Summer Kitchen?

[jclay]

It's humid as a steam room and hot as hell down here four months/year; for a month either side of that it's pretty damn miserable. Increasingly I'm reluctant to do significant cooking inside bc it generates so much heat that has to be pumped out of the house via the AC; that just seems insane to me. Since the entire perimeter of the house I built is roofed and screened I decided to set up a summer kitchen adjacent the real one. Nothing fancy; having been cooking outside for a few months with a bare bones set-up, carrying all the accoutrements in/out every time, I decided to repurpose a large workbench as a counter for our Coleman LP two burner and toaster oven and will keep a small gaggle of pots/pans/utensils/hot pads and such as that in lidded bins outside. No plumbing, not yet anyway, but I can see the future possibility.

It became obvious that while having the two burner and toaster oven operational outside met the immediate goals of avoiding heat gain inside, the lack of support equipment (logistics, logistics, logistics) stowed outside made it pretty thrashy, so I'm resolving that but am not quite ready to commit to a sink, drawers and higher order stuff; a plastic bin for dirty equipment collection, transport inside for washing, and transport back outside. Plastic bins for storage, maybe hang some items, a shelf or two on the wall, more suitable lighting.

Anybody else have a summer kitchen? Not a fancy arrangement for swanky party time but something utilitarian, for every day use? I'd be interested in your approaches, experiences and perspectives.

[Too Tall]

When we are home I use a BGE constantly so "get" where you are coming from despite our more moderate climate.

Look at Camp Chef and tell me what you think? They are well made with flat tops, grill and even a Pizza insert. This brand is nearly universally loved by the travel trailer set. https://www.campchef.com/camp-chef-p...CC-PRO90X.html

[steve garro]

When we are home I use a BGE constantly so "get" where you are coming from despite our more moderate climate.

Look at Camp Chef and tell me what you think? They are well made with flat tops, grill and even a Pizza insert. This brand is nearly universally loved by the travel trailer set. https://www.campchef.com/camp-chef-p...CC-PRO90X.html

I have one of these set up on the front porch:

https://www.campchef.com/mountaineer...CC-MS40AX.html


- Garro.

[j44ke]

A friend has a cabin over the mountain from us and has taken some gas burners and mounted them in a 4 burner - O O O O - framework that sits under the eaves of the house. He welded the framework himself out of rebar (not as rough as it sounds - grinder was involved) and added supports so he could attach a cutting board on either side. There are also utensil and pot hooks welded on here and there on the frame. It is typical counter/stove top height and floor standing so tanks and gas hookups are easily accessible. And it is just enough under the eaves that he can cook outside even if it is raining. Plus the burners are right next to the kitchen window, so someone inside does prep and then puts ingredients on a shelf outside the window. I'll get a photo next time I'm there. He does nice work on projects like this.

[jclay]

What is BGE??

Both of those stoves look pretty fabulous and I considered similar units. Spouse recommended we just hit up Walmart and get the least expensive Coleman but I fell for the super duper simmer claimed by Eureka for their Ignite 2-burner and ordered one from REI. Nice stove otherwise but it didn't come close to having a simmer flame; sent it back....adopted spouse's sage advice and spent $50 on the Coleman (lesson there?); it has an excellent very low simmer and is easy to adjust precisely; both attributes rival our cooktop which is excellent. The LP connection tube, common to most of the stoves types I was looking at, is annoying but makes sense for the originally intended micro LP cylinders and it can be replaced with a more conventional hose and regulator arrangement; that's coming.

But it's all the other stuff that really makes everything work well and there have to be a million variations. Counter space is vital (weren't tables an amazing invention, maybe rivaling the wheel? Really...think about it; somebody(s) had the idea and it beats the hell out of using the ground) as is all the other stuff you need to cook; you need utensils/hot pads/knifes/paper towels and lots of other stoff without flitting back/forth to the mother-ship kitchen; I don't want to schlep everything that's needed outside every time I fire up; the intent is every day usage during the hot months; I want to do the food prep inside, carry just that out and be able to do everything needed to plate the finished meals. I also see this as likely an evolutionary thing. It's going from the stove and toaster oven being on spare tables outside and on opposite sides of the house ('cause no 120 circuit in the little area where the stove and ultimately the entire kitchen will go) to adding the circuit (finished it today), cleaning up and painting the workbench to serve as the counter (in process) and then doing the high order stuff; simple solutions for having a small but adequate selection of the necessities to cooking including both equipment and consumable staples (S&P, olive oil, some herbs, that sort of thing). And that's what I find interesting, the approaches of other folks to this sort of mission.

I've found lots of grand, expensive outdoor grilling patios/kitchens on the Internet but they strike me as being for show and events, not really for every day cooking. This page ( https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/844...c_v3=1a1ceDOv6 ) has the sort of creative and inexpensive approaches to everyday outdoor kitchens that I find interesting, kind of the right wavelength for me.

Anyway, that's sort the brain dump trajectory I'm on. Don't know how far or sophisticated I'll go but I know that having the basics available and well organized outside will make it vastly more useful; but I'm sure there are some clever approaches I haven't thought of.

[jclay]

The "Images" selection returns some interesting takes and ideas on small kitchens: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=%E5%B0%8F%...37afb84d49.jpg

I'm fascinated by the creations of folks who manage to put a lot of functionality into a small space and without just throwing big fancy $$ at it. If a hurricane ever gives us a house do-over....

[robin3mj]

I bought a collapsible SnowPeak fire pit at the beginning of covid and although pricey has been worth every penny. They do a whole lot of camp/cooking items that look pretty sharp.

