# Fridges and Microwaves



## tvdxer

This may not immediately appear to be a topic especially appropriate for a "Cultural Discussions", but kitchen appliances are as part of daily life, certainly an important element of any culture, as what nationality one scares their children with or whether Lincoln is studied in other cultures (not that there is anything wrong with those topics!)  

Now two relatively new kitchen appliances which are considered essential in some countries but rare in others are the refrigerator and the microwave.  How common are these in the homes of your country?  Are they only possessed by wealthier members of the society, or do most have them?  Is having a microwave and refrigerator indispensable to your country's way of life, or does it contravene it?

In the United States, the vast majority of homes are equipped with both.  We Americans "need" our refrigerators to store our milk for cereal, to keep our soft drinks and beer cold, and to store much of what you can buy at the grocery store (cheese, lunchmeat, vegetables, butter, etc.), as well as food left over from meals at home or at restaurants - what's the point of throwing it away when it can make another meal?  Likewise, the freezer unit found in most American refrigerators comes very much in handy for keeping frozen "easy meals".

Likewise, microwaves are very common here, and to encounter a house that doesn't have one is odd.   We use our microwaves to heat up ready meals and left-overs, etc.  

Both kind of go along with the American way of life - we like to conveniently buy all of our groceries once, transport them home in our cars or SUVs, and preserve them in our fridges or quickly or conveniently re-heat the meals we made from them (or heat the frozen meals we bought) in our microwaves. 

I know that in other countries, people traditionally went shopping each day for fresh vegetables, produce, cheese, breads, etc., whatever was necessary for a meal, hence negating the need for a refrigerator.  Americans often don't have the time for such a daily routine, even though farmer's markets are becoming quite popular.


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## lady_luck

Well, here in India almost everyone in the middle and upper middle class possesses a refrigerator.Ican safely say that even the lower middle class has one. People invest in it considering the heat in our country and the need for cold water. Also, things like milk cheese, vegetables etc. would rot in the heat without a refrigerator.
As for a microwave, though a majority of the people have one, I would still say that since our cooking is still very traditional, you may find homes without micros since people still prefer theri gas stoves.But they are very common though.Probably they are not very common because except maybe for the youth, traditionally in a house there is not much 'ready to eat' cooking.
Freezer units in refrigerators are not a part of every Indian home, maybe the very posh society who have it for sheer luxury(they are quite expensive!).Also, we hardly buy any frozen vegetables because everythign is available fresh everyday. In fact, fresh vegetables are cheaper as compared to their frozen counterparts.Today we have frozen veggies thanks to the rise in supermarkets. Otherwise, people still prefer their veggies fresh. For us, the taste changes!!!


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## b00nish

In Switzerland there is a fridge in every flat of course (maybe not 100% since there are always exceptions but 99,9%).
Everyone needs it to keep cool the diary products, the meat etcetera.
Freezer units inside the fridges are standard. In addition to it, the poeple often have a big freezer in the basement.

A Microwave is also quite common though not everyone has one. But I guess the majority has one (I don't know any statistics about that though).
I don't own a microwave for example. I just don't need one.


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## stanley

In Germany there is a fridge in pretty much every household. Microwaves are very common as well, but I would say, not everybody does posses a microwave. It's just normal. And I guess nobody could live without a fridge anymore. How would you keep your stuff cold and your ice cream frozen?


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## Nanon

What Stanley wrote about Germany is also valid for France. 
Freezers (built-in or separate, small or big) are standard too. But fridges with ice and water dispensers are not (throughout Europe, probably, I would say). Lack of space?...
Not many people buy groceries once a day. Most Parisians buy fresh bread, every single day. But the vast majority of people buy in supermarkets on a weekly or even bi-weekly basis, even vegetables (this is why agronomists had to develop tomatoes and lettuces that would remain fresh and firm when stored in fridges for weeks! )
Back in the '50's, refrigerators were not common and many people had to buy small quantities every day.

Many households have a microwave oven, but not all. I don't own / want / need a microwave. Dishes heated in a microwave just don't taste the same.


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## ILT

In México most homes do have a fridge, it's very common, as well as the microwave oven. They are not reserved to the middle or upper classes, but the funny thing is we use microwave ovens mostly to reheat a meal or heat a cup of water for coffee or tea. Most of us don't use them for cooking.
Oh! We also use them for popcorn!


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## federicoft

Italy is not very different from Switzerland, Germany or France.
Virtually every household has a fridge. I don't know a single person who doesn't.

