Outdoor Wood-Fire Cooking ~ Proverbs 31 Preparedness Series {Repost Showing Pictures!}

"Nobody knows what will happen," Pa said. "Prepare for the worst and then you've some grounds to hope for the best, that's all you can do."

~ Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little Town on the Prairie

*** NOTE: We interrupt our little blog break to share a re-post! When I was away for the summer, a friend prepared this wonderful and resourceful article for our readers. Unfortunately, the pictures did not show up when it posted and all her hard work was left in shambles. Happily, we were able to rectify the situation when I returned and I am very pleased to share this post in it's full glory! :) ***

Welcome to another edition of our Proverbs 31 Preparedness Series! One important aspect of preparedness is knowing how to feed your family creatively without electricity and gas should the need ever arise. The neat part about this is that it can be practiced now and it may even be quite enjoyable to have these little outdoor cooking excursions. What better fun is a campout in your own backyard? A friend from Down Under does this often and so I asked her to share some of her outdoor wood-fire cooking experiences with us! Without further adieu, may I present (in her own words and photographs) some practical information and inspiration by the kind Rachel Holt of Australia -- (I can just imagine her sweet Aussie accent as I read this!):

'Little Green Lemon Jam'! It's gently flavoursome, and can be cooked and preserved - via hot water bath - using the heat of, mainly, sticks on a simple outdoor fire! 

Allow me to escort you through the beauty of basic outdoor woodfired cooking. I will show you the simple set-up in use at our place, along with instructions for beginners. Further, I'd like to explore cooking possibilities, and push the boundaries in regards to making practical use of the energy produced by an outdoor woodfire.

Now, let's begin by finding any camping gear, tucked away, that may be suitable for outdoor woodfired cooking! I have had this little stainless steel, lidded cooking set for years, and it is the smallest piece that cooks the fastest! They are wonderful for frying eggs, making any variation of French toast, steam-roasting pumpkin for inclusion in pumpkin bread, cooking the minced/ground beef for a 'steak sandwich', and making gravy and sauces. They do bend temporarily with high heat, but are otherwise durable and easy to care for. (That is a jar of my 'baking berries' shown. Actually, I have many jars of them! They are mulberries, cooked last year on our outdoor woodfire. There they were sweetened a little, and thickened with what we Australians call cornflour. Maybe Americans call it corn starch? Once ladled into jars, they were then hot water bathed in an olive oil can over a gas flame, for convenience. Take a look at this batch...)

I have also kept a stainless steel billy can for many years. It has a small insert which sits in the top, and the billy can thus be used as a double boiler. I like to make a small quantity of cheese sauce using the insert on its own. You will see this billy soon!

Further, I have my long-time 'Eco Billy'. Here it is... Since it runs on leaves and sticks, it also fits into the outdoor woodfired cooking theme, and it is very useful for heating water as a contained fire!

Now let me introduce you to our basic outdoor woodfired cooking set-up...

Dad found this old cast iron barbecue plate. Although we do not barbecue on it, the cast iron makes it ideal for conducting heat through to the cooking! If one is interested in making good use of the heat from even a small wood fire, the lesson of cast iron is a good one to learn. This is a 'making do' set-up, using old steel fence pickets for the frame. Options are numerous. Just don't use river rocks that, I have read, can explode!

Beginners can see that it is important to BUILD a fire. Starting with newspaper, loosely scrunched, fine kindling is used first, with gradually larger sticks being added. So as not to smother the flame, sticks are placed in one direction for the first layer, then across the first sticks for the second layer. Alternatively, a tipi shape can be built! Most of my outdoor woodfired cooking is done using just large sticks. This we call 'quick heat'!

Here is my current work table. It shows two of my most important cooking tools - the camping handle for lifting hot cups, plates (cum lids) and camping cook wear; and egg rings - for sitting cooking pots on for slow cooking! The nylon egg lifter is for use with enamelled cast iron ware, to prevent damage to the enamelled surface.

Trees are useful for hanging dry towels/oven mitts for lifting hot pots, and for holding a wooden spoon!

In 'make do' style, I will be using odd pieces of sheet metal for wind protection around the sides of the cast iron plate. At one stage, a rather rugged piece will serve as a lid. This is the Aussie way!!

