Solar Dehydrator Video

While the South enjoys the rebirth of Spring and the green it brings, the brave Canadian trundles out into the harsh elements to partake in the ancient tradition known as barbeque season. This season why not create your own green alternatives?

Use Mother Nature’s number one resource - the sun, to create fantastic meals and at the same time reconnect with the outdoors and neighbours (that you haven’t seen since the first snow fall) while savouring the taste of fire-roasted treats, dried fruit snacks or a solar roasted meal made in your very own solar oven! Read on for six exciting ways to green your cuisine this summer.

1. Solar Cooking
In our new and improved world of instant meals and self-cleaning ovens we often overlook the ritual of cooking and the tried and true methods of our ancestors. With roots in Greece, Rome and China, people have been using the sun’s energy for centuries. Historically, attempts have been made to harness the sun’s energy for horticulture. Ancient solar devices were created with curved mirrors to concentrate the sun’s energy, causing items to burst into flames. (The Solar Cooking Archive www.solarcooking.org)

This method is not terribly different from modern solar cookers. Solar cookers work like a greenhouse trapping the sun’s rays to cook the food inside. Because dark surfaces attract heat, cook with “dark, shallow metal pots with lids to trap in the heat and moisture.” (The Solar cooking Archive www.solarcooking.org). Solar cooking is simple, exciting, and one of the greenest ways to cook.

The sun’s rays are free and home-made cookers cost next to nothing, making this a viable option for the environmentally conscious and economically challenged alike. Even humanitarian organizations supply cookers worldwide to prevent further pollution, deforestation and desertification caused by the use of firewood in cooking.

The three most common types are box cookers, parabolic cookers and panel cookers. The advantages box models include the slow, even cooking of large amounts of food and their weather resistant, energy efficient construction. (Please note that the home-made solar cookers are not weather resistant, which might affect your decision on whether to purchase a solar cooker or make your own.)

Direct and reflected sunlight enters the glass or plastic lid and is retained by the dark absorber plate inside the box. The solar box not only cooks food but it also sterilizes water! To maximize effectiveness, make sure the reflective glass is repositioned to follow the sun or try adding more glass to reflect more sunlight. To learn about the science of solar cookers see the links below.

Solar cookers range in price from high end items to low cost home-made devices. For $149.94 US (incls. $24.97 shipping), the Sport Solar Oven comes with 2 pots, a thermometer, a WAPI (water pasteurization indicator) and instruction manual (.pdf). But fear not my Canadian neighbours, for if you do your research you will see that many Canadian eco-stores stock solar ovens. And, for as low as $175 Canadian, a delicious, savoury solar treat is just a phone call away. Looking for direction? See resources below.

For more information on solar cookers I went right to the source so to speak. I spoke with Michael Kalmanovitch, founder and owner of Earth’s General Store to ask him about his weekend solar oven project. My first question was a rather sceptical one: “Can you really construct a solar oven that doesn’t turn everything into jerky?” And his answer, “There is so much moisture held in the cooker, you need very little water to use it.” Michael has baked bread, rice, beans and even though it takes about fifty per cent longer than the traditional oven would, Michael claims the succulent flavour is worth the wait. He has even cooked with it while on his way to work by strapping it to the back of his bike and then placing it on the roof of the store to let it simmer during his work day.

Panel cookers tend to be a common home-made type of solar cooker due to their ease of construction and cheap materials. They use several flat panels to concentrate the sun’s rays on a pot located under a glass lid or inside a plastic oven bag. The advantage of this method is that it takes only an hour or so to build, and at about $8, it is a viable option for the do-it-yourselfers and the frugal among us. Panel cookers are also used most frequently in developing countries.

Next, meet the Parabolic cooker family. These cookers are large, concave disc-like ovens that concentrate the sunlight on the bottom of the disc and heat as fast as a conventional oven. The parabolic reflector directs sunlight to one specific point like a gigantic magnifying glass. Though challenging to make, parabolic cookers can reach very high temperatures. Users must take great care and wear sunglasses to avoid burns and eye injuries.

Of the three solar options listed above my money is on the box cookers. As far as I’m concerned these cookers are the little dynamos of the solar cooking world. Not only are they affordable and portable, but they are great for regions that are sun rich but fuel poor. Canada continues to be a large supporter of solar cooking in countries such as Haiti. Supporting solar cooking in sun-rich countries is just one way to offset your own carbon emissions. Make a donation today through The Kyoto Twist Solar Cooking Society (KTSCS).

