Part 2

The box is now ready for cooking, but if, after considerable use, the material shrinks so that the whole space is not firmly filled, a little more may be added. There should always be at least a slight pressure when the cover is closed. The paper lining described on page 20, while not necessary to this class of boxes, is an improvement.

Boxes to be filled with the second class of material are packed in the following manner:

Line the box with a smooth covering of paper or asbestos, tacked into place. Pack a layer of insulating material, three inches or more in thickness, in the bottom, laying a piece of heavy paper on this. Sew two or three thicknesses of pliable cardboard into the form of a cylinder that will fit around the utensil loosely. (Fig. No. 1.) It must be of the same height as the kettle. Set this cooker-pail, surrounded by the cylinder, on the layer in the box. Holding the kettle in place with one hand, pack tightly around it, to the level of the top of the pail. (See page 12.) The efficiency of the box depends largely upon this packing. Cut a round hole, the size of the cooker nest, in a piece of heavy pasteboard, to fit the top of the box. Lay this over the packing, so that it will cover it completely. The box is now ready for its cloth lining. To make this, cut three pieces of cloth; one to be one-inch or more larger than the top of the box, with a round hole cut in its centre, one inch smaller than the diameter of the cooker-pail (Fig. No. 2:1); another to be a round piece one-inch larger than the diameter of the pail (Fig. No. 2:2); and the third to be a strip one-inch wider than the height of the pail, and long enough to go around it with an inch to spare (Fig. No. 2:3). Sew the ends of this strip together to make a cylinder. Into one end of this cylinder sew the round piece. The other end is to be sewed into the large piece, taking in each case a half-inch seam. When this is put into the box it will line the nest for the kettle, and cover the pasteboard which rests on top. (Fig. No. 3.) Remove the pail and tack this cloth lining in place, turning in the edges where it is tacked to the box. A paper lining may be substituted for cloth in the following manner:

Take a sheet of very heavy paper, at least one inch larger in every dimension than the top of the box. Draw a circle in the centre of it the size of the pail. In the centre of this circle cut a small hole large enough to insert the blade of a pair of scissors. From this hole, cut to the circle, so as to strike it at intervals of about one and one-half inches. (Fig. No. 4.) Fit the paper over the top of the packing in the box so that this circle will come just over the nest for the pail. Put the cooker-pail into the nest and it will crease the points down at exactly the right place. Figure No. 5 shows the cooker completed. A paper lining is in some respects to be preferred to cloth. It is easy and quick to make and can be readily replaced if it becomes soiled.

With either class of cooker more than one nest may be made. It is well, in that case, to have a wooden partition put into the box before packing it, although this is not strictly necessary. Each portion of the box can then be packed independently and for utensils of different sizes if desired.

If possible, when packing a box with _mineral wool_, do the work out of doors, wearing a pair of gloves, as particles from it fly into the air and are extremely irritating to the throat and skin. Twenty-five pounds of mineral wool will pack a nine-quart pail in a box fifteen by fifteen inches and eleven inches high. Five pounds of _wool_ will pack the same box for using a nine-quart pail. If a smaller pail is used, more wool or mineral wool will be required.

_Sawdust_ is one of the easiest materials to handle. It packs easily and does not require a cloth covering, heavy paper answering the purpose perfectly. Proceed with the packing as for wool or mineral wool and such other materials, omitting the pasteboard top. In place of this and the cloth covering use a paper lining.

_The “space adjuster”_ is a padded cylinder which slips into a cooker pocket and makes a receiver for a smaller cooker-pail than that for which the cooker was packed. It can be made by putting together two pasteboard cylinders of equal length, one of which will fit rather loosely outside of the small pail, and the other of which will slip easily into the cooker pocket and line it from top to bottom. When the small cylinder is stood inside of the larger one the space between the two should be firmly packed, preferably with a soft material such as cotton or wool. To keep the filling in place while packing it the cylinder may be wound with twine, as shown in the accompanying illustration. It may then be covered with a fitted muslin cover. Sew two tabs on this cover, with which to lift the space adjuster out. When slipped into the cooker pocket, and the small pail placed in the new pocket thus formed, there will be found to be a space below the pail, which may be filled by a round cushion made for the purpose.

