Testing a DIY Off-Grid Oven

On a partly cloudy day we successfully bake a loaf of bread in each of our DIY solar cookers. They did not brown, but they were cooked through and tasted great.
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[@janetsimpson1296]

We can’t thank you enough for all of your tremendously hard work to bring these videos to us. They are so appreciated!

[@lupodlupi]

She is wonderful

[@robertlavigne6560]

It's so much fun watching Pam utilize food science and the scientific methodology. I bet her students just love her classes!

[@dutchgram3799]

I agree. I love learning from them. I live in Michigan so I know I would need to build an oven and use wood to cook & bake. Getting wood isn't the best thing to look for when other people will need it as well. Need to put my thinking cap on and make decisions.

[@robertlavigne6560]

@@dutchgram3799 Maybe this will help you. My nephew is a boy scout and they had to learn to cook outside and make a meal. Start by purchasing a cast iron dutch oven with 3 legs. I bought mine from Amazon and I wanted a product made in the USA. The brand is Lodge and it's made in Tennessee. It has been around for decades and it's family run. Next you need a 3 gallon metal oil pan sold in the auto department. Third, charcoal briquettes with the metal briquette starter chimney. There are instructions on how many briquettes to use and how you position the briquettes under the dutch oven and how to place them on the lid of your pot. Also purchase the trivet. If you are baking bread or a pie, or searing meat, etc you don't want to cook your food directly on the bottom of the oven as your food will scorch. Mine came with a recipe book. Once I have all of my equipment I'm going to test it for myself. My sister has said that this method makes really delicious food. Good luck and I hope this helps.

[@gracemontoya847]

Ms Pam I cannot begin to explain how grateful I am that you go forth and explore the territory in different items.. You're very scientific because you're background and knowledge and I just love you to death thank you so much keep your videos coming

[@allyrooh3628]

One thing that might make this easier for you would be having a black pan with a clear lid. You would be able to see what you're cooking without disrupting the temperature inside. I just got my solar oven from Amazon yesterday. I'm anxious to use it. If I like cooking with it, I'm going to make the solar oven you are using. I'm hoping to use this method this summer so I don't heat up my house everyday. I wish I had seen your video on making this before I purchased one. Oh well, more is better! Thanks for this video. This could be so important for people struggling to pay energy prices. The sun is an amazing resource! I want an All American sun oven but it's a bit high in cost. I want to make sure I like using one before spending a lot of money.

[@doroparker1702]

Solar ovens you better order from the connection of Doug and Stacy. They work with Amish people to ship their things. Amazon is slavery. A wonderful elderly guy builds sun ovens with glass doors. It is back to suitcase in a second. Very great item. Homestead videos from Doug and Stacy are about living off grid and they show every detail you never knew about. Even their way of doing a dry toilet with buckets. So amazing.

[@BrendaBodwin]

I super heat my solar oven with the surface screen of an old flat screen tv. Disassemble the tv to remove the hard clear screen cover. I and cut it down, to a manageable square. You want the center of the screen. Because mine is intended for bug out, I drilled 1 hole in all 4 sides, and have heavy gauge wire threaded through to attach it to 4 light weight poles. This elevates it over anything I want to heat, or to start a fire. It works like a magnifilying glass. Intense hot light beam/ray. Except, the concentrated heat under that screen will rise to over 400°. So, I set the poles, hang the screen, and adjust the wires, to aim it at my pan, to preheat the pan. Then, I let the solar cooker do the rest.

[@jhenniceamorrow5936]

Do you have difficulty cutting the glass? Is the flat screen glass coated?

[@BrendaBodwin]

@@jhenniceamorrow5936Honestly Its ts some strange design plexiglas/glass maybe.. Im really not sure. There is a pattern in it though, and the light from the sun gets concentrated in the center. You'll see a tiny bright light from the sun straight below the center. This is why you cut it down, making sure you have the center in the middle of your piece. Not sure exactly what it's made of, nor, how its made. It's the thin, clear screen on the front of the screen. There are layers to the screen. This is on the older flat screens, not the new ones. I cut it with a diamond tip, hand glass cutter if that helps you any. I made several passes with the cutter rather than pressure force cutting it like I would normal glass.

