Camping Cooking Supplies & Guides » tongs http://www.campingcookingguide.com Cooking outdoors Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:14:49 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 en hourly 1 Camping Cooking Supplies – Dutch Oven http://www.campingcookingguide.com/camping-cooking-supplies-dutch-oven/ http://www.campingcookingguide.com/camping-cooking-supplies-dutch-oven/#comments Wed, 05 Aug 2009 18:26:29 +0000 admin http://www.campingcookingguide.com/?p=8 I mentioned before how useful a good Dutch oven is for cooking on a camping trip and I wanted to write more on the subject to show you everything it’s capable of.

First off, let’s take a look at what you should know before buying one. To be ideal for camping, your Dutch oven needs to [...]]]>

I mentioned before how useful a good Dutch oven is for cooking on a camping trip and I wanted to write more on the subject to show you everything it’s capable of.

dutch oven

First off, let’s take a look at what you should know before buying one. To be ideal for camping, your Dutch oven needs to have a couple of things. It’s a little difficult to see in the image above, but the Dutch oven there has three little legs on the bottom. You want those to be there so your oven is less likely to shift around when it’s in or on the fire. They also allow you to put coals directly underneath the oven for faster cooking. Also, it goes without saying that all Dutch ovens should be cast iron. Nothing else.

You also want to get an oven that has a wire handle (detachable is great but not necessary) so you can move it more easily when it’s cooking. The wire handle will also stay much cooler than the oven itself will although you may still need to use gloves or a hotpad to grab it. Lastly, you want an oven that has the lip that wraps around the lid. This lets you put coals on top of the oven, which not only helps it cook faster, but also helps to even the temperature on the inside allowing all of the food to cook at an even rate.

The best way to use your Dutch oven is to spread some coals out to the side of your campfire. You can do this by taking the coals from your fire with some tongs, or you can also build a second, smaller fire nearby and wait for the wood to burn down to coals. Once they’re ready, put the Dutch oven on top of them, put your food in, put a few more coals on top and then just have a seat and wait for it to be ready.

You can also use your Dutch oven like a slow cooker. This is great for meals with beef or potatoes, or any other ingredient that needs to cook for a while. Just put all of your ingredients in around lunchtime, put the oven next to the fire and let it cook all afternoon. By the time dinner rolls around, everything will be done and you’ll be set. Just make sure to check the oven every hour to make sure that everything is cooking nicely.

]]> http://www.campingcookingguide.com/camping-cooking-supplies-dutch-oven/feed/ 0 Camping Cooking Supplies http://www.campingcookingguide.com/camping-cooking-supplies/ http://www.campingcookingguide.com/camping-cooking-supplies/#comments Wed, 05 Aug 2009 16:06:40 +0000 admin http://www.campingcookingguide.com/?p=3 Cooking out in the woods is generally a bit of an ordeal for most people, especially those who are used to cooking in an actual kitchen. There are no counter tops at your campsite, there never seems to be enough room to get stuff done, and the items you’re using to cook with are often [...]]]> Cooking out in the woods is generally a bit of an ordeal for most people, especially those who are used to cooking in an actual kitchen. There are no counter tops at your campsite, there never seems to be enough room to get stuff done, and the items you’re using to cook with are often not super duper clean. Despite all of that, cooking when you’re camping can actually be fun and enjoyable if you know how to approach the whole thing properly. Let’s take a look at what you can expect to need to cook when you go camping.

The first thing that you’re going to need is something to do the actual cooking in, such as a pot or pan. Ideally, you want to bring as few things along as possible so you’re not lugging unnecessary items through the woods. If you’re cooking for a family of four, one frying pan and one pot will most likely be sufficient. If you want to buy the snazzy camping sets that have multiple pans that stack together that’s fine, but it’s not necessary at all. Just grab a good-sized pan and pot from your kitchen (hopefully ones that aren’t too heavy) and you’ll be fine.

Another alternative here is to bring a Dutch oven, which is possibly the greatest camping cooking item ever invented. The possibilities for using Dutch ovens on camping trips are nearly limitless and they will easily do the job of both a frying pan and a pot. The only downside to them though is that they are usually fairly large and heavy, so they may not be suitable for every camping trip. You don’t want to be lugging a bulky, 15 pound Dutch oven all the way through the woods to your campsite if you’re going backpacking.

The next things you’ll need are utensils to do the cooking with, such as spatulas, spoons, and tongs. You’ll definitely want to bring at least one large spatula, and a pair of spring-loaded tongs will certainly make your life easier as well. Plastic or metal doesn’t really matter either way here, but if I had to choose, I’d go with metal for the increased durability. It’s also easy to leave one of these items too close to the campfire, and having metal utensils will keep them from melting or catching on fire.

It goes without saying that you don’t want to bring your best stuff on these camping trips. You’ll invariably leave at least one thing, and possibly several somethings, at your campsite. Use your old stuff, and if you buy new, buy cheap.

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