camp-kitchens-msg - 1/21/08 Ideas and comments about camp kitchens for SCA use. NOTE: See also these files: camp-showers-msg, camping-ideas-msg, p-kitchens-msg, p-tableware-msg, utensils-msg, iron-pot-care-msg, Eatng-Pennsic-art, P-Food-Safety-art. ************************************************************************ NOTICE - This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday. This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter. The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors. Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s). Thank you, Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous Stefan at florilegium.org ************************************************************************ From: hrjones at uclink.berkeley.edu (Heather Rose Jones) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: camp kitchen design help? Date: 1 May 1998 01:40:32 GMT Organization: University of California, Berkeley eburhard at hotmail.com wrote: : I'm trying to re-design my household's camp-kitchen. : I would like some advise from others who have improved their own : camp-kitchens. : What works? What to avoid? Having gone through three or four complete overhauls of my camp kitchen in the last twenty years in the quest for the perfect balance of utility, authenticity, packability, and esthetics, I have a few conditional suggestions. A great deal of how you balance the trade-offs depends on how often, and in what circumstances, you'll be using the set-up, and how much storage and transportation space you have. Needless to say, the person who only does camp-cooking at Pennsic -- and that for a 20-person household -- is going to be interested in a different set-up than the person who goes to two one-weekend events every month and/or cooks for a household of six. My experiences should be taken with the understanding that I am an avid cook (I _enjoy_ slaving over a hot fire for half a day as long as the diners appreciate the effort) and enjoy cooking, not only authentic dishes, but even using authentic methods (when possible), and that I fall in the "camp-cooking often for a small-to-medium number of people and a compact car" category. From the viewpoint of utility (i.e., actual on-site interaction), my experience is to strive for a kitchen that you _could_ cook in every day of your life, if necessary. That is, include the sorts of staples, spices, and non-perishable ingredients that you would normally expect to have on hand (with allowance for your degree of interest in period cooking). Have the assortment of pots and pans of the types and sizes that you find yourself using (or wishing you had) most often, and go for the same cookware _materials_ that you're comfortable with. Cooking with an aluminum backpacking pot is very different from a well-seasoned iron one, and if you're used to the latter, you'll find the former frustrating. Try to avoid putting yourself in the position of discovering that you don't have essential ingredients for something you either planned -- or decided on a whim -- to cook. Always have enough staples that you can throw together an extra meal -- or stretch one for extra people. Particularly if you are a frequent camper, strive to have a complete and separate camp-kitchen from your regular kitchen. Avoid being in the position of rummaging through your cupboards trying to remember what to pack. Minimize the amount of last-minute remembering you have to do. Still on the utility topic, but merging into the packability one, plan your gear and packing for a minimum of set-up. That is, try to store and transport your equipment and supplies in the containers you will be working out of in camp. Avoid having to rearrange things significantly for either setting up or taking down camp. This will save frayed nerves. Continuing on the packability topic, avoid large, unwieldy storage boxes. Remember, not only do you have to lug them from car to camp etc., but the larger the storage box, the more stuff you'll have to shift around to get at what you need. From the point of view of authenticity and esthetics, take a look at types of medieval kitchen and dining-hall furniture that you could use or adapt for a camp-kitchen. When I next remodel mine, I'm looking at something along the lines of a 15th century sideboard-cupboard, but constructed modularly, with a table-like base, several tiers of (separable-for-packing) cabinets, and racks for dishes on top. Earlier medieval cupboards could be treated similarly, with the only anachronism being a sectional design for easier transport and storage. And there's always the kitchen table with the ground-length tablecloth for keeping things out of sight. Anyway, just some random thoughts -- how well they apply depends on your own particular situation. Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn From: "flskwirl at mcn.org" Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: camp kitchen design help? Date: Thu, 30 Apr 1998 20:26:31 -0700 Ron Charlotte wrote: > On Tue, 28 Apr 1998 13:08:21 -0600, eburhard at hotmail.com wrote: > > >I'm trying to re-design my household's camp-kitchen. > >I would like some advise from others who have improved their own > >camp-kitchens. > >What works? What to avoid? > > I'm not clear on just _which_ design elements you're most concerned > with. A lot depends on your heat source. I can reccomned sturdy > wooden boxes to pack it in, and also double as low tables. > > Avoid modern "non stick" coatings. They just don't last. _Someone > will_ forget and use the wrong tools on them. Go with cast iron or > stainless. > -- > al Thaalibi ---- An Crosaire, Trimaris > Ron Charlotte -- Gainesville, FL We use two cast iron skillets, one large pan, and a medium one. A two-burner LARGE stove, not a small Coleman, making coffee takes forever. For good measure, a propane fridge :) and the kitchen sink. It may not be Period, but camping is MUCH easier if you use plastic and paper. Plan stuff that can be cooked in a max of two pots: spaghetti, stew, stif-fry, chicken soup. Oriana From: DDFr at best.com (David Friedman) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: camp kitchen design help? Date: Thu, 30 Apr 1998 23:11:49 -0700 Organization: Santa Clara University Things we find useful for Pennsic are: A tripod, with chain and S hooks A trivet (i.e. three legged iron thing to put pots on, with legs about a foot or a little less loong. Cast iron frying pans Cast iron pots ("Dutch Ovens" roughly). An iron pot lifter. We also have a set of take apart shelves that are useful to put stuff on. Also a large black cloth bag to fit a plastic trash bag inside of, out of sight. You will also want something big enough to wash dishes in. David/Cariadoc -- David Friedman DDFr at Best.com http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 21:36:11 EST From: Mordonna22 at aol.com Subject: Re: SC - Questions for the list... Deborah.Schumacher at iac.honeywell.com writes: > 2.One of the site restrictions is no ground fires. On of the classes being > held is Adapting Period Recipes for Open Fire/Dutch Oven Cooking. Any idea > how this can be done with out violating the no ground fires rule? It's not period, but the cheap and easy solution our household came up with was a fifty-five gallon drum. We cut it in half vertically, forming two semi-cylinders. Added angle iron for framing and legs. Bought some commercial grade metal food quality shelving, second hand, for grills. Drilled a hole about 2 1/2 inches in diameter near the bottom of one end of each half. Voila! Two ready made fire pits, off the ground, at a handy height for the cook, and they dismantle easily for transport. Mordonna DuBois Warrior Haven Atenveldt Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 22:04:58 EST From: Mordonna22 at aol.com Subject: SC - fire pit alternatives Another alternative to the no-ground-fire rules I have seen in use often is the liner drum from a discarded automatic clothes washer. Seems to satisfy the safety marshals, anyway. Mordonna (trying to type with the future King of Aten helping) Date: Sun, 21 Mar 1999 12:08:40 -0500 From: Marilyn Traber Subject: SC - cheap camp cooking for pennsic I find what is the best investment for a prolonged encampment for cooking is to invest in a 17 litre box of red and white wines for cooking, the price is a bit better, and you dont have to worry about transporting glass bottles! I choose a wine that I would normally drink, because like Ras, I will not cook with inferior ingredients, and if I wouldn't drink it in the first place, why would I want it in my kitchen? right now, i am out of red, but the white is an inglenook chablis, and the red we had last was a gallo mountain burgundy. granted, I will [when i indulge in alcohol] tend to drink a nice german cabinet with dessert, I will serve my cooking wine without a qualm. I also like to make hearty dishes like the lentils and rice, or a nice green pea[ok, made with splits, because that is what i can get cheaply in bulk at my local store] as the smoked ham hocks dont require much in the way of cold storeage and i add bits of chopped sopresata as well; if i splurge i like to make bukenade[beef and pork stewed in red wine, more or less] and beef y-stewed and good hearty stuff like that. I will admit to serving the pensic 25 queen of trimaris shrimp alfredo an capellini, however! I find that though oop in ingredients, the boxes of beans labeled either minestrone or 12 bean soup combined with dry pasta, and sopresata and a dollop of beef glaze is wonderful in a nippy evening! margali Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1999 12:36:33 -0700 From: Librarian Subject: SC - You need to know this! Hallo folks! No, I have not "re-enlisted". I think of you folks fondly, and often, however. Life is so frantic (can you say "grantwriter"), that I can't possibly give the list the attention it deserves, much as I am salivating to do so. However, I ran across this tid-bit and thought some of you could use this knowledge for greater Pennsic Kitchen good. A traveling cooking teacher from Penn State has assembled a list of essentials that can be easily assembled and compactly carted ( she uses public transport, so it MUST be compact!). For a $1.00 check or money order, you can get this packing guide. Send the