Dutch Oven Cooking - RV-Dreams Community Forum

CampingGalore · RV-Dreams Community Member

Dutch Oven Cooking

Georgia · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Family Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · Host

Well Rex & Mary,

It looks like the profanity control feature on this forum is working.

Paul and Bonnie · RV-Dreams Family Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Family Member

Thanks Susan! We are going camping at the beach next weekend, maybe we will try one or all of them.

Bonnie

cincygirl20 · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

I'D RECCOMEND:

"LOVIN' DUTCH OVENS"

BY JOAN S. LARSEN

WE'VE SEEN THIS COOKBOOK AVAILABLE AT CABELAS

Cawino · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Family Member

RE: Dutch Oven Cooking mishaps

subra1228 · RV-Dreams Family Member

RE: Dutch Oven Cooking

Beemerchef · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Family Member

Thanks ara for sharing. I'm always looking for rustic outdoor recipes and that sounds delish!

-Connie

Beemerchef · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

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 · RV-Dreams Community Member

Howard wrote:

Well Rex & Mary,

It looks like the profanity control feature on this forum is working.

That's funny Howard!... smile

Onawave · RV-Dreams Family Member

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.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dutchovencooking/