Most people spend hours every week in their kitchens, moving between the refrigerator, the sink, and the stove—the trio often called the heart of the home.

The stove, in particular, is the center of countless family meals, celebrations, and everyday routines. Yet hidden in plain sight is a feature that millions of homeowners misunderstand: the mysterious drawer underneath the oven.

Ask a dozen people what the drawer is for, and most will answer without hesitation: storage. It’s where pots, pans, and baking sheets go, where lids pile up, and where plastic containers sometimes end up wedged and forgotten. For generations, that drawer has been treated as a convenient spot for cookware.