Having an outdoor kitchen has become one of the fastest-growing trends in Australia, and every year, more and more homeowners benefit from moving their indoor living space in the outdoors. This may be due to the popularity of cooking programs like Food Network, which has Australians hooked on preparing delicious foods. If you’re contemplating whether or not you should get an outdoor BBQ kitchen yourself, there are many things to consider in order to ensure you make the right purchase. An outdoor BBQ kitchen can be a huge investment, so it’s worth taking the time to do your due diligence.
The first step is to determine the materials you want your outdoor BBQ kitchen to be made of. There are many different options but the most common ones are wood, welded aluminium with stainless inserts and stainless steel. Wood is the cheapest of all materials, but it’s also the least durable one. You can consider a wooden outdoor kitchen if you live in warm, calm weather and are on a tight budget. However, a wooden kitchen will have a limited life expectancy and won’t offer the overall stability of the other two materials. Welded aluminium with stainless insert kitchens are very durable and hold up well in humid climates. And lastly, stainless steel outdoor kitchens are timeless. They look sleek and elegant, can withstand tough weather conditions, and stainless steel is the number one material in terms of look, longevity, and quality.
Next, you have to consider the grill the outdoor BBQ kitchen comes with. Unlike conventional grills, grills designed into outdoor kitchen packages are designed to drop into a specific width opening in the kitchen’s base or island. Some of the basics you’ll need to know when deciding on the ideal grill are its size, burner, and the features. The size of the grill head can range from 24 to 56 inches. Depending on the amount of food you’ll normally cook, the size you work with, as well as your budget will determine the ideal size you need. The burner of the grill can be either infrared or conventional. Infrared burners are cutting-edge technology and they allow you to cook at extremely high temperatures.
Some grills feature the rotisserie option which allows you to slow cook a whole turkey or kitchen. Premium-quality grills come with electric push ignition buttons for a reliable start-up and digital displays that can help you control the temperature and check on how much time you’ve spent cooking the food. Furthermore, some grills have interior LED or halogen lighting which allows for easier cooking at night. Some grills come with convection burners with ceramic plates to enable the widest range of cooking options and temperatures.
Furthermore, there are many different accessories that an outdoor kitchen can come with, the three most commonly included ones are side burners, hoods, and sinks. The side burners allow you to cook an entire meal outdoors. So basically, you can cook two more items while grilling at the same time. The hood of the kitchen will remove the smoke that comes out of it efficiently. And as far as sinks go, you’ll have to determine whether you’ll get value out of having one outdoors, or you’d rather use the one you have indoors. Having a sink in your outdoor kitchen can make the food preparation and cleaning process much faster. Most people find having a sink at your outdoor kitchen outpost from the get-go is better than trying to fit one into an existing design.
Then, you’ll also need to consider whether you want to incorporate a fridge into your outdoor kitchen setup. If the answer is yes, then you’ll have many different options to pick from. Regardless of what type of fridge you go for, make sure it’s approved for outdoor use and is UL listed. Using an indoor fridge outdoors can void its warranty and have its life expectancy significantly shortened. Further, consider whether you need a fridge with an ice maker. However, sometimes, the ice maker can be a standalone unit, so if you get a fridge without one, you can buy one individually.
That being said, getting an outdoor kitchen with a BBQ can bring a lot of benefits to your home. It provides entertainment value for when you’re gathering with friends and family, which is something you’ll definitely be doing more of when you install an outdoor kitchen. It allows you to save money by not going to restaurants as often, and it will also spice up your outdoor space. Whether you add an L shaped island with a bar and high chairs or a small kitchen, an outdoor kitchen will also increase the value of your property, so even if you aren’t staying in your current home permanently, you know the investment is not going to be in vain.
