Load-shedding cooking

Plan around the outage

Check the outage schedule for your area and cook before the power goes off where you can. Boil the kettle first and fill a flask with hot water for tea, instant oats or couscous.

Chop vegetables and measure ingredients while you still have light, and keep a torch, matches or a lighter next to the gas hob.

Stay safe with gas and fire

Never use a braai, charcoal, a gas braai or a generator inside your home, garage or carport, or near doors and windows. They give off carbon monoxide, which you can’t see or smell and which can kill.

Use a gas hob in a well-ventilated room, follow the supplier’s instructions for the cylinder, turn the gas off at the cylinder when you finish, and never leave a flame unattended.

Keep the fridge and freezer cold

Keep the doors closed. A closed fridge keeps food cold for about 4 hours. A full freezer holds its temperature for about 48 hours, a half-full one for about 24 hours.

If the power is off for longer than 4 hours, US food-safety guidance is to throw away perishable fridge food such as meat, fish, dairy and cooked leftovers. Most load-shedding slots last 2 to 4 hours, but back-to-back slots add up. Fridge food that has been above 4°C for more than 2 hours is not safe. Freezer food can be refrozen if it still has ice crystals or is at 4°C or below. When in doubt, throw it out.

Finish cooking without power

A Wonderbag or another insulated cooker can finish a stew, or samp and beans, with no power. Dried beans must first be soaked and then boiled hard on the stove for at least 10 minutes: the bag does not get hot enough to make raw beans safe. Bring the pot to a full rolling boil, put a tight lid on and move it straight into the bag, and don’t open it while it cooks. If you open it, or the food has cooled, bring it back to the boil before you put it back. Serve it steaming hot or reboil it first; food left to cool in the bag for hours is not safe to eat.