Solar Oven

From LoveToKnow GreenLiving

A Solar oven offers a way to reduce energy consumption when preparing meals for your family.

sun oven

About Solar Ovens

Solar cooking is one of the most energy efficient, affordable, and healthy ways to prepare food. Instead of using an electric or gas stove or relying on a charcoal or propane grill, when you cook with a solar oven, you are able to rely on the heat generated by the sun. To prepare meals using solar cooking, all you need is a solar oven and sunshine. Once you build or purchase an oven, there is no additional cost associated with cooking food in this manner.

In many of the less developed countries in the world, solar cooking has long been a primary cooking method. In those areas where electricity is not readily available or affordable, this cooking technique is often the only alternative to cooking over wood fires. Solar cooking is becoming increasingly popular in highly developed countries as well, particularly among individuals looking for ways to save money while also reducing the environmental impact of their daily living practices.

You can prepare a wide variety of meals using a solar cooker, including main dishes, side items, appetizers, and much more. The device can be used for everything from purifying water to cooking the same type of meals you can create using a traditional stove or oven. An extensive selection of recipes designed for solar cooking can be found at SolarCooking.Wikia.com and SolarOvens.org.

Types of Solar Ovens

There are several different types of solar cooker designs, including box, parabolic, and panel ovens. These are not the only styles of solar cooking devices, but they are the most commonly used and readily available options.

The box style solar oven is designed to hold and cook a number of items simultaneously. Parabolic cookers cook faster than the other styles, but they require more attention during the cooking process. Panel ovens are a hybrid design featuring characteristics of both box and parabolic cookers.

Finding Solar Cookers

Solar cookers can be purchased or made. Some of these cooking devices are designed for repeated meal preparation, while others can be created from disposable materials – like cardboard boxes – and are intended to be used just a few times.

If you'd like to make your own solar oven, visit the following websites for plans that you can use to build this type of cooking device.

If you'd prefer to purchase a solar oven, see:

Advantages of a Solar Oven
solar cooking

There are many benefits associated with using solar cooking techniques to prepare food. Some of the advantages of using a solar oven include:

  • Cleaning a solar cooker after using it for cooking is easy.
  • Energy costs for this type of cooking are zero.
  • Home energy costs are controlled because there's no need to cool a kitchen made hotter by the use of a stove or oven.
  • Flavor of the food is preserved when using this cooking technique.
  • Food is not exposed to potential carcinogens during the cooking process, as does happen with grilling and open fire cooking.
  • Nutrient content of food is retained because solar cooking is a gentle preparation method.
  • Solar power is available free and is a fully renewable resource.
  • Solar cookers do not emit pollutants into the environment.
  • This type of oven does not pose a fire hazard.
  • This cooking technique does not require constant attention.
  • The oven can be used for multiple purposes, including cooking and dehydrating.
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Comments

I just built my first solar cooker from scrap materials. Cooked 3 potatoes,3 hotdogs, and a bowl of beans. At 51 years old I can still be surprised. Most of my friends think I'm nuts ,but am building a larger,permanent, solar-cooker.

-- Contributed by: Eric

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