Cooking in Van what would you spec now?

[Jays2]

Found the pressure cooker to be easy to use and very efficient.

 

[jezport]

Just ordered one of these. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/38641964...pid=5339023013&customid=&toolid=10001&mkevt=1

 

[Dutch 68]

We have a 3 induction Hob, Slow Cooker, Air Fryer, a Grand Remoska and a Lotus BBQ. Proper Plates and drink out of Crystal Glasses, why would you cook, eat or drink any differently whilst away than you do when at home.?

Exactly that, it’s why I had my 4 oven Aga installed in my van, got so used to it at home

 

[sfrain145]

Now that Air Fryers are becoming mainstream in the home, do you really need a Thetford style cooker in your van taking up a big cupboard space, not very well insulated so inefficient and mostly used as storage.

In an ideal world I am thinking Induction hob and Air Fryer would take up much less room and be less moisture producing, cleaner and healthier.
What would you cook with ? And are Motorhome manufacturers behind the curve yet ?

Yes a good idea if you have the correct power and batteries to support it

 

[Apacheman]

Will stick with what the van came with. 3 burner gas hob plus electric ring. Decent oven. Microwave. BBQ gas point and 13amp plug in locker often used for an electric hot plate. Also carry a slow cooker. Combination works well for us wherever we get parked. Not gone hungry yet.

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[Steve I]

errrr, exactly what we have got now.

1 x Electric plate on top for when we have free EHU
3 x gas burners on top for main cooking
Gas Grill (OK, so does not get a lot of use, but it also does not take up much room and warms plates)
Gas Oven (Get a lot of use)

And Cadac Safari Chef 2 for outside use (In summer we do all frying outside)

Almost exactly the same but also carry an air fryer for when on hook up, use it lots

 

[Tonks]

I have a two burner gas hob, a single induction hob for when I'm on EHU (or when I plug it into my Ecoflow), and a gas grill. I also have a standard Remoska, which I've used maybe twice in the van in the last couple of years. With that combo I've cooked almost every day that I've been away in the van, although the Remoska was only added three or four years ago.

I cook on the gas 90% of the time. A single gas cylinder (907) lasts me about a year on average as the van is heated with an eberspacher diesel heater and I have a 12v compressor fridge.

If I was speccing a new van from scratch I'd go with a combo of gas and induction hobs. I'd probably keep the grill although I rarely use it. Not sure I'd go for an oven as the Remoska can do most of what I'd do in an oven. BUT: It's nice to have equipment easily available to use (ie. permanently installed) rather than having to get stuff in and out of cupboards. I'm one of the 20 people in the country who doesn't yet have an air fryer, but my mum raves about hers. My current van would certainly have no room to cart one about though.

 

[Lullabys and Laybys]

Now that Air Fryers are becoming mainstream in the home, do you really need a Thetford style cooker in your van taking up a big cupboard space, not very well insulated so inefficient and mostly used as storage.

In an ideal world I am thinking Induction hob and Air Fryer would take up much less room and be less moisture producing, cleaner and healthier.
What would you cook with ? And are Motorhome manufacturers behind the curve yet ?

My current van has 3 gas burners and an oven. I mainly stay off grid so that is working fine for me. I rarely use the oven, but I do love my ridge monkey that I use on the hob almost every trip - fry ups, toasties, omelettes, frittatas, enchiladas. When camping on sites I take the Cadac and if I have EHU I take an electric kettle and my well used remoska. But that’s usually in use at home. I would consider taking my instant pot if I was on electric in the colder months. But haven’t yet.

 

[Tonks]

My concern with Gas has always been it creates moisture in the van, you have to go looking for it using up diesel and you cannot guarantee the ‘stockists has any in when you get there and, you are carrying a bomb around with you, like it or not the tanks can go with a bang in a crash.
With even a moderately sized battery and solar set up and diesel you can cook and heat yourself anywhere and not have to go chasing after Gas supplies.
In respect of Tax and increased costs etc. We will all get priced off the road eventually due to fossil fuel pricing/taxing but in the mean time I will try and enjoy my trips away

I always cook with the van well ventilated when I'm using gas and have never had a problem with damp in the van. On the rare occasions I need to cook and need to keep the van closed up and in 'stealth' mode (such as when I was street parking ahead of attending a funeral last year) I cook using my induction hob. Of course that still creates steam, but you can minimise the impact of it.

