To Origo or not that is the question!

[AngusMcDoon]

or a dry non stick frying pan

I bow to your superior experience of that technique because I have never tried it. I think a series of videos of hob top toasting techniques is required. You do the dry frying pan, I'll do the flat rack with a mesh type, and maybe Erbas can do a clip of the pyramid types. Think of the hits we could get on youtube.

 

[dylanwinter]

I bow to your superior experience of that technique because I have never tried it. I think a series of videos of hob top toasting techniques is required. You do the dry frying pan, I'll do the flat rack with a mesh type, and maybe Erbas can do a clip of the pyramid types. Think of the hits we could get on youtube.

500 maybe - worth around 50p in adsense hits

but think of the glory

D

 

[Mctavish]

Why?

Tim

I thought that if it took a long time to boil a kettle it might take too long for the pressure cooker to reach the required pressure. It wouldn't be pressure-cooking the food.

I also vaguely remember warnings on the pressure cooker packet (which is newish) that it could not be used with some heat sources. I didn't have that heat source at that time so I promptly forgot the warning.

 

[LONG_KEELER]

When we first started sailing I bought a boat with a two burner meths stove.

Oh how my wife groaned when she saw what she had to cook on.

Things changed with use. She took up the challenge and created great meals with it.

Our Saturday night favorite during summer was steak, potatoes and salad . We both agreed that the steak tasted better on the meths stove than on any other. Home or away.

It was definitely a fun thing . A bit like making your own fire in the woods but with simplicity as the key factor.

When we bought our next boat it had gas. We then lost that fun feeling of cooking.

Proves that sailing is a delicate balance . A bit like the extremes of the Good Life TV show. Somewhere between
may be the best path to follow.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

I thought that if it took a long time to boil a kettle it might take too long for the pressure cooker to reach the required pressure. It wouldn't be pressure-cooking the food.

Some pressure cooker are great big hefty things and take a while to get to pressure at the best of times, so it may be a bit of a wait for one to get there on a lower power heat source like an Origo, but it would get there eventually. However, for boat use when not cooking for a large crew there are better smaller pressure cookers. This type all seem to be made by Hawkins. They start at 1.5 litres, but I have the 3 litre model. It gets to pressure very quickly.

http://www.hawkinscookers.com/WebPCMain.aspx?cat=HCL

 

[Alfie168]

I thought that if it took a long time to boil a kettle it might take too long for the pressure cooker to reach the required pressure. It wouldn't be pressure-cooking the food.

I also vaguely remember warnings on the pressure cooker packet (which is newish) that it could not be used with some heat sources. I didn't have that heat source at that time so I promptly forgot the warning.

When you say " A long time to boil a kettle" its only about another 5 minutes maximum compared with gas, but there is plenty of oomph to get there and unless it's a gigantic pressure cooker, Origo has no problems at all with them. There are millions of the things out there and if they were fundamentally inadequate there would be millions of them on scrap heaps. The opposite is the case, the vast majority who use them quite like them, and for very sound reasons. It really is as simple as that.

Tim

 

[Bru]

I saw Bruce Danforth try a pyramid toaster on an Origo, and it didn't work. There must be different types if some do.

My post was badly worded. I realize the Omnia is different from the type of hob top oven you mentioned. It's the same idea though, and works well.

We have a two sided vertical type mesh toaster and once you master the technique for using it, it works reasonably well (about as well as they ever do on any hob). The trick, we've found, is to heat it up with the burner going full blast for a few minutes (maybe five) then turn the burner down to about half way and only then put the toast on. That way you get toast(ish) rather than charred bread!

I've long been tempted by the Omnia I must say but it only serves as an oven. The late lamented Double Skillet is a much more versatile device (although probably not as good as the Omnia for baking) as it offers two skillet pans, one with a lid, which can be stacked the same way up (a great boon when you only have two burners) as well as with one inverted for baking or used as two seperate pans.

Mind you, we also have a small steamer pan set and a Boatie frying pan as well as a couple of conventional pans! We keep looking at the pan shelf and muttering about having a cull but they all have their uses and they all get used fairly regularly

 

[paul.norton]

Anyone tried the Thermal Cooker on the Origo?

