I made cooking in my minivan camper safe and efficient with electric appliances. When I travel, I cook indoors with electricity, with no open flames inside. When I settle at a campsite for a few days, I cook outdoors with propane.
Indoor Cooking: Compact Electric Appliances
Every appliance had to have reasonable power consumption, compact size and more than one use.
Induction cooktop. I chose a Duxtop because induction heats the pan directly, so cooking is faster and no energy is wasted. It has a lock and an auto shut-off timer. It pulls around 1600 W on fast boil and 1000 W for frying eggs, but only for a few minutes. My induction-ready cookware has removable handles and a magnetic lid handle I modified myself.
Kettle and panini press. My 0.8 L kettle uses 600 W and shuts off automatically. The George Foreman panini press uses 760 W and fits in my passenger seat pocket. For coffee I use a travel AeroPress.
Outdoor Cooking: Propane for Camping and Backup
Weber Q1000 grill. It stores three propane cylinders inside the dome and travels in a plastic tote under my bed, which keeps the BBQ aroma out of the van.
Martin dual-burner stove. My campground stove has 20,000 BTU, wind protection and electric ignition, and uses the same cylinders as the grill.
Mini camping stove. This compact stove fits in a tiny orange box. It is my emergency backup if my electrical setup fails.
Quick Facts
- Indoor: induction cooktop, 600 W kettle, 760 W panini press
- Outdoor: Weber Q1000 grill, Martin dual-burner stove
- Backup: mini camping stove
Next up, Episode 13: Safety. I cover a safe battery choice, fuses, gas detectors and fire extinguishers.
← Episode 11: Storage & Organization | Full build story | Episode 13: Safety →
