Skip to main content

What you need to know before you install an outdoor pizza oven

An outdoor pizza oven is a beautiful addition to any outdoor cooking area. Not only does it produce delicious pizzas, but you can cook many other foods with it. Usually made of brick, stone, or concrete, outdoor pizza ovens can easily be built on a wood deck. A pizza oven is sure to make all your friends and family happy.

Creating a new cooking area for your outdoor kitchen isn’t necessary to enjoy the benefits of a pizza oven. A slab will suffice nicely if you don’t have much space available in your yard but do want that special outdoor feel to your cooking environment. Of course, you can include many other kinds of custom built-ins to your outdoor or patio kitchen.

In this article, we’ll talk about the benefits of a pizza oven and why one might be right for your needs. We’ll cover everything from food options to care requirements, so you know what to expect before building or purchasing one.

Wood burning pizza oven
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Benefits of a backyard pizza oven

As someone considering adding an outdoor pizza oven to your backyard, patio, or elsewhere on your property, you probably like the idea of bringing friends and family together over great food.

However, outside of socializing, another main benefit of adding in a pizza oven is enhancing your home’s value. Sure, you have to spend a bit. The truth is, though, that you should consider that expense an investment because you can likely recover any money you spent if you ever sell your home.

There are plenty of outdoor pizza ovens on the market, and you can find them in several styles. That said, our personal favorite is the outdoor, gas-fired brick oven because it has a large cooking space for pizzas (or other dishes) that need to be cooked at high temperatures.

Another popular option is a wood-burning outdoor pizza oven—perfect if you’re the adventurous sort who likes doing things in an old-timey fashion.

What to cook in a pizza oven

With an outdoor pizza oven, of course, you can cook pizza. But that’s not all you can use the oven to cook.

Other foods you can cook with it include:

  • Meat, vegetables, and fish
  • Breads with dough that has been prepared with a pizza oven in mind
  • Pastries like galettes and calzones
  • Roasted potatoes of all kinds: sweet potatoes for salads, savory potatoes for soups and dips, etc.

Outdoor pizza oven maintenance

As with any oven, indoor or out, you need to keep your pizza oven clean. If you don’t, soot and ash can affect the taste of your food. Be sure you wait until the oven is cool before attempting to clean it, however.

As for the tools you’ll need, you should keep brushes and a small shovel nearby so you can scrub, sweep, and shovel out ashes. A scraping tool is also a good idea to have on hand to scrape away residue left over on the pizza stones.

Additionally, you should ensure you keep a fire extinguisher nearby.

The key is to be proactive about your outdoor pizza oven’s maintenance and cleaning so that it’ll last.

Fire at back of pizza oven
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Transform your outdoor living space

You can enhance your outdoor living space and increase the monetary value of your home by installing an outdoor pizza oven. However, the real value lies in the great times you’ll spend socializing and enjoying the company of friends and family while cooking.

Suppose you’re the type of person who’s concerned about the environment. In that case, a wood-burning pizza oven is not only a great way to cook up healthy meals, but it can help you save on energy. The only downside is worrying about whether your pizza should be New York or Chicago style.

Editors' Recommendations

Will Blesch
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Will Blesch is a copywriter, content writer, and someone passionate about anything that lets him discover more about this…
What you need to know about successfully growing summer squash in containers
container summer squash man cutting

You can roast it, you can sauté it, you can slice it, and you better believe you can dice it. Summer squash is chock full of important vitamins and minerals, so it’s delicious and nutritious. But if your garden is running out of real estate, have no fear. There’s no reason you can’t grow squash in a container. Although summer squash requires a not-insignificant amount of TLC, it’s more than worth it for lovers of this agreeable fruit (and yes, it is technically a fruit). Here’s a complete guide to everything you need to know.

Picking the right squash for the job
As many gardeners know, summer squash does not describe a specific species but rather the timing of the harvest. Yellow squash are harvested earlier in their life cycle, when the outer rind is still edible. No need to peel!

Read more
Good, better, best: The perfect gas grill for your outdoor kitchen
best outdoor gas grill woman grilling outside

Grills these days do a lot more than cook Independence Day hot dogs. Viewed as a more flavorful and healthful alternative to some other, more conventional cooking methods, grilling is the centerpiece of many a culinary adventure, from the everyday to the downright fancy.

Does any of that sound appealing? You may be ready to make a long-term investment in a heavy-duty gas grill. A solid gas grill is easy and economical to use, stands up to wear and tear over time, is fairly simple to use and maintain, and can provide the kind of flexibility and functionality you need in an everyday cooking space.

Read more
Renovating your backyard? How to decide what size deck is right for you
right size deck for you man building

The backyard deck is one of life’s simple pleasures — but building one is anything but. There are a dizzying array of options, which all vary based on how you want to use your deck, your property, your budget, and other factors. Perhaps the first question to face is one of size, and with decks, bigger is not always better. These decisions will be driven by the size of your property and the purposes you want the deck to serve. We’re here to help you find the right deck size for you and your unique specifications.

Key questions to consider
Before you start to think about the size of your deck, there are several other parts of the project to consider. These can substantially affect your options, including the size of the deck. These questions include:

Read more