check to: Publications Distribution Center, Penn State University, 112FC AG Administration Bldg., University Park PA 16802. Ask for 'The Portable Kitchen Assembly Guide' by Jan Scholl. The guide is actually free, the $1.00 is for postage and handling. It includes line-drawing packing sequence diagrams. [NOTE - 4/21/07 - This periodical, 'The Portable Kitchen Assembly Guide', is available free online and doesn't need to be sent for; http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/freepubs/pdfs/ui360.pdf has a copy. sent in by Eydís Gunnarsdottir] I am not sure how this works out for "period" kitchens, as mine is evolving into, but it seems too handy to pass up for a buck! This tid-bit comes to you courtesy of the May 11, 1999 Family Circle Magazine. Aoife the harried librarian Dame Aoife Finn Barony of the Endless Hills (NE Pa) Aethelmearc Date: Mon, 19 Apr 1999 10:04:08 -0400 From: Christine A Seelye-King Subject: Re: SC - SC-Coleman Fantasy Kitchen > Hey now, I'm on my way to Fool's War this weekend, and my Coleman >Kitchen sink is already packed (along with the Coleman Oven, lamps, >stoves, and the gas grill) - all part of the "Coleman Fantasy Kitchen". > Christianna >> > >Ah, the Coleman Fantasy Kitchen. We all know a certain Duke, Sir is >gonna have a fit on this issue, but I have to admit loving mine for Great >Northeastern War where we camp a large household with no running >water on site and no fast food in easy distance. We were just talking about what to do to make the kitchen fit in with our increasingly period encampment. I have seen (last year a Pennsic, in the form of a wedding present) a wonderful wrought iron camp cooking set up, with hooks, shelves, spits, etc., enough to feed an entire household from. However, I have cooked over open fires, and have come home exhausted, smokey, and with bronchitis for the pleasure. I am capable of doing the living history, (and enjoy a fire more than most people), but I really don't want to sacrifice my dishwashing facilities and clean propane gas as a cooking source. What we came up with last night might just work, though. We have steel framed pavillions that are basically interchangeable in parts, so we have walls and tops that go with many different arrangements. We have screen walls that can either hang from a separate 10x10, or, from 1/2 of our 10x20. Taking a cue from my theatre days, I suggested painting the sceen like a scrim, and putting a brick walled pattern on it. We have pictures of the ovens from Castle Gydweli in Wales, and we could add an oven, maybe even green plants from chinks in the rocks, etc. That way, we have the most compact, sanitary kitchen we can manage in camp, and still maintain the period look. Oh, and the newest addition to the Coleman Fantasy Kitchen, a 'tree' that hooks onto a large propane tank, with two outlets for hoses to run to different appliances (stove and grill) and a place on the top to put a gas lantern, for light while cooking! We bought that at the new store we have discovered "Camp Coleman", which is their catalog outlet store about 1 hour north of Atlanta. Oh, Dear! Christianna tired from Fool's War, but happy to have had a nice time Date: Mon, 19 Apr 1999 16:23:33 -0700 From: kat Subject: Re: SC - Coleman Fantasy Kitchen Aelfwyn asks: > Please forgive if this topic has been done to death annually, but any tips > beyond covering everything in fabric, etc., for camping kitchens? And > compact ways to haul things. The two coolest things I have seen yet are: The wooden cooler (I have NO idea how this is constructed; but the thing looks like an ordinary wooden box, until you open it--it is lined with plastic "cooler stuff" and is watertight, and strong enough to sit on. I haven't a clue how to get one but our current K&Q have one. I'll ask... Cool Thing #2: Kitchen-box benches. They look like a cross between boxes and ordinary benches/stools: a big solid box, maybe with feet, that has a seat on top that overlaps the box just a couple inches on each side. Then you take off the top, and voila! Space for your pots/pans/feast gear/dry goods. A third Cool Thing that my sweetie promises he'll make for me some day: In an old woodworking book from the 70's we saw a picture of a table-box. It looks like a long, skinny box with hinges on both long sides. Then the long sides fold up and braces turn it into a table with a dry-goods shelf underneath. Wooden legs that store inside the box are screwed onto the bottom. Presto! It's a kitchen table! Just some ideas. Wish I could afford them myself; I'm still at the "fabric-covering" stage... ;-) - kat Date: Tue, 20 Apr 1999 00:30:21 -0500 From: LYN M PARKINSON Subject: Re: SC - SC-Coleman Fantasy Kitchen The Kyle (my clan chief) made some kitchen boxes that are wonderful. Trays set just inside, the depth of most spice bottles, so that the tray can be lifted out and set on a table for easy use. There's quite an assortment of bottles, can, boxes, packets, etc. but even the Spice Island bottle can stand up. A similar tray holds cutlery in the second box, including work utensils in appropriatly sized divisions. The bottoms of the boxes hold feast gear and pots and pans and staples. As to being able to lift them, most of us can't! He often rents a small Grimms as the kitchen tent for Pennsic, and sets up a rack of the type that looks like a kid's erector set. The drying pots, etc. go upside down on this after cleaning. A bungy cord goes through a roll of paper towels and hooks onto some of the tent sides in a corner. 