dogbowl oven biscuit experiments 1 - 4
These were done back-to-back, allowing the oven to cool (and biscuits to be eaten) in between.
I wanted to use a commodity biscuit rather than DIY to reduce variables. I wanted plain cheap biscuits but Walmart is out, so I got their Great Value Jumbo biscuits. The instructions say:
preheat to 350f, bake 13-17mins, or preheat to 325f, bake 19-25mins
Two would fit in the medium cooking bowl, if one of them were cut in half:
I set the oven on the Dragonfly:
The dragonfly has a “roarer” burner, which directs a flame blast into the backside of a spreader with 3 holes. This diffuses the flame blast to a large degree, but it’s not a big even flame circle as one finds on coleman stoves or gas burners. Behold the majesty:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpyBM6yYDew
Usually not an issue with normal cookware but these dogbowls are very thin. Let’s see what happened….
attempt one (C)
I had no idea what to expect.
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preheated on medium-high
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cooked biscuits on medium-low
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not done @ 15mins, increased to medium. Noticed some condensation on the lid so cracked the lid with a twig.
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bottom burned at @20mins. Flipped over.
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ended at 25mins.
The biscuits were cooked through but burned on the bottom. Scraped off scorched layer dad-style, and ate them.
At this point I decided the next step would be to tame the heat, either turn it down or distribute more evenly. I chose distribution and it ended in tears….
attempt two (D-)
I looked around to see what I might have. I decided the sandy dirty at the site might even/tame the heat a bit. I put about 3/8” of dirt in the bottom pan and preheated:
There must have been some cedar fragments because it subtly of incense for a couple minutes while it burned off. After that I sealed it up and tried again on MEDIUM. Set the timer for 15mins and they were seriously burned by 10 minutes.
What the heck? <– not my actual words
I soon realized that the sandy dirt was in direct contact with the bottom pan and slamming in the heat. Ugh.
The char was too deep to scrape so I just ate the tops.
I’m gonna need a different spacer. Good news is the small twig spacer eliminated interior condensation.
attempt three B-
I looked in the bag of site litter I’d picked up and found an old aluminum can. I crushed it flat(-ish), stacked the little grate on top….
….and tried again on medium-low. At 15 minutes they were rising but not browned. Still fine at 20mins. And at 25mins. Starting to think I should have used MEDIUM heat. Flipped them over and removed at 30mins.
These didn’t rise as high and were just barely cooked through. I ate them all because of my Dedication To Science.
I think the bottom spacing is correct. Let’s adjust the heat.
attempt four (B-)
Last set of test biscuits from the can, so this is all for today. On MEDIUM this time.
Cooked through, apprpriately risen, and brown-to-lightly-scorched on bottom at 15mins, which is my preference. Still pale on top so I flipped them for 5mins.
Thought I took a pic but on review I did not, and already ate them. :-(
I suspect slightly lower heat and 20mins would have gotten me into A- territory. I think the BBQ temp probe is going to help me find the right temp. Cooking indoors over propane without the wind and all would also likely be easier.