On the other hand, microwaves are not uncommon, especially in urban areas, but certainly not as common as fridges. Not having one wouldn't be perceved as odd as not having a fridge, in fact it is perfectly normal. It is generally not used for cooking though, just to thaw out frozen food, heating leftovers, and such.


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## angelicface

Well its different here in the Philipines.Both fridge and micros are not common in every households especially micros. Only those houses in the city have this things but in general micros is not really a need here in the philippines. When it comes to heating food we still prefer real fire to heat left over food.
Philippines is a third class country and not everybody can afford. For example the fridge. Not everybody here can afford to have one. Only those with a stable job. There are certain areas where one or two household had their fridge. Filipinos are known for being kind and hospitable and a good example for this is the household who owns a fridge will sell an ice tube(a water put into a plastic tube ) for others also to be able to refresh themselves. Households who do not own a fridge will just buy an ice if they want cold water. Well we don't really practice storing food in the fridge since we're not really fun of eating cereals or drinking milk. That is only for rich people who can afford extra expenses. But instead we prefer rice for every meal. Fresh fruits and vegetables is always available in our backyard.Its always fresh. No fridge needed. The first reason why people wants to own a fridge is for cold water and not for keeping food fresh.

Even some of the rich people doesnt own a fridge.


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## alexacohen

I can't check every home all over the country, but I have never been to any house where there wasn't a fridge.

Microwave ovens are not used for cooking, but for heating left overs, or milk, or to thaw frozen food. But although I have never met anyone who didn't have a fridge at home, I do know people who don't like microwave ovens for whatever reason, mostly because they think it's useless, one can heat left overs the traditional way.


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## Hakro

In Finland a fridge has been a standard equipment in every apartment built since the sixties. Today also a separate freezer and a dishwasher are standard in most cases, except maybe for studio apartments.

In Finland these kitchen equipments are also considered to belong to the apartment, not to the person or family who lives there. As far as I know, this is not the case in all European countries. If you buy an apartment, you have to bring there your own fridge, dishwasher etc. At least I've heard that this has been the general situation in France not so long time ago. Let me know if I'm wrong.


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## danielfranco

I am old enough to remember the slight shift in some customs, especially about appliances, in Mexico, as I was growing up. I remember, even though we lived in Mexico City, that there were certain days of the week that a few streets would be closed to traffic so that the "tianguis", or open-air traveling market could come to our neighborhood. Of course, there were also regular markets, where all types of food were sold. Sure, there were also supermarkets, although none of them of the WalMart magnitude, not even the State-sponsored Conasupo.
Even so, in the midst of this fresh-food avalanche, in my lifetime, everyone, seemingly, had a fridge (was that enough commas???). My mother says they had a fridge when she was little. So I guess we ALL, in Mexico, had a fridge through most of the Twentieth Century. Perhaps. Maybe my sampling is faulty, I don't know. Whatever.

But, microwave ovens? Man! That meant you were upward-mobile in society!! I remember the end of the Seventies, when it seemed that only well-to-do families could afford a silly expense like a microwave oven (very expensive, they were... probably built solid-state, I shouldn't wonder).

Except, in the middle of the Eighties, there seemed to be some sort of paradigm shift, when all of the sudden it was quite natural that anyone and everyone should have a fridge and a microwave oven. Maybe they got very cheap all of the sudden, I don't know.
Or, maybe we just got used to the idea of having them around...

D


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## CrazyArcher

In Israel both fridges and microwave ovens are a standard - ownership rates are around 99.9% and 95%, respectively. Separate freezers and dishwashers aren't very common, but upper-middle class families usually have them.

Hakro: that's an interesting case. Over here sometimes apartments are rented together with appliances, but in general each family has its own stuff.


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## Nanon

Hakro said:


> If you buy an apartment, you have to bring there your own fridge, dishwasher etc. At least I've heard that this has been the general situation in France not so long time ago. Let me know if I'm wrong.


It is still, Hakro. And households have their own washing machines too. Like all other appliances.

Dishwashers are not totally standard but quite many households have them. Espresso machines and bread machines are growing fast.


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## Chaska Ñawi

In Canada most people have a microwave, especially if they live alone.  We use ours for reheating meals, heating milk, melting butter and chocolate, thawing food, making custard, cooking squash and sweet potatoes, sterilizing potting soil.....

Everybody has a fridge with a built-in freezer.  Many of us have created new life forms in our fridges, particularly in the dairy and vegetable compartments.

