OT: CAMPING & COOKING

[Bogie35]

Hey fellas. I'm looking forward to some camping this summer and starting to plan/daydream a little. I've always used gas camp stoves (various Coleman models) and hibachi grills, but I'm thinking of trying other methods this year. I've never used dutch ovens or any "over-the-fire" type rigs.

What are your favorite methods of camp cooking? Any tasty meal ideas or recipes?

Thanks, and happy camping!

bogie

[stew71]

Bogie...you can't go wrong using a good ol' fashioned Dutch oven over a campfire. It's my favorite method of camp cooking. Yes, you have to be more attentive but I find that to be part of the fun of camping.

Here's my sure-fire Cowboy Pork Chop recipe. Guaranteed to make you the star of the camp kitchen. This is using the Lodge 8 quart model. I either suspend it over the fire using a tripod or place it down in the coals once the fire has burned down a bit. Do not let the oven get red-hot or it will warp.

Stew’s Cowboy Pork Chops
• 1 Pork chop per person
• 1 large Potato for each person
• 1 medium yellow onion for every four people.
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed or thinly diced
• 1 can cream of anything soup every four people
• 1 can chicken broth for every four people
• 2 jalapenos

Preparation:
1. At least 12 hours prior, cut chops in quarters and marinate in dry rub.
2. Prior to cooking, get all ingredients sliced and ready to go. Slice potatoes in silver dollar ¼ inch slices and then cut in half
3. Slice onion in half (cross-wise) and then slice long strips of onions;
4. Finely dice peppers. I leave the seeds in the mix for some heat. (You could of course, use any pepper you want)
5. Combine cream soup with broth in a Ziploc bag. Shake to mix well.
6. Start fire & prepare a good coal base.

Cooking Instructions:
1. Prepare cooking area with fire coals and charcoal.
2. Add 4 TBSP of canola or vegetable oil to the oven and brown the garlic, onions, and peppers. Remove from oven. (DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL)
3. Add pork chops to the oven and brown on all sides.
4. Layer browned onion mixture on top of pork chops. Layer sliced potatoes evenly on top. Pour broth and soup mixture to cover layers by ¼ inch.
5. Cover and let ingredients simmer.

Lift and turn oven a ¼ turn every 15 minutes, cooking 45 - 60 min. Check for doneness in the potatoes. Let it cool a tad before serving. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a cold lager beer or any decent red wine.

[Don McDowell]

I like using the fire set to cook on the open fire. Have to get the coals just so , to keep from getting the frying pan to hot.
Dutch oven takes some experimenting to get things just right so's you don't burn or under cook what's inside.
Used to make up a stew in the Dutch oven then put biscuits on top of the stew and let the biscuits cook. mmmmmm

[J Miller]

As much as I like camp fires, I prefer to cook on my camp stoves. I have several. Both liquid gas and propane gas versions.

Joe

[dkmlever]

Propane stoves are quick to fire up, nothing like a cup of hot joe in the morning. I do cook some stuff, steaks etc on the open fire but with the stove it is so much quicker and easier. By planning your menu you can do some great meals on just the stove top.

[Blaine]

(DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL)

Why? I've been using nothing but for about 10 years.......Or, a pat of real butter in the Olive Oil for flavor with eggs and someother stuff......

[JReed]

(DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL)

Why? I've been using nothing but for about 10 years.......Or, a pat of real butter in the Olive Oil for flavor with eggs and someother stuff......

Yep EVOO works great for keeping cast iron none stick. It also works great on muzzle loaders after cleaning. As for cooking oil I like peanut oil as it has a higher smoke point then olive oil does.

[BigSky56]

I use a folding wood stove in a wall tent at cow camp or hunting camp and cook with steel skillets and a dutch oven outside at the campfire as Don said DO take some getting use to. You can make desserts, complete meals in a DO and biscuits or bake bread. Because I pack in aways I use those hard anodized aluminum DO, they are 1/3 the weight of cast iron GSI makes them. danny

[Bogie35]

Man, that dutch oven cookin' sounds good! I think that's what I'm gonna do, but I had better practice a little first. It's sounds a little tricky.

