Reviews > Cook Gear > Cook Sets > AntiGravityGear Mamas Kitchen Cookset > Andrew Priest > Initial Report

Testing Location(s):

The hiking environment of the South West of Western Australia allows for hiking and backpacking from coastal plains to forested ranges. Elevation ranges from 0 to 585 metres (0 to 1,920 feet). Within this region, I hike in varying conditions from forestry roads, to sandy tracks to single-purpose walking trails, to rock hopping, to beach walking to completely off-track walking through open and dense country.

Since receiving the Mama's Kitchen and prior to writing this Initial Report I have had an opportunity to use the cook set on two occasions. The first was on July 12 - 13, 2003 on a weekend pack carry in Mount Lesueur National Park.  The second occasion was on July 18, 2003 on a day walk in the Mount Randall area. Outcomes of this initial use are reported below in the Concerns/Comments subsection. 

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Weather Conditions:

During the summer period, daytime temperatures average 30 C (86 F), whereas from March through to December the daytime average temperatures range from 15 C to 26 C (59 F to 79 F). During the autumn (Fall), winter, and spring periods the normal weather pattern is fairly wet with frequent heavy rainstorms evident. It does not normally snow in Western Australia.

According to The Times Atlas of the World (Concise Edition - Revised 1997) our weather is described as being "Mediterranean - rainy climates with mild winters, coolest month above 0° C (32° F), but below 18°C (64.4° F); warmest month above 10°C (50° F)." The atlas depicts the coastal area north of Los Angeles as having the same climate.

The weather during this initial "testing" period has been fine, but cool ... winter weather conditions typical to the southwest of Western Australia.

Report Comments:

Receipt of the Item:

I received the AntiGravityGear Mama's Kitchen Cook Set in good condition with no evidence of damage. I received a 2 quart (1.9 l), and a 3 cup  pot with lids and matching pot cozy. Also included was a pot grip, a pot cozy repair patch, use and care instructions for the pot cozy and a flyer encouraging support of various backpacking organisations.

The pots are aluminium with a non-stick surface which appears to be applied to both the inside and the outside of the pot, i.e., as if they where dipped in the surface material.

First Impressions:

Upon close inspection of the various components of the Mama's Kitchen Cook Set I noted the following points. My weights are also included.

• Pot grips where wrapped in tissue paper and where stored in one of the pots.  The wrapping of the pot grip in tissue raises questions with me about the durability of the pot surface if I store my stove in it unprotected. As I rather like this cook set so far, I am looking at my packing set-up and may refrain from storing exposed metal items in the pots.
• Pot grips are very stiff and are unusable. It would seem that the rivet hinging the two components of the pot grip is either too small or has been compressed during manufacturer. My initial attempts to free up the pot grip have failed and they will not be usable during this test.
• "D-ring" handles on lids are very small and fiddly.  This is in contrast to the typical Australian billy which has a large wire or similar handle which generally stays upright thus minimising heat transfer to the handle.  I anticipate possible problems with the handles getting very hot, particularly if they are used on an open fire. I will explore this further during the test period.
• The pot cozy does appear vulnerable to damage in the rough tumble of my pack. I will monitor this during the test period while taking reasonable steps to minimise possible damage.
• All items were weighed on my Arlec digital scales. Manufacturers weights are as given on their website : 

Concerns/Comments:

In this section I am going to report on my initial testing experience with the AntiGravityGear Mama's Kitchen Cook Set.

My first outing with the cook set was in the Mount Lesueur National Park on a two day pack-carry over the weekend of July 12 - 13, 2003.  On this trip, as I was only cooking for myself, I took the 3 pot set. I did not take the 2 quart pot set or the pot grips. I substituted the AntiGravityGear pot grips with my Trangia ones.  On this trip the cook set was packed into a fairly heavy pack (18 kg - 40 lb) as I had to carry two days water supply (6 litres - 6.34 quarts) plus a litre of port.

I packed the pot into its cozy along with my MSR SuperFly, pot scourer and cloth, pot grips and matches (see picture). I found the SuperFly did not quite fit, with the pot supports poking over the edge of the pot.  I then placed the lid (with the pot cozy attached) on top and folded the pot cozy over to hold it all together. See picture on right which illustrates the approach taken.  In this configuration I noted no external damage to the pot cozy or pot. Nor did I notice any damage to the internal surface of the pot.  That said I am reluctant to continue storing my stove in the pot in this fashion as I suspect that I will be increasing the chance of damaging the non-stick surface of the pot and/or the pot cozy as the fit is not quite right.

I used the Mama's Kitchen Cook Set in combination with my SuperFly to boil water for a cuppa at lunch on both days, and in the afternoon at camp on the first day.  As well, I used the cook set as directed (with pot cozy) to cook a pasta meal.  I left the pot cozy on the lid when boiling/cooking.  This seemed to have had no adverse effect on the cozy, rather it helped keep the lid handle cool and I suspect also reduced heat transfer through the lid.

With dinner, my pasta meal required being brought to the boil and then simmered for eight minutes.  Well I thought this was a great opportunity to test out AntiGravityGear's cook in the cozy concept.  Therefore, I brought the water and powdered milk to the boil, added various additional spices and the pasta, brought the mixture back to the boil and then removed the pot from the stove, placing it in its cozy which was then "sealed."  I left the pot in this state for the required eight minutes while I enjoyed the warmth from the fire and a mug of port.

What was the outcome? My best pasta meal to date! Not only was the meal still hot, the cooking process had allowed the pasta to fully re-hydrate. Once the salmon, parmesan cheese and cracked pepper were added I had a most enjoyable evening meal.  I am very impressed so far.

That said I did note three negatives.  First I had quite a problem getting the pot out of the cozy when it was full with the meal (I enjoy the luxury of eating out of a bowl). I gave up and poured the meal into my bowl from the pot which was still in the cozy. This resulted in some mess - doesn't pour that great in this configuration. With more use the pot may come out of cozy easier - time will tell.  My second negative is that in windy conditions, the cozy lid can easily blow off the pot lid. I had to chase both the cozy and the cozy lid on more than one occasion on the second day as we had lunch on a windy ridge.  My third negative is that the non-stick outer surface of the pot makes it very slippery indeed.  I find  that I need to be more careful levelling the stove to ensure the pot sits as flat as possible to avoid it slipping off the pot stand.

On the cleaning front, both with dinner and with breakfast where I boiled a water/powdered milk mixture I found some evidence of sticking to the pot (I did not use any olive oil or other fat to grease the pot).  In both instances I found the pot cleaned quickly and easily with little effort on my part. I just used a cleaning cloth and water and the pot came clean.  

On my second outing, a day walk in the Mount Randall area on July 17, 2003, I used the 3 cup pot (without cozy) in combination with my MSR SuperFly stove to boil water at lunchtime. Again I noted the slipping issue. Other than that I found the pot carried well and suffered no damage in the pack. On this trip I stored my stove separately. 

Testing Strategy: 

I will be taking the Mama's Kitchen Cook Set on a weekend pack carry at the end of July and then on my two month walk of the Bibbulmun Track. During both of these pack-carries it will be my only cooking set-up.  It will be used in conjunction with my MSR SuperFly stove and pit fires.

I will be looking to test for:

• Resistance to flame in an open fire cooking environment (less controlled);
• Durability of the non-stick surface;
• Durability of the pot cozy;
• Clean-ability of the non-stick surface with various foods;
• Functionality of the pot cozy cooking strategy.

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Reviews > Cook Gear > Cook Sets > AntiGravityGear Mamas Kitchen Cookset > Andrew Priest > Initial Report