Solar cooking is one of the perks of living and working as a volunteer in Niger; a country rich in solar hours. Last Saturday, I posted a picture of a casserole destined for the sun. A lot of people wanted to know how the solar cooker worked, reminding me that it was time for a recap!
Solar cooking is something I do on a regular basis, as often as the weather allows. In addition to our daily dinner casseroles (I have a few “favourite themes” but being big on improvisation, I rarely – if ever – cook the same dish twice), the solar cooker cooks rice, potatoes, millet or sorghum (for breakfast), bread and cakes.
For this dish, I started off with a neutral base of vegetables, consisting of tomatoes, carrots and fresh corn. Tomatoes add moisture to a solar cooking casserole; carrots add sweetness, and the corn adds texture.
I then added some seasonal green leaves (often labeled famine food by the West), which I harvested in my mother’s garden.
Green leaves are a vital ingredients in most Nigerien sauces, and I love to cook using the as many local ingredients as possible.
Finally, I added soaked dried mushrooms (a treat from the forests of Sweden…) and a large piece of liver. If you don’t like liver, any meat would do; or you can keep your casserole vegetarian. I then added some spices (a teaspoon of salt and a touch of pepper), and my simple ten-minute casserole was ready to meet the sun!
The food is ready in a few hours on a good sunny day and the best thing about solar cooking is that you don’t have to watch your food. It just slow-cooks throughout the day without burning and is ready when you are.
Everything was well cooked by the time I took it out.
Being Swedish, I like to mix the casseroles with milk, so that it gets a creamy taste.
The casserole was served with whole rice, steamed beans and some fried plantains. And voilà – my very first solar cooked liver stew! For more solar cooking recipes, click here.
30 users commented in " The world of solar cooking "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackWow, such a simple concept and producing what I’m sure was a wonderful meal. Of course, not something I’d bother with here in London, but a most excellent idea for so many places.An interesting post. Thanks.
I do like liver, and cooking it that way would keep it tender. I’ve lost my love for mushrooms, though, for some reason.
I have seen that kind of solar cooker, but not recently or very often. The casserole sounds good, without the liver, and looks yummy. Thanks for posting this.
I think that it is time for some solar cooking in New Mexico! Thank you for sharing the technique.
Mom says yum to all but the liver…
I say I would eat hers!
Tank woo fur sharing this!
Hugz&Khysses,
Khyra
I’d starve if I had to depend on solar cooking in the US Midwest, but I really like the idea. Sort of like a crockpot, but without the electricity. I’m amazed at how well it’s possible to cope without using electricity – which many of us think we can’t live without.
oh my, that made me so hungry, Esther!!!! I love the food posts you make
I have to say the thought of eating liver makes me shudder somewhat, being spoilt, but neat to see how it all works. It must be good to come home from work and have something ready. I never knew that Swedish people were keeen on milk either.
this looks quite yummy Esther. and i think i would even try the liver…very informative post.
Wonderful post. If we only had a little more sun and warmth here in my part of Canada.
Interesting, I hadn’t heard of that before. What are those leaves you added, they look a bit like acacia?
I’ve never used it to cook with, but back during my time in the army I went for a couple of training exercises in the Mojave Desert and found out just how effectively the sun can heat water in a 5 gallon black or army green “Jerry Can” over the course of a few hours. We never wanted for hot water for showers.
Your solar cooker reminds me of the “reflector ovens” the Boy Scouts used to build or buy (there were ones already made for sale at the outfitters, but there was also a design in the handbook for building your own that probably worked just as well). I forget, did you build yours or did it come ready-made? (Seems like you posted the answer to that once, but I’m too lazy …er… busy to go back and find it.)
For anything slow-cooked, this looks like it would do the job admirably. But I wonder about baking or other techniques where the secret is extremely high temperature applied over a short time.
Anyway, I could pass on the liver (never developed a taste for liver) but it looks delicious!
This is very interesting. And I think this should work perfectly here in the hot and humid summers of Dubai. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe
I think I have been missing out on solar cooking living in the desert and all! Thanks Esther
That’s absolutely incredible! What a great lesson in cooking… Not to find be found in a Martha Stewart magazine ;o) but more delicious because it was made so naturally…
Thanks for sharing this Esther! ~Maria
Your dinner looks delicious, and healthy, too.
Esther: That is amazing, what a neat job of showing the progress of the meal.
Very interesting post about the solar cooking. It all looks so delicous! Thanks for sharing your cooking world.
it’s amazing…here i sit surrounded by electric appliances of all kinds, a gas stove, running water, and you’ve produced what looks like a most delectable dinner with just sunlight. (i love liver, but i think i would try to find a way to fry it, if possible.) you’ve inspired me, though. i’m going to check on solar cooking and see if it’s possible to cook something on my porch with all its windows. you say it cooks slowly all day–sort of like cooking on a wood-burning stove. it’s a much gentler heat than a regular stove. you have a very rich life!! thank you for showing it to us.
Very interesting and informative post! And, as always, you photos are delightful! It all looks delicious! Thank you for sharing so many wonderful ideas and thoughts!
Sylvia
You even manage to make liver look good. Amazing stuff Ishtar.
Nice sequence of photos….very creative! Most unusual post of all! cheers.
wow. i have heard of these but this is the first time i have seen the actual demo of solar cooking. thank you for the eye opener. great job.
It is so interesting to solar cook. I wonder how much does it cost?
Now that’s a really clear, concise cooking lesson. The special ingredient might be the dried mushrooms from Sweden. Back in Poland my mother used to pick and dry her own and added them to lots of dishes.
Wonderful photos.
Fascinating – and delicious veggies.
Does the casserole get warmed up then in that white desk-like thing you put it in? I imagine you need to put water in there too for it to cook.
A splendid one. First time seeing one of this and very thankful for showing us.
That looks like a wonderful way to do things. Your food looks delicious.
Hey Esther–
Thought I’d share this local example of famine-food snobbery, as well as a great recipe:
http://teaandcookies.blogspot.com/2009/10/in-praise-of-purslane.html
Some firsts for me.
1. Liver casserole.
2. Solar cooked casserole
3. Milk mixed in with the casserole.
It looked like a tasty meal!
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