Kitchen refit. Advice needed

[Ecci]

After Christmas, DH and his friend are going to be doing a complete kitchen refit. Basically, everything will be taken out, ceiling and walls plastered, new electrics, new floor tiles, sink repositioned, before units etc are installed. They are expecting it to take a couple of months (old boys work slowly).
I'm going to have to cook in the dining room and am thinking of getting some kind of tabletop oven, and maybe a tabletop electric 2 ring type cooker. The dining room is next to a bathroom which I will have to use for washing up etc. How do others manage in this situation? Any advice on what sort of cooker I will need to get, and what sort of things are easiest to cook. Tia.

A slow cooker and an air fryer will be great for cooking dinners. Stews and curries in the slow cooker and anything else you'd cook in the oven, chicken breasts, roast veg, oven chips etc, can be done in the air fryer. You can do a lot with a microwave too such as steam vegetables, scramble eggs, ready meals! But a two ring hob type thing sounds necessary for a fried egg or steak or other things that can only be done in a frying pan.

You'll be looking forward to that new kitchen after two months. Doing the washing up in the bathroom sink sounds like it will be the most trying aspect!

when mine was done same as you back to bare walls etc, i have a convection / microwave and an air fryer, between them managed to cook some decent dinners, and i set up a coffee station kettle cups tea coffee sugar, and put out 4 of all the crockery and cutlery stored tinned stuff in a big shopping bag

Buy a 2 ring hob separate to the oven.

The ovens with a hob fixed to the top can't both function at the same time. You have either hob or oven. The occasional products that claim they can both function simultaneously are not safe. You can trust me... I'm an engineer!

Oh and use a washing up bowl on the side. Don't try and wash your porcelain cups in your tiny porcelain sink. I lost several porcelain cups and 1 porcelain sink this way.

Source: experience during previous kitchen refit.

We had ours done last year, it was hell.

I washed up in the bath, (that was the worst bit)
I used the slow cooker and air fryer a lot
Microwave
The chip shop was very handy
There was crap everywhere, when you empty the kitchen try and prioritise the stuff you’ll use, you can guarantee whatever you need will be at the far side of the room beyond a sea of other stuff.

Maybe see if they can leave some bits that you can use while they do other bits. Our builders left the utility sink for a bit and the old oven unit.
We were without anything for just over a week in the end.

I’m in the exact situation currently. Although I have the utility sink. I bought a table top oven with two rings on top. It’s slowwww!!
I packed everything away apart from bare essentials. One saucepan, one tray, 4 of each cutlery and crockery.
I’ve kept my slow cooker going and am v tempted to buy an air fryer.
I just feel I’m eating not enough healthy foods right now as prep space is almost non existent!

@Isseywith4witchycats. I've already got a combi microwave oven grill but only ever used it as a microwave and also have an air fryer but only ever used it for chips.
@Billybagpuss Sadly, our nearest chippy is about 10 miles away so probably not an option.

I'm going to find out how to use the microwave as an oven and also practise with the air fryer. I think I'm going to need a tabletop hob and possibly a slow cooker. Also a washing up bowl. Thanks @PeeAche and to everyone for this advice.

i had to do washing up in the bathroom what i did was take it up in a plastic bucket washed up in the sink easier on the back put it in the bath and when it was done brought it back down in the bucket to dry it with tea towels hard work but easier than trying to bring down individual stuff Ecci i only use my air fryer for chips and roasted potatoes as theres only two of us

Have you considered an Instant Pot/other electric pressure cooker? I haven't used it on mine, but it does have a slow cook function.

Is there any chance that your DH can get the dishwasher plumbed in for you early- even if only temporarily and move it again afterwards. Also prepare lots of slow cooker dump bags in advance and put them in the freezer and cook them in the slow cooker with a slow cooker liner.

I've got a Remoska (Lakeland sell them) which is kind of like a halogen cooker. It has the heat source in the lid, all electric, and can cook almost anything. Roast chicken in it is amazing. I think they're mainly used in caravans cause they're really cheap to run and are very easy to use. They even come with a little recipe book.

@Ecci
We're going through the same thing at the moment. I'm using a combi microwave oven, the slow cooker occasionally and have also bought one of these
www.robertdyas.co.uk/russell-hobbs-mini-hob
it's ok and doing its job.
As for what to cook I've been buying from Waitrose 'Easy Cook' range and using ready prepared veg. The veg just needs a few minutes in the microwave after you've cooked your meat/fish or whatever. Pasta, frozen jacket potatoes. I've tried to stick to things with short cooking times because it's all a bit of a juggling act. Having said that it is easily doable.
Large plastic storage crates with lids for packing all your kitchen gear away will help keep the dust out of everything and keep one crate with everything in that you are going to be using regularly.
It's all a bit of a pain but it'll be worth it when it's done. Good luck!

Thanks to all for these ideas. I'm investigating electric pressure cookers, slow cookers and Remoskas.

@GladysNarracott storage boxes is a great idea. Will definitely be getting a mini hob/hotplate.

I will need to use the airfryer as DH is a mostly 'chips with everything" type, something I rarely eat myself.

I've started thinking about how I would cook each meal we currently have without access to the kitchen. I think some of them just can't be done with what I'll have, but so be it.

I managed for 8 months with a 2 ring baby belling ( counter top ) given to me by mil and a microwave ( we had a sink but scarcely any counter top space ) But we managed day to day. However , I do not think it was a coincidence that our local Cafe Rouge shut down when our proper kitchen was sorted out.