Now let's cook a hearty outdoor woodfired meal, and, for those new to cast iron, I will introduce you to French ovens - which are enamelled variations of Dutch ovens, and wonderful for picking up heat, even that from a weak fire!

Here is our hearty stew, the minced/ground beef hidden under an assortment of flavoursome vegetables and herbs. The thing is not to shock cast iron with extreme changes in temperature. In this case, the cold French oven will begin on the cold barbecue plate. This is good. Having water or oil/butter inside also helps balance the temperature of the pot. Alternatively, if the fire is already going, I would first sit the French oven on egg rings, over a cooler part of the fire, for a few minutes or until the French oven is hot and ready to sit down on the cooking surface.

Once steam is being released from under the lid, the French oven is ready to go into slower cooking mode - that is, up on egg rings*. This stew takes only twenty minutes to cook, after which time it is nice to add herb dumplings (I used fresh basil) to cook. Finally, the stew is thickened with a mixture of cornflour/corn starch and water.

*Note from JES: U.S. readers can use canning rings for the same result! :)

The stew can be served on toast, made by placing bread across egg rings over a considerably hot part of the cooking plate, like this...

Now, French ovens are an investment, which we afforded over a decade by buying at sales of at least forty percent reduction in price. These days, online purchases offer considerable value. Le Creuset is the first brand of French oven we bought. They are quality ovens, and do a wonderful job. Food tastes so much better cooked this way. Mind you, the old orange Le Creuset shown below is responsible for extra wonderful flavour, on account of the steam vent in the lid! (There's the billy can!!)

It cooked these potatoes to serve with pre-cooked meat and gravy made from Aussie Mite!

This red multi-function pot is also a Le Creuset, and very useful!

Chasseur is the second brand of French oven we bought. This gave better value for money. They use thicker cast iron, and are ahead in the aesthetics! The large, white French oven that I use for preserves is a Chasseur. (Just in case you're wondering, I found a recipe which calls for cooking the lemons whole to start a marmalade. I made my own version!)

Then there is the Staub French oven. It was an online purchase, and a good buy. It has a painted matte inside surface, with dimples under the lid to promote self-basting. I cook meat in this - roasts, corned beef, .... Apart from minced/ground beef, I tend to slow cook all meat in cast iron, even if it's a couple of lamb chops cooking in the steam on top of a winter barley soup. This way, the meat falls off the bone, and gelatine and nutrients collect in the meal being cooked! It is nutritious!

My outdoor woodfired cooking utilises a variety of other bits and pieces, too, and they each have their place.

An old oven rack, or cooling rack, makes wonderful 'tiger toast'!...

A kettle and tea strainer afford my husband his brew of tea, just as he likes it!!

An old aluminium saucepan, with only an inch of olive or rice bran oil can make superb hot potato chips! This way, once the oil is at 100 degrees Celsius/212 degrees Fahrenheit, the potato is added, and kept at this temperature until soft.

The oil bubbles up to cover the potato! 

I have found that I can then crisp up the potato by placing the saucepan directly onto the hot ashes (not coals!!)...

and they can crisp up into beautiful, sweet, roasted chips (at a reading of only 117 degrees Celsius/243 degrees Fahrenheit).

An olive oil can may contain simmering kitchen cloths...

...while an old-fashioned flat iron can be quite useful!

Even an op shop* sheepskin is proving useful. If I bring my billy of brown rice and water to steam, and then remove the billy from the fire and wrap it in a single layer of sheepskin, it will be beautifully cooked when I unwrap it a few hours later!

I intend to make an insulated billy bag for this purpose, using this sheepskin! This is what my trial looked like!....

*Note to U.S. Readers from JES: I believe an "op shop" is a second hand store. 

Now, what about cooking with the hot ashes? There are potatoes in their jackets (these ones were cooked indoors)...

I've tried breads, and am still working on that! A few hot ashes, and leaving overnight... gave these - the ones on the left of the pumpkin bread!...

Today, due to a delay, I had over-risen dough to work with. After time on the hot ashes, I had this light, dumpling-like... er... not what I had been aiming for!! It was supposed to be a plain artisan loaf, flanked by scrolls of 'little green lemon jam'.

But wait!! If I turn this over-risen dumpling up-side-down, I have this!... I find it delicious, and cut off the photo where I had tasted a bit! Yum!!

