Kitchen fires

Here is what happened to a Facebook friend of mine: She's originally from Germany where they use Celsius instead of Fahrenheit. The first time she baked a cake in America she set the oven for 175C which translates to 350F (Celsius = (Fahrenheit - 32) x 5/9.). But she was in the States, where 175 is too low to bake anything. She couldn't believe that eight hours later the cake was still runny…

What to do when your oven catches fire, let's say, because your Thanksgiving turkey dripped its juices in the open flames below, which is what happened to me last year. ehem. Turn off the oven, let fire burn out. Turn oven back on. It will smoke for awhile but lessen when all the grease is burnt up. Or it should.

Here is what I did: Scream FIRE!! Evacuate pets. Leave husband unnotified in shower upstairs. Tell daughter to find fire extinguisher. Panic.

This wakes up brother-in-law who nodded off on the couch and who then stumbles into the kitchen to see what's up. Hands in pockets, he proceeds to give above mentioned advice. Other family members arrive from out of town. Husband still oblivious in shower. Pets come in from back porch to greet guests and check pockets for treats. Oven catches fire again because pan has holes. Turn oven off and let burn out. Good thing I started cooking early. A week later we read in the paper that a house burnt down because their oven caught fire. I told my daughter I am so glad this happened after our episode because I would have totally completely freaked out. We were certainly lucky that time.

How to extinguish an oil fire in a pan. Smother the oil/grease fire with a wet towel. Do not pour water on it!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QykIqRBSNkI&feature=related

Water would make it spread rapidly. Smothering it takes away oxygen, fire goes out because it needs fuel and oxygen. Take one away and it goes out.