I saw a posting under Chit Chat about Dutch Oven cooking. Having come from a Boy Scouting family and doing a lot of camping, we do a fair amount of Dutch Oven cooking. However, we do not do it over a camp fire--instead we use charcoal under the Dutch Oven and on the top. In order to hold the coals in the right place, we purchased what we call hog pans from a Farm & Fleet store and put the bottom coals in that. Then the Dutch Oven goes over the coals. If we are cooking something that would normally be cooked in an oven, we use the lid and put coals on top. If you want to cook something that would be cooked on a stove top, the coals would only go under the Dutch oven.
Some of the dishes that we "specialize" in are a stuffed meat loaf that is rolled up and put in a ring in the oven; a breakfast pizza using crescent rolls, sausage, eggs, and cheese; pineapple upside down cake.
Because our Dutch ovens are 12" and the recipes serve more than just the two of us, we usually reserve this type of cooking for larger groups.
We would be happy to share recipes!
Susan
Georgia said
09:37 AM Aug 17, 2006
Hi Susan,
Please do share your recipes. We have a dutch oven society in our area that produce shows occasionally for the local PBS station. They seem to have a wonderful time!
Thanks,
Georgia
Paul and Bonnie said
03:54 PM Aug 17, 2006
Hi Susan,
Yes, please share your recipes. I have seen the dutch oven cooking on tv and a friend of ours gave us a recipe book, but we have not tried it. Actually I would have to let my husband "butt in on our girl talk" in this area because he is our chef at home and when we travel. I am his sous chef. Which basically means I make the veggies and clean up both our messes. Anyway, I am interested in the dutch oven cooking but haven't been brave enough to try it. I would love to get some of your recipes. (The ones you like the best and maybe those that are the easy to prepare.) When we are camping, we do a lot of walking, hiking and climbing around looking at waterfalls and other things nature provides. When we get back to camp, we want something easy to prepare. Do you think the Dutch Oven cooking is the answer?
Bonnie
CampingGalore said
07:52 AM Aug 18, 2006
Bonnie,
In reply to your question about the ease of Dutch Oven Cooking, I am not sure it would meet your needs. I say this because, you need to be close by to make sure the coals stay hot and also to turn the pot and the lid to even out the temperature. At least that is our experience. If others know something else, I would appreciate hearing about it. I certainly do not want to lead anyone astray!
As far as the recipes, I'll see about posting them or if anyone who wants them can send me a private message with their e-mail address, I can send them as a word attachment.
Susan
REX OR MARY said
02:11 PM Aug 18, 2006
WE DO A LOT OF DUTCH OVEN COOKING AS WELL, AND HAVE LOT'S RECIPIES THAT WE CALL "GO TO TOWN" RECIPIES. WE FILL UP THE OVEN WITH MEAT AND POTATOES AND HEAD OFF TO TOWN FOR A ****TAIL AT THE LOCAL TAVERN. WE RETURN AN HOUR AND HALF LATER AND SUPPER IS READY RIGHT OUT OF THE BLACK POT. THE NEARLY BURNED OUT COALS DO A GOOD JOB OF KEEPING SUPPER WARM. OF COURSE THIS IS NOT THE CASE IF YOU ARE TRYING TO BAKE IN YOUR OVEN, IN THAT CASE YOU MUST STAY RIGHT THERE TO CHECK ON THINGS.
Howard said
04:02 PM Aug 18, 2006
Well Rex & Mary,
It looks like the profanity control feature on this forum is working.
Paul and Bonnie said
12:41 PM Aug 19, 2006
Thanks Susan,
Well, maybe we will just have to come back from our exploring early and try the dutch oven cooking anyway. I am just curious. I guess it does keep the heat out of the kitchen and there is only a one pot clean up. That is an advantage. I would still love to get some of your tried and true recipes.