In rural areas, everyone also has at least one big chest freezer.  We have two.  These come in handy when Bert gets his moose, Sue hits a deer on a foggy night, or Peter decides to butcher his hogs.  Our freezers have archeological layers, and every now and then one is pleasantly surprised to discover a nicely aged spaghetti sauce or an overlooked goose.

A quick inventory of the top two-thirds of our chest freezers includes several jars of strawberry freezer jam, a few other assorted jars of jam that didn't seal, some cuts of venison, ice cream cartons filled with various stews, a couple of roosters, 3/4 of a lamb, some nice tenderloin steaks, ten pounds of mackerel that happened to be on sale last year, a few pies, some of my mother's tourtieres .... you get the picture.  The contents are very similar to any other rural Canadian freezer.

In an electrical blackout, nobody is allowed to open the fridge door; and the freezers disappear under layers of newspapers and arctic sleeping bags until power is restored.


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## elroy

CrazyArcher said:


> In Israel both fridges and microwave ovens are a standard - ownership rates are around 99.9% and 95%, respectively.


 Your statistics may be accurate for Jewish Israelis, but the second one certainly doesn't apply to Arab Israelis. Microwaves are not uncommon, but it is not at all unusual not to have one. A microwave is not considered a necessity in the same way that a fridge is, so many people do not feel the need to get one (even though most people can afford them).


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## viera

I still have vague memories of the pre-refrigerator days in Toronto, back when I was 6 years old. We had a smallish wooden cabinet with a compartment at the top, into which my parents would put a huge block of ice to keep the food underneath cold cool. The ice delivery truck came around regularly. This was in the early fifties, when we also had the milkman (with a horse-drawn wagon) and the baker delivering their wares.


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## tvdxer

Chaska Ñawi said:


> In Canada most people have a microwave, especially if they live alone.  We use ours for reheating meals, heating milk, melting butter and chocolate, thawing food, making custard, cooking squash and sweet potatoes, sterilizing potting soil.....
> 
> Everybody has a fridge with a built-in freezer.  Many of us have created new life forms in our fridges, particularly in the dairy and vegetable compartments.
> 
> In rural areas, everyone also has at least one big chest freezer.  We have two.  These come in handy when Bert gets his moose, Sue hits a deer on a foggy night, or Peter decides to butcher his hogs.  Our freezers have archeological layers, and every now and then one is pleasantly surprised to discover a nicely aged spaghetti sauce or an overlooked goose.
> 
> A quick inventory of the top two-thirds of our chest freezers includes several jars of strawberry freezer jam, a few other assorted jars of jam that didn't seal, some cuts of venison, ice cream cartons filled with various stews, a couple of roosters, 3/4 of a lamb, some nice tenderloin steaks, ten pounds of mackerel that happened to be on sale last year, a few pies, some of my mother's tourtieres .... you get the picture.  The contents are very similar to any other rural Canadian freezer.
> 
> In an electrical blackout, nobody is allowed to open the fridge door; and the freezers disappear under layers of newspapers and arctic sleeping bags until power is restored.



We also have a larger freezer (in the basement), in the upright "refrigerator" style rather then the "chest" style (my grandpa had one of those) but I'm not sure how many others out here do.  I'm sure quite a few,though, considering how popular hunting is out here (now unintentional hunting with your car...I don't even think it's legal to take the "aftermath" home here!).  We use ours to store meat and pretty much anything else that can be frozen long-term.  The freezer compartment of our main refrigerator, on the other hand, is used for ice cream, candies, ice, smaller amounts of frozen food and meat, etc.


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## mirx

danielfranco said:


> So I guess we ALL, in Mexico, had a fridge through most of the Twentieth Century. Perhaps. Maybe my sampling is faulty, I don't know. Whatever.
> 
> But, microwave ovens? Man! That meant you were upward-mobile in society!! I remember the end of the Seventies, when it seemed that only well-to-do families could afford a silly expense like a microwave oven (very expensive, they were... probably built solid-state, I shouldn't wonder).
> 
> D


 
I am not that old, but I agree with you. I grew up listening to my mother complain how my father never bought her a new fridge. But at the same time she was proud that she could still use my grandma's, a fridge purchased more than 30 years ago. Unfortunately if finally died 4 years ago. =(

As for microwaves, even though most homes would have them, it is not generally considered elemental. I got my mom I microwave when I was 16 as a Mother's day present. 

We never bought one before because she though and still does, that microwaves are like cancer bombs! No one uses it except for making popcorn, and on ocassion for re-heating left overs.


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## fran+k

This is an interesting topic. As someone already said, both the fridge and the microwave are pretty common in Mexico.