If you are looking to purchase a solar cooker, look no further than Earth’s General Store in Edmonton, Alberta or the vendors listed in the resources section. Each offers different solar cooking products and resources. Using free solar power, fresh bread, casseroles, and entire chickens can be cooked in a matter of three to four hours. So, add a new dimension to your cooking repertoire and try a baked bean cook-off, sun-roasted potatoes or for the really adventurous try a delicious New York style Cheesecake.

2. Clay Ovens
There’s nothing quite like a hot thin-crust pizza toasted to perfection from your very own wood-fired clay oven. Clay ovens are similar to traditional brick and stone masonry ovens. Made from natural non-toxic materials, clay ovens work by trapping the heat from the fire within the thick clay walls of the oven. The heat then radiates evenly from the walls to maintain a high temperature for your baking pleasure.

Building your own clay oven may seem like a daunting task but in reality it only takes a few weekends of grubby work, and the help of a few good friends. For your efforts, flat bread, pizzas, and roasted veggies are the spoils, not to mention a cooler house. Most of the materials you need can be found at your local hardware store or building supply yard. Clay and sand can often be sourced locally from building sites while bricks and concrete can be salvaged for little or no cost.
Clay can also be easily re-incorporated into soils at the end of the oven’s life. To earn extra green points, salvage your firewood from untreated lumber ends or landscaping and tree removal companies. To keep your clay oven in tip top shape, be sure to apply a clay slip or finishing coat also known as an aliz to seal the clay and prevent cracks. For more detail, instructions and recipes for your clay mixtures, visit www.thelaststraw.org and search for the article ‘Earth Plasters and Aliz’ by Carol Crews.

This oven was constructed using over 700 bricks, 2 tons of stone, a yard and a half of clay, cement and sand. The bottom brick foundation is filled with river rock to store the heat. Once constructed, it takes about two hours to preheat the oven. This showy cement-free oven was built using recycled concrete foundation blocks and a mix of local and Plainsman clays.

So, my advice to prospective green chefs out there is to spend some quality time with Mother Nature and enjoy the fruit of her labour and the sweat of yours while building a clay oven.

3. -BBQ-ing
Humans have always had a fascination with fire and with the return of summer the mind once again wanders to the BBQ. But, can a BBQ really be green? The majority of BBQ’s use smelly, noxious lighter fluid that can seep into the food and can taint the delicious taste of any outdoor meal. The Hibachi charcoal grill is both a popular and cheap way to enjoy the long summer nights. Unfortunately with the messy charcoal and sooty smoke it is not exactly a friend to the environment or your lungs for that matter. Luckily, there are a few things you can do to ‘clean up’ when you BBQ.

If purchasing a BBQ your best bet is to choose propane or natural gas over electric or charcoal options. They are cleaner burning and more efficient. By switching from electricity to natural gas “you can reduce your costs by 50 percent, your primary energy consumption by 67 percent and your carbon emissions by 80 percent.” (Stoyke, The Carbon Buster’s Home Energy Handbook, 22)

If you cannot sacrifice the flavour of a charcoal BBQ, use lump charcoal instead of briquettes. Interestingly enough, charcoal is made from drying out scrap wood or sawdust in a kiln or dryer free with very little oxygen to create carbon or wood char. Lump charcoal is healthier, with few or none of the additives of charcoal briquettes, which contain the likes of sodium nitrates, borax, and other harmful toxins. Check with local specialty cooking stores like Edmonton-based Condon Barr for lump charcoal as well as wood chips and chunks that greatly enhance the flavour of any smoked or grilled dish.

Ecoholic columnist Adria Vasil recommends a BBQ grill made of cast iron or stainless steel because the standard BBQ that uses chrome-coated aluminum, chips easily, leaving you with a bare aluminum cooking surface: “Not good for the brain cells.” Instead of lighter fluid to start your blaze of glory, why not purchase an electric BBQ starter from your local Canadian Tire or Home Hardware store for $14.99.

Another greener option for the cooking enthusiast is the Big Green Egg or BGE to devotees. The big green egg, so called because of its oval shape, is made of a non-toxic porcelain glaze bonded to a ceramic making it fade resistant. Although heated by charcoal, it is simple to clean and can operate as a smoker, a grill, or even an oven. Condon Barr sells the popular Big Green Egg and I had the chance to talk to one of the salesmen to find out why the Big Green Egg is so popular.

