Jan 2012
This is the first podcast newsletter from Mr D - the thermal cook.
Mr D looks at a use for the Seville Oranges (that are now in the shops in UK) from around 1900………but the result does take him 30 hours. He learns how Anne Letton fed a hungry crew of 5 as they crossed the Atlantic. What is the best size thermal cooker for you? He talks to his friend Alan down under. Plus has a recipe, with a Far Eastern twist, for pumpkins.
Duration: 21 mins.
Programme Notes
Mr D’s Newsletter Podcast 0001 – Jan 2012
NEWS ROUND UP
This month begins the Chinese year of the dragon and what better thing to cook in your thermal cooker than a celebration Chinese meal like Chairman Mao’s favourite meal red braised pork. This is a dish from Hunan and it is said that Chairman Mao insisted that his Hunanese Chefs cooked it for him in Beijing.
Earlier this month our shipment of top pots eventually arrived and I have shipped out almost all of the back orders.
Leading up to Christmas we shipped thermal cooker all over the world. Countries included USA, Norway, Sweden, Holland, Spain, Ireland and Germany. We even had an enquiry from Brazil.
Last month Waterways World did an article on the cookers and Practical Boat Owner used theirs to make their Mr D’s Christmas Cake.
Finally show time is soon to start so I have been busy planning this years events which will include a talk by me on thermal cooking during the Milford on Sea Food Week in Hampshire.
Keep an eye on Mr D’s Diary page for exact dates.
I am often asked about the various sizes and configurations of Mr D’s thermal cookers.
The cookers come in three sizes….the 3 L which is suitable for two to four meals….the 4.5 L, the most popular will make six to eight meals…..and the 6.8L that will feed ten to twelve people.
One thing to bear in mind when choosing a thermal cooker is that the heat retention time is dependent on size. So assuming the cooker is filled at least 80% and the safe temperature for food is above 60 degrees C, the 3L will cook for around five hours…..the 4.5L for six to seven hours and the 6.8L for around eight hours.
Now lets look at what fits what in the accessory range……The bread and cake tins will fit any of the cookers. The top pot, which hangs from the lip of the inner pot, will only fit the 4.5 L and when bought together become the two pot version.
and the traveller is once again the standard 4.5L but with the addition of the carry bag.
On Boxing Day I received a lovely email from Anne Letton the cook on the yacht Time Bandit who had just completed the ARC 2011.
The ARC is an annual transatlantic rally for cruising yachts. It starts in November from Gran Canaria and finishes between 14 to 21 days later in Saint Lucia. There are around 200 yachts from all over the world that take part and Time Bandit a 13.8m boat from UK with a crew of five took a Mr D’s Thermal Cooker with them.
Anne has returned for a few days so I took the opportunity to talk to her about the trip.. …
In the Uk shops this month we find this seasons Seville oranges starting to appear. Seeing them reminded me that I had a recipe for marmalade to try out.
It comes from a book called the Fireless cookbook written around 1900 by Margaret J Mitchell and let me read you the recipe……
I will put this up on my site thethermalcook.com and will let you know how the marmalade worked in my next podcast.
I have ordered some copies of the Fireless Cook Cookbook to sell in my web shop mrdscookware.co.uk but if you want to Pre order these please let me know.
I know many of you that subscribe to my newsletters come from Australia so I thought that I would have a chat with my friends from Thermal Cookware to find out what is going on down under.
Hi Alan……..
To finish the show this month I thought you might like to try this recipe which I made for Jen and myself. It is Thai pumpkin curry.
Today’s recipe Thai pumpkin curry would make a delicious side dish for a Thai meal. As a side dish it would feed 6 to 8 people.
This curry would also make a lovely vegetarian areal for 4 people when served with rice or noodles.
Firstly place the inner pot on a medium heat.
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp ginger
- 1 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil
- 2 Thai chillies, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 1 medium red onion, sliced
- 1 stick lemongrass, thinly sliced
- 2 x 440g cans of coconut milk
- 1/3 rd a cup or 80 ml of lime juice
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp palm sugar
- 1 kg butternut squash, chopped into chunks
- 200 g green beans, topped and tailed
- 200g sugar snap peas
- In the inner pot add the cumin, ground coriander, ginger and dry fry these spices until fragrant
- Add the oil, chillies, garlic and red onion and gently fry until the onion softens.
- Add the lemon grass, pour in the cans of coconut milk, lime juice, light soy sauce and add the palm sugar.
- Add the butternut squash, green beans and sugar snap peas. Make sure everything is covered.
- Once boiling turn down to a simmer and allow to simmer for 5 minutes before placing the inner pot into the insulated outer container.
- Shut the lid and leave to slow cook without power for a minimum of 2 hours.
To serve garnish with unsealed peanuts and chopped corriander leaves.
Well thank you for listening to this podcast, I do hope you have enjoyed it. I am always interested in your input so if you have any comments or any interesting thermal cooking tales to share please send me an email. My email address again is mrd@thethermalcook.co.uk.
Until next time take care.
All the best
Mr D – The Thermal Cook
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