[@mildredlindsey3144]

OH MY, HOW WONDERFUL. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE CONTINUED TESTING OF RECIPES FOR THOSE WHO ARE SO LIMITED IN THIS KIND OF KNOWLEDGE.

[@momskelton5794]

You should make a swivel base to make it easier to follow the sun!

[@yeshua9323]

What a lovely decent lady... and her husband too. God Bless you both

[@cascade19]

Your videos take so much time and energy to do. I appreciate the effort you've taken to show many of us how to survive in these crazy times. My mother never took the time to show me how to do any of these things. So glad I found your videos.

[@viclittle796]

I love watching all of your videos I learned so much. What recipe did you use to make your bread dough starter

[@Sandy-_s]

Thank you for sharing an inexpensive oven that anyone can make. I now have the cardboard to make my own. Love your video's Rose and Jim!

[@nancytabor8302]

Thank you so much. Gardening, canning, and off grid learning are so important in this world 🌎 situation.

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Nancy: Absolutely! Jim

[@oliviafox6745]

This is a very timely video. I've wanted to use a solar cooker for bread baking if only to keep the house cooler in the summer. Thanks!

[@bjenkins0344]

Try smaller loaves (maybe 2 loaves per 1 recipe) and put a scant of ghee on the top for color. Blessings.

[@tishjohnson7697]

Enjoy your videos Pam. Thank you for being a part of my morning. Watching your experiments helps me feel a little smarter☺☺

[@kristanichols6215]

You are such a caring person thinking of other🎉s and try to work things out fòr everyones budget and show us options.Thank you.

[@rh1203]

Just bought my solar oven. Excited.

[@chelinfusco6403]

Yay!!! Congratulation! I've been after my husband to get me an All American solar oven when they were $350 and included the double pot. Now they are close to $500 and it does not include the double pot. I still want one. LOL.

[@sparrowgarden1401]

@@chelinfusco6403 I bought mine 2 years ago an love it. I use it a lot all summer long. I have used in winter too, but you have to cook in the middle of the day to get the best sun angle and heat.

[@renebrown995]

Thank you Mrs. Pam and Jim. You are both God sent no doubt.

[@ChieftuckabuckawaysWife]

Thank you so much for marching onward. I was surprised and delighted by the cast iron bread how much it rose. If these are the results on a partly cloudy day, ⛅️ I can imagine the results on a fully sunny 🌞 day.

[@rosepaul9681]

Love watching your experiments and sense of adventure. I was excited to see what the results would be for each loaf. Thanks so much for helping us learn survival skills.

[@kristanichols6215]

I watch really often even if l dont make a comment ,l always learn something and take notes .

[@karendionne1029]

I live in SC and temperatures got to 103 for two days . My heat/ ac went down Christmas night and I couldn’t afford to fix it. So I crocheted four double thick blankets and that made it warm enough for me and the six pets . The lowest it got in the house was 43 degrees. So I wanted to use the sun to cook outside . I put my sun shield from my car taped to my largest roasting pan , covering three sides . I took my trivet from my Instant Pot and set it under my smallest roaster. These are the pans my gramma used over 90 years ago . Then I cut up sweet potatoes, fresh green beans . They boiled quickly . Then I made two hamburgers that I put on another trivet and set it on top and steamed the hamburgers . In less than two hours I was able to cook it and feed it to my dogs. They loved it . I ate some green beans and they were perfect. I am going to make one of Pam’s cookers because I like that you can adjust it as the sun is high or low . It was a great day to experiment. I think things would have cooked quicker in her style. Either way I knew the $499 they wanted for a commercial sun cooker wasn’t happening on a fixed income . I heated pizza from the night before , wrapped in plastic wrap on my dashboard. It was 115 degrees in the car .

[@EagleArrow]

Enjoy your videos. You are my consumer reports couple.😊

[@nadurkee46]

This is so fascinating to me! Thank you so so much for doing the testing and then showing us the results.

[@RoseRedHomestead]

nadurkee46: Thanks for watching our videos. Jim

[@susanbailey3553]

Thank you for being so indepth and comprehensive. I'm really excited to see how well your design works even if I have to do some sort of fry bread over a fire. I've got a thin black roaster but am not sure I can find bowls to hold it. Would you mind sharing the dimensions of the bowls you used? I have several different dutch ovens. Do you think a dutch oven would get hot enough if used in the bowls? Thank you again for the dedication you guys put into your content.