2 dinette tables with wooden cutting board tops have removable legs--or get packed upside down, I forget--and holds the 2 double burner colemans. the cases of propane and bottled water are stored underneath. There's a fabric cover for a huge plastic cooler of water which gets a fresh block of ice every morning and some of the bottled water. Several chests, of about 20-24" height, contain hidden coolers full of ice and Pepsi, and other good things he brews. The chests are all wood, painted, and double as extra seating when needed. A Coleman lantern is hung from the tent pole as our 'chandelier'. It's a mix of looks--some period, some modern, but all very useful. 3 dishpans line up and hold hot soapy water, bleach water disinfectant, and final clear rinse. Towels at the end of the line provide the drying space. A wonderful addition has been the big round table and the chairs a 'nephew' built. We sit out under starry nights, talking over candlelight and sipping our wine. My 'kitchen' is a set of plastic milk type crates that live inside my tent, holding everything out of sight, a cardtable with a cover, ice chests with covers, which double as extra seating, and a Coleman (when it's working) that lives underneath the table when not in use. I have a candle lantern hanger and 2 tiki torches for light, as well as lanterns and candles for the tables. Not fancy, not elaborate, and boy would I love to be able to afford to have built the kitchen I see in my dreams! Allison allilyn at juno.com, Barony Marche of the Debatable Lands, Pittsburgh, PA Kingdom of Aethelmearc Date: Tue, 20 Apr 1999 08:45:31 -0500 From: Stephanie Rudin Subject: SC - Box Table I know this isn't exactly what you were talking about but it is similar. http://users.aol.com/lwjones/table.htm Mercedes Date: Mon, 10 May 1999 10:54:17 -0400 From: "Peters, Rise J." Subject: SC - Storvik Baronial Championship feast This past weekend, Storvik, in Atlantia, held its Baronial Championship in the usual spot... which features no kitchen at all, and no facilities other than cold running water and a plentiful supply of picnic tables. We cooked feast for about 80 folks, three courses plus dessert. I made the dish sink we discussed a while back and it worked beautifully! Total cost was $39, including the cost for hose leading in and a run-off pipe to take drainage away. It made the process of washing the vegetables (especially the leeks) and of post-feast potscrubbing much easier. All the usual folks who serve as kitchen staff for the event were just tickled with the new sink, and I gave all credit to the folks on this list for the good idea. Thanks for all your help! =Caitlin, in Storvik Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 20:52:45 -0400 From: "Andy Oppenheim" Subject: RE: SC - Camp Kitchen Furniture http://www.teleport.com/~tguptill/furniture.htm is a good place to start. Andy Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 23:07:32 -0400 From: renfrow at skylands.net (Cindy Renfrow) Subject: Re: SC - Camp Kitchen Furniture http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/food-art/ Open "field kitchen" and start drooling. ;-) Cindy Renfrow/Sincgiefu cindy at thousandeggs.com Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 19:31:57 -0500 From: david friedman Subject: Re: SC - Camp Kitchen Furniture The current Miscellany has an article on doing a period trestle table and an article on conjecturally period furniture that I think includes our Pennsic shelves. But I don't think those are in the webbed version, which is a few editions behind. David/Cariadoc http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 09:27:49 -0600 From: Wajdi Subject: Re: SC - Holiday dreams OT OOP Liam Fisher wrote: > >I want a camp chef 2000. Two burner propane camp stove that has folding > >legs. Runs off a 5 gallon tank. Collapses to about 6" X 18" X 36". I've > >used other peoples and now I want my own. You can heat two large stock > >pots on it. > > What company would make such a device? Pardon me if I drool... > > Cadoc > -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- > Cadoc MacDairi, Mountain Confederation, ACG I went to the Camp Chef website looking for the 2000. Couldn't find it. The URL is: http://wwv.campchef.com and they have a bunch of very nice looking 2 and 3 burner stoves, just about any of which would fit the discription. From their on-line product listing, I'm getting kind of greedy about the GB-90DG (three burner). I found what I want for xmas. wajdi Date: Wed, 1 Dec 1999 18:15:23 EST From: Peldyn at aol.com Subject: Re: SC - Holiday dreams OT OOP >want a camp chef 2000. Two burner propane camp stove that has folding >legs. Runs off a 5 gallon tank. Collapses to about 6" X 18" X 36". I've >used other peoples and now I want my own. You