cooking on the playa

jennnk · Post by **jennnk** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 4:48 pm

does anyone have any experience using a solar oven on the playa? it seems as thought it would work pretty well (being in the middle of the desert & all), and the components (cardboard boxes & aluminum foil) could be burned/recycled after they're done being used.

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Sun Oct 05, 2003 1:50 am

I guess that depends on your definition of "working well"...
But really, why bother? You can bring all sorts of inexpensive things to provide cooking heat that work great.
Unless you're just into the challenge or novelty of doing it with solar power. I guess I could see that.
Just put a frozen pizza on the dashboard of your car, roll up the windows, and wait fifteen minutes. Remember, tray will be hot, so use a potholder.

Angry Butterfly · Post by **Angry Butterfly** » Sun Oct 05, 2003 12:12 pm

The Pizza Sluts have it down to a science and the set up is simple and inexpensive, see if you can find a Pizza Slut, they have been doing it for about 5 years. Making a pizza in the solar oven and delivering it was seriously one of my favorite experiences at Burning Man. I also saw a really cool solar grill on 321 contact as a kid that I would love to build, but what the pizza sluts do is really simple. THey are quite friendly and if you can find someone from the camp I am sure they would be delighted to share.

jennnk · Post by **jennnk** » Mon Oct 06, 2003 7:33 am

what i meant by "working well" was this: there is a lot of sun beating down on the playa, hence an abundance of fuel for a solar oven. there's only so much grilled/stove-cooked food i can stand in a week at home, so i figured if i brought a solar oven i could whip up one of the casseroles for which i have become nearly famous among my friends...yet another reason to go to BM04: i am 21 years old and one of my hobbies is making casseroles

Angry Butterfly · Post by **Angry Butterfly** » Mon Oct 06, 2003 11:02 am

yes, you need to go to burningman. The solar ovens I saw worked really well for cooking pizza, even near sunset. I am betting with enough research you can get one that will do a casserole, alhough you may have to put it in smaller pans or make it thinner than your usual recipie. Want to be in Dangerous Musical Instument Camp? I hate to cook. Actually, there is usualy an alternative energy villiage a friend of mine built a greenhouse that recycled grey water this year, you might even be able to get a grant. If you can cook Casseroles ont he Playa, you will make a lot of friends. They can be your gift.

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Tue Oct 07, 2003 7:14 pm

Hey, if you do get a solar oven going and roast up some fine playa grubbenstines you can always find me at Johnny & the Playa Cruizers bicycle repair convieniently located at 9:00 & Esplanade. I pour some mean margaritas and host playa tours aboard my artboat...
It's a fact; food will get you lots of friends!
Real, true friends... not artificial ones that weren't won through their tummies like me! A friend with feed is a friend indeed!
Mmmmm.

jennnk · Post by **jennnk** » Tue Oct 07, 2003 11:21 pm

Captain Goddammit wrote:Hey, if you do get a solar oven going and roast up some fine playa grubbenstines you can always find me at Johnny & the Playa Cruizers bicycle repair convieniently located at 9:00 & Esplanade. I pour some mean margaritas and host playa tours aboard my artboat...
It's a fact; food will get you lots of friends!
Real, true friends... not artificial ones that weren't won through their tummies like me! A friend with feed is a friend indeed!
Mmmmm.

mmmmm margaritas...mmmmm...

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 2:53 pm

I was going to put this in the "Food You Never, Ever Want To Eat Again" but couldn't get the Reply button to work...

Anyway, I just saw a...I guess it's food but I can't be sure. Basically, I saw an ad for a squeeze bottle of (wait for it) BLUE ketchup from Heinz

I haven't sought it out. I don't want to see it in person. I will CERTAINLY not try it. It's evil

It's sickening

It's double-plus ungood

I'm going to sacrifice the ad to my cat and go hide behind my hazelnuts, saffron and balsamic vinegar now...

Niacin · Post by **Niacin** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 3:15 pm

diane o'thirst wrote:It's double-plus ungood

You stole my meme!

Blue ketchup is in the same level of hell as bubblegum-flavoured toothpaste.