[@monstermcboo7282]

She said they’re the one-gallon Pyrex bowls.

[@Vro-]

I bet the smell in your kitchen was heavenly!

[@kburke3849]

Wondering if a cast iron Dutch oven on the rocket stove would work. The bread in a pan, trivet underneath so the bottom wouldn’t burn. Thanks for all your work on feeding your family in a grid down situation.

[@RandyH400]

Your teachings are wonderful! You have helped us so much! Thank You and May God Bless You! You are helping a lot of people!

[@redwoodsgal]

I love this video because where I live we get allot of foggy overcast days

[@madammim694]

you can also use two dark loafpans, one inverted on the other, makes good steam for crust too.

[@enna4986]

Have you done it, and did you put them in a turkey bag?

[@sparrowgarden1401]

next time you bake your bread, live the lid on. things brown with the lid on. I have an All American sun oven and love it I have not yet made bread in it though. but our roasted chicken always comes out with a nice brown skin. I like your idea with the double glass bowls. you might look for a black bowl for the bottom, it will absorb more heat.

[@jhenniceamorrow5936]

Possibly spray paint the exterior of the bottom bowl with black heat resistant paint (Can handle excessive heat).

[@jacquijames7585]

I’ve only just learned the term a nuclear winter and it has freaked my out somewhat. I had been watching some Ted Ex…. My partner is running his first marathon tomorrow in a major city. Huge amount of people, we’re in our camper. I have so many scenarios in my head. I’m worried. I thought solar was the way forward but if the sun can’t get through then there’s no cooking, no growing, no photosynthesis. 🙈🤷🏻‍♀️🙏 xx

[@marygallagher3428]

Great test! Spritzing the top of the dough loaf with some water before you close it up in the solar cooker should help it brown a bit :-)

[@greetverwoert8922]

of misschien wat gedroogde ei of melkpoeder met wat water?

[@cynthiafisher9907]

Mary Gallagher I don’t think it would at those temperatures.

[@yvettechristensen8315]

Thank you so much. I really appreciate your methodical scientific methods. I will be trying this out.

[@firequeen2194]

Stocked up on flour and yeast so my experiments could start. I finally got the right size box, lol. As usual, amazing video! Got the old brain thinking, lol. Many blessings to you and Jim as well as the community.

[@marilyncloud6067]

Thank you Rose and Jim! You both are awesome. I hope to try this in the near future. Blessings to you!!!

[@claudiagaldjie7985]

Thank you for all your work (and teachings).

[@danniemcdonald7675]

Great video! Thank you so much for all of the time and energy y'all put into making these informative videos.

[@carolwolfgang7020]

Thank you so much for all of your informative videos!

[@Emma-3010]

Thank y'all SO MUCH for sharing the knowledge with us!

[@carlapickard6579]

Congratulations and Thank You!

[@bonniefuller858]

Absolutely love this video!!! Thanks Pat and Jim

[@jamakrueger7460]

Thank you for all that you share. I feel so Blessed to have found your videos!!!!!

[@hollydecker9581]

Wonderful video and so timely. Thank you!

[@sandrayarnell9498]

I loved this video! Thank you for your time and hard work! You are a brilliant woman with a lot of skills. God Bless!

[@adrianamil3]

Woaw! What a great achievement! Thank you millions for your efforts and sharing!

[@ekwright76]

This is so exciting to see!

[@sheliajones8238]

Love the videos thank you so much

[@hetheringtonfamily8798]

I love watching you guys. Thank you

[@christinas907]

Well done and thank you !

[@abou8963]

I love your comparative experimentation.

[@chickenstead6586]

You and Mr. Jim are such a great team.!!!! Thank you both for sharing your knowledge.

[@cathyworthy7385]

Pam, I enjoy your videos and your knowledge. You are my "go to" when I need to know something. Thank you so much

[@lepikova]

Thank you so much for your effort, I really appreciate it. Very, very useful for me.

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Glad it was helpful!

