How to Make an Amish Summer Kitchen

A carriage sits in front of an Amish home.

The typical Amish home includes large patios and decks that extend from the house. Inside the home, many large rooms feature windows strategically placed to take advantage of wind currents and the landscape to control the temperature of the home. White window blinds and dark curtains also help keep the house cool during hot summers. During the summer, the Amish often shift cooking responsibilities to a summer kitchen, located in a shaded, airy location away from the center of the house.

Things You'll Need

• Polyurethane
• High-gloss white paint
• White gas lanterns
• Kerosene range
• Picnic table

Instructions

1. Locate an area near the home, such as a screened patio, sheltered gazebo or hardwood-floored room on the exterior of the house. Hardwood floors allow for easy cleaning without electric-powered vacuum cleaners. Install hardwood floors if necessary, then coat the floor with three coats of polyurethane to provide a shiny, easy-to-clean surface. Some Amish families build the summer kitchen in the basement, as it is often the coolest room in the house.

2. Paint the surfaces of any walls with a high-gloss white paint. Amish homes typically feature simple designs with little or no decoration on white walls. High-gloss paint allows for easy cleaning, an important virtue in any Amish kitchen.

3. Light the summer kitchen by installing hooks in the ceiling from which should hang white gas lanterns.

4. Fill the kitchen with traditional cooking utensils, such as a mortar and pestle for grinding dried herbs and spices and a kerosene skillet for cooking. Kerosene ranges or Coleman camp stoves allow the Amish to cook food without electricity, and some summer kitchens consist simply of positioning the kerosene range on the patio. More elaborate summer kitchens might include a wood-burning brick oven with a large cast-iron skillet positioned above the heat instead of the traditional oven space.

5. Position a picnic table and chairs near the summer kitchen in a shaded spot. This provides a cool, pleasant place to eat the food prepared in the summer kitchen. Improve the natural beauty of these locations by placing pots filled with herbs around the table.

Tips & Warnings

• Locate a summer kitchen on the north side of the house or in the space between two buildings to maximize shade.

• Regulations that govern some properties prevent residents from making an Amish summer kitchen on patios, on decks and in other areas. Check with local officials or relevant landlords for regulations governing your property before making an Amish summer kitchen.

References

• Ohio Amish Country: Amish Houses
• Visits with the Amish: Impressions of the Plain Life By Linda Egenes, Mary Azarian
• Bookrags: Amish Kitchens from Encyclopedia of Kitchen History
• Ohio Amish Country: Newsletter about Ohio Amish
• The Pantry: Its History and Modern Uses By Catherine Seiberling Pond

Resources

• World is Round: Amish outdoor kitchen photo