{"id":102,"date":"2019-12-04T14:52:36","date_gmt":"2019-12-04T14:52:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wood-firedoven.co.uk\/?p=102"},"modified":"2020-01-07T16:32:00","modified_gmt":"2020-01-07T16:32:00","slug":"cooking-outside","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wood-firedoven.co.uk\/cooking-outside\/","title":{"rendered":"COOKING OUTSIDE- No.1-BE RESOLUTE!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"cooking<\/h1>\n

Cooking outside- an introduction to the benefits and problems<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Gardens are changing! Despite the vagaries and unpredictability of the Great British climate, it has become clear over the last 10 years that peoples\u2019 attitude to their gardens has undergone a huge shift in priority; from the delicate balancing act of the various demands put on them from families to a more complex integration of interior and exterior life.<\/p>\n

Contemporary garden design seeks to rebalance that life making a seamless transition between in and out whilst still making the most effective use of exterior spaces.<\/p>\n

Whether you\u2019ve a small courtyard in a new-build estate or a large country garden, the resolution of competing demands on the garden is the professional designers job, creating spaces that reflect your way of life in a sustainable, ethical way by using materials and technologies that have the least environmental impact.<\/p>\n

Gardens should be havens of peace and quiet, simple in design but complex in possibilities, a solace from the bustle of everyday life and rich in texture, colour, fragrance and form.<\/p>\n

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To this end then, the integration of terrace, lawn, water and planting with built structures which may include an outdoor cooking area are thought of as zones of inclusive or exclusive activity.<\/p>\n

Kids playing with a ball on the lawn may be separated from a secluded terrace to stop a football landing on dining table full of food and drink whereas a cooking zone by the dining area would be a fully inclusive activity as food can be prepared and eaten locally.<\/p>\n

Zones of use<\/strong><\/p>\n

A series of overlapping zones of inclusivity and exclusivity can be developed by the designer to help you, the client, feel at home and at ease with the pathways around and through a series of spaces.<\/p>\n

\"living<\/a><\/p>\n

\"outdoor<\/a>
getting the lighting right- subtle but effective<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Integration of lighting in spaces extends the time you can spend outside making evenings sitting around eating and socialising easily achievable and with a wide range of low power lights available it has never been easier to coordinate, define and link spaces together.<\/p>\n

Now that the spaces are zoned, set out and lit, how do we move forward to think about cooking.<\/p>\n

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As specialists in fire cooking and living and cooking outside but with a background in landscape design and build, we know how complex choosing appliances and accessories can be.<\/p>\n

We have separated outdoor cooking into two main areas; interdependent<\/em> <\/strong>and independent-<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Interdependent<\/strong><\/em> may be defined by its proximity to dining areas and whether there is a stylistic similarity in design and material.<\/p>\n

Independent<\/strong><\/em> may be thought of as \u2018bush\u2019 or wild cooking where the whole concept is portability and informality, typified by say a firepit on a beach or a dutch oven on a camp fire in the woods.
\nThere can be a cross-over between the two with a large fixed firepit being in the first category but in general the two concepts are separately zoned.<\/h4>\n

Interdependent<\/strong> cooking area or outdoor kitchen although stylistically linked, is scalable in size and may include taps, sinks, water heaters, hidden waste bin, cupboards, stone worktops, drop or slide in bbq\/grill and, of course, a wood-fired oven!<\/h4>\n

In terms of garden design, siting has to be thought about carefully as access should be convenient, the position of the evening sun noted and potential hazards like smoke and turbulence taken into account. In small gardens and courtyards in estates and cities, there are probably only a few options for siting but if possible be aware of prevailing wind blowing into the mouth of a wood-fired oven.<\/p>\n

