There is no denying that Google Home and Google Nest products play a huge role in the lives of many homeowners today, from reminding them to take out the trash to waking them up with their favorite song. But beyond the basics this smart speaker has to offer, it is probably the most useful in the kitchen.

Here are some great ways Google smart speakers can help you out with your cooking and more.

1. Help With Recipes

Figuring out what to prepare for dinner is probably one of the hardest things you get to do every day. After all, not everyone has a thick cookbook lying around on their countertops. Lucky for you, you will never run out of meal ideas again thanks to Google Home’s useful kitchen features.

Getting a recipe out of your smart speaker works in two ways. One, open your fridge and fish out the ingredients you want to work on. You can then ask Google Home what you can make with them (e.g., "Hey Google, what I can make with beef and tomato sauce?"). It will happily suggest a dish that includes those ingredients and will also inform you of how long the meal will take to prepare and how many people it can serve.

If you already have a dish in mind but don't know how to prepare it, simply ask, "Hey Google, find me a recipe for (food)." Google Home will then walk you through the ingredients list and the step-by-step process until you have your ready-to-eat meal.

If you loved what you made and wanted to save the recipe for another day, you'll be glad to know that Google Home can save it for you online at Google collections. Just say, "Hey Google, add this recipe to my cookbook."

2. Add Items to Your Shopping List

How many times have you gone to the grocery store and forgotten to buy olive oil or almond milk because you were too busy to jot it down on your shopping list? With Google Home, you can say goodbye to this recurring dilemma.

Whenever you're working in the kitchen and come across an item you need to buy, all you have to do is ask your smart assistant to put it on your shopping list. Just say, "Hey Google, add soy sauce to my shopping list." You can easily access this list via the Google Home app on your Android or iOS phone, so you'll never have to worry about forgetting anything ever again.

3. Control Your Smart Kitchen Appliances

Wouldn't it be easier if your kitchen appliances have a mind of their own and can turn on and off by themselves? Sure, some kitchen gadgets can already do this via their individual apps, but Google Home takes the convenience up a notch with voice commands. To see some things you can do, take a look at our Google Home commands cheat sheet.

When you connect your smart device to Google Home, you don't have to pick up your phone to control them. Simply tell your smart speaker what to do: "Hey Google, set my precision cooker's temperature to 125 degrees." or "OK Google, turn on my coffee machine."

4. Set a Timer

As a home cook, you probably already know how essential timers are in the kitchen. After all, you don't want to overcook (or worse, burn) anything right when you're about to serve the food.

To create one in Google Home, simply say, "OK Google, set a timer for 20 minutes." You can also set several simultaneous timers by specifying a name for each one as in, "Hey Google, create a timer for pasta for 15 minutes."

You can then tend to other things and check back on the timer anytime with, "OK Google, how much time is left on my pasta timer?"

5. Give Calorie Counts

Not every food in your fridge comes with a nutrition facts label, and it can be quite tedious to search the internet yourself when your hands are full.

If you're health-conscious and want to stay on top of your diet plan, Google Home is always ready to answer your calorie-related questions. Just ask, "OK Google, how many calories do mashed potatoes have?" It will reply with the calorie count per specific grams of the food you've asked for.

Google Home can also tell you other nutritional information, including the amount of fat, carbohydrates, sodium, and protein.

6. Convert Units

Unless you're obsessed with collecting every measuring cup and spoon there is, you might not always have the exact kitchen utensil you need for your recipe. For instance, you're asked to mix in a quarter cup of baking soda but all you have is a teaspoon.

Fear not. Google Home can convert this for you easily without you lifting a finger. Just say, "OK Google, convert a quarter cup to teaspoons." You can also ask, "Hey Google, how many ounces are there in a cup?"

7. Get Tips

You don't have to be a top chef and learn every trick and technique in the book to cook a homemade dish, especially when you have Google Home to back you up. Every time you come across a step you're unfamiliar with and don't know how to do, just ask, "OK Google, how do I cut a julienne?" or "Hey Google, what can I use if I don't have baking powder?"

Google Home also has a virtual sommelier called Wine Guide to help you with pairing the best wine with your dish. To access Wine Guide, say, "OK Google, talk to Wine Guide." or "Hey Google, ask Wine Guide what goes with barbeque."

8. Play Music

Preparing a meal is always best done while dancing to some music. If you'd like to get a party going in the kitchen, say, "Hey Google, play some music." The speaker will then blast some random song from the music service you've linked in your Google Home app.

You can also request a specific artist, album, genre, and even mood. Just say, "OK Google, play some music for cooking," and it will pull up a playlist of songs to get you in chef mode.

Hey Google, Let’s Get Cooking

With the help of smart home technologies, life at home has become much easier for us, and Google Home's kitchen functionality is a testament to this fact. If you don't already have one, you're surely missing out.