Max

jennnk · Post by **jennnk** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:16 pm

i want to make a painting that uses colored condiments...red ketchup, mustard (combine to make orange), green & blue & purple ketchup (yes, they make green & purple, as well)...put varnish over the whole thing to avoid spoilage...too bad i have no artistic talent at all

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:47 pm

Green and purple ketchup...aigh...the Evil Bharneiye has inculcated its hideous tentacles into every part of our society...

[nestling deeper behind the balsamic vinegar and pulling the jars of ghee and wildflower honey into the phalanx]

I saw a scary thing a few weeks ago, there's a family in the next apartment block over with a rather loud and rambunctious 7-year-old boy. He was skipping along with a nuclear green dough, neon-orange frosting Pop-Tart in his hand. There wasn't anything natural about these colours and I have no idea whose idea it was to unleash an FD&C insult of this magnitude upon a trembling and innocent world...where's the UN when we really need 'em?

Children! There's no accounting for taste...

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Sat Oct 11, 2003 11:19 am

EASY CHEESE!! It's the world's most perfect food! And it's especially well-suited to the playa; it comes in a wonderfully dust-proof container AND requires no refrigeration... and it's yummy. I wouldn't show up without it.
MMMMmmmmmm... Easy cheese...

But I'm not too sure about Cheese Whiz. You gotta wonder just how much "Whiz" is in that stuff...

Angry Butterfly · Post by **Angry Butterfly** » Sat Oct 11, 2003 11:40 am

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! I love weird colored food. I am attempting to grow purple tomatoes right now.

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Sat Oct 11, 2003 11:47 am

I wonder if you could do that by only watering them with water tinted with blue food coloring?

Blenderhead · Post by **Blenderhead** » Sat Oct 11, 2003 11:59 am

Question on the margaritas: how much alcohol/mixer do you go through in the week at BRC?

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Sat Oct 11, 2003 12:41 pm

Mixer? Well, I don't use much of that...
I bring about 8 half-gallons of Sauza or Cuervo tequila and blend about 50/50 with mix. I could easily go through lots more (not myself!... I'm serving others) but since it's all out of my pocket and my truck/camper/trailer/artboat is a 5 mile per gallon deal, gas cuts into the booze budget. I bring some other types of booze, too. So far the liquor budget has been around $400. I'm sure you could spend thousands - I'm sure some do - I do all together - but that amount seems to cover it.
Next year I'll still do the margaritas - they seem to be the most popular - but I'm gonna set up for bitchin' bloody marys; peppered vodka, pickled asparagus, olives stuffed with onion-mushroom-jalapeno-pimento-garlic-whatever, cocktail onions, peppers, celery... the things will be a meal.
Also, you have to bring a few half-gallons of Baileys for coffee (with optional Irish "whikkey"). Sometimes my freezer can't keep up with the ice-making demands but I've found that ice donations can usually be had when you're offerring to make drinks with it.
I don't actually drink that much... I just like bartending on the playa.

Blenderhead · Post by **Blenderhead** » Wed Oct 15, 2003 12:28 pm

Thanks, Captain. Hope to see you on the playa next year!

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sun Nov 02, 2003 2:07 am

I saw something really groovy at Costco the other day, but I didn't have the money to get it.

The gentleman behind me in line was buying a pair of wine bottle salt 'n pepper mills. The handle goes in the top and the grindage comes out the foot of the bottle. Full-size bottles, too. Those suckers would last even me a good 2-3 of years before I needed to refill them (hey — I'm the type that puts saffron and olive oil in the top ramen water).

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Sun Nov 02, 2003 6:56 am

I have a drawings for a sole oven. My thoughts are to use it to heat shower water. Wont take much to build. I could put it on display in camp and give plan copys to other campers.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sun Nov 02, 2003 5:08 pm

Why go to the extra trouble of making a whole solar oven just to heat shower water when all you have to do is lay a solar showerbag clear-side up for a couple hours in the afternoon?

Unless you're camping with a lot of people, you're building a BIG solar oven and plan to heat up a <i>lot</i> of shower water?