Underslung tanks are a non-starter for me because I use on average about one 907 cylinder per year so it would take about ten years to recoup the cost, and then I'd have to have it replaced since all gas cylinders should be pressure checked and inspected at ten year intervals and there is hardly anywhere this can be done on private vehicles. However, my gas locker is neatly positioned at the rear off side of my van, which has always seemed to me to be one of the more vulnerable spots... In terms of availability, I always have a spare, so that when the gas in the van runs out I know I can replace it. I then have several months if necessary to swap the empty bottle for a full one.

I 100% agree with your comments about tax and increased costs, but like you I am using my van and enjoying it while I can. It's currently (and will be for some time yet, I think) cheaper for me to run my 14 year old van and pay the charges etc than it would be to upgrade. Even if I could afford it, which looking at PX and finance on a lovely van at the NEC last week, I clearly can't at present.

 

[Buddy1012]

Now that Air Fryers are becoming mainstream in the home, do you really need a Thetford style cooker in your van taking up a big cupboard space, not very well insulated so inefficient and mostly used as storage.

In an ideal world I am thinking Induction hob and Air Fryer would take up much less room and be less moisture producing, cleaner and healthier.
What would you cook with ? And are Motorhome manufacturers behind the curve yet ?

With that combination. it probably rules out any form of "off-grid" stopovers unless of course you had a very big battery set-up (Lithium) and a fairly powerful inverter. plus as many solar panels as you could fit on the roof. Not only that I would think that you would probably be looking at campsites with a 16 amp supply which would rule out quite a few of the many that I've visited when touring abroad. I've lived in a fully "off-grid" house for 5 years with a huge (by comparison) lithium battery bank, an 8 KVa inverter along with 6 kW of solar panels - even that would have struggled with kit like induction hobs and air-fryers etc. For me it's gas for the M'home cooking & heating (unless on EHU) leaving the batteries to keep all of the essentials - lights, pumps, TV, tech chargers etc all running for as long as possible.

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[scotjimland]

. For me it's gas for the M'home cooking & heating (unless on EHU) leaving the batteries to keep all of the essentials - lights, pumps, TV, tech chargers etc all running for as long as possible.

my exact sentiments ..

 

[V and B]

I notice quite a few have air fryers, remouskas and the like. Where do you put them when in use? We have more worktop space than most, but even that is not a lot, surely you have no prep room left.

 

[garry f]

Now that Air Fryers are becoming mainstream in the home, do you really need a Thetford style cooker in your van taking up a big cupboard space, not very well insulated so inefficient and mostly used as storage.

In an ideal world I am thinking Induction hob and Air Fryer would take up much less room and be less moisture producing, cleaner and healthier.
What would you cook with ? And are Motorhome manufacturers behind the curve yet ?

We have just purchased a new Malibu motorhome and there is no cooker, we purchased a Remoska which is basically a small oven, it is so good we use it in the house now. You can cook baked potatoes to mince to soda bread. A great purchase

 

[two]

We adopt a different lifestyle when on our travels. It's all part of the difference.
Our van has just three gas rings and we get by rather well on them.
No idea how good or bad an air fryer is but imagine that they could end up with the wock, Foreman grill, and sandwich toaster.
My van does not have the payload for occasional items, so we make god use of what we take.

 

[Pausim]

I cook on the gas 90% of the time. A single gas cylinder (907) lasts me about a year on average as the van is heated with an eberspacher diesel heater and I have a 12v compressor fridge.

We will be in the same position shortly with diesel heating and a compressor fridge so your experience with 907 cylinders is interesting. I think the 907 is butane rather than propane, do you have any problems in cold weather? I had been thinking of a using a 5kg Flogas/BP lightweight but perhaps the 907 is an alternative.

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[scotjimland]

We have just purchased a new Malibu motorhome and there is no cooker,

take it back.. must be an oversight ...

or do Malibu expect owners eat out every day ?

