PSALM 119:105
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
There are many ways to save energy and money if we plan our foods in advance
ELECTRIC STOVE
- Use cooking utensils with flat bottoms and tight fittings covers. Make sure they completely cover the stove plates.
- Use a pressure cooker, crockpot or wonder bag to conserve energy when cooking foods that take a long time, such as pot roasts, stews and steamed puddings.
- Do not overcook foods, especially vegetables. Overcooking destroys essential nutrients.
- Bring foods to the boil quickly on the “high” setting, then turn the heat down to simmer to finish cooking.
- Do not use the grilling compartment to make toast – it is very expensive.
- Do not use the oven to heat the kitchen – it is very expensive and far less efficient than a heater
- Keep oven doors completely closed until food is cooked. Every time the door is opened, the oven temperature drops, and the heat must be replaced.
- Use the oven to prepare an entire meal – main course, vegetables and dessert. Remember to plan meals that cook in the oven at the same temperature.
- Allow free circulation of heat within the oven. Place pans and containers so that they do not touch each other, or the sides of the oven
Use an electric kettle to boil water, not a sauce pan or a microwave.
MICROWAVE OVEN
- Defrost your food in the refrigerator instead of the microwave oven: it is more economical.
- Use your microwave oven to cook small to medium quantities of food. To cook larger portions of meat, it is better to use a conventional oven.
- Some microwaves do not heat up foods evenly. Wrap foods in plastic to hold in the steam, this will help to give even heating. Be very careful not to cover the foods too well, steam can burn you badly when you open the packet, so leave a flap open for the steam to escape.
- Cooking time is an important factor when determining energy efficiency levels. Compare cooking times when you cook the same food in the microwave, in the standard oven, on stove top elements or in a pressure cooker. You will easily see which method of cooking is more efficient depending on quantity, volume and food types.