Camping stoves come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, ranging from compact and lightweight, to large enough to feed an army of hungry backpackers. But few can offer the level of versatility of the Morphcooker, a new backcountry stove that recently launched on Kickstarter and promises to be a revolution in the way we prepare our meals in the outdoors.
The idea behind the Morphcooker came three years ago when designer Lawrence Bass went in search of a safer way to cook at the campsite. His quest began after his father was injured in a fire that started when a faulty gas stove caught his tent on fire. It took 19 different prototypes for Bass to finally hit on a design that met his requirements of not only providing a safe way for backpackers to prepare their meals but was also environmentally friendly and extremely adaptable too.
His final design comes in two different versions — the Morphcooker Solo and Morphcooker Family. At the heart of both models is an 8-inch silicon plate that serves as the hot plate, frying pan, and heating element for the pot and stove. The silicon is riding and firm, contains the heating element, and is powered by a rechargeable lithium battery. It also comes with a magnetic handle that can be swapped out with any of the various components.
Since the entire stove uses electricity, rather than gas, it is quite efficient. According to the Kickstarter page, it can boil water in just a matter of minutes, warming up hot beverages even quicker. On its lowest setting, the battery can offer up to 104 minutes of cooking time as well and has the added benefit of being able to be recharged via wall outlet, DC car port, or a solar panel.
For those concerned with size and weight, the entire thing collapses down to a small footprint designed to fit inside a backpack. The Solo model tips the scales at 14 ounces, while the family version is just two ounces more. The battery adds an additional 26 ounces to the overall weight but has the added benefit of being able to recharge small mobile devices, such as a smartphone.
The team behind the Morphcooker are looking to raise $13,850 on Kickstarter to get the device into production. At the time of this writing, the campaign is nearing that goal and should start shipping the finished product in March for about $200. Early bird supporters can pre-order one now however for just $96 for the Solo or $105 for the Family. Both versions include not only the stove itself but also a travel case and an AC wall charger too.
Find out more at morphcooker.com or the Morphcooker Kickstarter page.