Tyler Gibbs aka Eggmaster Extraordinaire gave me the low-down on the BGE. What makes the Big Green Egg such a big success, I wondered? “Once a month I do a demo on the pros of the Big Green Egg. Because it’s ceramic and well insulated, you can cook within 10 minutes of lighting it. It keeps the food moist and you can use it all winter long. There is a lifetime warranty to cracks and it won’t fade.” The Big Green Eggs rings in at $700- $1099.00, not including stands and tables.

These ceramic cookers are based on Japanese rice cookers called the Kamado (Japanese for stove). The heat is trapped in the thick clay walls while the dome lid keeps the food moist and delectable. Food is cooked with smoke that maintains its consistent temperature through vents located at the top and the bottom of the Kamado. The BGE uses less air and less charcoal than other barbeques all the while temperatures can climb to 500 degrees Celsius or 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. The Big Green Egg can be wood or charcoal powered which cuts your operating cost to 70% of what fossil fuel grills run on.

These are just a few ways to grill greener while soaking in the outdoors this summer. If BBQ-ing is not green enough for you, there is always the solar option to avoid burning fuels altogether.

4. Eco-cookware
Who knew that you can cook fast, delicious, and healthy meals in one-third of the time! I don’t know about you readers out there but this writer is always looking for ways to enjoy tasty meals with the shortest possible prep times. Is there really such a thing as healthy fast food? Pressure cooking provides a healthy solution to today’s time crunch and addresses the problem of the hungry consumer in wonderful and inventive ways. And, although it’s not an outdoor cooking gadget, it can be used on your BBQ side-burner or trucked along to your picnic site for use on your camp stove.

Pressure cookers even rival microwaves with a significant improvement in food quality. They can also save you some green, as with a pressure cooker at home there is little reason to eat out all the time. Traditional stoves use a considerable amount of energy, to the tune of 10% of the average home’s electricity consumption. Newer pressure cookers can trim a meal’s energy budget by 70%.

Aside from eating raw food, pressure cookers are one of the most convenient and cost-effective ways to save energy in the kitchen. And, their benefits don’t end at cost. Using pressure cookers can also cut cooking-related heat in your home, so your fans and air conditioners will get a bit of a breather. They also use less water than other cooking methods by trapping steam and hot air normally released through evaporation. Since pressure cooked options take about half the time of traditional oven dishes, you can eat meals usually reserved for Sunday dinner like roasts, steamed vegetables, and stews on a Wednesday after a long day of work.

For the “Mercedes-Benz of Pressure Cookers,” look no further than the Swiss Kuhn Rikon brand. This company offers the widest range of pressure cookers and high-end efficient cookware in the world, ranging in price from $169.00 to $379.00 USD. The Rikon brand also offers uniquely efficient Durotherm pots that double as serving dishes. Made from stainless steel, these pots boast a double lid, double wall design that trims energy use by up to 60 per cent. The thermally insulated pot continues to cook food even after the pot has been removed from the stove, which means less time spent in the kitchen and more time enjoying a meal with friends and family.

Other benefits include waterless cooking, where food is cooked in its own juices. This enhances flavour prevents the loss of essential nutrients and vitamins. Best of all, once removed from the stove the self-cooking action prevents food from burning, so even a culinary novice such as me can cook tasty meals without the fire extinguisher as a constant companion.

Condon Barr happens to carry the Spanish made Magnafesa pressure cooker -a fashionable, oven safe, dishwasher safe cookware with extra heavy duty thick capsule bottom for $280 Canadian. For more information call Condon Barr at (780) 454-0432. Or, the European Fagor pressure cooker available in Canada is just one model currently on the market for $124.99 Cdn. Of course there are many types of pressure cookers on the market and luckily, these time-savers are widely available at the Bay, Canadian Tire, and if you’re lucky at garage sales and thrift stores. Still intimidated to give it a try? Lorna J. Sass will hold your hand in ‘Recipes From an Ecological Kitchen’ as you experiment with dishes like Lemon-scented Asparagus Risoto and Gingered Acorn Squash.

5. Solar Food Dehydration
Someone recently asked me, “Why would you ever eat dried fruit if you could enjoy it fresh any day of the year?” It’s a tough question to answer, but the reasons are compelling. I’m not about to ask you to give up fresh produce, but when powered by the sun in your own backyard or balcony, dried food offers all the more appeal.

Above: Ron Berezan, The Urban Farmer explains how his backyard solar dehydrator works

Solar drying benefits quickly stack up on a number of accounts. It’s a favourite ancient method used to preserve food by removing moisture and preventing bacteria growth that leads to spoilage. Not only does solar dehydration prevent food waste, but it also sidesteps the need for fuels, and saves money because you don’t have to plug your dehydrator in.

