Cooking on the Owl

[jtcedinburgh]

Last night, I decided that it was time to try something that I'd wanted to try for a while - stove-top cooking

The Mørso Owl stove that we have is not huge, and we vent from the top-plate which reduces the usable cooking space even more, but regardless, I was able to cook a fairly decent chili using a Le Creuset cast-iron casserole dish, and heat up some vegetable pakoras using a cast-iron balti dish, with our Kone kettle providing the hot water for the rice on the other side.

I have to say, with flue-temps hovering between 300F and 400F, the chili was simmering away nicely, the room was heating up splendidly and I was delighting in saving a few pennies of gas and/or electric. I had to cheat by resorting to our microwave rice steamer as I didn't want to use any gas at all, but at the same time wasn't prepared to risk boiling over onto the stove. In any event, the little rice steamer works beautifully, and my wife and I enjoyed our stove-top chili, basmatic rice and pakora, plus a nice glass of chilled Cairn O'Mohr bramble wine each.

I was very pleasantly surprised how well things turned out. Took about an hour to cook, though I had to remove the pot at a couple of points as I felt it was heating a bit too quickly (and of course it's not as easy as simply turning down the oven!)

Next up, I intend to try a nice Indian meal using a similar method - if only I had a little more stove-top space, though

I'd be keen to hear from other stove-top cooks (specifically the ones using a heating stove as opposed to a range or stove designed with cooking in mind)

John

PS. I took a couple of pictures, which I will upload later today.

 

[zzr7ky]

Hi -

I've 'adjusted' the heat downward by inserting a flattened soup can under the pot. Works like a champ.

ATB,
Mike P

 

[Jags]

Also, if you are looking for a low and slow heat, like for an all day ham and beans, you can simply place a metal trivet (without any rubber feet or anything) on the stove and then set your pot on that. You can still keep your stove pumping heat, without boiling over. A nice slow simmer is what you get.

;-P Oh for you untamed wild men out there, a trivet is that metal pot holder that grandma used to set the tea kettle on at the kitchen table. %-P

 

[BrotherBart]

And if your power had been out for seven days last year you could have made the coffee every morning and cooked bacon and eqqs on it.

 

[jtcedinburgh]

Hi folks.

As promised, a couple of photos. Previews look all wrong but the originals are there ok.

john

 

[jtcedinburgh]

Oh, and the cat in the foreground is Django. He's eight, and likes the new stove very much (even if he was a bit wary at first)...

 

[nshif]

I bake bread in a dutch oven on mine. I just use bread machine boxed mix, follow the box directions for prep, lightly oil the dutch oven and put it on. You have to experiment a bit with the stove temp and if its too hot I just lay 4 5/8 nuts on the stove top and set the dutch on that. Fills the house with the great smell of baking bread, tastes great and its fresh.

 

[begreen]

The Owl and the pussycat, nice tale there

They dined on mince and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;

And hand in hand on the edge of the sand
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon

 

[Roospike]

The Owl and the pussycat, nice tale there

They dined on mince and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;

And hand in hand on the edge of the sand
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon

;-)