The solar oven is an alternative cooking method and cooks all kinds of food using the energy of the sun. The solar oven was designed to be environmentally friendly being made with recycled material. It is made from double cardboard, aluminum foil and glass. Depending on the season, solar ovens can reach temperatures ranging from 260 degrees to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

The solar oven works by sunlight coming in and onto the reflector panel and then into the oven box. The reflector panel is covered with ordinary aluminum foil to maximize heat and keep it inside the oven. When you place a temperature gauge inside, you can tell when it becomes hot enough to cook something. On a sunny day, a solar oven takes just a little bit longer to cook food than an electrical oven.

See all 6 photos A completed Solar Oven What You Will Need

Locate two large, shallow cardboard boxes. The inside box needs to be at least 18" x 22" and, ideally, it should be a little taller than the height of your cooking pots. The outer box should be a little larger in dimension so that you are left with a space of about 1-2" between the boxes when they are inlaid.

Now, you will need a piece of corrugated cardboard that is a minimum of 6" longer and wider in size than the outside box to construct the lid; window glass that measures at least 20" x 24" and longer and wider than the inner box by 2 - 3"; a piece of thin, black metal sheet which is equal to, or slightly smaller in size, than the inside box; 50 feet of silver aluminum foil; dry plant matter such as leaves and straw or, alternatively, a minimum of 50 pages of newspaper which have been quartered and scrunched up; glue silicone caulk; and rigid wire (hanger wire, for example).

The tools that you will require are a paintbrush, a utility or other sharp knife, lead pencil, and a straightedge.

Directions

Cutting the window opening into the outside box of the solar oven. See figure 4.3, pictured. Upend the outer box. On the base of the box, center the inner box and draw an outline in lead pencil. Proceed to cut out this piece so that the window opening is the same size as the inner, smaller box. You should be left with a small rim around all four sides which measures approximately 2-3" in width. On the lid piece - the extra piece of cardboard - center the outside box and trace around it in pencil (these become the fold lines). Extend these lines out to the edges of the lid piece. Center the inside box between the fold lines on the lid, which you have just drawn, and trace around this box as well. Cut only three sides of the inner line, two short sides and one long one. Fold up the resulting flap for the reflector, creating a window frame opening the same size as the inside, smaller box.

Adjust the height of the solar oven, if required. Refer to figure 4.4. Place a cooking pot with lid beside both of the boxes. The inside box needs to be slightly taller than the height of your pot. The outside box needs to be just a small amount taller than the inside, lining box. In the event that the boxes are too tall:

On the inside, lining box etch a mark approximately 1" above the top of the pot and mark a fold line, at this level, around the four walls of the box. Score the fold lines with a blunt edge, for example, the handle of a spoon.

On the outside box make a mark that is 2" above the top of the pot and draw a fold line at this height, at this level, around the four walls of the box. Score the fold lines with a blunt edge, for example, the handle of a spoon.

Cut the corners of both boxes down to the marked fold lines. Fold the sides outward along the creases.

Trimming the inner box flaps of the solar oven. When the walls of the inside box are folded down to the correct height (or if no adjustments were required), trim the flaps to match the width of the small rim around the window opening on the outside box.

Joining the boxes of the solar oven. Refer to figure 4.5 during this section of instructions. Place the outside box the right side up, so that the window opening and rim are down. Place glue on the inside of the rim. Turn the inside box upside down, lower it into the outer box and, subsequently, onto the glue. Press the small flaps against the inside of the rim around the window opening to join the two boxes into one double-walled box, now open at the bottom (which should be facing up at this stage).

Insulation and sealing of the solar oven. Without affecting the drying of the glue, carefully spot-glue aluminum foil on all four walls and the underside of the inner box, covering all possible surfaces between the two boxes. This layer of foil assists with insulating the cooker and maximizing heat. Lightly fill the space between the two boxes with crumpled newspaper, plant matter or other insulation. Add a few strips of cardboard and more crumpled newspaper or other insulation on the underside of the lining box (which should be facing upright at this point). Close and glue the flaps of the outer box to seal the base of the cooker.

Gluing foil inside the box and onto the solar oven lid. Turn the box right side up. Dilute glue 1:1 with water and, using a paintbrush, spread it thinly on the dull side of sheets of aluminum foil. Press the glued sheets of aluminum foil tightly and smoothly like wallpaper to the inside and rim of the box. A few wrinkles are inconsequential. Place the box aside for the glue to fully dry. Repeating the method, glue foil to the underside of the lid flap (the folded-up center part only).

Cut, fold, and glue the corners of the new solar oven lid. Refer to figure 4.6 during this section of the instructions. With the lid upside down (foil facing up), make one cut at each of the four corners of the lid, only to the first fold lines. The cuts should be parallel to the long side of the lid. Score all of the fold lines with a blunt edge and fold along the creases with a straightedge such as a board. Overlap and glue the corners, and secure them with clothespins or clamps until the glue has dried.

Insert the solar oven window. Spread silicone caulk along the underside edge of the window opening rim (outside the cut edge of the foiled reflector piece). Firmly but carefully press the glass in to make a good seal with the caulk. Let the box and lid dry completely overnight.

Make an adjustable solar oven prop. Refer to figure 4.7 during this section of the instructions. Make small holes in one corner of the lid reflector and on the side of lid. Loop string through the holes. Make several notches in a stick and tie the stick at both ends to hold up the reflector and allow angle adjustments.

Or, alternatively:

Bend a sturdy wire at both ends and glue corrugated cardboard strips to the lid and reflector as shown. The wire can be inserted into any of the corrugations for angle adjustment.

Add the black tray and cook the solar oven. Place the black metal sheet inside the box. The pots will sit on this light-absorbing sheet. Put on the lid, with the lid reflector propped open, and aim the cooker directly toward the sun for several hours to drive out the last bit of moisture and any paint or glue fumes.

Congratulations! You're ready to start cooking with your new solar oven.

Solar Oven Cooking And Baking Tips

Get it on early. Don't worry about stirring, burning or overcooking. The solar oven works best when the sun is high in the sky. It is hard to overcook foods (except perhaps pasta) so you don't have to be around when food is exactly ready to eat. Several hours more in the solar oven won't hurt most foods.

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