By Charles and Pam Dawsey
We find the Sun Oven to be very forgiving. You will find you can cook at a higher temperature with less time or a lower temperature with more time. The meat cooked is more moist and flavorful than with a conventional oven.* For dry camping in our motor home, this oven is a must. When we are not using the oven for other things, but wish to keep it available, we place a black tea kettle of water inside which also provides us with extra hot water. All dishes should be dark, so the sun’s rays will be better absorbed, and should be used with the cover on unless otherwise stated.
* Mfr.’s note: meats must be cooked at temperatures above
250º to prevent bacterial overgrowth.
Click Here For Helpful Tips On Using
Your Sun Oven.
RECIPES
PORK SPARERIBS
(Baby-back ribs)
1 rack ribs
Barbecue sauce (Ingredients Below)
1 onion, chopped
1 cup ketchup
½ cup molasses
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup cider vinegar
3 tablespoons prepared mustard
½ teaspoon liquid smoke
Salt and pepper to taste
Sauté onion in small amount of oil. Add remaining
ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes. Boil ribs in water for 15 minutes.
Place ribs in a dark baking pan and cover with half the sauce. Use balance of sauce
to brush on during cooking. Cook in preheated 325º oven for 2 hours.
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BEAN SOUP
2 cups mixed beans
1 large onion, chopped and sautéed
4 cloves garlic, chopped and sautéed
3 tablespoons dried parsley
Dash oregano
2 tomatoes, chopped (or canned)
Red pepper (optional)
½ green pepper, chopped
1 ham hock or 4 strips of bacon (smoked)
Preheat Sun Oven. Place ingredients in pot and cover to
within 1 inch of top with soup stock or 3 cubes of beef bouillon in water. When
done, add ½ lemon or 2 tablespoons vinegar. Cook at 300º for 4 hours.
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ORIENTAL MEATBALLS
With HOT RICE
This dish is as colorful as it is tasty. It can be prepared ahead of time and reheated before serving. Although it looks complicated, the three stages are easily accomplished and well worth the effort.
MEATBALLS:
1 pound ground beef
1 cup bread crumbs
½ cup chopped onion
¼ teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 beaten egg
Mix ingredients by hand or with your cuisineart. Form into small balls. Spray pan with Pam and arrange meatballs. Cook in preheated Sun Oven at 325º for 50 minutes or until done.
SAUCE:
1 cup juice from a 17-oz. can of chunk pineapple (reserve
fruit)
½ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¾ cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. Set aside. Arrange the following over meatballs:
1 green pepper, cut in one-inch pieces, slightly blanched.
Drained pineapple from can (above)
1 large or 2 small tomatoes, cut in 8 pieces.
Pour sauce over all and pop into your Sun Oven to reheat for about
one hour before serving. Serve over hot rice. (Turn lid upside down and cook a
small pot of rice on top of the dinner. Rice should be done in one hour when dinner
is ready to serve.)
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Meat LOAF
1½ pounds ground beef
1 cup tomato juice
1 egg
¼ cup chopped onion
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¾ cup rolled oats or breadcrumbs
Preheat Sun Oven. Combine ingredients. Bake in loaf pan
at 325º for 1½ hours.
PORK LOIN ROAST
2 pound pork loin roast
Salt and pepper
Rub meat with salt and pepper. Brown on all sides in an iron
pot on top of stove. Place in preheated Sun Oven and cook at 325-340º until
thermometer shows 170-180º internal temperature (about 2½ hours).
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ROAST CHICKEN
Roasting chicken
Margarine
Salt and pepper
Rub chicken with margarine, salt and pepper. Cook in covered
baking dish, using basting syringe to baste occasionally with pan drippings. When
meat thermometer reads 180º chicken is done (about 4 hours).
BEST EVER PORK AND BEANS
We usually double this recipe.
1 can Campbell’s pork and beans
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 teaspoon dried onion
1 teaspoon dried mustard
¼ cup maple flavored syrup
1 slice bacon, cut into pieces and placed on top
Bake in preheated Sun Oven at 325-340º for about one hour.
Leave in oven at 200º until dinner is served. These are really delicious and go
well with any of the meat dishes.
CHEESY POTATO CASSEROLE
¼ cup butter
1 cup chopped onions
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 16-ounce sour cream
1 20-ounce bag frozen hash brown cubed potatoes, thawed
8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese
Crushed potato chips for the topping
Melt butter in small pan. Sauté onion until
translucent. In a bowl, stir together sour cream, chicken soup and onions. Mix
well. Add potatoes, salt, pepper and cheese. Stir until all ingredients are well
blended. Pour into ungreased dark-colored casserole dish. Sprinkle potato
chips on top. Cook for 2 hours in preheated 300-325º oven.