So, my dear readers, whilst outdoor woodfire cooking is a versatile occupation, it also requires that we be versatile users! Really, while the whole process is basic (even if challenging!), it is a wonderful option for beginners and experienced woodfire cooks, alike. I have shown you a little of my outdoor woodfired cooking world, and different ways in which I push boundaries to get more beauty from an outdoor wood-fire.

My woodfired cooking now moves indoors for the winter, where I can make another batch of beautiful 'little green lemon jam', and relish the efficiency of a sealed firebox!

Thank you Rachel for the variety of ideas and inspiration! There is much "food for thought" here!

Your homework for the month:

• Prepare dinner outdoors a few nights each month (or more!) and see what you can make without using electricity and gas (i.e., without using your modern stove). 

Extra Credit:

• Make up a few outdoor meal menus that your family would enjoy and add it to your Proverbs 31 Preparedness Binder. Make sure the ingredients you use are basic ones found in the pantry and/or garden in order to practice preparedness more honestly.

All the fine print. This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, Awesome Life Friday Link Up and Create, Bake, Grow & Gather. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. This post may contain affiliate links (which are merchant links that help to support this site at no additional cost to you if you purchase an item through them).

Power Outages, Generator Safety, Carbon Monoxide ~ Proverbs 31 Preparedness Series

“All things are ready, if our mind be so.” 

~ William Shakespeare

Welcome to the next installment of our Proverbs 31 Preparedness Series which involves power outages, generator safety and carbon monoxide. Though these aren't my favorite topics to write on, they are still quite important to the keeper of the home. I know this isn't as exciting as filling our pantry shelves or foraging for free food but it must be covered as this information can save lives!

The State of Washington once again provides an excellent 2-page printable which covers the "general" information for these topics. I have included excerpts here for your perusal. I do appreciate all these tips but must be honest in saying that I would use a candle or oil lamp if necessary (which is contrary to their advice). People have been lighting their homes for years with candles. As common sense in safety is being abandoned by many these days, it doesn't make a certain practice inappropriate for everyone! This is just my way of thinking at least...

Additional Information: If the electricity does go off and it looks like it will take awhile before it returns (access the situation), you will want to use the perishable food in your refrigerator and garden first. Once that it accomplished and you STILL do not have power, FEMA then suggests to "use the foods from the freezer. To limit the number of times you open the freezer door, post a list of freezer contents on it. In a well-filled, well-insulated freezer, foods will usually still have ice crystals in their centers (meaning foods are safe to eat) for at least two days. Check to make sure the seal on your freezer door is still in good condition. FINALLY... Begin to use non-perishable foods and staples."

For preparedness ideas on how to cook without power, visit here!

For ideas on how to light your home without power, visit here! 

I felt the generator safety information to be very helpful as our home is set up with a power switch transfer in the case of a power outage. 

And finally, an excerpt on carbon monoxide poisoning prevention. This is a very serious subject and should be reviewed by everyone. Do you have anything else to add regarding these topics? 

Your homework for the month:

• Read through the complete publication on power outages, generator safety and carbon monoxide (it is just a quick 2-pages). Knowledge and awareness is an integral part of preparedness and an important way we homemakers can protect our homes!

Extra Credit:

• Print out the 2-page printable and add it to your Proverbs 31 Preparedness Binder.

All the fine print. This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, Awesome Life Friday Link Up and Create, Bake, Grow & Gather. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. This post may contain affiliate links (which are merchant links that help to support this site at no additional cost to you if you purchase an item through them).

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Alternative Lighting Options ~ Proverbs 31 Preparedness Series

“If only I had some grease I could fix some kind of a light," Ma considered. "We didn't lack for light when I was a girl before this newfangled kerosene was ever heard of."

"That's so," said Pa. "These times are too progressive. Everything has changed too fast. Railroads and telegraph and kerosene and coal stoves--they're good things to have, but the trouble is, folks get to depend on 'em.”

~ Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Long Winter

Pa and Ma were quite right! The minute we lose our electricity at night, we are all scrambling about and make a good episode of the Keystone Cops. Loss of power is a very common thing in our area and depending on where you live, you may face it more often than most. Today I would like to discuss alternative lighting options as a part of our practical Proverbs 31 Preparedness Series. 