[@abbyroberts4424]

I love watching your videos. I always learn so much

[@Zbee167]

Good stuff! Thanks for sharing.

[@sarabennett3732]

Fantastic research Ms. Pam!!! I thank you and Jim for everything you do!! ❤️

[@cindyg5064]

Great video. Thank you for this

[@jabbaa6500]

Hi to both! Just found your channel and so glad I did. You make perfect sense and have clear instructions / information. I am yours forever now! Thank you.

[@nobracobra]

Being hurricane season in cent fla…. Your off grid vids are appreciated…. Tyfs

[@RoseRedHomestead]

nobracobra: You are welcome. Jim

[@bettyolis6228]

Excellent experiment and interesting results!

[@ritapaine7752]

you two are amazing!!!!

[@lindagray5857]

Great job!

[@lynsmith2698]

That’s awesome. Great video Pam

[@cynthiafisher9907]

Great job! I wish I could taste that bread, it looks yummy!

[@idahogal4675]

Thank you so much for doing that 🙂

[@novalees]

Fascinating! Definitely going to try this. I may start with a quick bread.

[@lsquared6975]

Great video! Thanks for sharing.

[@life_is_good2371]

Fantastic video! Love it

[@jerriscollins-ruth9019]

Good job. Enjoyed your experiment.

[@erincalvert5241]

Should work fantastic in the summer 💗

[@pamt3915]

Great experiment! Seeing the difference in color is important because you may think the bread isn’t done!

[@BurntStone]

My most favorite channel! I have learned so much! I love the stories you tell as you work! Keep doing videos!

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Sheryl: Wow, thank you! Jim

[@donnamullins2089]

Great job. Pop a slice in the cast iron pan and it would toast up in a hurry. Really they all look delicious. Thank you so much Pam and Jim for all your hard work.

[@bernadettelovespie4734]

Nice informative video!

[@lifeoflucretia]

Good Friday morning, Jim & Pam. FYI: I truly appreciate the SCIENTIFIC manner that you approach your videos. Have a beautiful and blessed weekend. LUCRETIA

[@bethrichardson5998]

Great video and really interesting. Bread is beautiful..

[@starrstylist7441]

Your energy is amazing, I know you have got to be getting plenty of sleep at night to do all you do for all of US! My mouth was watering when you cut that first loaf :) But the other two, grid down, everybody's mouth would be watering for those too

[@Sandy-_s]

Right? The kids would get a treasured PB&J! And Rose mentioned french toast!

[@lyndabuchholz1216]

I bought a solar oven and haven't used it yet. I had better try it out. I have learned so much from you and ideas from your subscribers. I like the idea of using a clear lid so I might try that. I am going to have to try to make one like you did too.

[@yelortiz]

Thank you!

[@gloriajohnson3952]

Congratulations, I knew you could do it. thanks for the video.

[@teresaholland4790]

Maybe a flatbread would work a lot better than a regular traditional loaf bread AnyWho I’m gonna build one and I thank you and your husband for all your hard work and your lovely videos cheers Central Florida

[@historychannel123]

Wow! What an awesome video. xoxo roseingeorgia

[@vikkisoderquist6013]

good idea! I'll need to learn how to make bread and prep with more flour. 😊

[@hppyabuela]

It's like you read my mind about making bread in a gadget like that. I told my husband we need to start practicing so we can be ready when the grid goes down!! Thanks Pam & Jim for your awesome videos and information!!

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Karen: Thank you! Jim

[@ParttimePilgrim]

Thaank you for this. I think you are brilliant. I watched a university PHd lady showing diy solar ovens, and she never even had a thermometer!!😜

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Rev: Interesting. Jim

[@cobrafox8640]

You both are such troopers! TY so much! I tried pizza in my solar oven today. I brushed the top with melted garlic butter and it did brown a little. I sprayed a disposable cake pan with cooking spray to cook it on. I baked the dough for 45 min then added the toppings for the last 30 minutes. Pretty good! I want to try cooking on a stone preheated in the solar oven next time.