[jclay]

My father and oldest brother built something very much like this, though with a couple of utensil drawers, back in the early '60s. Sadly it was given away about 20 years ago; it would have come in very handy for what I'm doing.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/1d/54...c45e27f30f.jpg

[SlowPokePete]

What is BGE??

https://biggreenegg.com

SPP

[j44ke]

Not just for summer but...



Look up Martijn Doolaard. He's done some traveling.

[bigbill]

Some great ideas here. We lived in the travel trailer this summer, and any kind of cooking heated it up. We installed a septic tank and leech field and ran power. In March, we'll get a 20x40' slab poured. I've ordered 30' of roof joists, so we'll have a 10x20' "porch" for an outdoor kitchen. I like the idea of an outside cooking surface with an indoor prep area.

[robin3mj]

Anyone who has ample space and likes cooking with fire should check out Francis Mallman. I have a buddy on the west coast who built a full on fire pit setup for cooking large chunks of meat.

[j44ke]

Anyone who has ample space and likes cooking with fire should check out Francis Mallman. I have a buddy on the west coast who built a full on fire pit setup for cooking large chunks of meat.

We bought our apartment in NYC from an Argentinian. I had to completely disassemble the ventilating hood to clean out all the meat grease and then hire someone to clean out the duct. They must have eaten meat for breakfast lunch dinner and snacks.

And we have a friend who is Argentinian. He's welded up a multi-level grill with pulleys to raise and lower the different levels. Sort of like a grilling bookcase with manual elevator.

I think if you are Argentinian and don't have a grill then you aren't Argentinian.

[Too Tall]

Some great ideas here. We lived in the travel trailer this summer, and any kind of cooking heated it up. We installed a septic tank and leech field and ran power. In March, we'll get a 20x40' slab poured. I've ordered 30' of roof joists, so we'll have a 10x20' "porch" for an outdoor kitchen. I like the idea of an outside cooking surface with an indoor prep area.

Same here. I prep. in the Airstream and do most of my cooking outside using either a portable propane two burner stove or a medium size Kamado Joe. I've got two folding tables which are weatherproof for either serving or cooking setup. Honestly, this is not hard or rocket science ;) Heck, I even bake bread on the Kamado Joe using a Lodge Dutch Oven. *Hint* use an IR heat gun to check the Dutch Oven temps. A low/slow charcoal pile should hold 400F if you don't let the fire get out of control.

The one thing I really hate lugging around BUT cherish is the portable pizza oven. Were I to commit to a Camp Chef setup I could eliminate the Pizza Oven widget. Winter is coming ;)

[rwsaunders]

When I was growing up in the city, most of the older Italian families had a “canning kitchen” in their basement, which consisted of another stove, refrigerator and access to water via the laundry tub, unless they installed another sink. The basement usually daylighted to the outside, so that they could leave the screen door open, with an exhaust fan as well to help with the heat.

There is a couple who a few years back, built a really nice home near the entrance to a park down the street, and when I ride past their home coming out of the park, the gentleman is often sitting on an old stuffed chair in a garage door entrance. He always waves and one day, I stopped to talk with one of his neighbors who I know. During the conversation, I asked if the gentleman sitting in the garage grew up in the city, as back then, the garage was also the center of Summer activities for birthdays, parties, first communions, etc. My friend Jeff said “yes, do you know Tony and Gianna?”. I answered “no” and then commented that they looked to have a bumper crop of tomatoes, as I could see Tony’s plants in the backyard garden.

Jeff then responded “they sure do, as I helped them can 150 jars of tomatoes in their basement last week and they gave me 15 jars for a “commission”. Some things never change and it’s nice when the status quo is sometimes for the better.

[bigbill]

Same here. I prep. in the Airstream and do most of my cooking outside using either a portable propane two burner stove or a medium size Kamado Joe. I've got two folding tables which are weatherproof for either serving or cooking setup. Honestly, this is not hard or rocket science ;) Heck, I even bake bread on the Kamado Joe using a Lodge Dutch Oven. *Hint* use an IR heat gun to check the Dutch Oven temps. A low/slow charcoal pile should hold 400F if you don't let the fire get out of control.

The one thing I really hate lugging around BUT cherish is the portable pizza oven. Were I to commit to a Camp Chef setup I could eliminate the Pizza Oven widget. Winter is coming ;)

Do you use a propane connection on your trailer for an outside grill? I thought about a suitcase-sized grill/stove top to keep the heat outside. We went six weeks on the same tank, although I only used the heat one time on a 42-degree morning in Yellowstone. Cooking outside versus inside wouldn't matter how much propane we used.

[Too Tall]

Do you use a propane connection on your trailer for an outside grill? I thought about a suitcase-sized grill/stove top to keep the heat outside. We went six weeks on the same tank, although I only used the heat one time on a 42-degree morning in Yellowstone. Cooking outside versus inside wouldn't matter how much propane we used.

I have not tapped the trailer propane just yet. I have a nice medium size propane bottle that lasts ages and makes it easy to park the table under a tree rather than be restricted by aux hose length.

FWIIW I use a neat little valve device to fill my stove propane bottles from the large tanks. That got me out of the disposable propane tank business.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Stick your propane bottle in the fridge before filling it from your larger tank, it will flow great. The device I listed has a bleed valve same as large tanks. Just crack the bleed valve and fill until it spills propane.

[thollandpe]

My father and oldest brother built something very much like this, though with a couple of utensil drawers, back in the early '60s. Sadly it was given away about 20 years ago; it would have come in very handy for what I'm doing.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/1d/54...c45e27f30f.jpg

That looks a lot like a chuck box, sometimes called a wanigan, that we used in scouts.



https://scoutlife.org/hobbies-projec...d-a-chuck-box/