Residents in France are using the sun to cook food in frying pans during a record-breaking heatwave this month [1, 2].

These social media videos highlight the extreme nature of the current temperatures. While the act of cooking with sunlight is presented as a novelty, it underscores the intensity of the weather patterns currently affecting Europe [1, 2].

Videos shared on social media platforms show individuals attempting to prepare various meals using only the heat from the sun [1]. Some of the foods being cooked include crêpes, and steak [1, 2]. The process involves placing a frying pan in direct sunlight until the surface becomes hot enough to sear meat or cook batter [1].

This trend has emerged as France experiences temperatures that have reached record-breaking levels [2]. The heat is reportedly intense enough to allow a metal pan to act as a grill when exposed to the midday sun [1, 2].

Local citizens have documented these experiments to share the scale of the heatwave with their followers [1]. The phenomenon reflects a broader pattern of extreme weather events occurring across the region this June [2].

“People in France are cooking food such as crêpes and steak using only a frying pan and the sun’s heat.”

The ability to cook food using ambient solar heat in a frying pan indicates surface temperatures that far exceed normal seasonal norms. This trend serves as a visual indicator of the severity of the 2026 European heatwave and the increasing frequency of extreme thermal events in the region.