Too hot to cook????

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Ok, I’m puzzled here. Vera’s summer thread got me to thinking…but I’ve seen this elsewhere…all over as a matter of fact.

I hear all the time in the summer: “It’s too hot too cook.”

Ok, if you don’t have AC like some people in the old restored Victorians, I can see that. But is not having AC that prevalent?

I don’t have AC in my car, and the heat is a B***H! I refuse to run errands at lunch on hot summer days unless I have DW’s car which does have AC.

So, when you say it’s too hot to cook, is it because you don’t have AC?

Is there some other reason?
 

Maverick2272

Stewed Monkey
Super Site Supporter
We don't have central air, just window air conditioners. To keep the electric bill down, we put up heavy curtains to seal off the kitchen when cooking.
For us, the hotter it is, the more likely we are to cook outside. At least on the grill you can step away from it and escape the heat. But it also helps to have an umbrella up and a fan going if there is no breeze.
 

homecook

New member
We have AC in the house, if I have to put the oven on the AC tends to work harder and the rest of the house gets warm for longer periods of time. Did that make sense?

I would rather grill outside whether it's 90 or 20........but that's just me!
 

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
I only have one A/C vent downstairs, and it's not in the kitchen. So that's exactly why I avoid cooking in the daytime in the summer. I'm seriously wanting an induction burner because it doesn't heat up the kitchen so much.
 

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
We’re in an older place too and have window AC units. But I run the crap out of them. The big one does a good job of keeping the living area perfect. The bedroom unit keeps that cool for sleeping.

We too close off doors to block heat – works great. The master bedroom door stays closed, and it’s always cool back there. The kitchen does get warm, but we shut it off and open the windows with a fan. My game room has a door and it's own window AC, and it stays cool when I run it. For most everyday, we only have to run the living room AC, and then the Bedroom AC when we go to sleep.

But yeah, if I can cook it outdoors I will. The outdoor DO helps a lot. As do the grills and smoker. But I also use a 110 toaster oven WAY more than I ever crack that 220 big ass oven. In fact….I can’t really remember the last time I used the full blown oven……
 

suziquzie

New member
Our central air has been out for 2 years so I haven't been cooking much in the summer unelss it's outside..... but I will cook outside anytime.
My oven went out a month b4 Christmas a couple years ago, I grilled about 5 casseroles before we got the new one...... shoveled my way to the grill ALOT and still do :)
 

JoeV

Dough Boy
Site Supporter
We have central AC but don't like to use it because it runs up the electric bill and I don't like to sleep in AC. Being as cool and wet as this Summer has been (global warming, don't you know?), we have used the AC for just over 1 week all season, and the rest of the time it's open windows with ceiling fans when needed.

For us, "too hot to cook" is more of a psychological thing. It's an excuse to be lazy and just have a cool salad of go out.
 

Ronjohn

New member
During the summer, about the closest we come to "too hot to cook" is not baking things. Other than that, everything else is pretty much the same. Heck, I don't mind standing by the grill in the heat with a beer in hand. Seems about right to me. :alc:
 

UnConundrum

New member
Gold Site Supporter
While we have central air, if I spend time outside, even very little, seems like my appetite drops which equates to not wanting to cook, or move to things like salads.
 

SilverSage

Resident Crone
I rarely find it too hot to cook indoors. We keep the a/c set at 80, so using the stove doesn't change the temp much.

On the other hand, we generally only cook outdoors in the winter time. It is definitely too hot to cook outdoors in August!:sun3:
 

bowlingshirt

New member
I know that sometimes during the summer that cooking a meal can run up the temperature in the kitchen a bit, but it's never stopped us from cooking a meal. Also helps that we have central AC.
 

Lefty

Yank
Living in the great North East we are not used to temps in the 90s with humidity in the 90s. When it get like that we will run air conditioners to help sleep, but cooking is out of the question. I get that lathargic(sp) feel and don't wan't to do anything. On those days we get take out. This has been a wierd year, I only used the grill once. The wife has used it a dozen times.
 

buzzard767

golfaknifeaholic
Gold Site Supporter
You guys are killing me. The summer heat is made for getting outside and grilling. I'm in an apartment during the summer and can't do it unless I go to a park. Despite the fact that I know both the mayor and the chief of police I think they'd arrest me for starting a fire on the main street of town. I'm jealous.

I only have one A/C vent downstairs, and it's not in the kitchen. So that's exactly why I avoid cooking in the daytime in the summer. I'm seriously wanting an induction burner because it doesn't heat up the kitchen so much.

FM, you need an induction burner. [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Circulon-50922-Infinite-Induction-Cooker/dp/B00143O9OU/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1251898289&sr=8-17"]This[/ame] is the one that both JoeC and I are using although we paid about $150 vs the $200 price tag presently on Amazon. They are faster than gas and don't create very much heat at all. Even DW uses it daily and that is saying a lot.