FLANK STEAK
Place flank steak in marinade:
¼ cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¾ cup salad oil
1 green onion, finely chopped
Marinate steak in refrigerator for three hours. Roll flank
steak and skewer or tie with string. Insert thermometer in meat and cook in
preheated 325º Sun Oven until desired temperature is reached. (We cook this to the
rare stage on the thermometer.)
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RUMP ROAST
3 pound rump roast
Flour
Salt and pepper
3 cloves of garlic
Onions
Potatoes
Carrots
Turnip
2 cups beef bouillon
Sear meat on all sides on top of stove. Insert cloves of
garlic in cuts made in the roast. Cook in preheated 325º Sun Oven until desired
temperature is reached on meat thermometer (about 3 hours). Add onions, potatoes,
carrots and turnip. Add beef bouillon for gravy. Cook another 3 hours at about
250º until carrots are done. Thicken the juices with a little cornstarch dissolved
in cold water. Dinner should be ready to serve!
BANANA BREAD
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1½ cups sugar
½ cup shortening
½ cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 large bananas (mashed or blended)
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Mix all ingredients well. Pour into greased and floured loaf
pan. Bake in preheated Sun Oven at 325º for 1 ½ hours or until toothpick inserted
in center comes out clean.
HOME BAKED BREAD
3 cups bread flour
¼ cup corn meal or whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1¼ cups water
2 teaspoons yeast
1 tablespoon gluten (optional)
We use a bread machine to do all the work. Just before it
starts to bake, remove the dough to a greased loaf pan and place in the microwave oven
with 2 cups of hot water. Dough should double in size in about 35 minutes.
Remove to your 325º Sun Oven and bake for approx. 45 minutes. For a better crust,
brush loaf top with salt water 5 minutes before done. Test for doneness by tapping the
loaf; if it sounds hollow, the bread is done.
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CORN BREAD
1 package Jiffy Corn Bread Mix
1 chopped green onion
1 egg
Buttermilk
Mix first three ingredients with enough buttermilk to get the right
consistency. Bake in preheated Sun Oven at 325º for approx. 70 minutes or until
done.
CHILI CON CARNE
5 slices bacon
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
2½ cups kidney beans
3½ cups canned tomatoes
Salt
1-2 tablespoons chili powder
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
For this recipe, we use our 4-quart cast iron pot. Place bacon slices in pot and cook at 325º. When bacon is done, remove and sauté onions in bacon drippings until tender. Add meat, stir and cook until gray in color. Chop bacon into small pieces and return to mixture; add remaining ingredients. Simmer about 40 minutes until flavors are well blended.
PORK CHOPS
2 fairly thick pork chops
Flour
Salt and pepper
Coat chops with flour, salt and pepper. Sear on both
sides. Place in a dark pan, uncovered, and bake in preheated 360º Sun Oven.
The temperature may drop to 325-350º. Remove from oven and cover with gravy; return
to oven for about 45 minutes. Best pork chops ever! Great served with rice
(see below).
RICE
1 cup brown rice
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
Place ingredients in 1-quart dark pot with lid in 250-275º Sun
Oven for 1 hour.
SUN DRIED TOMATOES
Slice tomatoes as thin as possible. Place in wax-paper lined
pan in Sun Oven with door open. We use the roma tomato because the color is better
when dried and it tastes better. Turn tomatoes over a few times to keep them from
sticking. On a clear, sunny day, it will take 5-6 hours for them to be completely
dried. Our first try was very successful! If you have ever purchased sun dried
tomatoes, you will really appreciate this use of your Sun Oven. You can use a wire
rack to do two batches at a time, one on top of the other. We remove the insert when
drying.
EXAMPLES OF COOKING TIMES & TEMPERATURES
Bowl of soup: 45 minutes @ 320º
Macaroni and cheese: 2 hours @ 300º
2 country style ribs: 1 hour @ 340º, turn & cook for
another hour
Gingerbread (Dromedary mix): Bake in a dark pan @ 300-325º until
done
All cooking times are approximate!
Clouds: We don’t worry too much about clouds; if we have to, we move indoors and finish the meal. The exception is baked goods such as bread. We wait until we are sure of enough time to complete the baking before using the Sun Oven.
When you become comfortable with your Sun Oven, you
will have as much fun as we did. We are purists, and did all the cooking in the Sun
Oven. You can shorten preparation time by sautéing the onions and frying the bacon
on your stove, but who wants to do that? Charlie doesn’t!
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