February 20th's Tip
Greening Your Oven: You may know already that preheating your oven can be a waste of energy. Yes, it can be necessary in certain situations, such as baking bread or other foods that need to rise, but if you're making a casserole or reheating leftovers, it isn't necessary. There are other ways to reduce the energy usage of your oven.
Another way to reduce energy usage when cooking is by turning the oven off shortly before the food is done. It will retain the heat fine as long as you don't open the door. When you are done cooking, you can leave the door of the oven open. This is helpful in the winter, especially, because you're releasing heat that was already created to warm up your kitchen - no extra heat wasted. Don't open the oven door to peak at your food while it is still cooking, that is a huge waste of heat. Use the oven light if you need to check.
When you put a pan on a burner, make sure that the burner is the right size for it. Using an 8 inch burner for a 6 inch pan will waste greater than 40% of the heat. If you are boiling water in the pan, use a lid to help the water come to a boil faster.
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February 21st, 2009 at 10:42 am
I've found that the best place to make bread rise is by the wood stove with a warm cloth over it. Saves baking time!
February 23rd, 2009 at 7:28 am
Thanks for the tips, i try to do as much as can eco. When i actually start using an oven, i will try to do it right too..
March 9th, 2009 at 3:22 am
Thanks! A nice article for the natural resources. We must save the our energy in a way that we will not loose our work as well as our source of energy. In a oven energy is mostly wasted so burner must be used in a correct way at a right height.