A New Addition to the Monastery's Kitchen

The monastery recently acquired this wood-fired oven. It's made entirely of stainless steel so it wont rust in our humid weather. Living in a jungle, we are not without vast amounts of extra wood, so this oven is a perfect use for some of it. Not for much though, as it is extremely efficient. You just light a small fire inside, let it heat up, then push the coals to the back and it's ready to cook. As many know, on retreat nights the monks break from their usual diet to enjoy other cuisines. This last retreat the monks used it to make pizzas, with a perfect smoky flavor that cant be beat.

With the fire pushed to the back, a pizza is placed in to cook at a very high temperature

Natyam Mayrunatha works the oven

While Natyam Rajanatha makes the pizzas from fresh dough

The sourdough is rolled out into small crusts

Then sauce, cheese and leafs of freshly picked garden basil, all complete with a smile from our chef

The pizzas are passed through the kitchen window to the oven outside

in it goes!

Just a few minutes and it\

s ready'

success!

simple and delicious

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