Firefighters took more than an hour to deal with a fire caused by a unattended chip pan that burst into flames.
The incident happened in a second floor flat in Howard Close, Waltham Abbey at 6.13 pm yesterday.
Firefighters using breathing apparatus put the fire out by 7.05 pm.
The second floor flat was evacuated and no-one was injured in the blaze.
An Essex Fire Service spokesperson said: “Incidents like this illustrate how important it is to never leave cooking unattended.
"One out of three house fires start with someone cooking and more than half the domestic fires in Essex start in the kitchen.
“A moment's distraction is all it takes for a spot of harmless cooking to turn into a potentially devastating fire."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here