cooking ?

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wellbuilt home

Minister of Fire
Jul 6, 2008
532
NY
I like to keep a pot of water on my stove . I have my new hearth stone Equinox (soap stone) ready to go ,and i was hoping i could keep my cast iron bear pot filled with water. Is this ok with soap stone? How about my stew , chili soup, pot ? I dont fry eggs in the living room but I like to make some stew , do i need a cast iron thing a ma bob under the pot ? help i can taste the chili now.
 
I was wondering the same thing!! I have noticed that the woodstock folks actually sell squares of soapstones as trivets, I imagine for pot plaement and cooking without worry for the stove top. I would love to hear what other sopastone stove users are doing about humidification and cooking.
 
I have the Mansfield stove and use a enamel pot(the kind for camping) for moisture. We have not done any cooking on it yet. But if you are thinking of doing it it would be best to get a large cast iron trivet or a piece of soapstone to place the pot on. Just so you don't scratch the stove stone.Also you do not want to have any spillage on the stone.
 
Get a stainless steel kettle that is well made. It will never stain anything. I would never put a fast rusting cast iron kettle/pot onto a soapstone stove.
 
I have a large enameled cast iron steamer directly on my soapstone woodstove, but it stays put and I don't move it around, so no scratches.

Anything you cook in, you're going to move around, lift up, put back, etc., so I'd get a soapstone trivet or whatever they're selling if you want to keep the surface pristine.
 
Ah cooking! Yes! We do a lot of cooking on our soapstone stove and also keep a pot of water on it all winter long.

With the water, just be very careful when you refill. If you take the pot off and refill it at the sink, then be very careful putting it back on the stove. Also be extremely careful if refilling it while on the stove. The reason is if you dump a bunch of cold water on hot soapstone, you could cause it to crack. However, a drop or two probably won't do any harm but will certainly get your attention if you do it because it would be like dropping cold water on a pancake griddle. Well, maybe not to that extreme, but I'd bet it would crackle.

What we use under our cooking pots are the little boot warmers that Woodstock sells. They work like a charm. Two of those (one set) under a pot keeps the soapstone from getting scratched. (If you do scratch it, you can rub those scratches out.)

That being said, the boot warmers come in two sizes. These things work like a charm for drying boots but also for taking to the woods with you when you are cutting wood in the winter months. I like to take along spare gloves because I suffer with cold hands. Or maybe sometimes your gloves get wet. Okay, now you have an extra pair and if you put the boot warmers inside those extra pair of gloves, your hands will appreciate the warmth. Feels great!
 
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