Yesterday’s patio has become today’s outdoor kitchen or conversation nook.

All of the home design trend-watchers are saying that outdoor living has gotten bigger and better over the past few years.

Traditional portable grills are being traded in for pizza ovens, built in island gas grills and outdoor kitchen appliances. Tiki lamps are being replaced by sconces and lanterns. And there are outdoor mini-fridges that reduce those trips back into the house.

The notion of spending more time living and relaxing outside has become practical due to advances in fabric and furniture design.

More people are thinking about using more of their property as living space. Furniture is getting bigger and more decorative — options for the outdoors used to be limited because you would think first about how long everything would last. Now you have real sofas where there used to be all of that metal.

Just as the comfort foods of an earlier era have made a big comeback, homeowners have begun to savor those long spring and summer evenings outdoors that some of us associate with growing up in the 1950s and 1960s.

Being outdoors can bring back a sense of community. That’s how people meet each other. You don’t do it sitting behind a locked door and waiting for someone to knock.

Outdoor living gives people a chance to experiment with design ideas they might be afraid to try indoors.

It’s a good place to take a risk and have some fun. You can be bohemian, eclectic. I think most people are more willing to try bold patterns outside.

Inside you can get a little bored because it’s such an investment — outside you have more license to play.

Putting a living space together outdoors can be freeing. You can create something that is a lot of fun.

Spending more time living outdoors with outdoor kitchens can give homeowners a new perspective on their interior spaces when they head back inside in the fall.

For more information on creating an outdoor living space, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

CT Post

Outdoor cooking remains more popular and easier than ever. In fact, the majority of Americans claim that some elements  of cooking outdoors are even easier than cooking indoors and that they prefer cooking out over eating out, according to HPBA National Barbecue Month (NBM) Poll results.

Outdoor grilling is a very popular pastime that unites friends and family with great tasting food that’s easy and affordable. Sixty-four percent of adults agree, reporting that a barbecue is a better way to spend quality-time with their friends or relatives. And more than a third of adults associate barbecues with family tradition.

That’s why May is National Barbecue Month - there’s no better way to celebrate than taking it outdoors for a cookout with friends or family!

According to poll results,  Americans see grilling and outdoor cooking as the ticket to an easy, delicious meal and a healthier lifestyle:

• Easy Does it. 81% of Americans report that at least one aspect of grilling outside is easier than cooking indoors. The most convenient parts are cited as cleanup followed by the cooking process itself
• Cooking Out Trumps Eating Out. The majority of adults agree that cooking out is more fun and relaxing than dining out and beneficial for avoiding travel, dress codes and crowds.
• Healthier Choice. Seventy percent of Americans say cooking out gets them in a healthier routine, specifically by encouraging time spent outdoors instead of cooped up in the house. Outdoor cooking also encourages adults to make smarter food choices such as eating fresh rather than frozen foods and cooking healthier food on the grill overall .
• Got-to-have Gadgets. Accessories make already-convenient outdoor cooking even easier. When it comes to the go-to tools, Americans report top usage of:

• tongs (77%),
• spatula or brush (65%),
• rubs and marinades (62%),
• skewers (37%), and
• baskets (20%).

Need a new outdoor grill for National BBQ month? Contact West Sport in Sudbury for everything you need to know about outdoor gas grills, charcoal grills, keg style grills, pellet grill and smokers and outdoor kitchens and all the grilling accessories you need!

hpba.org

If you could have just one outdoor cooking appliance, what would it be?

Backyard grilling has always been a big American pastime, but in recent years this has been joined by an explosion of interest in slow smoked barbecue, the traditional Southern or Texan style of cooking meats slowly at low temperatures with indirect heat and plenty of smoky flavor. This has led to a boom in smoker sales, but for most people that means a second unit, and usually a big one, since many backyard smokers are of the offset variety and require a lot of space.

Most of us use our smokers for a limited number of specific slow cooked BBQ specialties such as ribs, brisket and pork shoulder, but grills do everything from a single steak to hamburgers for a crowd, hot dogs, chicken, pork chops, vegetables, seafood and more. Some smokers, especially vertical ones, can double as wood or charcoal burning kettle-style grills, but this is not typically a solution for the frequent griller, and in summer in the Boston area lots of people cook out several nights each week.

Because grills typically get used more often than smokers, convenience becomes a big factor: while it is well worth lighting a hardwood charcoal fire to cook ribs for six hours, few people want to bother with this to make a couple of hot dogs, or burgers for two. This typically reduces grill selection to a choice between more convenient propane or more flavorful wood fired cooking, two very different types of grills, and some people want both – along with a smoker.

Many Americans live in an urban or suburban world of limited outdoor space, a single patio or even balcony, and if you have to choose just one grill that truly can do it all, the choice is simple: it is almost impossible to argue against a pellet grill. These can slow smoke or grill, do both very well, and easily, with real wood and real fire but without hassle or time constraints, lighting quickly with no mess or chimney starters, and then cooking accurately with minimal supervision.

Pellet grills burn small hardwood pellets about twice the size of a pencil eraser, which you buy in bags. Like wood chunks, they come in different “flavors” like hickory, oak and mesquite. They are not brand specific and are readily available in stores or by mail order. Different brand grills work differently, but at the higher end, better pellet grills generally have a storage hopper for the pellets and an electronic auger which feeds them into a firebox. This typically has an electronic igniter, an element that heats up when you start the grill, and when pellets are dropped onto it, they catch fire. Once it gets going, new pellets are ignited by the old. The whole thing is computer controlled, and you set the temperature with a digital thermostat, just alike a wall oven, then the computer and auger feed pellets as needed to precisely maintain the temperature. That’s pretty much it – whether you are slow smoking at 215° for 12 hours or searing steaks at 500° for two minutes per side, you turn it on, set the temperature, and wait for it to heat up, which is slightly slower than propane and much faster than a wood fired smoker or grill.

PROS:

• Convenience
• Efficiency
• Accuracy
• Versatility

For more information on Pellet Grills, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

Forbes