FIRELESS COOKERY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXVI, Issue 158, 19 June 1936, Page 14

FIRELESS COOKERY

Advice by Fellowship Lecturer (To the. Home-makers of Central Hawke's Bay.) Dear Homemakers, Dressmaking in its various aspects has accounted for tho study classes in various centres during the past week. Monday till Wednesday was spent between Waipukurau, Wallingford anil Waipawa; on Thursday I visited Tikokino and Ongaonga for the first time, and Friday’s classes at Hatuma added yet another centre to my itinerary. Al Tikokino tho groups mot at Airs Watliam’s homo and the morning was spent in the alteration and fitting of founda tion patterns to individual measures. After lunch with Airs Watham, a ger, oral talk was given at Ongaonga ano the objects of the S.A.R. movement dis cussed before finalising arrangements for study class'es to be held within tho next tw’o weeks.

At Hatuma on Friday the study periods were again spent in dressmaking, but in between classes, round the luncheon table, the subject switched to meal-planning and the economical serving and preparation of meals.. During this discussion one member spoke of the use of the Hay Box as a time and money saver in the home. Easy to construct, it will prove a useful piece of general kitchen equipment and a great asset for a beach or camping holiday. In a fileless cooker the food is first heated cn the stove until the cooking has begun and then it is placed in the tireless cooker. This is a tight rocep taele in which the food is completely surrounded by some poor heat-conduct-ing material which, when interposed between the surrounding air and articles which are either hotter or eolde> than the air, maintains an almos 1 steady temperature. The heat being

lost but gradually, there is sufficient retained by the food to complete the cooking process. Sometimes where s higher temperature is desired in tho cooker, an additional source of heat, such as a. hot soapstone or brick, is put into the cooker with the food.

One of tho chief advantages of tho lireless cooker is that it accomplishes a saving in fuel, especially where gas or electric stoves are used. It will also save time und labour, as once tho meal has been pul into the tireless cooker □o further attention need be paid to it until it is ready to serve. Porridge can r>e prepared the night previously and be ready for breakfast in the morning. The mid-day meal can be prepared during the early morning, put in the fireless cooker and thus leave the morning free for sewing, gardening or shopping excursions. In hot weather the value of the tireless cooker becomes apparent--the heat of the kitchen can be appreciably reduced if some of the cooking is done by means of the fireless cooker. USED FOR CEREALS. However, the fireless cooker is not equally adapted to all kinds of cooking, particularly not to frying, boiling, roasting and baking, which require ti higher temperature than can usually be obtained in fireless cookers, even when hot soapstones or bricks are used; nor does it develop such a fine flavour as ordinary hot quick cooking. The fireless cooker is more adapted to those foods which require long and slow cooking, such as cereals, dried fruits and vegetables, and the cooking of the tougher cuts of meat, stews and poultry. The results in these latter cases arc often superior to those obtained by any other method. There are several types of fireless cookers on the market, but it is possible to construct a home-made cooker which will be cheaper than one purchased.

1. (jutside Container: This can be adapted from any good sized box or bucket with a tightly fitting cover—a grocery or butler box, or a me,tai container. Choose a container of sufficient strength to admit of adjusting strong hinges and clasp. A well fitting lid is essential and the lock should hold the lid firmly shut, as the packing should bo such that, there is a little upward pressure on the cover. 2. Packing Material: A variety of substances may be used, e.g. soft hay. wool, asbestos and mineral wool. Of these, asbestos and mineral wool are Hie most efficient and have the advantage of being fireproof. 3. [fining for the Nest: This should bo cylindrical in shape and. slinuld be deep enough to hold the cooking utensils (ami stone, if nno is used). It should lit snugly to the cooking utensil but at the same time allow the latter to bo moved out freely. If the cylinder is too large, the air space between it and the utensil will tend to eool tho food. In the case of the Hay Box, the lining may be made by sewing two or throe ihielincsses of pliable cardboard

into the form of a cylinder that will fit around the utensil snugly. 4. The Cooking Utensil should be durable and free from seams or crevices which are hard to clean. It should have perpendicular sides and covers should be as fiat as possible and provided with a deep rim shutting well down into the utensil to retain the steam. The size of the vessel should be determined by the quantity of food to be cooked. Smail amounts of food cannot be cooked satisfactorily in large containers, and it is sometimes an advantage to have a cooker with compartments of two or more different sizes.

5. The Collar covers the exposed surface of the packing material. It should fit snugly and can be made of metal, cardboard, sheet asbestos, wood, or fabric (such as unbleached calico). 6. The Cushion is made of muslin, unbleached calico, etc., and is stuffed with the packing material. A cushion is desirable to cover each utensil used, and should bo thick enough to fill the box after the utensil is in place. It is shaped like a miniature mattress. The outside of the tireless cooker can be made attractive by either staining, varnishing or painting. Castors make it con venient to move about. TO -MAKE OATMEAL CEREAL. There will be no loss of water from evaporation, so use less water when you prepare the cereal. Cook it from 5 to 10 minutes over the heat, and then transfer it as quickly as possible to the tireless cooker, and leave it there all night. Lt may be necessary to re-heat it before serving. In answer to an inquiry, we give the following definition of a Steam Pressure Cooker: The pressure cooker is .an aluminium pot with a lid securely fastened by clamps. In the lid are found the devices for regulating the steam pressure—these are steamcock, safety valve and pressure gauge. It is a steam tight vessel and may be used with equal success on a gas, coal, kerosene or electric stove. When steam is not allowed to escape as it forms, it creates pressure, and this pressure raises the temperature. When the pressure in the cooker goes up, the cooking time is shortened. The value of the steam pressure cooker lies in the fact that pressure forces heat through foods, which shortens the time required for cooking and for killing micro-organisms that might cause food poisoning. This is the principle underlying the value of pressure cooking. Yours sincerely, HAZEL JOHNSON.