Look at http://www.caravancampingmotorhomeshow.co.uk/page.cfm/Action=Exhib/ExhibID=628

I have one at home and it works very well

Paul

 

[pmagowan]

I like cooking too much so it has to be gas. It already annoys me enough that the gas hobs on a boat are not powerful enough when compared to home systems. I use the Cobb when I want to have fun, and for cooking a great chicken roast with all the trimmings. I have no problem with meths cookers and have used many when camping etc but they are poorer performers than gas so, when it comes to cooking and gas is a possibility, I will go for that. My grandmother changed to an Origo type cooker to meet insurance requirements and she hates it having been used to gas. I am sure I could cope fine but it would be coping. There are lots of pros to them, mainly the 'safety' issue, but the biggest con is that they are simply less good as a cooker. But then we didn't go sailing to get all the mod cons and some of the restrictions and deprivations are fun. The Yachting Monthly crash boat test on a gas explosion is sobering. A fire similarly. Horses for courses; I might blow up but I will have a well seared steak!

 

[wee_niall]

i mulled over this last year when i was fitting out Sheer Lunacy and eventually (despite all the doom mongers out there) bought an origo 3000 (about 125 quid from amazon of all places) and it's been brilliant! We were so impressed with it that it's even pulled out the boat and taken camping when we go away for any length of time.....loads of heat, nice and self contained and simple. For the toast, we use the flat mesh thingy which works perfectly

 

[Mctavish]

Anyone tried the Thermal Cooker on the Origo?

Look at http://www.caravancampingmotorhomeshow.co.uk/page.cfm/Action=Exhib/ExhibID=628


Paul

So you heat food up on the hob first? Then it uses as vacuum to be a slow cooker.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

So you heat food up on the hob first? Then it uses as vacuum to be a slow cooker.

It appears to be a saucepan with a blanket. I use a pressure cooker and a sleeping bag for the same effect. No reason why it shouldn't work on an Origo though.

 

[aslabend]

Heads up for all you Origo lovers, Just been to B&Q and they are doing 3 x 2L bottles of bioethanol for £13 which isn't that for off the minimum I can get meths for.

 

[agurney]

Staple on our boat underway is Cornish pasties. Would not like to warm them on an origo.

http://www.base-camp.co.uk/optimus/minioven.htm
I use something similar with an Origo for occasional baking.
It'a perfect for Pillsbury croissants and pastries http://www.pillsbury.com/products/crescents (they're about the only decent thing I've found to bring home after visiting the USA)

 

[Cuan]

+1

 

[doug748]

Don't rip out gas if your boat is worth a few bob or it it was fitted from new, is my advice.

Most buyers will want the original installation and most will probably want gas. Of course this may not be important if you are thinking of keeping it a long, long time.

 

[dylanwinter]

heating pies

buy those in foil containers if possible

place pliers from outboard tool kit in bottom of frying pan to use as trivet and to allow hot air to circulate

put pie on top of pliers

out lid on frying pan - you did buy a pan with a lid didn't you?

heat pie

it works

 

[AngusMcDoon]

heating pies

buy those in foil containers if possible

place pliers from outboard tool kit in bottom of frying pan to use as trivet and to allow hot air to circulate

put pie on top of pliers

out lid on frying pan - you did buy a pan with a lid didn't you?

heat pie

it works

With the Omnia though, for £30-ish, you can do roast dinners as well. I'd guess that the pliers method doesn't work so well for roasts. That's if you are into posh scoff like that on board, which perhaps you are not.

 

[abraxus]

Or there's this for a tenner:

http://www.coopersofstortford.co.uk...rodst09452i/?gclid=CLjbisy27cYCFdHItAodsgQESw

 

[Alfie168]

Or there's this for a tenner:

http://www.coopersofstortford.co.uk...rodst09452i/?gclid=CLjbisy27cYCFdHItAodsgQESw

Reading the reviews the quality is a bit iffy......and you need a flame spreader......and there are no cooking instructions.

Once you've taken that on board it apparently works OK,....remember to wipe it with oil before use and not overheat it, which burns the coating. Actually it would suit a very small boat like mine quite well come to think of it.

Tim