Want to know more about solar cooking?

Can the cooker be used straight away?

Videos *** NEW ***

The price
Interested to get a solar cooker?

In August 2008, I received a parabolic solar cooker that I have been using ever since. Many people around me saw that cooker and expressed the wish to get one. It made me decide to make a bulk order of 50 cookers from India.

What is a parabolic solar cooker? TOP
It looks like a satellite dish but instead of getting television signals, it concentrates sunlight in order to allow the user to cook food or boil water.

Why use a parabolic solar cooker? TOP
There are 2 main reasons why people choose to get a solar cooker.

One of them is that it allows you to reduce your carbon footprint. The only energy used is that of the sun, it does not produce any greenhouse gases.

The other reason is that people can save a lot of money. No government in the world has yet planned to charge citizens for the use of solar energy. With a solar cooker, there is no gas or electricity bill at the end of the month. With electricity prices going up every year (expected to increase by 15% this year), the use of a solar cooker makes a lot of sense.

This is the parabolic solar cooker...

Cooking rice with mushrooms…

Roasting seeds...

Roasted seeds to sprinkle on salads...

Making coffee...

Cooking rice fritatas…

Making tomate sauce…

Tomato sauce is ready…

Boiling milk to make yoghurt…

Cooking veggies…

Bon appétit…

Cooking pizza…

What can the cooker be used for? TOP

As you’ve seen on the above pictures, you can cook virtually all kinds of food. You can boil water, make coffee, roast seeds, cook bread/pies/cakes, make jam.

Want to know more about solar cooking? TOP
The Internet is full of ressources about solar cookers. One of the most important sites is http://www.solarcooking.org/

What kind of pot can I use? TOP
You can use different kinds of pots. The darker the pot, the more efficient it is. A black pot will give the best results. You can use pots made of different materials; cast iron is the most appropriate as it allows a good distribution of heat.

Can the cooker be used straight away? TOP
You need to allow a few hours to put the cooker together.

The assembly has started...

Putting the reflective panels on...

Videos TOP

A video showing the cooking of millet.

A video showing when making coffee.

Security TOP
It is highly recommended to use sunglasses when doing solar cooking to protect your eyes from the reflection.

Also, when storing the cooker, you should avoid placing it in a way that would allow the concentrated beam to start burning a flammable material nearby such as a wooden fence or a wooden house.

The price TOP
The price of one parabolic solar cooker is AUD 290. This does not include delivery. The easiest is to pick them up in Maleny where I live, it should also be fairly easy to organise a delivery in Brisbane. For customers around Australia, the cookers will be sent via courrier.

Interested to get a solar cooker? TOP
Contact Pascal at pgoux@free.fr

Savings TOP
With the use of the solar cooker, we are able to make big savings on our electricity bill. Our first bill (for just under 3 months) is less than $ 100 (for 2 people, with a solar hot water system and a home office).

All the previous pictures were taken with the cooker I bought in 2008.

I have now mounted one of the new ones. I provide here a picture so that people know what to expect.

When can I use the solar cooker? TOP
Obviously, you need sun to be able to use your solar cooker. But it can still be used when the weather is cloudy with periods of sunshine. If you use a cast iron pot, the pot will more efficiently retain heat during cloudy periods and will allow the cooking to continue. You can also cook in the daytime and eat your food still warm in the evening. In order to keep your food warm, you can place your pot in a blanket or even better in an esky or an insulated box.

This is the insulated box that I built out of reclaimed materials. It efficiently keeps food warm for hours and also allows to make yogurt.