Rocket stove and thermos cooking

[eDJ_]

Thanks TG I knew there had to be more to it than just cooking something completely and then storing it in a thermal container to keep it warm for a few hours.

I have a couple of early model Thermos brand lunch kit containers where the special screw on lids can be placed either in a freezer or in hot water. Thus the foods in the the containers can be kept warm or cold longer. Each contain a pint of food.

 

[Carla618]

Yes basically. A simple example: When I make my breakfast I go ahead and bring raw rice to a bool for 3-5 minutes. Then place it in a thermos and wrap it in a towel. It acts a but like a slow cooker. The heat and pressure continue to cook the rice. It can't burn.
Then my rice is ready for dinner.
You can cook nearly anything that needs that type of long moist cooking.

Think a Wonderbag would work well? https://www.wonderbagworld.com/

They are probably too big to store in a van, but they might make great pillows when not in use.

 

[Frood]

My experience with thermos cooking was limited, but basically successful. I followed some guidelines from The Boat Galley. https://theboatgalley.com/?s=thermos+cooking&swpmfe=5916110af2bd3b2b4d5992f3b0f8059a
In the end, though, thermos cooking was abandoned because of food safety concerns--especially for beans. There was just too much potential for temps to fall into the "danger zone".

True. Unless you can keep the stuff in the thermos above temp for a long enough period to sterilize it, it's going to eventually hit the perfect temperature to have microorganisms to breed like billions of tiny little rabbits.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I use a pressure cooker in a similar way: heat up to pressure (~280ºF), put into insulated bag, let 'cook' all day.

Pressure cooker has a couple of advantages:

- bigger, I can cook 4 separate dishes in mine.​

- hotter and larger volume = stays warm longer.​

- hotter and sealed, all the tiny critters are cooked and the pot remains sealed until food consumed.​

 

[Texas Gypsy]

I use a pressure cooker in a similar way: heat up to pressure (~280ºF), put into insulated bag, let 'cook' all day.

Pressure cooker has a couple of advantages:

- bigger, I can cook 4 separate dishes in mine.​

- hotter and larger volume = stays warm longer.​

- hotter and sealed, all the tiny critters are cooked and the pot remains sealed until food consumed.​

That's a really good idea! I have an instant pot so when I think of a pressure cooker I think of it rather than a stovetop model.
I could even use my rocket stove for that

 

[jacqueg]

That's a really good idea! I have an instant pot so when I think of a pressure cooker I think of it rather than a stovetop model.
I could even use my rocket stove for that

I have a small InstantPot and a 3-qt stovetop pressure cooker - which of course doubles as my large saucepan.