8 appliances for outdoor kitchens to enhance your cooking experience
Besides the grill, a modular outdoor kitchen would also require its share of appliances. While settling for a layout, you must decide and finalize which outdoor kitchen appliances are on your list so that you can get the right ones without compromising on the space. Here are some regular and common outdoor kitchen appliances which you will be needing on a daily basis to enhance your cooking experience in your outdoor kitchen.
Grills & smokers : Several people choose the outdoor kitchen grill first and later select different types of kitchen appliances accordingly. In reality, for cooking outdoors, different types of grills, such as an outdoor kitchen BBQ grill, are available.
Oven
There are different types of ovens as outdoor kitchen cooktops, according to the prefab or customised layout. The gas or electric oven ranges, pizza oven, and warming drawers are some useful appliances that you can use for your outdoor kitchen. Several brands provide a wide range of built-in models. You can also opt for some exclusive wood-fired oven for making pizza. You can also look up the Internet for DIY videos to make a wood-fired oven.
Refrigerators
Though it’s not mandatory to include a freezer or refrigerator in your outdoor kitchen space, many people keep this for storing drinks.
Ice maker
People who need to install a mini bar in their outdoor kitchen space, an ice maker is one important appliance to invest in. There are built-in ice makers as well as kegerators available for installing separately. You can also think of using portable ones which need not be placed in your outdoor kitchen space.
Side burner
Probably, the most important and handy of all the additional outdoor kitchen appliances, a side burner permits the cook for heating sauces, boiling water, etc. A separate side burner is mostly suggested instead of the one combined with the grill. The grill-integrated burners leave little space for using a full-sized bowl. You can opt for a plug-in induction burner which can be used both indoors and outdoors.
Vent hood
For removing smoke and cooking smells, a vent hood is quite important, especially for an enclosed area within the home or under the roof.
Dishwasher
If you’re interested in keeping the clean utensils outside, the dishwasher is an important appliance on your list. Many people don’t like the hauling of the dirty utensils at the indoor space, and for such situations installing a dishwasher becomes beneficial. Although, plumbing work would be required.
Sinks
For cleaning the utensils or washing hands, outdoor sinks are of great help, and it can also magnify the resale value of the outdoor kitchen. In that case, feeding the faucet is a crucial aspect to consider and installing one water line from the home might be an idea. Many people use a garden hose or install a line along with indoor valve, but draining then becomes an important issue in that respect.
Besides these, you can also include outdoor kitchen countertops and outdoor kitchen carts to make working easy. Ensure to check for all these and more when looking for outdoor kitchen kits.