Explaining Brick Ovens

For two days, at the recent Portland Home, Remodeling and Garden Show in Portland, Maine, I attempted to explain the workings and advantages of brick ovens.  Granted, as a builder and baker myself, I am partial to the device.  Yet, in the history of cooking, there has never been a device that has outperformed or been more durable than a brick oven.

Time and again, people told of memories from earlier in the their lives or of houses from the past where these ovens played a big role in making food.

Some points that came up often:

• It takes a laundry basket of hardwood to fire a 36" diameter oven to 700 degrees and without additional wood, the oven will be hot enough to cook many other meals for 3-4 days afterwards.
• The cost of a true brick oven is less than most cars we buy yet it will last a life time (or five) without repair costs.
• They can be built outdoors, indoors, or in moderated spaces such as three-season porches.
• True Brick Ovens travels to most places in the country to build these.  We have a process and method that makes sense to do this.
• And lastly, brick ovens are social magnets.  Owning and using one will change your social life as well as the quality of food you eat.

MAKE AMERICA BAKE AGAIN