*Collaborative post
More and more people are beginning to cook at home rather than eating out or getting takeaways. Cooking at home is cheaper and affords you more control over the nutritional content of the food. In recent years, the options for home-cooked food have increased thanks in part to the innovations and accessibility of new technology and cooking equipment like outdoor pizza ovens. They are more versatile than you might think, too – they aren’t just for pizza! Read on to learn more.
Your Options
There are a few different types of outdoor pizza ovens for you to choose from. Your choice will largely hinge on your budget as well as how big your garden is and how much room you have to spare. Firstly, the most budget-friendly option is a portable pizza oven like the ones available from Ooni. These can be moved around and set up wherever you see fit. You should know that some of the smaller ovens on offer, such as the Karu 12 and the Koda 12, can only fit one small pizza at a time. With the bigger ovens, they can still only cook one pizza, but they can cook bigger pizzas.
Next, there are built-in pizza ovens which are often built as part of a larger outdoor kitchen project. The size and expense vary greatly, but they are fully customisable to your needs. Lastly, there are free-standing pizza ovens. These, again, are built to your specifications; however, unlike built-ins, they are lone, solid brick pizza ovens. They do tend to be the most expensive option.
Pros & Cons
There are pros and cons to purchasing and owning your own outdoor pizza oven that you should be aware of before you commit. First and foremost, the biggest pro is its versatility; despite the name, they can cook more than pizzas. They can be used to bake, grill and cook any number of other foods too. A portable pizza oven can be set up and moved around anyway. They often cook the pizzas quickly because they heat up and reach the right temperature quickly. The fuel consumption is relatively low. Built-ins are often fairly quick to install, they also have great temperature stability, and they too consume less fuel than a free-standing pizza oven. A free-standing pizza oven can be done via DIY, which can help to make their design and installation cheaper. They are ideal for lower and slower cooking.
On the other hand, portable pizza ovens are fairly small and depending on the model; the features might be limited. For the other forms of pizza ovens, they obviously cannot be moved after installation, and they often take up more space. Free-standing pizza ovens also tend to require more fuel. The installation process of both built-ins and free-standing is far longer than that of a portable.
In Conclusion
An outdoor pizza oven is often a great addition to any patio or garden. It can really add something new to your summer hosting efforts. That being said, while there are a variety of models which to hit a number of different price points, they are not necessarily cheap. Research is key to finding the best model for you. Remember, in addition to your budget, you need to think about how much space you can spare in your garden too.