When I first heard about the cajun microwave, I thought I’d have no trouble finding some good plans on the internet. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case. I found several folks selling the CM, but not much in the way of plans to build your own?
Don’t know about you, but my budget doesn’t quite allow me to spend much on one of these sweet little cookers, but from the first time I saw one, I knew I had to have my own!
So I set out to put my own plans together. I’m not a carpenter by any means, but I have a few tools and try to do a lot of my own carpentry work when it’s not too complicated. After looking at some pictures of other cajun microwaves that people were selling, I figured it couldn’t be “too” hard to build my own? And I wanted to build a cooker that didn’t cost me an arm and a leg, which meant making use of some scrap lumber I had as well as some other items that were lying around.
So far, (I’m not done with it at this time, 08/31/09), I’ve spent about $70, and I have the majority of the work done.
Cajun Microwave Material List:
1 sheet of 3/4″plywood
- Yeah…some people are gonna say you should use cypress to build your cooker, but where I live, cypress isn’t something you can just pick up at the local Lowes or Home Depot. I’m working with plywood and will report on how it does. I really think it’s going to hold up fine if I’m not leaving the cooker out in the rain. The plywood ran me about $32. Plywood prices can fluctuate a lot, so you might be able to find it cheaper. And what I bought was BC plywood which has a pretty nice finish on one side.
14″ X 50′ roll of aluminum flashing
- I wanted to line the inside of my cooker with something that would be easy to clean and could help keep the heat inside the cooker. I settled on this aluminum flashing because it’s a hell of a lot cheaper than stainless and it’s relatively easy to work with, cut, shape, etc. Our local Lowes had this in stock for $37. I’m really glad I used this cause it adds a
really cool look to the inside of the cooker. (Hopefully it will be as functional as it is good-looking!)
Qty 200 #4 X 1/2″ metal pan head screws
- I used these to screw the aluminum flashing to the wood. I bought 2 boxes of 100. Actually…I started out with one box of 100 & ran out. I’m sure you could get by with 100 if you were more sparing than I am… Later in the project, I used my air stapler and all I can say is I wished I’d been using it all along. Would have made the project go MUCH quicker and easier.
1 box of 1-1/2″ deck screws
- Used these for screwing the plywood together. You really won’t need a whole box for this project, but when your buddy wants you to build him a cajun microwave, you’ll need the extra screws 
Not to mention…it’s always nice to have some extra screws around…never know when you’ll need them.
Another sheet of 3/4″ plywood -
This is used to make the lid, and is an area where you can probably get by with something else. I used 3/4″ flooring plywood because I had enough scrap at the house already, so I didn’t have to spend anything on it. Plywood will work
nicely for the way I’m building the lid, but frankly, you might want to make it using 1×4′s or 1×6′s? When we get to the part of making the lid, I’ll show you what I’m talking about.
Qty 1 treated 2″x4″x8′ -
Used this to make the feet/legs. Go with the treated here. Termites love untreated wood.
Qty 4 – 1″x4″x12′ boards -
Maybe too much…but I wanted to make sure I had plenty for the lid and for the handles that will be used for the lid and for moving the cooker around.
Qty 2 wheels -
Use your imagination here. At this point I’m still not sure what I will use? Maybe bicycle tires? Maybe wheels off a push mower? And of course…wheels are optional. If you build your cooker as big as mine and plan on moving it any at all, you’ll probably want wheels. (And you know you’re going to have to carry this beast over to the big parties and cook for everyone!)
Qty 1 piece of expanded metal -
This will be used to set your meat on inside the cooker.
Thats all I have for now. I’ll soon be posting pics as well as the steps I took to build this baby! Bookmark this page and check back! I’ll be posting more within a week or so.
