The outdoor kitchen.Some of the land houses owners decorated in the exterior space a permanent and fully equipped kitchen, while others preferred the traditional grill, used from time to time. In both cases, being performed outside, cooking becomes a real pleasure and more efficient too, be it made for the family members, be it for visitors.
First of all, decide which characteristics you want the area dedicated to cooking have. Perhaps a simple grill doesn’t fit your taste and you want a more intricate landscaping that could also include a sink and a fridge. Maybe a dishwasher too, why not? In this case, the appliances have to be protected against the bad environmental conditions. Place thence the center of your cooking equipment in a covered area.
If you prefer simplicity and you choose a grill, this option of yours has to be set on few decisions: the grill made be coal based, liquid propane based or natural gas based. Coal grills ale less expensive, while the gas based ones are the most high-priced. The number of burners and properties, as a piezoelectronic ignition battery based or a flame protection system involve more costs too. Depending on your budget, you may choose among a range of accessories, as rotisseries, lateral burnings, smoke ovens or detachable heating elements, thermometer mounted on the lid, grease collection tray etc.
Choose the area dedicated to cooking. It can be placed next to the house or farther from it. Both the variants have their own advantages. A cooking area situated next to the house has the advantage of rapid access to the inside kitchen. One situated farther from the house protects the interior of the dwelling from smoke and heat. When you choose the placement also take into account the fact that intricate outdoor kitchens need to be connected to amenities such as gas, electricity, water, therefore it is less expensive and easier to have such a kitchen as close to the house as possible.
Generally, when you decorate any exterior space for cooking, make sure that all the tools, including the cooking plates, spatulas, knives, pliers, are at within reach for the cooker. For that, you have to add shelves, cabinets and other appliances for hanging household objects. You have also to consider the raw food, as well as the finite aliments – to store them, a trolley on wheels should be more than enough. The way from the kitchen inside to the exterior cooking area/grill should always be free. Acquiring a quencher is also a good idea, just in case
The worktop should be made so to resist to different environmental conditions. The rain, snow, the sunrays may bleach, stain or produce rot on the worktop, so choosing it has to be a matter of great concern. Concrete tiles or natural materials, as the stone or the slate, represent good options (the sealed porous stone, for e.g., prevents the grease stain to stick to the worktop). Avoid lustrous worktops, except for the cases in which the kitchen is placed in very protected areas (as a covered/closed terrace), since the exposure to bad weather may cause damages to it. Think twice before you use teak wood or other type of wood resistant to rot, since the wood may carry many bacteria
Anyway, rot resistant wood, as the mahogany, the cedar, the sandalwood, or the teak represent a great choice in making the cabinets. The other types of wood have to be sealed, data stained or painted. The OSB boards, being made of crowded wood fibres, are also impermeable enough so to serve as materials for making the cabinets of the outside kitchens.
Photo:Viking Outdoor Kitchens