprises.
- Add tactile labels to your appliances. Use markers you can feel, like a raised dot sticker, to identify common settings such as medium heat.
- Let a digital assistant do the timing. Ask Siri, Alexa, or Google to be your timer and sound the alarm when time is up.
- Make your recipes easier to use. Make a large print copy, use a digital recorder for an audio version, or try a recipe app like Paprika 3 that removes the distracting ads and information, and works with your phone’s accessibility settings, such as enlarged font, high contrast, and text-to-speech.
These tips can help you do the things you love safely and a little more comfortably, no matter your vision.
Support for cooking with vision loss
Connect with other home cooks to explore cooking tips, tricks, and fun things to try. Join What’s Cooking, a monthly discussion group, and share favorite recipes, gadgets, and helpful hacks for cooking with vision loss.
More practical help in the kitchen
Hadley’s Cooking series has free online workshops with many more tips such as for mixing, using the stove and oven, and knowing when food is done without relying on vision.
Coping with vision loss
In the Hadley Presents podcast episode In the Kitchen with Vision Loss, Debra Erickson, founder of The Blind Kitchen, talks about facing her fears in the kitchen and learning some practical tips. She also shares helpful kitchen tools for cooking with vision loss.
Hadley’s podcasts are also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, as well as by phone: 847-558-1317.
What kitchen tips or tricks have been especially helpful for you? And is there anything you especially wish to be able to do comfortably in your kitchen?