[@pattyc301]

Great job Pam as always, thank you! For a future experiment, I wonder if the cast iron would do a better job in the pyrex since it seemed to rise more overall. Also, wondering if starting with a hotter cast iron dutch oven that was pre-heated with wood (off grid) would help produce a brown bottom. So many ideas to consider. I so appreciate your sharing your experiments/experiences for us to learn from. Deepest respect, Patty

[@alemapretsof]

Thank you to you and Jim for doing the grunt work and then sharing with others! I see why your subscriber numbers have increased. I truly appreciate all you do and work for to assist those of us staring into space, all slack-jawed, thinking, "Now how can I do...?". Hugs from one Pam to another!

[@helenabudrow8648]

Thank you.

[@teresamexico309]

Thank you very much Pam and Jim for the experimenting. I wonder if making smaller loaves of bread would cook better in the solar cooker.

[@roniniowa1661]

This is amazing! I receive newsletter from city preparedness. Included are articles labeled “Marti’s Corner” she recommended the earlier video on making the solar cooker. I was impressed, subscribed, and now I find excellent results. This and some of your other topics are very informative. I’m excited to view previous as well as future videos.

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Ron: Thanks for sharing!! Jim

[@lindabarnes1585]

Have you done a video on a cardboard box oven using charcoal as the fuel yet? I went to a demonstration given by a very old man who was also teaching how to grind dried beans into flour and making pancakes from them using that flour and just water. Of course adding salt, an egg, etc. would have contributed to a better texture, but he was trying to teach how to cook using what you have. Once the skill/technique is mastered, we could all see what else needed to be added and stored to make them taste better. He baked 2 different kinds of cookies using 2 boxes, had a thermometer in one showing the interior temp which got to 300 degrees using about 9-10 briquettes. I made my cardboard box oven last summer and will test it this summer. Love your channel, especially the tutorials on the Presto Digital Pressure Canner. If you hadn't shown the tests, I would never have purchased one, so I am really grateful to you for all that work and sacrifice. Now, I almost use that canner exclusively except when I have a lot to can, then I use the All American. Keep up the great work.

[@DarleneDeSilva]

Blessed people with you when the grid goes down. I do have a solar cooker and the temperature can get to 400 degrees on a full sunny day, no clouds in New England, even in the winter we have achieved that temperature...loved the video.

[@RoseRedHomestead]

Darlene: That is awesome! Jim

[@xanadu1jw]

You might try using mylar, it comes out much shinier than aluminum foil. Also I have the All Season Solar Cooker which is made from plastic cardboard lined with Mylar and the gentleman also sells the plan for it. I live in the mid South and I put a frozen chicken in the ASSC in the morning and by late afternoon it had thoroughly cooked and lightly browned and was so tender and delicious.

[@janepowell2452]

Pam, thanks for all you do. What a wonderful teacher you are. Did I miss the size of the pans and dutch oven that were unused?

[@tl4361]

I'm going to make the solar cooker. I'm thinking of using an aquarium to put the pans in. I could get a piece of glass cut to fit the top and use e6000 to add a handle or some type of hinge. I would use the aquarium on its side and paint the bottom side black.

[@greetverwoert8922]

Ik denk dat een wonderpan betere resultaten geeft. Een wonderpan werd in de jaren '50/'60 in Nederland veel gebruikt door mensen die geen oven hadden. Ze gebruikten deze pan om cake en brood te maken op een gasarme brander. Ze zijn nog steeds te koop. Ik heb veel respect voor je en heb veel van je geleerd, dank je. Hou gewoon van jou en je levensstijl. Hartelijke groeten uit Nederland

[@cbass2755]

Good afternoon Pam..🤗 It’s 12:55 here in Michigan and I’m pressure canning my chunk chickens. Great video as always and thinking of getting on o them. Thank you for the review…. Blessings. Connie

[@robins5880]

We’re in MI too!

[@cbass2755]

@@robins5880 Hi Robin!! I’m in Oakland County….😄

[@debrasonner5970]

Please please please keep these videos up. And could you cover cooking bread over candle power? Thank you

[@WhatDadIsUpTo]

Believe it or not, the key to cooking with sunshine is insulation. The focal point must be transparent to sunlight, but opaque to heat flow. My All American Sun Oven ($430 😯) is magnificently insulated and will bake perfect bread on any day that produces a crisp shadow! Were you to sprits a mist of water on the crust, it will brown nicely.