Bonnie
CampingGalore said
02:33 PM Aug 19, 2006
Here are the three recipes that we use the most. The meat loaf came from a Dutch oven class that we attended at Patoka Lake in Southern Indiana. My husband volunteered me to help the teacher and it turned out to be great fun! The other two are from a cookbook put together by some Boy Scout parents in Louisville. Hope you all enjoy!
Susan
Meat Loaf
Mix Together:
3 ½ pounds ground meat
1 cup oatmeal
3 eggs
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Dice:
1 large onion
1 pepper
Garlic Clove
2 cups grated cheese
Place large strip of Saran Wrap on flat surface. Pat meat mixture flat on top of Saran Wrap Strip ½ inch thick. Place vegetables and cheese along a centerline of the meat. BBQ sauce over vegetables and cheese. Add a little Worcestershire sauce if you like. Wrap meat around vegetables and form and seal vegetables inside center. Pick up Saran Wrap with meat in it and place in 12 inch deep dutch oven. Remove Saran Wrap.
Baste BBQ sauce over meat and bake for 20 minutes. Baste with BBQ sauce again and bake for another 20 minutes. Bake for approximately 1 ½ hours (total cooking time) with coals on top and bottom. (9 on bottom and 15 on top).
Susan Pineapple Upside Down Cake
3 tablespoons margarine
6-10 maraschino cherries
½ cup brown sugar
1 can (20 oz.) sliced pineapple
1 ¼ cups water ( or juice from pineapples and make up difference with water )
1 yellow cake mix (18 oz.)
1/3 cup oil
3 eggs
Tin Foil
21 pieces of charcoal
Prepare cake mix as instructed on the cake mix box. We prefer to use cake mix that calls for eggs.
Line 12 inch Dutch Oven with foil. Place 9 coals under the oven. Melt butter in tin foil lined pan. Arrange pineapple slices with cherries in center of each slice in bottom of the Dutch Oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over fruit.
Carefully pour the cake batter over the fruit. Bake 30-40 minutes. Use 9 coals on the bottom of the oven and 12 on top. Baking is complete when cake is brown and springs back when touched. When finished, turn upside down onto plate before serving. ( use a piece of cardboard covered with tin foil if you do not have plate large enough or a cookie sheet). Turning process may be easier if you use two pieces of cardboard covered with tin foil. Lift cake out of Dutch Oven in tin foil that lined the Dutch Oven when cooking, place on one piece of cardboard, place other piece on top, tin foil toward the cake and flip. Two people make it easier! Remove the cardboard on top and tin foil that lined the Dutch Oven.
Breakfast Pizza
1 Can Crescent Rolls
8 Eggs
1 Pound Grated Cheese
1 Pound Ground Sausage
1 Pound Hash Browns
¼ Pound Onion
¼ Pound Mushrooms
½ Cup Milk
Brown Sausage. Chop up onions. Mix hash browns with onion and mushrooms. Beat Eggs with ½ cup of milk.
Spread Crescent Rolls on bottom of 12 inch Dutch Oven. Top with 1 pound of browned Sausage. Top with hash browns, onion mushroom mixture. Top with ½ pound of grated cheese. Sprinkle balance of cheese over above.
Bake for hour at 350 ( 15 coals on top and 9 underneath).
Paul and Bonnie said
08:52 AM Aug 20, 2006
Thanks Susan! We are going camping at the beach next weekend, maybe we will try one or all of them.
Bonnie
cincygirl20 said
03:20 PM Aug 28, 2006
Glad you started this post! My husband has been wanting to learn how to do dutch oven cooking. He got everything that he needs but has been looking for a good cookbook. Any ideas?
The ones that he has found so far seem to have all these hard, something we would never eat recipes LOL. We just like the good ole boy, everyday type foods.
