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How to build Sunset's classic adobe oven
Use these step-by-step instructions to build a rustic outdoor oven
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We first featured our backyard adobe oven in our August 1971 issue. It's modeled after mud-brick ovens used around the world, from the Southwest to Mexico, Italy, and France.
Building it takes about two days of grubby work; it speeds up building to have two or three people making the thick-walled adobe shell, the mass of which stores the heat of the fire.
The reward: wonderfully rustic pizzas, roasts, vegetables, and crusty loaves of bread from your own backyard.
Get our step-by-step building instructions
Getting started
Find a safe, level location in your garden for the oven. Building code requires oven to be a minimum of 10 horizontal feet from any combustible surface, such as fences or walls. Also, check with local officials on property line setback requirements.
We built our oven on a 6- by 8-foot base of red concrete stepping stones ― an optional layer. The rest of the base is stacked but mortarless, which allows for easy disassembly at some point in the future.
Next: What you'll need to get started
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