Thanks,
bogie

[Blaine]

I slow cooked a big batch of boneless country ribs in the 12" DO today......It fell apart and I put some good sauce on it and had it with beans and a tater......mmmm

[CowboyTutt]

Good thread! I prefer to do my cooking over an open flame using a grill with fold-out legs. I tried the Coleman grill but it was rather flimsy and did not hold up well. I have been much happier with my Texsport grill that also comes with an optional cover to transport it in:

http://www.texsport.com/PDF%20Break-Dow ... Stands.pdf

I have had really good experiences using Cajun's Choice Blackened Seasoning on steak (no butter or bacon grease required! Tastes better without) or on "sushi-grade" tuna steaks served slightly cooked on the outside but raw on the inside. Some of the very best camping meals I have ever had and simple to do. Same goes for a good New York steak bone-in.

-Tutt

[BenT]

When horse camping I use the fold out grill with legs also and do all my cooking over coals. It's a little more time consuming getting the coals ready , but after riding all day I have no problem drinking a beer while I wait.

[mklwhite]

+1 on the over-the-fire method. Though, from time to time (and with the right supply of flat rocks available) I use to build up a fire ring and on the "back side" of the fire ring I would build a rock oven that would stick into the ring. It would get hot enough to do biscuits and I would use the top rock of the oven for keeping stuff various levels of warm to cooking. Sometimes, if it was an impromptu camping session or I just wanted to cook up something I would build a ring around a largish (foot+) flat rock. Build up the fire and when it died down cook directly on the rock. After a while you learn which rocks are best to use, but it is kind of neat to see other people looking at you like you've lost it only to be amazed a few minutes later.

PS: No grate or good flat rock? Go with green willow branches and weave your own grate. Just don't put it directly into the fire and it wont burn before you're done with it.

[Don McDowell]

You know if there's a finer way to eat fresh caught brookies than fried in a cast iron skillet full of grease over an open fire, I haven't been privvy to it.

[Bogie35]

You know if there's a finer way to eat fresh caught brookies than fried in a cast iron skillet full of grease over an open fire, I haven't been privvy to it.

Mr. McDowell, that sounds almost worth the plane ticket next time you do it!
It's hard to beat pan-fried brookies. "Over an open fire" can only make 'em better!
BTW, it's lunch time here in South Carolina and that pimento cheese sandwich seems a little inferior now!

bogie

[Don McDowell]

Yeh I got some leftovers in the fridge that needs cleaned up, but them brookies curling in the frying pan sound pretty dang good. It's getting to be that time of the year I suppose.
You know tho, if you split them brookie open and then peel the bark off of a fresh willow stick split it down the middle for a ways, and then lay those opened up fish in the split and use the bark to tie them in tight, and put over a gentle fire........

[TNBigBore]

I have done the Dutch Oven thing and the ultralight backpacking canister stove thing and just about everything in between. Now that I have three kids of my own and a nephew that I take camping often, I mostly use my fold out stove with cast iron burners. It runs off of a standard propane tank. It is big and bulky, but easy to set up and very fast and efficient compared to cooking over the fire. I can cook a large batch of fried potatoes, corn dodgers and fried trout/bass/bream in short order. I keep a couple of very large, well seasoned cast iron skillets that I use only for camp cooking with this stove. Now for some easy recipes...

Camp corn dodgers:

-Mix one large egg, 1.5 cups of buttermilk in large bowl.
-Stir in white, self-rising cornmeal little by little until the batter is thick enough to hold a fold that does not disappear for 10 seconds
-Spoon into large cast iron skillet with approximately 1/2" of vegetable oil or bacon grease heated to about 375F
-Flip corndodger about 10 seconds after the batter begins to bubble all the way through.
-Cook on opposite side for approximately the same length of time
-Remove onto plate, add small pat of butter and eat


Camp taters:

-Cut 6-8 medium to large (peeled or unpeeled) russet or similar potatoes into 1/2 to 1" cubes.
-Dump into large ziplock bag
-Add salt, pepper and garlic powder liberally
-Shake contents of bag until potatoes are well coated
-Add potatoes to skillet with 1.5-2" of vegetable oil at 375-400F
-Stir potatoes frequently so that they brown evenly
-Wait for 4-5 minutes after the potatoes float to the top of the grease so that they will have time to brown on the edges
-Remove potatoes from grease and place in a large brown paper sack lined with paper towels on the bottom.
-Roll top of bag down a few inches, and shake vigorously until the most of the excess grease has soaked into the bag
-Pour out of bag and enjoy