_Ready-made hay-boxes_ and fireless cookers are to be found on the market, some of which have advantages over the home-made article along with some disadvantages. First of the disadvantages is, perhaps, the cost, the expense being considerably greater than for the home-made box. Also the choice in the matter of shapes and material for the utensils cannot be as great as in home-made boxes, and some of the cookers are unpractical in minor details. On the other hand, the commercial cookers are ready for use, some of them being excellently adapted to their purpose, and to many people this would offset the cost. Those that are made of metal, on the plan of refrigerators, perhaps not boxes at all, would appeal to certain housekeepers as likely to be more cleanly than upholstered boxes. But, as food is always in tightly-covered vessels, and as experience has shown that ordinary care will prevent anything from being spilled, a hay-box having been kept sweet and clean without refilling for over a year, the danger of uncleanliness is not so great as would at first appear. Doubtless where servants are entrusted with the use of the cooker there would usually be a greater necessity for guarding against untidiness.

In selecting a ready-made cooker certain points should be considered. See that the parts fit closely together, are simple and strong in construction; that there are no seams or pockets in the kettles which would be difficult, if not impossible, to get clean; that the kettles are a suitable size, namely, not too large, if they are to cook food for a small family, and not too small to ensure sufficient heat for proper cooking; and that there is no air space over the cover that will not be filled when the cooker is closed. In the case of the metal cookers a round cover with a single hinge is a point of weakness, for the cover is not sufficiently supported to endure the strain of constant use. Many of the cookers also use tin very considerably, which is objectionable. Doubtless there will be constant improvements in these inventions, as there is a growing demand for them and an increasing intelligence as to their use.

MATERIALS NEEDED FOR A HOME-MADE FIRELESS COOKER

A box or barrel (see page 9). One pair of strong hinges. A hasp. Material for stuffing (see page 11). One or more large pails (see page 13). One or more small pails or pans (see page 13). Muslin, 1¹⁄₂ yards or more, depending upon the size of the box. A cooking thermometer. Heavy pasteboard. Pliable pasteboard. Brown paper. Tacks and screws.

PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS FOR USING A FIRELESS COOKER

While success in using a cooker is reasonably sure if directions are clear and detailed, and can be followed exactly, yet it is well to understand, in a general way, the conditions of success in order that a deviation from directions, if such should ever be found necessary, will not mean failure.

As the cooking depends upon the retention of heat, it stands to reason that there must be heat to retain. A pint of food does not contain as much heat as a quart, even though both be of the same temperature to begin with. This can be demonstrated by setting a pint and a quart of boiling water side by side. The pint will lose its small amount of heat and grow cold much sooner than the quart, with its larger amount. After an equal time eight quarts of food in the cooker have been found to register 15 degrees Fahrenheit higher than one and one-half quarts, other conditions being the same. This explains the failures of some beginners which are due to the fact that such a small quantity of food was taken that there was not sufficient heat to begin with. Obviously this danger is less with foods requiring only a slight cooking, since, even with small quantities, some time elapses before the food grows too cold to cook at all.

The _total quantity of food_ is, therefore, seen to be an important factor in success. The larger the amount of food, the higher the temperature will be at the end of a given length of time. Where the amount is very large, as in the case of hotel and institution cookery, this gain is so great that the time required for cooking is materially reduced.

_The proportion between the amount of food and the size of the utensil_ in which it is cooked is equally important. Experiments have shown that one and one-half quarts of water, in a pail just large enough to hold it, will register 15 degrees Fahrenheit more than the same measure of water in a nine-quart pail at the end of an hour; while at the end of twelve hours there is 28 degrees of difference. It is thus seen that a well-filled kettle is more likely to cook successfully than one partially filled. When it is impossible to cook in a smaller pail, and thus avoid vacant space in the kettle, the difficulty may, to some extent, be offset by using a pan for the food with sloping sides and broad rim, such as a “pudding pan,” which may be set into the cooker-pail and, by resting upon its rim, will be suspended in it. This arrangement admits of filling the lower part of the pail with boiling water or with boiling food, in case a second kind of food is to be cooked for the same length of time.

_Space between the pail and packing material_ is also likely to be disastrous, so that it is not advisable to try to use a small pail in a “nest” made for a large one without the “space adjuster” described on page 22. Even the space which results after a short use of a newly packed box will be sufficient for the escape of some heat and should always be filled in.

_Place the cooker near the stove_, since it is important to transfer the food very quickly from one to the other. The cooker should be open, the cushion removed and everything in readiness before the food is taken from the fire; then, before it has time to stop boiling, it should be in place in the box. Loss of time at this juncture owing to uncertain movements is a fruitful source of failure among beginners.