"Lighting is so critical to our sense of well-being in a crisis. Being unable to see creates a great feeling of vulnerability. Light a lantern during a power outage and you can feel calm settle over the room."

~ Kathy Harrison, Just in Case: How to Be Self-Sufficient When the Unexpected Happens 

There are many lighting methods that you can choose from. We are opting for the most practical and least-expensive options. We do have a generator now and technically, we are covered when it comes to lighting. However, for short periods of time (or the few moments until we get it running), we have solar powered flash lights that always work as they are always being charged by the sun in our sunroom. We also have battery operated headlamps which are convenient when walking out onto the homestead to check up on things and do quick fixes. For indoor lighting, our back-up plan had always been candles. However, not much can be done with candlelight and you are limited. I love what a friend from Australia had shared about a homemade oil lamp they created. This can be made easily and the fuel is simply cooking oil from your pantry (she graciously shares her tutorial further down below).

Photo Courtesy of The Little Houston the Prairie Museum

Here are some of the basic lighting options available and the pros and cons of each. I have also consulted the book, Just in Case: How to Be Self-Sufficient When the Unexpected Happens for further insight. You can choose the system that will work with your budget and your needs. I would recommend a stable light source in the home as well as some sort of flashlight/headlamp for everyone in the family for a convenient portable light.

• Head lamps - These are great for outdoor choring in the night and allow you the complete use of your hands which is very handy on the farm. You can even prepare a meal in the dark with one of these in the kitchen. The downside is you need to keep the batteries stocked. 

• Flashlights - These are great for outdoor use and minor indoor use but the downside of most models are batteries. We purchase solar flashlights inexpensively to remedy this. Though the light output isn't that strong, they do get the job done and are always charged.

• Kerosene lamps (aka Hurricane lamps) - These give off a moderate level of amber light but unfortunately give off an odor that bothers some people (especially those suffering from asthma). You will need to store extra wicks and fuel for these lamps and be careful as the fuel is highly flammable. Kerosene lamps are a good and inexpensive short term option. Placing a mirror behind the lamp will enhance the light. Some of these are nice looking enough to keep out conveniently as part of your decor. 

• Hand-cranked lantern/flashlights - These types of light options are run by hand and will provide about an hour of light per every minute of hand-cranking. They do not provide as much light as the kerosene lanterns but they are handy since they don't require additional supplies and are safe for children. I personally do not have any experience with these.

• Aladdin lamps - According to Kathy Harrison (author of Just in Case: How to Be Self-Sufficient When the Unexpected Happens), these are the Cadillacs of non-electric lamps with no odor or noise.  Unfortunately, they are on the expensive side. I personally do not have any experience with these but I love the old fashioned look to them. Perhaps I will find a few second-hand one day...

• Candles - Candle light is quite dim but it will light the way in a home to make it somewhat bearable. However, you can't play a game, read a book, etc. by them. It may be difficult to prepare a dinner with just candlelight also but it can be done if you have quite a few lit and that is all you have in your budget. For safety reasons, please don't leave a candle on unattended. 

• Solar landscaping lights - These can be charging outside during the day as a part of your landscaping and brought inside at night to illuminate your home during a power outage. I think this is a really neat idea though I am not sure how bright they would be.

• DIY oil lamp - You can make your own oil lamp with a few frugal ingredients! Rachel Holt from Australia shares her tutorial and pictures with us. I hope you enjoy the information! I am going to put together a few of these for every room in our home. This is a better solution to candlelight which is what my back up was before. She says it puts out enough light for her to knit by and you may even be able to read by it. 

Note: By placing a mirror behind many of these items, you will be able to enhance the light output.

Photos of the "DIY Oil Lamp" Kindly Provided by Rachel Holt of Australia

DIY Oil Lamp with Designer Floating Wick by Rachel Holt (and Husband)

Tutorial below shared (in her own words) by Rachel Holt of Australia --

"I am aiming, here, to describe how to make a simple oil lamp with a floating wick. This is the type of oil lamp that lights our home at night.

Firstly, the lamp part is very easy. This is just a glass jar holding oil. If one wants a very large flame, then a heat resistant preserving jar is required. We currently use a small, squat honey jar. It warms slowly, and the heat escapes directly upwards, so it is suitable for a modest size flame. Olive oil (even recycled from cooking) works really well and doesn't smoke. It is cheaper than candles (even cheaper than Chinese tea candles). We have also used sunflower oil. It tends to smoke with a larger flame, and is much, much cheaper again than olive oil.

