One or more units in which to store food, and to store utensils, pots and dishes, are also usually present in or near a kitchen, either in the form of an adjacent pantry room, or more commonly as kitchen cabinets and a refrigerator which often has a freezer compartment too.

Although the main function of a kitchen is supposed to be cooking or preparing food, the kitchen can be the center of other activities as well, especially within homes, depending on the size, furnishings, and equipment. If, as sometimes happens, the home does not have a laundry room, but instead has a washing machine and possibly a dryer in a closet in the kitchen, then washing and drying laundry may also be done in the same room. The kitchen may also be the place where the family eats, provided it is large enough and has a table and chairs. Sometimes, the kitchen is the most comforting room in a house, where family and visitors tend to congregate. In this respect a large modern kitchen is still the psychological "hearth" of the home.