In case you need to take your food out of a solar cooker before it is ready for whatever reason, (maybe its cloudy or the food is cooked but you’re not hungry) it is handy to have something like this; a haybox cooker, to keep the food hot. It’s basically a box with a tight fitting lid that’s stuffed with insulating material with a space left to put a pot, it’s called a haybox cooker because back in the day, hay was used as the insulating material. On the day I took these photos, I was cooking rice in the solar oven and some clouds blew over. The rice was nearly done but it was still at least another two hours until dinner, so I hastily whipped up this newspaper-box cooker and it worked a treat.
On this occasion I used the box as mainly a way to keep the food hotter for longer, but you can use it to cook food. Simply heat the food right through then place in a haybox cooker, the food then cooks in its own stored heat, thereby reducing the amount of fuel needed to cook. For most effectiveness it is better to use a pot that is full than one that is half full.
I am going to build a more permanent haybox cooker and do some more experiments with it very soon, at least in time for winter soups!
An old veggie box, very versatile. For a while I tried to get as much use out of one as possible before they went to landfill, now I avoid them like the plague
Stick the still hot pot in a cosy bed of insulating material
Stuff that sucker with crinkled newspaper, this traps lots of air in little pockets an essential component of good insulation
Cap that sucker
A nice, snug, tight fitting lid is a crucial component. This ensures maximum heat retention
Bobs your uncle. Haybox cooking is a very old, yet very effective technology. Any honest homesteader seeking to reduce energy usage and time spent pot watching would do well to own one. While you are on the internet, have a quick look around at some designs, they are super effective and simple.
Have fun!
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