Recently over at the Bitten blog, Mark Bittman shared some shocking pictures of himself at home cooking turkey breasts. Sure, the turkey looked great, but that kitchen? What was Mark Bittman doing in such a small kitchen?

“It appears that Mark has a kitchen just as small as most others in New York,” wrote reader Mark. “Truly, it’s not the size of the kitchen that counts, but how you use it,” wrote another reader, Guy B. Jones.

Considering I have long used my lousy kitchen as an excuse not to cook, I decided to talk to Mark about the pleasures and frustrations of cooking in a less-than-perfect kitchen.

Q.

Okay Mark. What’s a popular food writer like you doing in a kitchen like that?

A.

I got a bunch of e-mails that say, “Can you believe all this stuff about your crummy kitchen?” But the whole idea is that you don’t need a fancy kitchen. You don’t need fancy equipment, and you don’t need fancy recipes. When I show people my kitchen, they believe it. But I hate my kitchen also. I bump my shins on the dishwasher. There is not enough room to put stuff. It’s a terrible stove. It’s a terrible dishwasher. I don’t have room for the pots I’d like to have. I’ve cooked in much worse, though. I’m used to it. Someday I’ll grow up and get a real kitchen.

Q.

So why do so many people think a nice kitchen will solve their cooking woes?

A.

Maybe it’s like what you said. You use your crummy kitchen as an excuse not to cook. Maybe it’s like saying, “I can’t exercise in the winter because I don’t have an elliptical trainer.” I once cooked for six months in what amounted to a basement with a hot plate, microwave and a refrigerator and sink. Not only did I cook for six months, but I wrote the column for six months. It was funny. People like to cook when they’re camping and in other places where the situation is less than adequate. For some reason they think they have to have a great kitchen to cook at home, but it’s not true.

Q.

So what are your must-haves in a kitchen, and what can you live without?

A.

One of the things I hate about my stove is you can’t put four pots on it at the same time, so you cook with two pots and use the oven more. A functioning oven, the best possible stove… I think a big refrigerator is not that helpful. Stuff that’s in the refrigerator shouldn’t be in there all that long anyway. You need a couple of sauce pans, a couple saute pans, you need some knives, and then you need to pick up what you need on an as-needed basis. If you’re going to roast a turkey you need something big to put it in. When you need it you’ll know you’ll need it. Some things you’re going to find yourselves repeatedly wishing you had. Those are the things you need.

Q.

Do you think people buy too much cooking equipment, or too many gadgets?

A.

I think buying pots and pans in sets is prevalent. I do think people overbuy. They become enchanted with gadgets that aren’t that essential. Bread machines were around for a while. That was quite hilarious. I don’t have a toaster because I don’t have room for it. If I want toasted bread, I toast it in the broiler. It’s not horrible, and it’s the way millions did it before the electric toaster was invented. It’s a trade-off between counter and cabinet space, money and need. In Manhattan I don’t have a food processor. I’d love to have one, but I don’t have room for it. Once a week, I think, “Damn, I wish I had a food processor.” I’m not going to find the space for it. I’ve chucked all my cookbooks because there isn’t room for them.

Q.

So do you find a bad kitchen as frustrating as the rest of us do?

A.

I think part of me likes the inadequacy of it. There’s some pride involved. But people come in and can’t talk to you when you’re in the kitchen. There’s no room for two people to cook. It’s not really a galley kitchen. It’s about 7 feet wide and 8 feet long. It has that beautiful window in it, which makes things much nicer. The sad thing is the lack of storage and lack of counter space. I could live with everything else, but that stuff is what drives me bats. It’s definitely not ideal, but great things can be done.

To hear more great advice from Mark, be sure and check out the revised 10th anniversary edition of his best-selling cookbook, “How to Cook Everything: 2,000 Simple Recipes for Great Food.” And go to the Bitten blog for that great braised turkey breast recipe, as well as other recent posts on sweet potato pancakes and the future of fish.