\"ALFRED,<\/a>
ALFRED- a small but funky wood-fired oven<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It can cause blow back of smoke from inside the oven lowering its efficiency and generally causing a nuisance to friends and neighbours, especially when firing up from cold. Whilst garden ovens are not covered by the Clean Air Act, councils can issue Statuary Nuisance Notices if smoke is a problem which then leads to complaints. ALWAYS use dry fuel wood below 20% moisture!\u00a0<\/strong>See our blog guide to firewood- Firewood species for baking in a wood-fired oven<\/a><\/p>\n

As you\u2019d expect from us, we normally specify higher-end appliances for integration into our outdoor kitchens. Not necessarily because they are automatically better but because they are generally better made, are trouble free and are designed well for ease of maintenance.<\/p>\n

Appliances<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Once installed, we don\u2019t want to be dragged back around the country because an appliance doesn\u2019t work or falls apart. Having installed many types of BBQ over the years, we keep coming back to the US made Firemagic<\/a> range, a very well made set of appliances that are a joy to use and come in a wide range of options for setting into workstations, others like SubzeroWolf and Lynx are excellent too but also come with a hefty price tag.<\/p>\n

With most brands having choices of BBQ’s, warming drawers, side burners and outdoor rated fridges, there will be always a product at the right price point for your project.<\/p>\n

In addition to the BBQ\u2019s there are a huge range of accessories like grills and burners that can run off mains or bottled gas. There are options too for charcoal run BBQ\u2019s for those who don\u2019t want to use gas. Our ethos is wherever possible to use wood or charcoal as a fuel as it is carbon neutral but we offer the whole Firemagic range to our customers.<\/p>\n

\"wood
\nWe have a wide range of firepits and accessories to choose from, rustic and hand-crafted or ultra-minimal modern, you choose……..The design of your garden dictates the look but you\u2019ll find something, even extraordinary, in what we can get hold of! Modern Italian and German minimal or Indian rustic. See our blog guide to Outdoor kitchens- Outdoor Kitchen design-built excellence<\/a><\/p>\n

Modern or traditional, your choice<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Almost anything is possible either off-the-shelf or bespoke, its just a decision we have to talk through when we discuss budgets and lead-in times. These larger installations (above) are great focal points for gathering around when it gets cool in the evenings and firepits usually have the option of adding a grill so food can be cooked informally while getting warm and toasty at the same time.<\/p>\n

\"cooking<\/a>
Kamado Joe ceramic grills<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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One of our distributors introduced us to the Kamado Joe BBQ and Grill<\/a>. The concept is Japanese and the kamado was used to cook and heat homes for millennia.<\/p>\n

The modern version is a refractory clay lined vessel with a range of accessories made in the US and users tell us that they are superb cooking environments as they can be adjusted in temperature easily for either high heat cooking or for slow low heat roasts.<\/p>\n

Like the Indian and Middle Eastern Tandoor, it is heated by charcoal but the Kamado Joe can be adjusted in temperature by controlling the air flow through vents fitted top and bottom. It also comes on a handy wheeled stand so it is movable on the terrace.<\/p>\n

It is possible to supply without a stand for fixed installations, where it can be set in a worktop and supported underneath. These are not on the website yet but are available from us to order. Available in two sizes, Standard Joe and Big Joe and in two colours, red or black.<\/p>\n

\"modular<\/a>
viteo outdoor kitchen<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For the minimal and modernist amongst you, we have a range of modular outdoor kitchen units imported from Germany that can fit into your contemporary garden scheme- german engineered using stainless steel and sustainable plantation teak, the units fit together in series and feature sink units, cutting and prep areas, grill and BBQ.<\/p>\n

There are other solutions like the image below where units are sunk into cast concrete work tops\/ shelves creating a bespoke but neat solution to cooking outside and easily adaptable to modern garden designs.<\/p>\n

Just recently we have been sent a new exciting range of modular units from a French company based near our oven manufacturer in the Alsace. It features a flexible approach to assembling a kitchen with modules available in different colour-ways and with each unit designed to take sink, prep area and a gas hotplate. With a selection of soft closing drawers and handy hidden storage, the outdoor kitchen has really come of age!<\/p>\n