Cooking with a Sun Oven

[Galileo]

Hi all,

    We’ve been using a Sun Oven International solar cooker for 20+ years - long before we even got our Oliver. 

We picked up this cute little toy at an alternative energy fair in Wisconsin many moons ago and used it extensively back on our farm in Texas.

Cooking in the Oliver is fine - but trying to cook a big roast (what’s in there right now) in the convection oven is a bit much. Might be a blessing in the winter, but in the summer would be quite uncomfortable.

This one has been through the mill. It’s pretty cheaply built, and the original wooden frame around the glass succumbed to being rained on once too often, so I made a new one out of better wood. Other than that, it’s served well. 

Anyway - just curious if there are any fans out there. What ovens are you using if so, and how things are working for you. 
 

[SeaDawg]

I'm a fan, but don't have one. I'd love to learn more about how you have used it, successfully. 

[ScubaRx]

Does it fold up flat? As is, it’s too large to carry easily and would be hard to pack around it. 

Edited Thursday at 01:13 PM by ScubaRx

[Galileo]

12 hours ago, SeaDawg said:

I'm a fan, but don't have one. I'd love to learn more about how you have used it, successfully. 

Think of it as a sun-powered crock pot. 

Anything you’d cook in the oven or stovetop is fair game. I find it best for large cuts of meat that require “low and slow” cooking to be their best are good candidates. Pot roast, pork shoulder roast, corned beef, I’ve even done pork ribs. 

So long as it’s a clear, sunny day it’s powered up. Cloudy days aren’t good. Windy days can be a challenge, but still workable. Doesn’t matter much what the ambient temperature is. 

You can do bread and cookies and other such things as well. We’ve decided be bread and brownies. 

In remote areas where people don’t have clean water, they use these to “pasteurize” water. 

They DO require that you attend to them - changing the azimuth and elevation of the oven as the sun “moves” (we do know it’s really the earth moving, right? 😋) This is more of a factor early and late in the day than midday. 

We find it to be a fun addition to our cooking methods and would be great for boondockers!

[SeaDawg]

So, it does fold up, right? Most of them I've seen, including build your own, fold up. 

Our home, our boat, and our Oliver are powered by solar. A solar oven is a natural choice, for many of us. Even if for just perfect days .

Edited Friday at 03:05 AM by SeaDawg

[Galileo]

14 hours ago, SeaDawg said:

So, it does fold up, right? Most of them I've seen, including build your own, fold up. 

Our home, our boat, and our Oliver are powered by solar. A solar oven is a natural choice, for many of us. Even if for just perfect days .

The reflectors fold down against the glass. It’s about the same size as a clunky suitcase or French Horn case when folded. Has its own carry handle.

Back in the bad old Facebook days, whenever Sun Oven International (the manufacturer) did a post, some wise-ass would say “Ha! You can build one of those with an old cardboard box and aluminum foil!”. Well, I guess you could - if you wanted a 7th grader’s science fair project to cook dinner with.

Granted, this particular mfg and model are “no frills” - but that’s half the point. It’s designed to be something that people in developing countries can easily build. No custom castings or exotic materials. No complicate assembly procedures. 

Id actually like a nicer one - better reflectors, insulation, more robust leveling/aiming mechanism. So far, I’ve not found one.  Still looking.

Back on the farm, I also had a “solar Burner”. Basically a 6’ diameter, mylar-lined parabolic dish with a support for a frypan. It wasn’t terribly practical because of its size, but it was cool. Once aimed, you could light something on fire (or really burn your hand) just by holding it in the focus of that big reflector. 

Fun times!

[Galileo]

Unfortunately, I see these puppies are going for $549.00 these days. Ouch! Pretty sure we paid under $200 for ours. 

I don’t think I’d buy one for $550.

That said, it’s still a very simple and clever device. With a few improvements, it could be even more versatile.

I’ve had to do some repairs on ours. The wood frame didn’t appreciate being left out in the rain a couple of times. So I made a new one up out of birch plywood and finished it with marine varnish. Better than new!