Dutch ovens have been used for many, many years! They require nothing special, other than the pots themselves. Charcoal can be used but so can chunks of wood. The Dutch Ovens I’m talking about are the cast iron pots with the legs (for sitting over the coals), and with the flat lid with the rim (for placing coals on the lid) and with the handle that can be used to hang the pots over an open fire. There are many sizes and they can be stacked for efficiency while cooking (or storing).
Dutch Ovens
This is a post I did when I first got my Dutch Ovens..
Whether using wood or charcoal, there’s a bit of a learning curve to creating amazing meals in a Dutch Oven. It takes a little practice to get the coals positioned correctly and to get even heating. I’m not quite there yet but those who are the experts make amazing meals in these pots.
These are a couple of sites with info I found useful:
- Backwoods Home
- Every Day Dutch Oven (amazing recipes here!)
- Dutch Oven (recipe link on left sidebar)
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Don’t forget Pinterest when searching for Dutch Oven ideas! In some areas, there are “Dutch Oven Societies” or groups so check your area to see if there’s such a group. If you’re interested, many welcome guests at their meetings and they’re happy to share their love/addiction to Dutch Oven cooking.
For the linkup or in your comments, please write about any ideas you have regarding Dutch Oven cooking, or ideas you came up while cooking your dinner tonight, as to what you would do if you were preparing this same meal and trying to do without power.
Norece says
I most definitely need help using cast iron cookware. We bought some fry pans and a few pots from the Lodge discount store near Chattanooga. They sure get messy when used over a open fire. Guess I will check out the links Judy provided and try again…..
If we had no power or propane this is how I would have cooked our meals – –
breakfast – coffee and toast on the rocket stove
lunch – canned fruit and sandwiches – no cooking
dinner – cornbread and homemade frozen lasagna and some baked potatoes for Wednesday’s breakfast in the sun oven
Megan says
Before putting them over an open fire, try rubbing a bar of soap over the bottom and up the sides. The pan will look all black and nasty when you’re done but it will wipe right off. It ‘s great!
Norece says
thanks for the tip
Megan says
Just to clarify…’ try rubbing a bar of soap over the bottom and up the sides…the pot is cold (before you use it) try rubbing a bar of soap (I use Ivory) up the sides and on the bottom. After cooking it will rub right off. It’s an old Girl Scout trick!
Cookie E. says
It was over 90 degrees here today so it was a leftovers night with just warming up. We had sliced turkey breast, hearts of plam salad with evoo and balsamic vinegar, butternut squash casserole and broccoli. Without power I would have wrapped the turkey and veggies in foil and warmed it up on the grill.
Lunch was salmon salad. and a piece of fruit. No cooking..
Breakfast was scrambled eggs and homemade turkey sausage which would have been done in a pan on a “Buddy Burner” . Already had carrot muffins on hand so no cooking. Water for coffee would have been boiled on the burner and poured into the coffee press so that we had hot coffee.
Thanks for this challenge Judy.
Mary says
And I didn’t think I had any prepping at all! I totally forgot about my Cast Iron DO’s! I always have charcoal on hand, I have used chunks of wood, but prefer charcoal. But of course if I had to I could use the wood.
Jo's Country Junction says
Have you seen this facebook group?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Dutchovenchuckwagonrecipesandcooking/
Gail Frenz says
I like to use charcoal when cooking or baking in my dutch oven because I can more easily determine the temperature in the oven. First I get my charcoal white hot. Then, figuring each coal to be 25 degrees, I distribute the coals under and on top of the dutch oven.
If I’m baking a cake, I put about one third of the coals on the bottom and the remaining coals on the top. So if I’m looking for 350 degrees, I’ll use 14 coals and put 5-6 coals on the bottom (depending on the diameter of the oven) and the rest on the top.
If I’m making something juicy, I reverse that and put the larger quantity of coals on the bottom.
Mary says
I never thought of that Gail, thanks, I have always used more on the bottom with everything. But it makes sense to use more on top to bake!
Gail Frenz says
I need to amend my entry regarding my use of charcoal. Actually, it wasn’t charcoal we used, but rather Kingsford briquettes. Please accept my apologies for any confusion. The briquettes are of a particular size, but charcoal is not. So my estimate above of 25 degrees is per briquette.
Freda Henderson says
That is the type we use on the campfire. They sure are heavy. We hang ours on a tripod made for such cooking and can feed a lot of hunters with whatever we choose to cook. Also with coals on top we put potatoes for baking. Making myself hungry.
Karen Darring says
I love the prepping challenges. As a boy scout mom (lol) I am getting plenty of experience in “bush” or “pioneer” cooking.. My challenge is how to regulate the dutch oven temperatures without charcoal. I have seen some interesting open fire cooking lately. One of the coolest things I have watched recently is using sticks as a rotisserie over an open fire. A few years ago I watched a guy smoke a huge turkey hanging on a chain (tripod) over an open fire with a stainless cylinder cone over the turkey. I want one! I have been looking for that for years.