I would like to bring into this discussion another kitchen appliance, the blender. Because in Mexico a blender is a household must-have. And I once heard from a US visitor that blenders were rather rare in that country as a household item.

Can anyone comment?


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## tvdxer

fran+k said:


> This is an interesting topic. As someone already said, both the fridge and the microwave are pretty common in Mexico.
> 
> I would like to bring into this discussion another kitchen appliance, the blender. Because in Mexico a blender is a household must-have. And I once heard from a US visitor that blenders were rather rare in that country as a household item.
> 
> Can anyone comment?



Hmm, they seem pretty common here.  At least we have one.


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## sokol

Nanon said:


> What Stanley wrote about Germany is also valid for France.
> Freezers (built-in or separate, small or big) are standard too. But fridges with ice and water dispensers are not (throughout Europe, probably, I would say). Lack of space?...
> (...)
> Many households have a microwave oven, but not all. I don't own / want / need a microwave. Dishes heated in a microwave just don't taste the same.



I think the same may even be true for Europe in general - it certainly is true for Austria:
- fridges in any (or almost any) household, but no ice and water dispensers
- microwaves in a great many households (but not so ubiquituous as fridges are), and used by many only for warming up food while cooking with microwaves mainly is done with pre-cooked, frozen food (and not so much with fresh food)


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## chics

In Barcelona it's _compulsory_ by law to have a frigde in order to consider a flat or a house "habitable". So there you'll find one in 100% of homes... and often in offices, par example, to keep the employers' breakfast, drinks or lunch.

However, as Alexa explained so well, microwave is often not seen as a very useful thing but more as a _trasto_, as you can also heat you milk or dishes in the kitchen.

(We cook pop-corn in a frying pan).


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## javier8907

In Spain, as far as I know, virtually everybody has a fridge, and around 70-80% of the people have a microwave, although we use it as many people have described: for pop corn, thawing food -not all kinds, at least in my house we thaw raw meat and fish in the fridge or just outside, if we're not in a rush- and re-heating leftovers, although sometimes we do that the traditional way. As for the blender, I think nearly everybody has one, although it isn't very much used, mainly for making mayonnaise -may'be I'm forgetting another major use.


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## aaspraak

In Norway everyone has a fridge. 

Microwaves are common, but many people don't have one. Personally I see it as slightly more useful than an egg cooker so I am not going to buy any soon. Warming food on a real kitchen stove doesn't usually take that long and I can do much more.


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## lizzeymac

fran+k said:


> This is an interesting topic. As someone already said, both the fridge and the microwave are pretty common in Mexico.
> 
> I would like to bring into this discussion another kitchen appliance, the blender. Because in Mexico a blender is a household must-have. And I once heard from a US visitor that blenders were rather rare in that country as a household item.
> 
> Can anyone comment?



In New York a refrigerator with a built-in freezer is required for an rental apartment to be habitable, as well as a stove (oven and cook top), and a sink with hot and cold running water.  

I would say that microwaves are extremely common in NYC, a basic model microwave is pretty inexpensive and far too many people here live on frozen dinners - just my opinion, sorry. 

I would say that blenders are pretty common, especially since smoothies have become so popular.  I think some people might buy a food processor before they bought a blender - they overlap a bit.  Blenders and food processors might be more and less common in different regions - you know, it's what we say about everything in America - regionalism.


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## Etcetera

Hi Tvdxer.


tvdxer said:


> How common are these in the homes of your country?  Are they only possessed by wealthier members of the society, or do most have them?  Is having a microwave and refrigerator indispensable to your country's way of life, or does it contravene it?


A refridgerator is something really necessary in Russia. I can't remember a home where there wouldn't be a fridge - and sometimes even two fridges. 

A microwave is rather widespead nowadays, a lot of people have one at home, and there is often a microwave in the office, so you could bring food from home and not go to a restaurant for lunch. But even I still remember times when a microwave at home was a sign of well-being, something that is convenient, but not really necessary. Some families, even with a lot of money, don't purchase microwaves as they don't think that they need them. My aunt's family doesn't own a microwave, for example, and they don't want it. They do have a dish-washer, though - and a dish-washer is considered by most people as something rather convenient, but not so important.


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## Broccolicious

Interesting. The presence or absence of a fridge is often used as an indicator of poverty (see here for a UNDP paper, for example: http://www.undp-povertycentre.org/md-poverty/papers/Frikkie_.pdf). 

Not so with a microwave, which seems to fit with the general agreement here that they are more of a luxury than a necessity.


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