 

[DesandDek]

Never had a oven in our MH and it was never a consideration when buying. The reason is when caravanning we always had a fitted oven and never used it, we always used the microwaves and BBQ. We do carry sometimes a cheap LIdl oven, lightweight and lives in the garage until needed. The ovens fitted into motorhomes are heavy and take up valuable space where space is needed in the habitation area, Only our opinions so no abuse thankyou.

 

[Molly A]

My concern with Gas has always been it creates moisture in the van, you have to go looking for it using up diesel and you cannot guarantee the ‘stockists has any in when you get there and, you are carrying a bomb around with you, like it or not the tanks can go with a bang in a crash.
With even a moderately sized battery and solar set up and diesel you can cook and heat yourself anywhere and not have to go chasing after Gas supplies.
In respect of Tax and increased costs etc. We will all get priced off the road eventually due to fossil fuel pricing/taxing but in the mean time I will try and enjoy my trips away

I suppose it also depends where you are travelling. We pretty much are always in Europe, rarely use the van in the UK, and we never have issues finding gas. Can be tricky sometimes in Italy finding a garage to sell it to you, , even with Gaslo and an external filler, but we normally manage . We are often travelling way out of season, with few camp sites open, so on Aires with no or limited electricity, or quiet park ups, so gas will always be preferable for us. Yes, the UK seems to becoming a problem to source it, we only have one garage anywhere near us which sells it.

 

[Molly A]

Nope, it's got to be runny in the middle unless it's a souffle omellete.

Yes, Lenny, can't abid a dry omelette!

 

[Tonks]

We will be in the same position shortly with diesel heating and a compressor fridge so your experience with 907 cylinders is interesting. I think the 907 is butane rather than propane, do you have any problems in cold weather? I had been thinking of a using a 5kg Flogas/BP lightweight but perhaps the 907 is an alternative.

I've only had a problem once. That time I was in Lincolnshire in temperatures which had been below zero for several days and I woke up on departure day to find that not only had the gas frozen, but also the tailgate of my van so I couldn't open it! Luckily my heating is diesel so I was still warm. I didn't have gas until almost lunchtime...! Now I have a power bank and an induction hob so I have options if the gas doesn't work (as also happened when the regulator failed, but that's another story!). The only thing I use gas for is cooking, so the van was fully functional in every other respect. Subsequently I have been known to wrap the cylinder to help insulate it when I've been camping in very cold weather.

However, I use my van year-round, have had it nearly ten years, and the gas has only frozen on me once, so unless you're planning to be regularly in very cold places, I wouldn't be overly concerned about the 907 cylinders freezing. (But after the frozen gas incident and before the acquisition of the power bank I got into the habit of always filling a flask with hot water before bed on sub-zero nights, just in case the gas froze, so I could be sure of a cuppa in the morning!)

I recently read something in one of the camping/van mags saying that Camping Gaz are starting to mix their gas, so there is a proportion of propane as well as butane, to reduce the likelihood of it freezing. I know their little canisters are a mix, but the article said that the same is being introduced overall. I can't see anything on their website about this for the 904/907s though, so I'm not sure where the magazine got their information.

I think Flogas might work out a bit cheaper, so that might be worth checking out, depending on how much gas you're likely to use.

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[Red Shoes]

Our van just has a two-ring gas hob, (we use LPG – when we can find it – but that’s another issue!). There is only a flap up work surface and the table. We carry two single low watt portable induction hobs for when on EHU. This works well for us. We also have an Omnia for when on gas, but rarely use it. We also purchased last summer a very small slow cooker – also only used on EHU, but does the job for jacket potatoes, casseroles and porridge, er, not at the same time of course!

What we use most of all, and no-one has mentioned yet is a ridge-monkey. Everything from toast to burgers, full English or brownies can be cooked in it – what more do you need? It also packs up really small, comes in a carry bag and its own utensils. In fact, we use it so much we bought another for “indoors”. Sadly it doesn’t work on induction.

Omelettes… the only runny one I ever had gave me the worst food poisoning ever – we had to extend our stay because I literally couldn’t leave. Wish Minksy had been there to do her thing!