31dzYi-rQqL._SL500_AA280_.jpg
 

RobsanX

Potato peeler
Super Site Supporter
Still cookin' in the cool A/C! We had to use it earlier in the summer, mainly because of the humidity. Lately it's been quite cool here...
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Well as a kid growing up in South Florida, home AC was pretty rare but the houses were built very different. Lots of windows with good air flow through the house and large attic fans drawing the heat out of the house. We got our first AC (window units) when I was about 10 years old. Now my first house I purchased when I first got married also had window units only but my second home not only had central AC but a fire place also in South Florida. When we moved to Texas all the places we rented had AC as well and after moving back to Florida the building codes had changed making AC a must. Since going into the storage business apartments are part of the deal and they all come with central AC/Heating as well as all appliances including washer and dryer. As for cars my first car with AC was a '66 Nova SS but haven't owned many cars without it since then. Even my Mustang has AC that works great in it though it is more for racing than street driving as I do race it with the AC on. It is 64 degrees here right now and my AC is still on though not cycling as the thermostat is set to 73 degrees.

Oh and induction really cuts down on the heat in a kitchen as the tops really don't generate heat as only the pan gets hot.
 

Cooksie

Well-known member
Site Supporter
We run our A/C year round, so it's never too hot in the kitchen to cook. Here you have to heat in the winter, cool in the summer, and run it to filter pollen/allergens in the spring.
 

High Cheese

Saucier
So, when you say it’s too hot to cook, is it because you don’t have AC?

Is there some other reason?

I loose my tastebuds when it's super effing HAWT! Kills my Mojo! The DW and I still cook every night, mostly grill. Can't wait for Fall.
 

buckytom

Grill Master
we try to cook outdoors or use the kitchens in a manner with heat reduction in mind in order to save energy.

there's central air in the upstairs apt., and through the window a.c. in the first floor apt.. if we were staying in this house, i definitely put in an attic fan.

as a kid, my prents didn't have a.c. in the house until i bought them one when i'd gotten my first job. we had an attic fan and the house was surrounded by a lot of large maples and oaks, so the fan did a good job.
 

FooD

New member
As some have noted we don't use our central A/C due to the high cost of power. In fact, since we haven't used our central air in several years the units outdoor have been neglected and most likely no good. Both compressors, for upper and lower level of the house are 30 years old. They weren't that good the last time we used them....about a dozen or so years ago.
Where we live we really could get by without A/C except for maybe just a few days out of the year.

BTW, my wife just picked up one of those heavy, "portable" units a couple of days ago for the bedroom where you run an exhaust duct out the window. What a piece of chit unit. I'm now reading consumer reviews of some of these units, including our model, and many are not favorable. We are returning this unit to Lowes this week. We only used it one night for a couple of hours. I should just get a standard window unit for the bedroom instead........it's cheaper, and probably more efficient for the same output.
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Probably the most efficient AC units I've seen are like the Split ductless units. We had them in most of the offices in the storage business. The are real inexpensive to run and come in various sizes. Now these are movable once installed but excellent performers.
 

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Probably the most efficient AC units I've seen are like the Split ductless units. We had them in most of the offices in the storage business. The are real inexpensive to run and come in various sizes. Now these are movable once installed but excellent performers.
I want to put a couple of those downstairs. They are great for old houses where it would be difficult or impossible to install ducting. I think Mitsubishi makes a really nice one that is very unobtrusive.
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Mitsubishi makes one of the highest rated ones out there for low electric use but there are others as well. Those we had a Public Storage and Extra Space had remote control thermostats even as they were mounted high on the wall. The house AC handles the office here just fine so we don't need it. Public Storage and Extra Space the apartments where not attached to the office like here.
 

FooD

New member
Those split units look nice. I should talk my wife into buying one of those units instead since she's paying for it.....:D
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
They are great for single rooms or in some cases as large as 4 tons which would do my whole apartment.
 

chowhound

New member
As some have noted we don't use our central A/C due to the high cost of power. In fact, since we haven't used our central air in several years the units outdoor have been neglected and most likely no good. Both compressors, for upper and lower level of the house are 30 years old. They weren't that good the last time we used them....about a dozen or so years ago.
Where we live we really could get by without A/C except for maybe just a few days out of the year.

BTW, my wife just picked up one of those heavy, "portable" units a couple of days ago for the bedroom where you run an exhaust duct out the window. What a piece of chit unit. I'm now reading consumer reviews of some of these units, including our model, and many are not favorable. We are returning this unit to Lowes this week. We only used it one night for a couple of hours. I should just get a standard window unit for the bedroom instead........it's cheaper, and probably more efficient for the same output.

You go, Food :a1:
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
When I was a little girl, sweating my butt off every summer in my father's house and particularly in my upstairs bedroom, I vowed I would always have central a.c. in any place I lived in when I grew up.

I've kept that vow and LOVE it to pieces. SO much cheaper than heating in the winter, and I cook and sleep in blissful coolness.

I don't grill outside in the summer when it's too hot out. Much more comfortable inside.

And I NEVER cook outside in the snow or cold weather. No grilled food is worth shoveling out the cooker .... and it's much more comfortable inside.

Lee
 

lilbopeep

🌹🐰 Still trying to get it right.
Site Supporter
when you have sweat dripping off your forehead, between your boobs and down your butt crack IT'S TOO DAMN HOT TO COOK!!
 
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