Energy saving cooking tips?

[stngymama]

How do you try to save energy when you cook??
Here are two ideas:
Best Poached Chicken (fair to lousy broth):
Fill a 12 quart kettle almost full of water and bring it to a boil. Place 1 whole chicken, about 3 pounds, in the boiling water. The water will STOP boiling in just a moment or so. Using wooden spoons so that you do not tear the skin, remove the chicken from the water and place it on a tray. Cover the pot and bring the water back to a boil. Put the chicken back into the pot, cover and turn off the heat. Leave the chicken in the pot and the pot on the burner, but you will need no more heat. The water will be hot enough to cook the bird. After 1 hour the chicken is done. Remove, cool, and debone it.
Putting Your Rice to Bed (from Living More With Less, pg.155)
Bring your rice (in this story it was rice and milk) to a boil, then put the pot on a thick layer of newspaper on your bed, cover with more newspaper, then tuck it in for an hour or so. Alternatively, just wrap in a thick towel, etc. and go about your chores for an hour or so.

Anyone else want to post some hints to save energy while cooking?

[markio26]

no, i have not looked into this type of cooking.. several years ago my son was into solar cooking because he is a scuba diver and they used to go on rallys... you can make homemade solar cookers... i know they used alot of foil... tea can be made outside using the sun.. i have a glass tea container for that, jake gave us...you can fry eggs on a hot day.. my spouse sets his soup, coffee on his dashboard while he is at work and it keeps it warm or hot..

[PrincessPerky]

My ex step mother used to maek 'sun teah' said it was better than regular iced tea..I dunno about that.

I know some peole cook in a hole in the ground in the summer, but I think you have to start wiht a hot stone at the bottom, (beans usually)

[mciangel]

Wow these tips look great... adventurous!
We just try to use the microwave more in the summer and not boling things too long, not longer than it needs. Like, for example. My mom, and most of my family boil potatoes for-ev-er... they only need to be fork tender.... and corn on the cob (a summer staple for us) needs only like 10-13 mins once the water is at a boil. Some say even less time than that... so those are my basic tips

[naturallyadiva]

I just have a toaster over, george foreman and a crock pot.

[emmiedahl]

If you pour boiling water over pasta and wrap the container with a towel, it will cook by itself.

[tinapbeana]

beans the old fashioned way: soak your beans overnight, drain and cook in fresh water. most folks go the 'quick' cook method which requires more stove time. alternatively, put the pot on a woodstove, the original 'set it & forget it!'

i've debated about 'cooking' rice/barley by letting it soak over night, draining & then heating it up. dunno if it'll work.

[scfr]

Pressure cookers are great! You can cook things in just a fraction of the time. And the food turns out beautiful. My sister is the gourmet cook in the family, and she turned me on to the joys of pressure cookers.

For data on the ton of money you can save:
http://fastcooking.ca/energy_savings...ure_cooker.htm

If you're interested in how the things work:
http://fastcooking.ca/pressure_cooke...okers_work.htm