I learnt about wick making from a rough description on the internet. It looks like I've lost the link to that! Anyway, my best wicks are made using this rough description to treat the plaited cord that I make using nine strands of knitting cotton. Cotton or linen fabric can also be used. I have not yet made a fabric wick as good as the knitting cotton cord. The plaited wick then needs to be covered with boiling water - enough to wet it. Then cover the wet wick with fine sea salt and stir/jiggle. (I find that not all of the salt dissolves in the water.) Then, a smaller amount of borax is added and stirred/jiggled. I let the wick soak for a while before wringing it out and hanging it up to dry. That's the wick. In my experience, using salt only will still work. Using only borax will not work. Borax just makes the wick burn longer and brighter. (Harpers Borax has some information.) Next time used, we pinch the burnt black end off the top with our fingers, and pull the wick through a bit more. Having the top of the wick 6mm/quarter inch above the floating cap is good. Increase the height for a taller flame. Have a wider wick for a wider flame. Reduce the height to eliminate light smoke. Having the wick dangling on the bottom of the jar can affect level floating. To avoid excess cutting of the wick, a taller jar is useful. Topping up the oil before lighting floats the wick higher and enables easier lighting of the wick. 

Now for the floating wick which moves down with oil use. This floats on the oil. The beauty of it is that the wick falls with the oil level and rises when oil is added, so the wick does not need height adjusting and can easily burn all night. This is my husband's clever design which addresses the wick problem. Firstly, a cork is used as the floater - since it floats and only burns poorly. It is placed within an aluminium wine bottle screw cap lid which further protects the cork. A well fitting cork is best. Otherwise, if there is sideways movement of the cork within the lid, then it should be packed securely - at three equidistant points for balance - with bits of matchstick or cardboard or sticks (which can cause air locks under the lid cap so that it lists sideways. Tiny 1mm drill holes, three of them, above these air traps enable this air to escape so the floating wick levels itself. Problem solved. More on this later to reiterate.) 

With the cork secure within the wine bottle lid, drill a 5/32 inch hole vertically through the centre point of the lid with cork. This holds the wick nicely for the plaited wick we use. By way of reiteration of that mentioned in brackets above, there is just that one problem to eliminate. To prevent the floater listing over with air bubbles (& being swamped with oil), three tiny 1mm equidistant holes need to be drilled through the LID TOP ONLY - in the airlock spaces between the packing sticks, if they were required. The floater is ready for the wick.

Thread the wick. After dunking the wick end in oil first, thread it through the drill hole, cork side first, up through the lid with a twisting motion. With the loose fitting packed corks, never pull the wick downwards - only upwards. Set the wick afloat in the oil (drop it in levelly). Light the oil lamp, which can take a few seconds to light. Don't burn your fingers. Back off and try again if it does not light quickly enough. It will burn all night.

Lo and behold! You should have a simple, beautiful oil lamp to shine through the night!! Good night all."

(The photo below shows the amount of oil used overnight! This lamp is running on sunflower oil.)

I thank the Holt family for graciously sharing this useful tutorial today with our readers! I think this homemade oil lamp is wonderful!

Do you have any lighting strategies you would like to add? I am in no way an expert in this area, but am sharing what is workable for my family (and on our budget) and what I have gleaned from Just in Case: How to Be Self-Sufficient When the Unexpected Happens.

Your homework for the week:

• Do you have a back-up lighting system for your home? If not, adopt a plan and follow up when the funds allow. For those with very meager resources and time, I would encourage inexpensive candles. We used these for many years and found that we just went to sleep a bit earlier when there wasn't much to see! :) Or better yet, make up a few of Rachel's oil lamps in advance and store them in your pantry. Use them a few times before a power outage to make sure they function properly. This is also a very inexpensive option and is more self-sustaining than the candles (since cooking oil is a staple in the pantry and you can continue to refill this little lamp as opposed to candles that have a one-time use).

All the fine print. This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, The Homesteader Hop, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, and Shabbilicious Friday. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. This post may contain affiliate links (which are merchant links that help to support this site at no additional cost to you if you purchase an item through them). 

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