How to create an outdoor kitchen in your home
| Text : Liana Cafolla | Photo : www.thinkstockphotos.com |
Alfresco dining is one of the great pleasures in life. But if you can do it in your home, that’s even better. One way is to build an outdoor kitchen on your rooftop, terrace or in your garden. This additional cooking area outside allows you to eat in the open air and at the same time provides you with the privacy to relax with family or friends.
Since the weather is getting better, you may want an outdoor kitchen to get a bit of sun and fresh air. Building an outdoor kitchen allows you to welcome your guests for a chat and at the same time prepare full meals, simple salads or tasty barbecues just a few metres away. For pet owners and families with young children, preparing and eating food outside provides more intimate and inclusive mealtimes — all in the open air.
Before you get started on construction, take a good look at the available space. The nearer your kitchen is to the outdoor dining area, the more convivial your outdoor meals will be. If you have enough room, you could build a small bar on the side of your kitchen as an inviting space for guests to sit and chat while you’re cooking.
Constructing an outdoor kitchen means replicating the same functions as those found in indoor kitchens, although the materials used and the overall look might be very different. At a minimum, you’ll still need something to cook on, a food preparation area and a sink with running water. Ideally, you’ll also have room for a fridge, an icebox and a storage area for utensils. Other optional but useful extras include an outdoor fan, a wine fridge, a separate barbeque and additional storage space.
The materials for outdoors, however, differ substantially from those that are traditionally used indoors. Outdoor kitchens need to be built to withstand rain, typhoons, wind, sunlight and damp. Andrew Bell of Earthhomes recommends using cement-rendered brick base, stone countertops and stainless steel doors.
Using cement-rendered brick creates a rough, instantly weather-beaten look that is ideal for outdoors, as well as being practical to maintain and economical to install. Likewise, stone countertops are strong and they’re easy to clean and maintain. They have a natural textured feel and look that suits the outdoor environment. For a modern, stylish and rugged look, Bell recommends black-flamed granite.
For the cupboard doors and sinks, stainless steel is hard to beat. While ceramic or porcelain sinks may look more attractive, it’s important to remember the practicalities – washing ceramic and glass items in a ceramic sink is more likely to lead to breakages, and may be better suited to a bathroom than your sturdy outdoor kitchen. Stainless steel, on the other hand, is affordable, durable and easy to clean, and creates a stylish, seamless look.
It’s also Bell’s material of choice for cupboard doors. “I have never used timber doors, but have noticed on other rooftops that they deteriorate very quickly. Stainless steel is more durable, depending on the quality that you use. I like to recess the door from the front lip of the countertop by a couple of centimetres so as to prevent rainwater or spills entering the cupboards.”
He also suggests making the base of the interior cupboard shelves two centimetres higher than the floor in order to prevent rainwater seeping in under the doors in wet weather.
Finally, if you’ve got the space, build a dry countertop area, away from the sink and any other water sources, where you can fit outdoor electrical sockets for your iPod dock and other electrical equipment such as lamps, fairy lights and cocktail blenders that you might want to use while entertaining outdoors.
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