Wood Stove Cooking

article image
PHOTO: STEVEN MARK NEEDHAM/ENVISION
Eggplant wrapped in foil is wonderful when you add basil and tomato slices.

Most people only consider their woodstove useful for heating a room. And when we purchased ours to cut oil costs, we never gave a thought to using it as a cooking stove.

But one day, bolstered by the surprising amount of heat dispensed by our stove, we tentatively approached it with tea kettle in hand. Once we were successful (with a little patience), we quickly graduated to soups and stews. Though ours doesn’t have the versatility of a wood cookstove designed for kitchen duty, it does have some workable similarities.

The surface of our woodstove isn’t usually hot enough for frying foods but it is perfect for simmering and slow cooking. We’ve even managed to use our “oven” (firebox) in much the same way as we use our charcoal grill in the summertime.

Grilling

The hot coals will cook foil-wrapped vegetables or individual packets of meat. For baked potatoes, wrap them in heavy duty foil and place in the hot ashes of the fire. These will take from 45 minutes to one hour to cook.

  • Published on Dec 1, 1991
Comments (0) Join others in the discussion!
    Online Store Logo
    Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368