Trevor Reichman
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Some friends of mine recently showed me how to make a simple solar oven from a car shade and the Sun.
I was hopeful and skeptical at the same time, until I cooked a frozen pizza an about 20 minutes.
The crust wasn't exactly burned at the edges as I like it, but the cheese was fully melted and like any other pizza right out of the oven, I had to wait for it to cool down so as to not burn the roof of my mouth.
SolarCooking.org provides detailed instructions on how to make one of these simple solar ovens. In their version, Velcro was used to created a more sturdy funnel that could handle a bit of wind and gravity by also being positioned into a bucket. A turkey oven bag also helps to keep the heat in the food from escaping.
While this design is billed as an emergency solution for distilling water in settings where clean water is not available, it can be used in less dire circumstances, such as camping, backyard fun, or for cooking pizza, rice, stew, and much more.
There are many more designs out there.
Using a solar oven in the summertime helps to keep the heat outside where it belongs.
Want to read more about living off the grid? Check out these articles:
Generating Off-Grid Power: The Four Best Ways
Is Living Off the Grid Right For You?
What Do Off Grid Homes Look Like? Here are 5 Examples
Solar Baby Steps: Take One Room Off-Grid
Off-Grid Media Players
And don't forget about Planet Green's "Off the Grid" section.
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