Jump to content
Syzygies

Solo Stove

Recommended Posts

solo-stove-burgers.thumb.jpeg.137c5c94cfceb88ddd8341e7e19ab9fd.jpeg

We have an indoor gas range, a 23" KK, a Weber, a Coleman camping propane stove, and the Solo Stove Campfire.

To quickly make burgers last night, keeping the cooking smells and heat outside, setting a Baking Steel on the Solo Stove Campfire was absolutely the quickest and easiest choice. I wasn't setting out to prove a point; I was just trying to get dinner on the table.

Now, if I had a propane grill ready to go, or the Coleman stove was easier to grab, this calculus might come out different. But we like fire, and we're talking thirty seconds to throw some lump charcoal into the Solo Stove, pour on some 99% isopropyl alcohol, throw in a match, and walk away.

This is actually the intended use of the Solo Stove. It took me long enough to get around to what they designed it to do.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awesome, Syzygies. :) I sous vide pork chops yesterday and thought I'd use the Solo to add some colour. Made a very small fire using the coco char that I've used on for two cooks on the Konro and a couple of pieces of softwood and one piece of hardwood. I put the Solo inside my KK sitting on two steel pieces resting on the lump basket. 

1043735308_SmallSoloFire.thumb.jpg.b6c9b89da9eed9f68912589d4aa00feb.jpg

Sous vide chop-

198758773_SousVideChop.thumb.jpg.cbe3fa14a802b309f68f162598ed9405.jpg

Used the Konro grate. 

2124464217_SearingChop.thumb.jpg.0907148540a700a0150cd9d8669f3ada.jpg

385015823_SearingPorkChop.thumb.jpg.ee059f6ee99b2008b4b760690c1ea254.jpg

1019027700_FlipSide.thumb.jpg.3ef4fa2015a2bb469b6b38bf8b5e9e10.jpg

Plated.

1265913583_ChopPlated.thumb.jpg.2d684174c086459cad4ebaa9248ca3d4.jpg

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awesome, @syzygies, I've got my stove but haven't broken it in yet... I got a seven inch round mesh grate to go on top so I can do exactly what @MacKenzie did - that chop looked good... but Korin said early September for my Konro delivery....Ordered late April. Then I plan to use the solo for prepping coals for the Konro. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

IMG_6657.thumb.jpeg.e98619b38af94f62ec3dff408d3eba5b.jpeg

As much as I'm extremely jealous of ckreef's Nuke Delta gaucho grill (Non traditional paella), and torn by Nuke's winter pricing, I'm most likely to want a quick fire to roast ingredients for a salsa. I'm instead taking advantage of winter pricing to upgrade my Solo Stove Campfire to a Solo Stove Ranger.

I'm painfully aware of my earlier cultural prejudices, rejecting till now a molcajete in favor of a Thai mortar and pestle. Molcajetes looked like a sure-fire way to end up with rocks in my food. I didn't get it. Yes, there's a break in process which one can master, then a molcajete is superior to any mortar out there. Scraping sideways is fundamentally different from pounding, and the open volcanic hole structure is there for a reason. They make quick work of salsas, which one can whip up as quickly as the French whip up vinaigrette. Go to the trouble to correctly break one in; molcajetes are amazing. My stick blender should worry.

As for the trouble to break in a molcajete: I sanded the abrupt edges of my Ancient Cookware molcajete, then smoothed the outer surfaces by vigorously rubbing with Abranet sanding fabric. One does want the texture from the many bubble holes in volcanic rock (other rocks are too smooth, and concrete mixtures aren't food safe), but the outer working surface will surely smooth after decades of use, leaving the bubble holes still exposed to shred ingredients. By speeding this smoothing process and also smoothing the outside surfaces, I both short-circuited the initial seasoning steps (grind rice multiple times till the powder stays white), and made the rock more of a celebration to hold. I look forward to the bigger molcajete I've ordered through Etsy.