Nor does dried food require refrigeration. Barbara Kerr, a pioneer in the field of solar cooking has found that “nutritionally, dried food is ranked by the United States Food and Drug Agency as better than canning, and just under freezing.” She states that the tastes are related to the food, but there is some uniqueness in their flavour and texture. (Whitfield)

An added bonus is that you can conveniently process your excess produce from your garden and fruit trees without overwhelming your fridge and freezer. Drying your own food or buying and drying locally also cuts down on transportation-related emissions from produce or commercial snack foods.

Solar drying works best in climates with low humidity or ideally below 60 percent. Like solar cookers, solar dehydrators use a reflective surface such as glass or aluminum foil to capture and trap the sun’s rays. Vents also improve the air flow and speed the drying process. All in all, the solar food dehydrator ranks as a top-notch green cuisine tool. Little else can beat pure dried fruit as an excellent healthy snack food to enhance a balanced diet rich in vitamins, minerals and fibre.

If you are in the market for a solar dehydrator, British Columbia’s Bosch Kitchen Centre at Healthy Kitchens.com sells a model for $249.50 CDN that comes with trays, screens, fruit leather sheets, a cookbook, and a year’s warranty. If you are not in BC, products can also be ordered online.

6. Dish Alternatives

Picnics, BBQ’s, block parties and camping are just four of the fabulous friendly get-togethers that make summer memorable. Paper or Styrofoam plates used to be the way to go as the no muss, no fuss solution to outdoor treats. However, if we have learned anything about being green, it’s that disposable products are not the best way to enjoy Mother Nature’s splendour. Of course bringing out Grandma’s china remains impractical. But don’t despair; portable picnic sets with plastic plates, cups, and cutlery are a handy light-weight bring-along option. Even plastic disposable plates and cups, rinsed and diverted to a recycling bin can ease the conscience somewhat. As host of a large outdoor party or BBQ, do your part to make it easy for guests to pitch in by providing a wash basin, recycling bin, and compost bucket with clear labels and instructions on what goes where.

If reusing or recycling remains unfeasible there are always greener disposable options as a last resort. Not only can you purchase 100% recycled content paper plates and tree-free dishes, but biodegradable and compostable dishes are showing up on store shelves around the country. Such products also make better green sense because they divert waste material from landfills and incinerators, provide viable markets for recycled waste, and keep trees standing by making use of faster growing crops like sugar cane, corn, and potatoes.

A biodegradable product naturally breaks down with the help of microorganisms. (i.e.: no human interference). Composting is a great solution for managing biodegradable waste as it enriches the soil. Compost amended soil is a plus because it boosts water and nutrient retention, making for happier flower beds all around. Not all biodegradable products take the same amount of time to break down. Earthware Biodegradables produces GMO- Free corn cutlery, a definite improvement over traditional petroleum-based plastic. The company’s products also meet U.S. government standards for biodegradation and can breakdown in as little as 45 days in a commercial composting outfit. The same goes for Stalk Market’s compostable dishware which can also break down in an effective home composter in about two months. But, it’s up to you to put these plates and eating implements where they belong in the compost bin or garden.

Being eco-friendly does not mean one has to live without aesthetics. For the dishware aficionados among us there are now dishes that appeal to our green sensibilities and the latent fashion designer within. One example is Papcom’s asymmetrical 50’s inspired plates that are made from bioplast, a biodegradable corn-based plastic. For no frills choices, Stalk Market has 100% sugar cane waste fibre compostable plates and bowls at $5.29/15 or $6/30, Recycling’s Preserve Line is a 100% recycled plastic product for $5.29/8, and both Ecoproducts.com and Biodegradablestore.com sell similar items in bulk quantities online. But even though availability through sources like those above is improving, keep asking your local natural foods stores to stock greener disposable options. Some of us need the options right in front of us to make greener choices.

In today’s market it’s a lot easier being green, so know your options and learn the facts. The trick is to become a conscious consumer, or better yet, choose reusable or home-made options. Whatever your reasons for green cooking, be they philosophical, ecological or physiological, if you try just one or two of these tips you could be on your way to a leaner, greener lifestyle. And remember, while the calendar may say September green cooking does not have to fade with the falling leaves. Outdoor cooking is an enduring adventure and should reconnect you to your family, your friends and the great outdoors.

References
Whitfield, D. E. Solar Dryer Systems and the Internet, important resources to improve food preparation

©Anne Clifford, 2007

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