 

[Molly A]

Our van doesn't have an oven, I did want one in my list of 'nice to haves' but it was one of the compromises made because we wanted a smaller van. We have 3 gas burners, and a Weber Q bbq with a rotisserie. In the spring/summer on the way to Greece, we bbq as much as we can, even if, as normal, we are only staying one night.In the boatyard in Greece before we launch for the summer it is a Bbq every night. On our way back to the UK in November/December we cook inside on the hob, curries, stews, chilis, sautées , steaks etc, eating well and eating out is some compensation for having to come back! Yes, we do miss having an oven at that time of year, and have pondered a remoska, but that would require an inverter and more solar, so at the moment I'm fine with our set up. Also the electrical supply on many Aires isn't good enough for power hungry appiances, even my kettle trips out some of them.The Gaslo 2 bottle kit runs our heating very efficiently, even in minus 10c in Switzerland last December, and we never have issues with sourcing LPG, so I guess we will continue to keep it simple.

 

[Pausim]

take it back.. must be an oversight ...

or do Malibu expect owners eat out every day ?

All Malibu Vans have a 2 burner gas hob as standard. The oven and grill is an optional extra which is usual on continental vans, it seems this is a UK thing. I haven’t seen anything to suggest that you can omit the hob.

 

[Woodburner]

Three gas hobs and a Remoska, to use when on hook up, allow us to cook pretty much anything. The fitted gas oven is a total waste of space. A microwave would have been a much better use of the space.

 

[scotjimland]

All Malibu Vans have a 2 burner gas hob as standard. The oven and grill is an optional extra which is usual on continental vans, it seems this is a UK thing. I haven’t seen anything to suggest that you can omit the hob.

indeed, I've had several with just two or three ring hobs,, no grill or oven

when he said no cooker, and had purchased a Remoska , I thought that meant the van had no cooking facility..

but it was tongue in cheek

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[hja]

I have a two burner gas hob, a single induction hob for when I'm on EHU (or when I plug it into my Ecoflow), and a gas grill. I also have a standard Remoska, which I've used maybe twice in the van in the last couple of years. With that combo I've cooked almost every day that I've been away in the van, although the Remoska was only added three or four years ago.

I cook on the gas 90% of the time. A single gas cylinder (907) lasts me about a year on average as the van is heated with an eberspacher diesel heater and I have a 12v compressor fridge.

If I was speccing a new van from scratch I'd go with a combo of gas and induction hobs. I'd probably keep the grill although I rarely use it. Not sure I'd go for an oven as the Remoska can do most of what I'd do in an oven. BUT: It's nice to have equipment easily available to use (ie. permanently installed) rather than having to get stuff in and out of cupboards. I'm one of the 20 people in the country who doesn't yet have an air fryer, but my mum raves about hers. My current van would certainly have no room to cart one about though.

I’m one of the other 19 with no air fryer, at home or in the van!

 

[hja]

I notice quite a few have air fryers, remouskas and the like. Where do you put them when in use? We have more worktop space than most, but even that is not a lot, surely you have no prep room left.

We have a reasonable amount of work top and when using the Remoska I prep everything and usually place it on the lid over the cooker, which I close. The biggest issue is to ensure there is somewhere to put the lid when you take it off so it doesn’t catch the cable. I think the newer Remoska shave detachable cables.

 

[Tonks]

What we use most of all, and no-one has mentioned yet is a ridge-monkey. Everything from toast to burgers, full English or brownies can be cooked in it – what more do you need? It also packs up really small, comes in a carry bag and its own utensils. In fact, we use it so much we bought another for “indoors”. Sadly it doesn’t work on induction.

I've never had a Ridge Monkey but lots of people have endorsed them. So I had a good look at the NEC, where they had an excellent stand with all the various options, and demonstrations of them in use. I was tempted to buy one because I was impressed by the usability and the neat pack up etc, but then the chap I spoke to said that they're working on a version which will be induction friendly, so I'll wait to see if there's further news on that by the October show, as I have an induction hob in the van as well as the gas, and in general I'd prefer any new item to work on both.

 

[scotjimland]

I’m one of the other 19 with no air fryer, at home or in the van!

I'm No 2

 

[Pausim]

I'm No 2

Me 3.

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