How to Make a Kitchen Smell Good All the Time — 5 Tips That Offer 'Passive Scenting' Without Compromising Your Sense of Taste While You Cook

Instead of overwhelming your olfactory sense, these tricks will ensure your cooking space is pleasantly perfumed

Amiya Baratan's avatar
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A bright white kitchen with an island, an orange accent wall with a fridge, tiger print chairs, and a skylight
Instead of confusing your senses and oversalting your food, learn how to optimally scent your kitchen.
(Image credit: Adam Scott Images. Design: Turner Architects)

When you walk into a kitchen, depending on the occasion, you want to either be met with the scent of something delicious or a wave of subtly perfumed freshness. Anything that overbears is not welcome in this space.

Unlike considering other rooms in how to make your home smell good, the kitchen requires scenting with a lighter hand. Strong fragrances can disturb your sense of taste and disrupt your cooking.

Simple efforts like cleaning with scented products, ventilating the space, styling flowers, and passive scenting with candles and diffusers can make a difference. Also, using a simmer pot or cooking up a storm can make your kitchen smell delicious.

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But here's more about how each of these techniques elevates the ambiance of this space.

1. Clean with Scented Products

A minimalist kitchen with stone counters and a matching island, glass cabinets, and a green stool

A kitchen that's spotless instantly sets the tone for a clean scent story.

(Image credit: Mary Wadsworth. Design: Nancy Gouldstone)

First things first, a clean foundation can do wonders for a kitchen's scent. Start by using some designer-approved cleaning products to ensure that every corner of your cooking space is pristine. Rather than purely citric scents, opt for blends with delicious herbs or light florals

Some design mistakes might make your kitchen hard to clean. Amending them or taking extra care to tidy these spots will help your space smell clean. And my pro tip is to invest in designer cleaning tools to make this step a little more exciting.

2. Bake, Brew, or Simmer

A kitchen with wood cabinets, a cream marble counter, a tiled backsplash, an extractor hood, a stove with a crock pot beside an open recipe book, a stack of glasses, and a vase of pink stems

Whipping up a storm is always a good idea when making your kitchen smell nice.

(Image credit: Eymeric Widling. Design: Mera Studio Architects)

When it comes to naturally making your kitchen smell delectable, you can't go wrong with a freshly brewed cuppa. It'll energize the air in your space and eliminate any lingering cooking odors in the process.

Alternatively, if you fancy yourself a baker, now's the time to dust off one of your cookbooks and cosplay the Great British Bake Off in your own kitchen. A warm berry pie or a fresh tray of muffins will make your home smell so inviting.

And for something more low-maintenance, you can boil natural ingredients, too. Although typically used to make your home smell like autumn or Christmas, small tweaks to the ingredients make for a versatile answer to your scenting woes.

3. Light Soft Scented Candles

A kitchen with airy windows, and doors to a balcony space

Candles and diffusers can do wonders for your kitchen, provided you pick considered scents.

(Image credit: Timothy Kaye. Design: ADDARC. Architecture: LBA Construction)

A major red flag when perfuming your culinary zone is using potent scents. There are some problems with using strong home fragrance in the kitchen. Of which the most important faux pas involves active scenting to the point where your sense of taste is compromised.

So, while scented candles and reed diffusers aren't completely out of pocket when perfuming this space, it's important to consider the fragrances tied to these formats.

Softer scents in smaller formats are the way to go. Think green herbs, fresh citrus, and light florals when the kitchen transitions from cooking to living.

4. Style Fresh Flowers

A kitchen with sandy walls, brushed steel cabinets, a large vase of flowers, and a wood dining table with woven chairs

A vase of green stems and subtle blooms is a no-brainer for kitchens.

(Image credit: Jeremy Wilson. Design: Marianne Tiegen)

Strong floral candles might not be kitchen-appropriate, but beautiful vases of flowers are still fair game. In fact, decorating with flowers is one of my favorite ways to make a kitchen smell welcoming.

Rather than overpowering blooms like tuberose, oriental lilies, and hyacinths, switch to cut flowers that are just as beautiful but not as potent. Consider sweet peas, dahlias, and the trendy calla lilies.

And the best part about this technique of scenting? You can move your flowers to different corners of your kitchen depending on where you're cooking. Plus, you have to admit, it's a gorgeous way to brighten up a space.

5. Regularly Ventilate

A bright kitchen with a stone island, cream chairs, a structural overhead light, wood cabinets, a tiled range hood and backsplash, and a bowl of artichokes

Thorough ventilation is the key to a kitchen that naturally smells clean and fresh.

(Image credit: Tom Wholohan. Design: Modify Homes)

And lastly, prioritizing ventilation is another way to make your kitchen smell nice and fresh. It's a form of natural home deodorizing that cleanses your space's scent while resetting your indoor atmosphere.

Michael Whitfield, luxury interiors and kitchen expert at LUSSO, tells me that properly ventilating your kitchen will ensure any stale odors are removed, preventing the space from becoming overwhelming and unclean.

"Always turn on the extractor hood when you are cooking on the stove to prevent any strong, pungent smells from filling the room," he advises. "And open all the windows and the door to the kitchen to allow maximum air circulation. This will ensure the space is completely aired out, leaving behind a refreshing natural scent."

Now, let's zoom out of your kitchen and pay attention to the call of the season — how to make your home smell like spring. It'll set the vibe for the season the moment you step inside.

And for more tips on interior perfuming and all the best new launches, sign up for the Livingetc newsletter.

Amiya Baratan
Amiya Baratan
Home Wellness Writer

Amiya is a Home Wellness Writer at Livingetc. She recently graduated with a Masters Degree in Magazine Journalism from City, University of London, and has lent her words to beauty, fashion, and health sections of lifestyle publications including Harper’s Bazaar and Women’s Health. Her experience as a research analyst has equipped her with an eye for emerging trends. When she’s off the clock, she can be found reading, listening to music, or overanalyzing her latest Co-Star update.