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Sun Nov 02, 2003 6:53 pm

Never had any luck with those shower bags. They just become a large pain in the ass. I have the same luck with super glue. The oven cost about $8.It will bake, simmer, make coffee/tea water and heat up a lot of shower water. Right now I'm trying to alter is to evaperate some grey water and dry wet garbage. Dry garbage weighs less,don't stink and takes up very little room. I hope to make the oven so it will fold down to a small package.

Angry Butterfly · Post by **Angry Butterfly** » Tue Nov 04, 2003 11:16 am

diane o'thirst wrote:I saw something really groovy at Costco the other day, but I didn't have the money to get it.

The gentleman behind me in line was buying a pair of wine bottle salt 'n pepper mills. The handle goes in the top and the grindage comes out the foot of the bottle. Full-size bottles, too. Those suckers would last even me a good 2-3 of years before I needed to refill them (hey — I'm the type that puts saffron and olive oil in the top ramen water).

You should know that pepper (but not salt) gets stale, even if it isnt ground so your pepper woulnt taste so good after a while. Better to use a little one for the pepper.

Tiara · Post by **Tiara** » Tue Nov 18, 2003 12:12 pm

unjonharley wrote:Right now I'm trying to alter is to evaperate some grey water and dry wet garbage. Dry garbage weighs less,don't stink and takes up very little room.

The weather conditions the last two years have been ideal for drying wet garbage. All you have to do is concoct some sort of net bag to hold stuff. I use ordinary clothes hangers as the frame (so I can hang them up from the kitchen structure's frame by the hook), and attach a bag of two-ply cheesecloth netting. Paper towels, wet wipes, fruit and veg peels and scraps all go in. When a bag is close to full, I put it in the sun to dry out even more quickly. And when the mess is dried out, I empty the contents into a burn barrel.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Tue Nov 18, 2003 12:57 pm

Food no smell so good when burned. I use a cheap grill. The kind you are suppose be able to grill chicken and turn it over in the wire cage. I use face tissues to replace paper towels except for big messes. Work great for wipe up while cooking, scraping the plates and replace napkins. Spread one on the grill and dump the rest on it then put it in the wind. Once dry there is very little to deal with.

BlueBirdPoof · Post by **BlueBirdPoof** » Tue Nov 18, 2003 4:17 pm

unjonharley wrote: I use a cheap grill. The kind you are suppose be able to grill chicken and turn it over in the wire cage

Personally, I always remove my chickens from the wire cage and pluck them before grilling.

Tiara · Post by **Tiara** » Tue Nov 18, 2003 4:40 pm

Notice that I recommended drying and burning fruit and veg scraps, NOT meat. That stinks, and may not dry out enough to burn in a day or so like the veggie matter will.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Tue Nov 18, 2003 4:48 pm

Blue Bird, You can go to hell for bad "corn" just as well as stealing.

SHARPER · Post by **SHARPER** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 4:20 pm

What a great idea! I've been going crazy trying to figure out what I can make and bring with me for gifting. I am going to the 2004 BM in my motor home - equipped with a gas stove and range (that and the fridge run on propane) Cooking, having the fridge and a built in shower and toilet are among the reasons why I have decided to drive up in the RV instead of my truck and tenting it. Anyway, I digress - Casseroles! cheap easy ways to meet new folks and gift stuff! Anyone for a cheese, egg and veggie quiche?

SHARPER · Post by **SHARPER** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 4:28 pm

Excuse me if I seem dense - why do you need to heat up your shower water? Water will be in a holding tank in a place where it gets pretty darn hot during the day. Even tho the nights might get cold, the water will still be luke warm. Not much wrong with a luke warm (or even cold) shower. I live in the desert and during the summer a warm/cold shower is much more refreshing than a hot one.

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 5:05 pm

Because sometimes around sunset the temperature changes just enough to where cold water isn't the most pleasant thing to experience - in my experience.

cooking on the playa

cooking on the playa

Food (?) Consumerism has hit a new low

Re: Food (?) Consumerism has hit a new low

Question for C.G.

casseroles

shower water