Thursday, May 3, 2018
Food and Fire
Just some neat pictures I took while cooking last night's diner . . .
. . . on a Swedish Candle
a twelve inch log with five chainsaw cuts run lengthwise
I was rushing things . . .
. . . but it was getting late and we were hungry .
The thing really puts out some serious heat .
if I were to guess the pan was probably around 700 deg F
here is what it all looks like with flash
The smoke is from the pan , not the fire .
This was what it looked like when I started . An eighteen inch long log , twelve inches in diameter . Five chainsaw cuts run lengthwise three quarters of the way down . Drove three spikes in it to set the pan on . Stuffed some newspaper in the cuts and lit it with my propane torch . This was my first try at doing one and there is a learning curve. Should have given myself more time and started earlier. As I was in a bit of a rush and was less than careful, got smoke in my eyes at just the wrong moment and did manage to splash myself with some grease when I dropped the second steak in . Spent the night holding an ice bag . Lessons learned . Start the thing an hour before you want to cook so the flames have a chance to die down a bit before putting the pan on . A twelve inch diameter log is probably more than needed . Eight inch would be more than plenty .
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Despite the understandble errors, I believe it was an interesting and profitable experience.
ReplyDeleteSecond time around we will make some improvements to the process.
DeleteI have never seen, nor heard of, a Swedish candle. Looks like it makes a lot of sense to me. When I cook with cast iron, it's usually over a bed of coals on a tripod, or a very low setting on the propane range. Looks like it worked out ok for you even though that frying pan must have gotten extremely hot.
ReplyDeleteI said this was my first try doing this and there was a bit of a learning curve to the process. Overall it worked out well. It did get awful hot. Essentially it is a rocket stove and operates on the same principle. Next time I will use a smaller diameter log. The Swedes working in the woods in winter came up with the idea. They call it a "Solva Stove". Cut down a dead dry tree, make four or five vertical cuts in the remaining stump and light it off. It keeps things out of the snow and gives you a solid base to cook on. It is a very efficient use of fire wood.
DeleteI am impressed with your Swedish candle. I'm always experimenting with alternative ways to cook. We have a rocket stove, volcano cooker, solar oven, wonder bag, Weber grill, etc. We also have lots of trees so I am tempted to try this on a cold day. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteHi Janet, it was an experiment and there was a bit of a learning curve to it. But it is easy to do. Google around for more tips on it. I am told Solva Stove is what Swedes call it. It effectively uses the same principle as a rocket stove taking advantage of a chimney draft to add oxygen to the fire and make it burn hotter. But when I do ti again I'll use a smaller log. The one I did provided too much fuel and burned way too hot. Though it would be ideal for a stir fry in a wok. A smaller diameter log in the six inch range would be sufficient for most regular cooking. Give it a try, it was good fun.
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