Camp fried bream:

-Mix one large egg and 1 cup of buttermilk in medium bowl
-Dip cleaned, scaled, beheaded pan sized bream/bluegill/rock bass etc into mix
-Drop 3-4 fish at a time into large ziplock bag containing 2-3 cups of white, self rising cornmeal,
1 tablespoon of salt, 1 of pepper and 1 teaspoon of red pepper
-Shake in bag until fish are coated
-Place 3-4 fish at a time into large cast iron skillet with 1-1.5" of vegetable oil at 375F
-Flip fish when the tail begins to curl upward
-Remove when the skin begins bubbling up
-Place on plate with folded paper towels; allow draining excess grease then eat

[stew71]

(DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL)

Should have explained this...sorry...I don't TYPICALLY use olive oil when cooking over an open fire because of its low smoke point. I find it easier to use plain canola, veggie, or peanut oil with their higher smoke points and not have to worry about temperature fluctuations.

But it just comes down to personal preference in the end.

[Blaine]

(DO NOT USE OLIVE OIL)

Should have explained this...sorry...I don't TYPICALLY use olive oil when cooking over an open fire because of its low smoke point. I find it easier to use plain canola, veggie, or peanut oil with their higher smoke points and not have to worry about temperature fluctuations.

But it just comes down to personal preference in the end.

Thanks! I have some peanut oil that I save for it's flavor on a couple different recipes....I'll give it a bigger role with my everyday cast iron cooking and see how it works for me!! I use butter alot, and that and bacon grease is my favorite, that's supposed to be bad for you. Ya just have to forget the Docs sometimes

[stew71]

We also use the DO as a deep fryer when we're camping out on the coast during ab season. For temperature control, we do this over a propane stove or burner and forgo the open fire in this case. For those that have never had fresh caught abalone, you're missing one of the finer points of life. Yes they look disgusting and require a lot of work to get, but the results are worth it. Once they've been gutted and cleaned, we slice the muscle wafer thin, run the slices in egg wash, then coat them with panko bread crumbs. We drop them in the DO filled with about 3 inches of canola oil at 360deg and deep fry for about 15 - 20 seconds. Remove when golden brown, season with a touch of salt and pepper and enjoy. Best seafood in the world.

We also take the slices, wrap them around a slice of pepper jack cheese or jalapeno, and grill them for about 15 seconds. Very delicious.

[Blaine]

Stew (apt name ) yer killin' me here......my lunch is gonna suck after all this talk

[Mike D.]

We use DOs extensively, but don't usually place them over the fire. Instead, we use coals both beneath and on top of the oven. I have a steel plate to set the oven on and various tools to move it about with. Each night, we make cobblers of some sort for dessert, too. Not to change the subject, but this is what I did to a poor defenseless mallard yesterday afternoon. 2 1/2 hrs under the lid of our old charcoal fired Weber. I chilled it overnight and sliced it up for sammiches this morning.

[ceb]

TNBigBore, you got that just right. Made my mouth water just readin it!

[Rusty]

IMHO the first thing one has to be able to cook outdoors to be able to call themselves a cook are just plain biscuits in a DO. a big old cathead biscuit in one hand with the melted butter dripping off of yer elbow and a cup of cowboy coffee in the other hand goes a long way.

[Bogie35]

Well fellas, I'm about to purchase my first dutch oven! It'll be a Lodge Camp DO.

Thanks for all the input! The only question now is what size. I will be cooking only for me and my 9 year old son.

I'm thinking either the 8" or the 10". Any suggestions?

bogie

[Blaine]

If you don't have to pack it around personally, a 12" really isn't too big. You might want to get a smaller one (or two) for sides, but you'll want the 12" for doing chickens, roasts and ribs, etc....

[piller]

My favorite camp breakfast is Campfire Casserole. That is Ham, Bacon, or Sausage fried with diced up potatoes, then add eggs when the potatoes are done and scramble it all together. Simple, easy, and tasty.

