Take Your Kitchen Outdoors

Image Gallery This lovely outdoor setting includes an adobe bread oven. David Cavagnaro

Ask Deborah Maneval about her outdoor kitchen and she immediately responds with great enthusiasm.

“I love my outdoor kitchen and cook everything there, including bacon and eggs for breakfast, as well as lunch and dinner. I use it throughout the year, even in winter,” says Maneval, who lives on four scenic acres surrounded by farms and country roads in Hawthorn Woods, a rural community in northern Illinois.

She extols the benefits of her full-service outdoor kitchen, which is complete with grill, refrigerator, sink, bread warmer and bar counter that seats six.

“It’s so gorgeous out here, I don’t want to leave,” she says. From her outdoor kitchen, Maneval can see pine trees, rolling hills and her two ponds – one features a pair of waterfalls and is home to a school of koi. She also enjoys her flowers, cultivated in the English garden style and mingled with her favorite herbs, including rosemary, lavender and basil.

Feast your eyes

If you love living in the country, you don’t have to be stuck indoors at mealtimes. With an outdoor kitchen you can cook and dine, grill and chill, all while feasting your eyes on the beauty around you and immersing yourself in nature’s best. What better way to relax with family and friends than to prepare and share a meal as the sun sets and the stars rise?

With a fully equipped outdoor kitchen, you needn’t leave guests unattended. And with sufficient counter, grilling and cooking space, meal preparation outdoors can be pleasurably shared. Here are practical tips for creating an outdoor kitchen that’s perfectly suited to your lifestyle, climate, landscape, cooking needs and budget.

Cooking up a trend

Why are outdoor kitchens so popular today and particularly suited to rural lifestylers?

Americans spent approximately $50 billion on outdoor living spaces in 2005 alone, according to the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association (HPBA). And the trend is continuing. A 2007 HPBA study shows that 43 percent of grilling consumers surveyed view their outdoor grilling area as a functional area to entertain and cook.

“Americans always have grilled outdoors, but the trend toward outdoor living and entertaining developed after the national tragedy of September 11,” says Deidra Darsa, HPBA spokesperson. “People want to stay at home more and remodel their backyards for a resort feel.” Also fueling the trend is flavor.

Many believe that nothing tastes better than when it’s cooked outdoors – whether by grilling, smoking, roasting, barbecuing or planking.

“Flavor is an incredible advantage,” Darsa says. “You can’t duplicate these tastes with the broiler in your indoor stove.”