10 Benefits of an Outdoor Kitchen the Whole Family Will Enjoy

Outdoor kitchen Lilyana

If you’re wondering, “What is an outdoor kitchen and why would I use one?” you’ve come to the right place. An outdoor kitchen offers a fun new way of cooking and enjoying nature at the same time by placing the conveniences of an indoor kitchen in a beautiful outdoor setting.

The concept of a kitchen outside the house has become increasingly popular since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which encouraged social distancing and made outdoors the only option for people to meet friends and family. However, outdoor living spaces were already in demand before the pandemic, especially in warmer climates, like Texas and other southern states. People love the option to connect with the natural world and spend time socializing outdoors.

An outdoor kitchen area can be customized in almost any way you desire. Whether you want a sink outdoors for easy cleanup or are interested in ramping up your barbecue capabilities with a smoker, you can decide precisely what your exterior kitchen will have.

Read on to discover the key benefits of outdoor cooking spaces.

1. Simplify Meal Preparation

A kitchen outside the house offers more room. This makes it easier to collaborate and have multiple cooks at work at once without people getting in one another’s way. Plus, guests can help themselves—for example, to grab a drink from the fridge—without interrupting the chef.

2. Enjoy Healthier Meal Options

Having a kitchen outdoors expands your meal options. For example, you can incorporate a barbecue—something you can’t do indoors since you should never grill in enclosed spaces.

This paves the way for a more diverse and healthier selection of food options since grilled foods tend to be lower in fat. Grilled meat, in particular, is lower in calories.

3. Keep Food Smells Outdoors

The smell of a fresh-cooked meal can be tempting—before you eat it. Once you’re finished with your food, you probably don’t want lingering odors around you. With outdoor kitchen cooking, you leave the savory scents outside. This is especially useful for more pungent dishes like fish and garlic.

4. Cut Energy Costs & Keep the Cool Air Inside

Whether you’re using an oven, a stove, or a toaster, cooking generates heat. This can force your air conditioning system to work harder when it’s already warm out, pushing up your utility bills. When you prepare your food outside, this is not a concern.

Plus, if you bring your entire eating and dining area outside, you don’t have to keep opening and closing your door. In contrast, if you’re barbecuing outside, you’ll likely have to go in and out repeatedly, letting cooled air escape each time. With a kitchen outdoors, this isn’t an issue.

5. Spend More Time Outdoors

When you move your meal preparation outside, the entire family will spend more time in nature. This is excellent news for your health, as research shows that spending time in green spaces can improve mental health, alleviate stress, and improve blood pressure. Adults and children alike will benefit.

6. Encourage Physical Activity

Spending time outside also opens up the opportunity for other health-enhancing activities. Residents of Lilyana by Hillwood can prepare a meal at the community’s outdoor pavilion and kitchen while their kids enjoy the adjacent green spaces for a game of pickup soccer, frisbee, or tag.  And the gorgeous, resort-style pool is just steps away.

7. Expand Usable Living Space

A well-designed outdoor kitchen cooking space that also includes a dining spot significantly expands the usable space on your property. It’s like adding another room to the house—the room just happens to be outside.

You can enhance your exterior kitchen’s usability by housing it under a gazebo or pavilion. That way, even if it rains, you can use it.

8. Ramp Up Home Value

Boosting the amount of usable space on a property is a surefire way to increase its value. This is especially true for an outdoor kitchen, given how in-demand they have become. You can expect a return in investment of anywhere from 55% to 200%. If you ever sell your home, this will be a big boon.

9. It’s Fantastic for Entertaining

One of life’s greatest joys is enjoying a good meal with friends and family. A kitchen outside the house with an adjacent dining area gives you another venue to do this. Plus, the chef won’t feel excluded with everyone sitting nearby. It’s an innovative and fun way to entertain.

10. Save Money on Dining Out

What is an outdoor kitchen? It’s more than an outdoor cooking space. Add some twinkly lights or candles, and you can create your very own restaurant just steps from the house. Having this lovely space for dining can make going out to eat less appealing and save you money on restaurant expenses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Hopefully, you’ve now got a clear answer to your initial query, “What is an outdoor kitchen?” If you still have questions about this topic, our FAQ section has you covered.

Can You Use a Regular Grill in an Outdoor Kitchen?
An outdoor cooking space can be tailored to your requirements. It’s possible to incorporate an outdoor grill into your exterior kitchen, if desired.

How Do I Protect My Outdoor Kitchen from the Weather?
Outdoor kitchens are generally designed with coverings to protect them from the weather. For example, the kitchen may be housed in a gazebo or under a pavilion.

Can You Put a Grill Next to the House?
If you incorporate a grill into your outdoor kitchen area, make sure it isn’t too close to the house which is a fire hazard.

How Far from the House Should the Grill Be?
Make sure to leave at least three feet of space between your grill and the sides of your house for fire safety.

Experience a Kitchen Outdoors at Lilyana

Want to experience the benefits of outdoor kitchen cooking for yourself? Take a virtual tour of Lilyana by Hillwood and see all our beautiful amenities including our outdoor pavilion and kitchen which residents can use year-round. Contact us for more information about our master-planned community in Celina, TX, within Prosper ISD.