REX OR MARY said
03:13 PM Aug 29, 2006
I'D RECCOMEND:
"LOVIN' DUTCH OVENS"
BY JOAN S. LARSEN
WE'VE SEEN THIS COOKBOOK AVAILABLE AT CABELAS
Cawino said
07:25 PM May 10, 2007
I'm new here and so I have just seen this thread...just for your info, their is a VERY active Dutch Oven Cooking discussion group on Yahoo groups....Dutchovencooking it is called. Lots of great info and recipes there.
travelinmama said
08:55 AM Dec 13, 2008
A friend who happens to be a scout dad, showed us how to cook in our dutch oven.
We got the toughtest steak we had ready in the pot along with onions, garlic and tomatoes prepared in the rig. The coals were ready outside. As I stepped out of the rig with the pot in hand my flip flops grabbed hold of the skid strip and I fell out, tumbled down the 3 steps, the pot stayed upright not losing much except some tomatoes. But my big toe lost a layer of skin and my other foot was bruised badly. I was shocked that that was the only thing that got hurt. We put the pot on the coals and went in and took care of the toe and foot.
Warning: Don't wear the foam flips when you cook! lOl
subra1228 said
11:08 AM Dec 13, 2008
Our favorite Dutch Oven recipe is Dump Cake!
1 box white or yellow cake mix 2 large cans of fruit (not pie filling!) 1 stick butter Mixture of cinnamon & brown sugar (can add rolled oats if you like)
Dump fruit into Dutch over and top with cake mix which needs to be spread evenly. Cut up butter into small pieces and "dot" over cake mix. Top with sugar/cinnamon mix.
Bake 30-45 minutes. Serve warm and with ice cream - YUM!!!
Funny! I will follow this thread... Being a Chef for 40+ years does not mean a thing as I am starting to cook with a Dutch Oven... I knew it was going to be too hot!!! (and it was...).
here is an Rx from Montana from a true Cowgirl.
Brown some chunks of pork or beef with chopped garlic. Add one can of Cocal Cola, one cup of strong coffee (or two) and one bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce. Cover... coals at the bottom and a few on top. About an hour before eating thrwo in some potatoes, onions, whatever you like...
It was great... caramelized... delicious.
Be well...
Ara & Spirit
Dakota Grey said
05:47 PM Nov 5, 2009
We also cook with charcoal, one reason is that there are areas where open fires are not permitted, plus charcoal allows for easier temperature regulating. We use a volcano to put our oven in which makes it easier in the South Dakota wind. I agree we only cook for larger groups and for the dutch oven group we belong to. Desert is always welcome when the kids join us for an evening.
RodnReal said
06:14 AM Nov 6, 2009
Thanks ara for sharing. I'm always looking for rustic outdoor recipes and that sounds delish!
-Connie
Beemerchef said
07:27 AM Nov 6, 2009
South Dakota! We just came back from there... Near Big Bend now Base Camping for the winter. Yes, I had posted thi question (I think!) in Chit Chat. Much info here, awesome. I have much pecan wood so charcoal is out. It is working well, just have to watch the bottom temp as I have found out a couple times (ok... so it burned!!!). Amazing how little coals it takes. On to Dr today (annual good stuff!), will be back to read all these recipes... I also have a great one from Montana given to me by a true cowgirl I will post! Be well, always. Ara & Spirit
Richard Noble said
07:18 PM Nov 6, 2009
Found a neat product at Wal-mart -- Dutch oven liners, in their camping section. I purchased two bags since I love to cook with our Dutch ovens. Recently, I deep fried beer-battered catfish. I also love to make apple cobbler. Sorry, I don't have a real recipt, I just dump in pealed apples, raisons, apple juice and cover with bisquick. Trick seems to be to use lots of juice.
Beemerchef said
07:30 PM Nov 6, 2009
Howard wrote:
Well Rex & Mary,
It looks like the profanity control feature on this forum is working.
That's funny Howard!...
Onawave said
09:44 AM Feb 21, 2010
I posted this in "Kitchen must have", but think it maybe better in here.
Here is a one stop place for everything about dutch oven cooking, cleaning, and seasoning. Lots of good folks on there just like on here. It's a yahoo group you have to join, but it's free.