_Keep the box tightly closed_ from the moment the food is put into it until it is entirely done, as if for any reason the box is opened before the appointed time, the contents must be _reheated to boiling point_ before being replaced.

The _time for cooking foods on the stove_, previous to putting them into the cooker, is usually very short. Food in large, solid masses, as ham, pot roasts, moulds of bread, etc., must be boiled until thoroughly heated to the centre, obviously requiring longer boiling the larger and denser the pieces are. Food that is broken and less compact will be readily penetrated by heat and will be boiling hot nearly or quite as soon as the surrounding water. Such foods need only a moment’s brisk boiling before being put into the cooker. Cereals, although in fine particles, easily settle into a dense, impenetrable mass during the long period of undisturbed cooking, unless boiled until they are slightly thickened.

The _length of time for cooking in the cooker_ depends upon several factors: (1) the kind of cooker, whether well or ill packed, and whether good or poor insulating material is used; (2) the skill of the cook in getting the kettle into the box quickly; (3) the amount, toughness, density, and size of the pieces; (4) whether hard or soft water is used. If hard water is used foods require more cooking to become tender than with soft water. Hard water may be softened, however, by the addition of a little baking soda. The time given in this book is adapted to a home-made cooker, well packed with any of the materials suggested in the section giving directions for packing the cookers. With some commercial cookers a shorter time may be sufficient.

It is frequently stated that few foods are injured by overcooking, but while this is true of a great many foods, it has not proved to be the case with all. Potatoes, rice, custards, raised mixtures, such as dumplings, suet pudding, and brown bread, as well as many other foods, are decidedly injured by overcooking. The recipes generally state the minimum and maximum time which each food should have. This information will also be found easily accessible in the classified index. There is danger in leaving meats or soup stock or even cereals in the cooker long after they have cooled down, as they will be likely to spoil.

Needless to say, careful reading of all the directions given, and following them in every particular, will be necessary until one becomes well acquainted with this novel method of cookery. Mistakes in temperature tests, in measuring, in time, and in other conditions, may result in failures, which must not be imputed to the cooker, but to the cook.

It will probably not be long, after the first experiment with a cooker, before several compartments are fitted up; in which case it is difficult to remember what food is in each and at what time it is to be removed, since it is left for so many hours. To meet this difficulty a slate, hung in the kitchen near the box, will be found a great convenience. It may be permanently ruled and arranged in the form of a table, to be filled out with pencil. A good form to use is the one given below. The compartments may be numbered or described.

+----------------+----------------+----------------+----------------+ | Compartment | Food | Time put in |Time for removal| +----------------+----------------+----------------+----------------+ | | | | | +----------------+----------------+----------------+----------------+ | | | | | +----------------+----------------+----------------+----------------+

II

THE PORTABLE INSULATING PAIL

A cheap, portable retainer, for keeping food hot or cold on picnics, automobile trips, and other outings, will be found a great convenience and will fill a long-felt want. Tight-fitting covers, fastened in place, will be necessary to keep food from spilling; and very cheap, easily obtained insulating material should be used for these pails, so that in case the packing becomes soiled it can be discarded without loss. Newspapers, hay, or excelsior are best for the purpose. The object in using such pails is not to cook the food, though this might be done if the inner pail were small enough or the outer pail large enough to allow of sufficient insulation, but to keep food already cooked, or nearly cooked, at a temperature which will make it appetizing. For this purpose a couple of inches of insulation, with such materials as those suggested, will answer very well. If an ordinary fibre or wooden household pail is used, this will carry two or three quarts of food. Take for the inner utensil one just large enough to hold the food, and pack the outer pail to accommodate it, like any hay-box or cooker. If designed for frequent use it will pay to make a fitted cushion, but for a single occasion it will not be worth while to take this trouble. Any small cushion or pillow can be used, merely turning the corners under, if it is square. In order to protect it from danger of becoming soiled, lay a number of thicknesses of newspaper over the inner pail before putting on the cushion. Be careful to pack it so that the cushion will fill the upper space completely. A cover must be found for the outer pail, and if a wooden cover is not at hand, a round tray or large kettle cover that will fit it may be utilized. A butter pail, tin pail or candy pail will have its own cover.

