CAMPING | Power Free Campsite Slow Cooking With The Wonderbag

April 2, 2018 Shell Robshaw-Bryan

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What is it?

Wonderbag Eco-Friendly Slow Cooker £59.99

Stockists

Features

Slow cooks and keeps food hot for up to 12 hours
There’s no battery, plug or fuel required
Light and easily portable & compact for easy stowaway
Conveniently operates without supervision
Fail-safe and will never overcook or burn your dishes
Doubles as a cooler bag to keep food and drinks chilled
Simple innovation that is money-saving and planet loving

What did we think?

The Wonderbag is a slow cooker that requires no fuel or direct heat sources and at first I thought it must be powered by some sort of witchcraft. Turns out though it simply works on the principe of conservation of heat. You cook your casserole, stew or curry on the hob as usual, but instead of continuing the cooking process using a long simmer on the hob or in the oven, the food is popped into the Wonderbag which conserves enough heat to continue the slow cooking process.

Place a trivet inside the Wonderbag — *The booklet that comes with the Wonderbag recommends placing a trivet inside the bottom of the bag*

It goes without saying that being able to slow cook tasty casseroles and such like when camping isn’t usually possible due to the amount of fuel it would take, and with most campsites not allowing open fires, slow cooking isn’t camping friendly, unless of course you’re camping with an EHU.

When the Wonderbag arrived I thought it would make sense to have a trial run using it at home before testing it when camping. I read the instructions and then set about making one of my favourite curries. I cooked the curry in a large casserole dish on the hob as usual, and let it cook for 20 minutes before placing on the lid. I popped a trivet inside the Wonderbag as recommended and popped it inside, placing the cover on top and then cinching it closed.

I let the curry continue to cook inside the Wonderbag for a further 2.5 hours, and am delighted to say that the flavours were delicious and it was still warm. So far, so good.

Cooking using the Wonderbag — *Bringing my curry up to heat on my camp stove before placing it in the Wonderbag*

The verdict

The next test came a couple of weeks later, when I took the Wonderbag with me up to Scotland. Although staying in glamping accommodation, the kitchen facilities were basic with no hob, so I took my portable camp stove with me.

In the morning before going walking up Ben A’an I made another curry, cooking it for the first 10 minutes or so on my gas camp stove, then once bubbling and red hot, I transferred it (this time in a smaller pot, filled up fuller, as recommended) into the Wonderbag and went out walking for the day.

Placing the food in the Wonderbag to slow cook

I returned some 5 hours later to food that was still warm. Once again, before serving I took it out of the Wonderbag and popped it back on the stove for just 2 minutes and it was quickly back to being piping hot and ready to eat.

Returning to the campsite to a freshly prepared meal that took no further effort to enjoy was great, I’m not sure I’ve ever enjoyed a meal outdoors more!

I will definitely be using the Wonderbag again, especially on longer camping trips when I tend to do a lot more cooking. I love the fact that buying one helps support a charity that distributes Wonderbags to families in need in Africa, and at £35 for the small one, I think they are great value, especially for family campers who prefer to camp without a EHU.

Thanks to Wonderbag who provided the featured item for me use to review.

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Shell Robshaw-Bryan

Editor & Owner at Camping with Style

Shell loves all things travel and outdoors and is a nature-loving, comfy-camping kinda girl. Shell started the Camping with Style blog after a serious snowboarding accident which left her with a broken back. Despite this she used the outdoors and healing power of nature to aid her recovery and she continues to spend time outdoors whenever she can.

From open water swimming, snowboarding and kayaking to hill walks and meditation, Shell shares her travels and microadventures here on the blog and in various publications she's written for, Shell has a particular interest in promoting wellbeing and the many benefits of nature therapy.

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