can heat two large stock >pots on it. I picked up mine at Costco for $99.00. Got to use it for the first time at Estrella and I love it!!! The first night I made a humogous pot of beef stew on one burner and used my cast iron dutch oven to make homemade bisquits on the other burner. Turned out extremely well. Peldyn Date: Fri, 21 Jan 2000 14:06:16 -0700 From: Steven Cowley Subject: Re: SC - a grid? >> 3. Wind IS your worst enemy. It blows the heat away. Make sure that you >> have some sort of wind break that you can move around as well as work >> around. > How large does such a thing need to be? Ankle, knee, waist? I would > like to rig an actual roof over the cooking area, because getting > rained on while tending the stew really bites, but even with our tiny > cooking fire and a high roof, I imagine the Fire Safety people would > have a cow. I have a 33 gallon steel drum that has been cut in half length wise without any ends. This allows me to almost completely surround the pot if necessary. I leave about a one inch gap on either side for air. It also creates a similar effect to that of a chimney. When you need to get at the cooking area, just move the most convenient side away, stir and put it back. They also pack well, as the 2 halves will fit inside of each other and I can then pack stuff inside of them. Since they don't get much direct heat, you can paint them up for a bit more flair. I had a friend of mine paint it up to look like a wooden barrel. Close up you can tell its not, but from a distance, it looks great. It helps when trying to make camp feel more period. Steffan of the Close Date: Wed, 19 Apr 2000 08:40:27 EDT From: Feenercrai at aol.com Subject: SC - Re: sca-cooks V1 #2141 re: plastic ware It's not period, but we take a cooler that we call the "dry cooler" (no ice), that's for bread, anything in boxes, the dried fruit, etc. It keeps bugs out, and levels the temperature swings that make your bread go moldy. The swings make your bread exhale moisture, which condenses on the plastic, and ... We stash this cooler in the pavilion, or in the shade with a cloth over it. Be careful about putting fruit in a confined spot like this however, because the fruit gives off a chemical that causes ripening, or over ripening. There are supposedly substances you can put in with the fruit that absorb or negate the "ripener" chemical, but I don't remember what they are (they say they work in the refrigerator too ...) Juliana von Altenfeld Date: Tue, 06 Jun 2000 00:27:55 EDT From: allilyn at juno.com Subject: Re: SC - Coleman oven You certainly can dream--and while you are at it, dream that sideboard in pieces that lock together, with some sort of brass lock. It was long ago and far away in another...no, different story....a friend who was the wife of a Tuchux Clan Chief had him make her a traveling kitchen that was to die for! Well, it didn't have linenfold paneling, but... The top, middle and bottom were self-contained units, with doors that locked, and they were fitted together and somehow locked into place. Put together, it must have been nearly 6' tall. The top portion opened up to be the spice cabinet and larder, there were utensils in the bottom. It may have had drawers, too, I forget. Start haunting the building used goods places, for bits of old linenfold paneling that have come out of old houses or fancy office buildings. Allison, allilyn at juno.com Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 07:50:03 -0600 From: "UnruhBays, Melanie A" Subject: RE: SC - dream (camp) kitchens I'd like a setup like the one Caroline Yelham uses at the historical recreation that she participates in, in England. (Those of you who were at CooksCon saw her set-up. *drool* *slobber*) They use this huge rig for cooking - two tall tripods on either side of the fire box, with attached racks for crossbars, hooks, spits, and hangers. I've just found a blacksmith who will build the thing for me. I just need to bring him a picture and $250. The accessories would be extra. I bought a long (36") cooking fork from him, and now I'm regretting not buying two. I want at least a couple of those pot-bellied cast-iron pots. And a pile of ceramic bowls, jugs, etc., that of course came with a replacement policy, or at least would never break. (You did say "dream" kitchen.) I also thought that Caroline's workspace was very nice - it was simple, but efficient. Trestle tables under a square or rectangular sunshade. Of course, they don't have dust in England like we have in the Outlands, or at Estrella. So some modifications would need to be made for hygiene purposes. Isn't that invisible force field available commercially yet? Maredudd Date: Sat, 9 Sep 2000 14:58:01 -0400 From: "Daniel Phelps" Subject: SC - Stoves I seem to remember a question about stoves a little while back. I don't know quite what the sender had in mind but I just got my Cabela's Master Catalog Fall 2000 Edition II and saw that they have some pretty swank ones on page 360. These are outfitter's wood buring stoves intended for tent camping in the back of the beyond for extended periods of time. They range in price from about $100.00 to over $600.00 with attachments. Also included in the catalog are shower systems complete with enclosures. The water heating systems range from relatively a cheap solar showers with enclosures for around $100.00 to elaborate propane fired systems up around $600.00. The catalog's got some nice stainless steel and cast iron cooking stuff to. They are on line at: www.cabelas.com Daniel Raoul Date: Sun, 02 Dec 2001 21:52:22 -0800 To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org From: Maggie MacDonald Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Cooking rice in feast quantities At 09:10 PM 12/2/01,david friedman said something like: >Incidentally, what I was cooking rice for a hundred people over was a >sort of oversized coleman-style stove with its own legs that someone >in the group had provided--because the kitchen only had stove space >for two large pots (two ordinary stoves, one with an oven overhanging >it). I don't remember the brand name, although I can probably find >it, but it is a very useful gadget, providing two quite powerful >burners. I'm thinking of getting one--it would be useful when we do a >cooking workshop in our one stove kitchen and run out of burners. >Also useful when and if we do another feast in a too small kitchen. >-- >David/Cariadoc >http://www.daviddfriedman.com/ We've been using those in Calafia for a little while. The Barony owns one, and we use it at events, and my household owns one. We found that the biggest hassle was remembering to bring a wrench to tighten the gas fittings (duct tape one to the leg when you disassemble). And a carrying bag. Luckily there was a great sale on large size sport duffles recently, and it fits inside there just fine. The stoves are wonderful! Maggie MacD. Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2004 09:51:23 -0400 From: "Daniel Phelps" Subject: [Sca-cooks] Camp Kitchens To: "Cooks within the SCA" From the other end of the spectrum regards camp kitchens and outdoors cooking efficiency one might peruse at www.cabelas.com Cabela's on line catalog under the heading camping/food prep. Their camp kitchen assemblies are aimed I suspect toward, at least in part, professional guide operations. They are not cheap but tend to pack down as much as possible. In addition to everything else, just for grins, check out their gasoline powered blender. Daniel Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 00:48:02 -0400 From: "Terri Morgan" Subject: RE: [Sca-cooks] Cooking Feasts without a Kitchen To: "'Cooks within the SCA'" If you have any military members you can call on, ask if they can rent a pig roaster or bbq from MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) on base. Then you don't have to store the drum yourself! (And since they handle large Division/Command parties, there might be other 'campground' equipment available for cooks.) Hrothny Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 15:32:35 -0700 From: "Dan Brewer" Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] On-line Pennsic Pity Party To: "'Cooks within the SCA'" I went to the An Tir 40th this year in Randal WA. I saw some neat propane power devices. Colman has a line of propane devices that would help to server in a kitchen-less setting. A insta hot water heater does 40 gal of water on a 20 oz disposable container. A 8 quart cooker that has a shielded burner, similar to a slow cooker but can boil water. A smoker cabinet that can double as an oven. It stood about 5 foot tall and had about 10 racks that were 18 inches square. All of these would aid in preparing/serving food in a place that did not have a kitchen or the kitchen was not up to the task. The owner of these said that she purchased all of them at Walmart and GI joes. Because I like fresh bread I built an oven that runs on propane. It was hard to regulate the temp low because the days I was using it was raining sideways. My bread started to bake before It was through rising. Daniel Date: Mon, 13 Aug 2007 16:23:40 +0000 From: "Olwen the Odd" Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] so ... what do YOU eat. To: sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org > it was a hassle getting the gas grill into the pickup, but > it worked like a dream being used as either grill or > warmer. the side burner worked great for hot water. > > cailte > ready for next year Gee Cailte, why don't you just get a portable butaine to carry along? Here is a link to one online but the price is outrageous, we pick them up all the time for about $20 with the canisters at about a buck apiece. stovetophttp://www.chefdepot.net/butanestove.htm Most oriental stores seem to carry these. These things are great, easy to carry, store and use. Since I live in a warehouse and have no real kitchen, these are what I use instead of a regular stovetop. I have 4. They come in a nice little hard plastic carry box. Some have better regulators than others. Joycook is the best but I think they have maybe gone out of business. The LA Mart is selling one now for around $17 I think that seems to have a good regulator on it. Olwen Edited by Mark S. 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