The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1905-05-23
FIRELESS
COOK STOVE
A New Method Of Cooking
Save Fuel and
Keep Cool.
A BOX LINED WITH HAY.

George Ell. Murphy, United States
consular clerk at Frankfort, Germany,
writes to the Department of Com
merce and Labor concerning a new
article of kitchen furniture in Frank
fort the hay box, or fireless stove.
at the Paris Exposition Of 1857 much
attention was attracted by a wooden
box lined with wool and felt. which
was called the Norwegian automatic
Kitchen In this box food which had
been boiled for only a very few min
utes continued to cook slowly, and in
two or three hours was found to be
ready for the table. For some unex-
plained reason all efforts to bring this
useful novelty into general use proved
unsuccessful until the matter was re-
Gently taken up Systematically and
with more entusirsm in Baden. The
propaganda is now being successfully
pushed in Berlin, Munich, Frankfort,
and other cities by means Of popular
lectures and public demonstrations of
the convenience and practical value Of
this method of cooking.
Mrs. Back stated that she has now
been using the hay box for thirteen
years, and that it has greatly reduced
for her the cares and annoyances of
housekeeping. At first she used the
box merely for the purpose of keeping
finished food warm, but it was not
long before she discovered that the
process of cooking continued in the
box. She thereupon extended it's use,
making a series of experiments which
resulted in pleasant surprises. She
soon found that she could finish in the
box all boiled and roasted meats, sauces,
fish, soup, vegetables, fruit puddings,
etc. OF course the box cannot be used
for beefsteaks, outlets, pancakes, and
the like, articles whose chief attrac-
tion lies in the crispness resulting
from rapid cooking on hot fire, but
when food of this kind is being pre-
pared it is a great comfort to the
housewife TO know that the rest of the
meal is ready and hot in the box. In
any household such a box will be
found Of great advantage, lessening
the worries of the housewife and cook,
and leaving much more time for other
duties and recreations, but for work
ing women it is more than this lit is
n1nanct indicnancahlo
A little patience and interest will
secure all the experience that is needed
and remove all doubts. A few expert
ments will teach how much prelim-
mary cooking on the stove is re-
quired for different substances. In
general, it will be found that two or
three minutes Of actual boiling on the
fire is amply sufficient for vegetables,
while roasted meat requires twenty to
thirty minutes. Most articles should
remain tightly closed in the box for
two or three hours, though they can
be left there to keep hot for ten or
twelve hours if necessary. Science
teaches that many substances become
ready for use as food at temperatures
below the boiling point that is, un-
less the pots are Theoretically closed, a
temperature exceeding 212 degrees
Fahrenheit cannot be attained, no
matter how much fuel is consumed
nor how long the boiling is confined.
Accordingly, the object to be kept
chiefly in view is to retain the heat as
long as possible when it has once been
developed
One of the first things for novice
to learn is how much water to use. 1t
will soon be found that too much is
better than too little, and that if
beans, peas, lentils, oatmeal, ETC.,
have less water than they can absorb
they cannot become properly cooked,
no matter how many hours the process
is continued. No water should ever
be poured from the pots, not even
from potatoes, as it always contains
valuable salts derived from the cook
ing substances whose loss must lessen
the alimentary value of the vegetables
or meat.
The hay boxes now being offered for
sale in German stores are usually lined
and partitioned with hay, felt, etc,
and the receptacles are furnished with
covers which can be securely locked.
Such boxes are no doubt useful when
food is to be transported for instance,
from restaurants; but there is one ser
ious objection to them-their immov-
able felt and upholstery may become
moist and mouldy. A homemade hay
box will usually be found cheaper and
more practical. Almost any box will
do which has a tightly fitting cover.
The wood of which it is made should
not be too thin, and Of course there
should be no knot holes or cracks. Old
trunks and yalises may sometimes be
successfully utilized in this way.
The box should be loosely filed with
shavlngs, paper or hay the last mem
toned being probably the most salts
factory The hay should be renewed
every two or three weeks. Before the
pots are ready the requisite number
Of nests in the hay should be prepared,