The Fireless Cooker; How to Make It, How to Use It, What to Cook

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1908. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... Cooking Utensils The ingenious woman can adapt the utensils in her pantry to the new uses required by this method of cookery. Porcelain, granite-ware, aluminum, crockery, and stone-ware are all excellent. Tin rusts and should be avoided in steaming. However, tin pans or lids already on hand may be safely used if coated with clear drippings or cottolene and baked. This will darken the tin but not injure it and will prolong its usefulness. The most serious problem is to secure tight, non-rusting lids. Aluminum covers are already to be obtained in the large cities. Granite jelly pans and pie pans make excellent covers, because they do not rust, and have no hole in the center. Every hole invites defeat. But the ideal cover fits down in an inch or more, or over on the outside as much, and must not be of tin. Stone jars are quite perfect because they hold heat so well. With care they may be used instead of kettles over a flame. It is a good plan to have three or four pans, varying in depth, which fit into and upon the big steaming kettles. These pans may hold vegetables, fruits, escalloped foods and puddings, double boiler fashion, with a hot pan or the hot lid of the kettle for a cover; and if the food is to brown, a hot soapstone griddle should be placed above it. Casseroles and other tasteful forms of baking dishes, and brown ware for steaming and baking puddings and escalloped foods, suitable to be placed on the dining table, may be used since they are not in danger of cracking from too intense heat. A saving in the number of dishes used may thus be effected. A sheet iron or granite roaster with its own cover is invaluable for roasting in the insulated oven. Heat it and its contents and cover while it is over the flame, and then lock it in the oven with s...