To fasten the covers on, tie a loose slip-knot in the middle of a piece of very strong twine (Fig. No. 6:1); before pulling it up tight, slip the noose over the cover of the pail and draw the remainder of the knot out till it is loose enough to go around the pail. If it is placed under the rim near the top of the utensil, or under the fastenings of the handle, it will be held by them from slipping off. Then draw the knot up tight, and tie the two ends of twine over the top. (Fig. No. 6:2.) For greater safety, especially on the outer pail, it will be well to use two such strings, placing the loops at right angles to one another. Soft copper wire might be used for this purpose instead of twine. When the food is in the inner pail, tie on the cover, put it again on the fire until it is boiling hot, and place it quickly in the insulating pail. More than one kettle of food may be placed in the pail if there is room. Food thus insulated will keep hot for hours, even in cold weather.

Obviously, this arrangement will work equally well in keeping cold foods cool in summer, such as ice water, or cool drinks. Even frozen creams and ices, if packed well in a mould, covered tin pail or can, sealed and surrounded with a small quantity of ice and salt, and the whole thus insulated, will keep for many hours. To seal the mould, dip a narrow strip of muslin in melted fat and lay it quickly over the crack between the cover and mould.

III

THE REFRIGERATING BOX

As we have seen in the case of the insulating pail, the principle involved in cooking by retained heat may be reversed, and the heat may, by similar means, be excluded from foods which are to be kept cold. Ice-boxes and refrigerators are made with this end in view. They are constructed with heavy walls, usually, if not always, with an interlining of some non-conducting material, to exclude the heat of the atmosphere. Where such an article is needed permanently, or for large quantities of food, the various refrigerators on the market are better adapted to the purpose than a home-made box. But, in cases of temporary necessity or to supplement a refrigerator, the home-made refrigerating box will doubtless find a use. Ingenuity will suggest variations in the manner of applying the principle of insulation to keeping foods cold, but by way of suggestion two forms of refrigerating boxes are described below.

Take three or more stoneware crocks with well-fitting covers of the same material. The size of the crocks must be determined by the quantity of food to be kept. Good results in the way of temperatures have been obtained with those holding a half gallon, but the amount of food accommodated in them is, of course, small.

Proceed exactly as for packing a cooker, except that the crocks must be set in place so that all of them touch the central one, which is to be filled with ice.

Although any insulating material suitable for cookers will answer for a refrigerating box, sawdust will be found the easiest to handle, for the reason that its fine particles will more readily fill the acute angles between the crocks, which must be carefully packed or the insulation is not complete. It will be best to make one narrow cushion that may remain in place over the central crock, except when the ice is to be renewed, and two others, each of which can be removed singly when the crock under it is to be opened. Put the food into dishes or pails that can be removed with it and washed. This will obviate the necessity for taking out the crocks frequently and will mean a considerable saving of ice. In lieu of one solid piece of ice, broken pieces will be found to answer excellently. Fill the ice-crock as full as possible, and do not open it until it needs refilling. A little observation of your own individual box will be necessary to tell you just how long your crock of ice will last. It will probably be safe, in any case, to leave it two full days after filling it before opening it. If no foods that have not been reasonably cooled are put into the refrigerating box it is possible that the ice may last three or four days.

Aside from the efficiency of the insulation, the consumption of ice will depend largely upon the amount and temperature of the food in the other crocks and the frequency with which they are opened to the warm outside air; therefore chose as cool a place as possible for the box to stand, and open it only when necessary. Try to think of all the articles you want from it before taking off the cushion. Better results in the way of temperature can be obtained with these boxes than with many commercial refrigerators, although the skill and care in using either will be a large factor in the economy of ice. When it is necessary to open the box, let it be for as brief a time as possible, as every moment that it is open means an increase of temperature and, consequently, a loss of ice.

Another variety of refrigerating box may be made by thoroughly insulating a tin pail partly filled with ice, or a bread box, containing a crock for ice. Allow the same amount of insulation as that called for with the various packing materials used for hay-boxes or cookers, and pack them similarly. It will not often be necessary to remove the inner box if care is taken in handling the dishes of food; but when it is to be scalded, take it out, wash it well, boil or scald it with soda and water, and cool it again before replacing it in the packing.

IV

COOKING FOR TWO

While the fireless cooker is, perhaps, especially adapted to families of average size, or larger, there is no reason why small quantities of food cannot be equally well cooked, provided the cooker is properly made with that in view.