Nuke Delta gaucho grill

Solo Stove Ranger

Ancient Cookware 8" molcajete

Mechuacan 10" Molcajete (Etsy)

How to Season an Authentic Molcajete

Mirka Abranet sanding disks

Note that this Etsy seller offers many sizes (8", 10", 12", 14", 16") for a molcajete. Standard advice is to buy one you can pick up. The advice should instead be to buy the biggest one you can afford to ship.  I'm pretty strong, I've been under-buying here. Once the 10" arrives, I'll decide what size I really want. The additional room will be welcome.

Edited by Syzygies
  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, tony b said:

I must have ground a whole pound of rice, one cup at a time, trying to break mine in years ago. I finally gave up. I use it for a fruit bowl now. :smt102

There's the question of provenance; many molcajetes sold are not volcanic rock, and are better suited as fruit bowls. That's not a good sign, having that difficult a time. I'll report on my experience with the Etsy seller.

Or using a Mirka Abranet sanding fabric disk is a good idea? I'd be happy to mail you one. It seemed to short-circuit this tedious phase of breaking in my molcajete.

While conventional sandpaper scratches using tiny sharp rocks, these discs instead scrape using really strong fabric. Once a surface is truly smooth they leave it alone. For example, I used a 320 grit Abranet disk on the burned-on bits on my stove. It changed the surface luster, but scraped off a decade of burned on gunk, better than a "Magic Erasure" or any purpose-built solution.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 1/2/2020 at 3:41 PM, ckreef said:

Thanks to @Syzygies  I ordered Mrs skreef a new fire pit. The Solo Stove Bonfire. Will give it a full post when it arrives, hopefully next week.

@ckreef  We have the Bonfire and the Yukon fire pits.  You are really going to enjoy the Bonfire unit.  It is perfect for 2 to 4 people.  We bought the larger Yukon for the family cottage where we have 6 to 8 people around the fire.  Have to say that the design and weight of the Bonfire is more user friendly than the Yukon.  The size of the Yukon requires the fire grate to curve/arch up in the center of the fire pit (the Bonfire grate is flat) which restricts where you can place the larger logs.  Plus the size and weight of the Yukon makes it difficult for one person to turn it upside down to empty the ashes without denting the unit.  Not a problem with the Bonfire. 

The Yukon may be larger but the design of the internal fire grate leaves a lot to be desired and actually reduces the effectiveness of the cool smokeless feature.   In my not so humble opinion.........Between the two units I have ........................The Bonfire is the way to go!!!!!       

PS - Have not seen the Ranger fire pit.  

Edited by Jon B.
spelling
  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, jonj said:

Thanks for the comparative review, Jon B. I was hoping someone would do one. 

Very welcome.  We bought the Bonfire first and then the Yukon.  I (and many other reviewers) was/were really disappointed in the shape of the Yukon fire grate.    The manufacturer found that in the first production units the fire grate would warp & sag, so they had to "dome" the fire grate to prevent that from happening.  If a person was interested in the larger unit, they might want to check and see if they fixed the problem. A simple support bar/arm would solve the problem in my way of thinking.  If the fire grate was flat like the Bonfire....it would be just as nice as the Bonfire. 

There is no ash drawer on these units.  The powder ash falls down thru the round holes in the fire grate into the lower chamber.  The only way to remove it is to turn the unit upside down and shake it out back thru the round holes.  Not hard at all with the Bonfire by yourself but Yukon is so big around that one person has trouble getting arms around it to support shaking it out.  They do dent easily.    

Once you get a hot fire going, these units are great. The secondary burn feature on the gasses is super cool.  It burns the wood down to a fine powder like a wood stove.

Be sure to get the spacer ring for under the fire pit if you are on grass or a combustible surface.  With the spacer ring, we are able to have a fire on the grass without scorching it.

We did not get the fire/spark screens they recently came out with.   

I did receive a damaged unit on the Yukon order.........They send a return shipping tag and sent a new one once UPS scanned the tag at pick-up.  Great customer service.   

 

Edited by Jon B.
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.




×
×
  • Create New...