WHAT CAN YOU GET?
Nowadays there is a lot more on the market than just skottel braais, stove plates and a gas bottle to take with you on holiday. A huge, cumbersome gas bottle is also not always necessary. You can find a gas bottle as small as 190 g to as big as 7 kg. Naturally, you also get much bigger gas bottles, but then they’re not as transportable.
THE VERY SMALLEST
The gas bottles that weigh just a few hundred grams are primarily designed for hikers. But it’s a handy back-up plan to have if all the braai wood is wet and your large gas bottle is empty. It’s also relatively small in size and doesn’t take up much packing space. There are a few brands, but Campingaz is the most popular in this segment. You’ll also find a few manufacturers that make similar sizes, but that doesn’t mean you can mix and match. In other words, if you have a Campingaz stove, be sure that you get a Campingaz cylinder, otherwise you’ll end up drinking ice coffee.
CAMPINGAZ BLEUET 206 PLUS
A handy, small stove with an extra foot to make it stand firmly, and it includes a wind shield. PRICE: R400
CADAC 190G ADVENTURE GAS
The smallest gas bottle from Cadac. One of a whole range that is designed for hikers and one that can also be packed away neatly in your loading space for “just in case”. PRICE: R29
EIGER SUN 450G
This gas cartridge is a bit bigger, and comes with a wider range of accessories. PRICE: R69
DO IT ALL IN ONE
Something that has become popular recently is the all-inone stove. That means the gas cylinder is part of the whole contraption. In this way you can easily move the whole rig around with one hand. If the wind is blowing this way, just shift it round the corner and voila! Once again there is a whole range of brands. But to make sure that your gas stove is working optimally, exchange the gas cylinder with one that is designed for it, so that you can be sure it works the way it’s supposed to.
ALVA ONE PLATE STOVE
Alva is one of those brands that is synonymous with gas. This type of one plate stove works well for boiling a kettle and making breakfast, but the cylinder is just 220g, so you won’t be able to make a potjie for 10 people three nights in a row. PRICE: R460 (stove); R39.50 (cylinder).
BIG GAS
A proper gas bottle is a good investment. Even if you don’t use it every day in camp to cook, there are so many uses for gas when you’re in the bundu that you’ll kick yourself if you realise on day two of your trip that your bottle isn’t suitable for off-roading. Cadac is a local brand that is as synonymous with gas as the Free State is with running rugby. Yes, other manufacturers also make gas bottles, but Cadac has perfected it over the years.
CADAC GAS BOTTLE (VARIOUS SIZES)
The bright blue colour of Cadac gas bottles is almost more famous than the logo. The various sizes mean that you’ll find one to suit your needs. If it’s just you and your
wife camping for the weekend, a 3 kg bottle is sufficient. If your teenage son, who likes to have a hot shower twice a day, is coming with on your three-week excursion, then 7 kg is too small. PRICE: R490 (3 kg); R595 (5 kg); R680 (7 kg).
NOW THAT YOU’VE GOT GAS
It’s one thing to have a good gas bottle fastened to your roof rack, but the magic really happens when you attach gas accessories to the bottle. You can’t just open the valve, light the match and hope that whatever you want to cook will taste lekker once the flames have been put out. All gas accessories should have a built-in single-direction valve that prevents the flame from getting sucked back into the pipe and down to the gas bottle. The days of having a humble stove plate and skottel braai in your arsenal are over. Nowadays, there are a ton of options when it comes to cooking with gas.
ALVA DUAL USE HOT WHEEL
This is a reversible cast-iron braai plate that is smooth on one side and ribbed on the other side. Plus it works with three gas burners, which means that you can cook the eggs and bacon evenly. PRICE: R1 450
CADAC SAFARI CHEF
It starts at the bottom, with a normal gas plate that you can put a kettle on. You can attach a container with a griddle, away from direct flames, on which you can grill or heat something up. Right on top is a lid that you can turn around to be used as a skottel. The whole Safari Chef can be connected to a gas bottle with a connecting pipe, or you can use a smaller gas bottle (like the Eiger Sun) that you screw in permanently. PRICE: R1 320 (Safari Chef); R375 (extension pipe)
CADAC STOVE PLATE
This traditional stove plate still has a place in the camp kitchen, and is perhaps something to be chosen instead of all the trendy new things kids think up these days. PRICE: R190
CADAC SKOTTEL BRAAI
If you want to get exotic and the traditional stove plate isn’t good enough for you, then the skottel braai could also come in handy. It works great for breakfast and a quick lunch if you don’t feel like making a fire. PRICE: R770
CADAC TWO PLATE STOVE
This one’s for those with a big appetite. If one pot, pan or casserole isn’t enough, you can make eggs and tomato right next to each other. It’s almost like being at home in your kitchen. PRICE: R840
CADAC POTJIE COOKER
If the world ends and there is no more braai wood left to make a proper fire with, and even the last piece of charcoal has burnt out, you’ll still be able to use this handy adaptor to make potjies on gas. But perhaps in that case you should just call it stew. PRICE: R355
ALVA AMACOOKA
This is designed for Mr Camp Cook. Its stand has three gas connections to which you can attach gas accessories, so you only need one gas bottle. It’s handy to have if you want to cook dinner at night and light is scarce. With a light in the middle and stove plates on either side, you’ll be able to see what’s cooking under the lid without having to guess if the pap is ready or not. PRICE: R1 350
LK’S TURBO GAS LIGHTER
When you finally decide that you’re tired of cooking food on gas, and that forgotten chop in the freezer needs grilling on a wood fire, you can use this pipe to make fire quickly and efficiently. It’s connected directly to the gas bottle and makes flames between the wood or charcoal. And once everything’s burning nicely, you just detach it and pack it away. PRICE: R325