I saw a posting under Chit Chat about Dutch Oven cooking. Having come from a Boy Scouting family and doing a lot of camping, we do a fair amount of Dutch Oven cooking. However, we do not do it over a camp fire--instead we use charcoal under the Dutch Oven and on the top. In order to hold the coals in the right place, we purchased what we call hog pans from a Farm & Fleet store and put the bottom coals in that. Then the Dutch Oven goes over the coals. If we are cooking something that would normally be cooked in an oven, we use the lid and put coals on top. If you want to cook something that would be cooked on a stove top, the coals would only go under the Dutch oven.
Some of the dishes that we "specialize" in are a stuffed meat loaf that is rolled up and put in a ring in the oven; a breakfast pizza using crescent rolls, sausage, eggs, and cheese; pineapple upside down cake.
Because our Dutch ovens are 12" and the recipes serve more than just the two of us, we usually reserve this type of cooking for larger groups.
We would be happy to share recipes!
Susan
Bonnie,
In reply to your question about the ease of Dutch Oven Cooking, I am not sure it would meet your needs. I say this because, you need to be close by to make sure the coals stay hot and also to turn the pot and the lid to even out the temperature. At least that is our experience. If others know something else, I would appreciate hearing about it. I certainly do not want to lead anyone astray!
As far as the recipes, I'll see about posting them or if anyone who wants them can send me a private message with their e-mail address, I can send them as a word attachment.
Susan
WE DO A LOT OF DUTCH OVEN COOKING AS WELL, AND HAVE LOT'S RECIPIES THAT WE CALL "GO TO TOWN" RECIPIES. WE FILL UP THE OVEN WITH MEAT AND POTATOES AND HEAD OFF TO TOWN FOR A ****TAIL AT THE LOCAL TAVERN. WE RETURN AN HOUR AND HALF LATER AND SUPPER IS READY RIGHT OUT OF THE BLACK POT. THE NEARLY BURNED OUT COALS DO A GOOD JOB OF KEEPING SUPPER WARM. OF COURSE THIS IS NOT THE CASE IF YOU ARE TRYING TO BAKE IN YOUR OVEN, IN THAT CASE YOU MUST STAY RIGHT THERE TO CHECK ON THINGS.
Well Rex & Mary,
It looks like the profanity control feature on this forum is working.
Here are the three recipes that we use the most. The meat loaf came from a Dutch oven class that we attended at Patoka Lake in Southern Indiana. My husband volunteered me to help the teacher and it turned out to be great fun! The other two are from a cookbook put together by some Boy Scout parents in Louisville. Hope you all enjoy!
Susan
Meat Loaf
Mix Together:
3 ½ pounds ground meat
1 cup oatmeal
3 eggs
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Dice:
1 large onion
1 pepper
Garlic Clove
2 cups grated cheese
Place large strip of Saran Wrap on flat surface. Pat meat mixture flat on top of Saran Wrap Strip ½ inch thick. Place vegetables and cheese along a centerline of the meat. BBQ sauce over vegetables and cheese. Add a little Worcestershire sauce if you like. Wrap meat around vegetables and form and seal vegetables inside center. Pick up Saran Wrap with meat in it and place in 12 inch deep dutch oven. Remove Saran Wrap.
Baste BBQ sauce over meat and bake for 20 minutes. Baste with BBQ sauce again and bake for another 20 minutes. Bake for approximately 1 ½ hours (total cooking time) with coals on top and bottom. (9 on bottom and 15 on top).
Susan Pineapple Upside Down Cake
3 tablespoons margarine
6-10 maraschino cherries
½ cup brown sugar
1 can (20 oz.) sliced pineapple
1 ¼ cups water ( or juice from pineapples and make up difference with water )
1 yellow cake mix (18 oz.)