[Bigahh]

Interesting stuff guys, some good info for my 2 week trip this fall. I use a weber grill for all my grilling, but will never use charcoal as it gives me terrible heart burn, and I refuse to grill over a gas grill. What I do is start a Hardwood fire on one side of the grill, and cook over the exact other side. Works great, and adds a smoky flavor to the food. The most important thing to remember if you try this is to keep the lid cracked so as to keep the fire going slowly! I tried cooking right over the fire, but the food burns too easily. I have my method down to a T. If I am camping I just bring a good axe to collect my wood.

[Bullard4075]

Practice your DO cooking in the backyard in a firepit or in a Weber grill.
Get the book "Cast-Iron Cooking for Dummies" and practice, practice, practice.
After all ya get to eat the practice too.

[Travis Morgan]

Hey fellas. I'm looking forward to some camping this summer and starting to plan/daydream a little. I've always used gas camp stoves (various Coleman models) and hibachi grills, but I'm thinking of trying other methods this year. I've never used dutch ovens or any "over-the-fire" type rigs.

What are your favorite methods of camp cooking? Any tasty meal ideas or recipes?

Thanks, and happy camping!

bogie

Bring a good looking woman that likes to cook. Enjoy.

[Bogie35]

Hey fellas. I'm looking forward to some camping this summer and starting to plan/daydream a little. I've always used gas camp stoves (various Coleman models) and hibachi grills, but I'm thinking of trying other methods this year. I've never used dutch ovens or any "over-the-fire" type rigs.

What are your favorite methods of camp cooking? Any tasty meal ideas or recipes?

Thanks, and happy camping!

bogie

Bring a good looking woman that likes to cook. Enjoy.

[mescalero1]

OK, I tried to avoid it but here it comes.
Good bacon, cut up into small pieces, fried in a cast iron, drain off most the grease, cut up green onions even smaller, set aside, crack eggs ( desired amount into bowl ) little bit of milk, season to taste, whip it all up, put the pan to heat again, when it gets warm pour in the mixture, scrambled eggs w/ bacon/ green onions, hot tea, and the sun coming up.............. nothing like it!

[creosote]

You fellows have some real nice suggestions going on here, I usually keep it simple when out on a arrow head hunt or scouting around.
I have an old home made grill that I set on the coals of a fire, then I cook up a nice steak and plop
it onto a flour tortilla with some salsa. No clean up required.
creosote

[JohndeFresno]

If you camp in an organized group with carrying capacity - like with pickup trucks - and have somebody available to mind the fires, you might want to try meat on a hook.

We bring an old 50 gallon drum with some holes punched in the bottom, and a grate mounted about a foot above the bottom. We take pre-seasoned tri-tips (either dry rubbed as with the recipe above) or else marinated a la carne asada - in onions, peppers and marinade of choice. The meat is put on metal "S" hooks and hung from the sides of the open top and slowly cooked for a few for dinner, along with other fixin's collaborately prepared by the campers on our traditional 3 day outings. The steaks, slowly cooked and smoked from the briquets as they hang in the barrel, have no rival in the culinary world.

The other food (including the full breakfast of eggs, hash browns, sausage, beans, salsa, and so on) is prepared over several Coleman stoves converted to work with propane. I also marinade some sliced jalapenos in Jose Cuervo tequila to add to the beans as a condiment.

This is the setup for dinner - you can see the fire on the right; cook area in the center; and the "stove" is on the left. We put some vegetables and peppers over the top of the barrel on a grille to let the briquets give them a little smoked flavor.


This get-together was our "ATF Weekend" in October. Although I don't drink, I enjoy the company and activities with "the boys" - all relatives. ATF stands for just what it sounds like - Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Camping, shooting our favorite firearms, and enjoying the campfire together at night with steaks, a little sippin' whiskey or beer, and cigars. But we are a very moderate crowd.

Here is the "F" of the ATF - a morning shoot (it's not me in the photo).


We had a camp mascot - an owl who landed in a tree right above us on the second day of our campout. We could have easily hit it with a rock.The not-so-wise owl stayed there for the next two days, despite our shooting, hiking and carrying on.