1/3 cup oil
3 eggs
Tin Foil
21 pieces of charcoal
Prepare cake mix as instructed on the cake mix box. We prefer to use cake mix that calls for eggs.
Line 12 inch Dutch Oven with foil. Place 9 coals under the oven. Melt butter in tin foil lined pan. Arrange pineapple slices with cherries in center of each slice in bottom of the Dutch Oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over fruit.
Carefully pour the cake batter over the fruit. Bake 30-40 minutes. Use 9 coals on the bottom of the oven and 12 on top. Baking is complete when cake is brown and springs back when touched. When finished, turn upside down onto plate before serving. ( use a piece of cardboard covered with tin foil if you do not have plate large enough or a cookie sheet). Turning process may be easier if you use two pieces of cardboard covered with tin foil. Lift cake out of Dutch Oven in tin foil that lined the Dutch Oven when cooking, place on one piece of cardboard, place other piece on top, tin foil toward the cake and flip. Two people make it easier! Remove the cardboard on top and tin foil that lined the Dutch Oven.
Breakfast Pizza
1 Can Crescent Rolls
8 Eggs
1 Pound Grated Cheese
1 Pound Ground Sausage
1 Pound Hash Browns
¼ Pound Onion
¼ Pound Mushrooms
½ Cup Milk
Brown Sausage. Chop up onions. Mix hash browns with onion and mushrooms. Beat Eggs with ½ cup of milk.
Spread Crescent Rolls on bottom of 12 inch Dutch Oven. Top with 1 pound of browned Sausage. Top with hash browns, onion mushroom mixture. Top with ½ pound of grated cheese. Sprinkle balance of cheese over above.
Bake for hour at 350 ( 15 coals on top and 9 underneath).
Glad you started this post! My husband has been wanting to learn how to do dutch oven cooking. He got everything that he needs but has been looking for a good cookbook. Any ideas?
The ones that he has found so far seem to have all these hard, something we would never eat recipes LOL. We just like the good ole boy, everyday type foods.
I'D RECCOMEND:
"LOVIN' DUTCH OVENS"
BY JOAN S. LARSEN
WE'VE SEEN THIS COOKBOOK AVAILABLE AT CABELAS
We got the toughtest steak we had ready in the pot along with onions, garlic and tomatoes prepared in the rig. The coals were ready outside. As I stepped out of the rig with the pot in hand my flip flops grabbed hold of the skid strip and I fell out, tumbled down the 3 steps, the pot stayed upright not losing much except some tomatoes. But my big toe lost a layer of skin and my other foot was bruised badly. I was shocked that that was the only thing that got hurt. We put the pot on the coals and went in and took care of the toe and foot.
Warning: Don't wear the foam flips when you cook! lOl
1 box white or yellow cake mix
2 large cans of fruit (not pie filling!)
1 stick butter
Mixture of cinnamon & brown sugar (can add rolled oats if you like)
Dump fruit into Dutch over and top with cake mix which needs to be spread evenly. Cut up butter into small pieces and "dot" over cake mix. Top with sugar/cinnamon mix.
Bake 30-45 minutes. Serve warm and with ice cream - YUM!!!
Suzanne
http://campingandtravels.blogspot.com
here is an Rx from Montana from a true Cowgirl.
Brown some chunks of pork or beef with chopped garlic.
Add one can of Cocal Cola, one cup of strong coffee (or two) and one bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce. Cover... coals at the bottom and a few on top. About an hour before eating thrwo in some potatoes, onions, whatever you like...
It was great... caramelized... delicious.
Be well...
Ara & Spirit
Amazing how little coals it takes.
On to Dr today (annual good stuff!), will be back to read all these recipes... I also have a great one from Montana given to me by a true cowgirl I will post!
Be well, always.
Ara & Spirit
That's funny Howard!...
Here is a one stop place for everything about dutch oven cooking, cleaning, and seasoning. Lots of good folks on there just like on here. It's a yahoo group you have to join, but it's free.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dutchovencooking/