wood fired camp ovens - Dutch ovens, etc

see also:

• camp fires and fire restrictions
• gas or liquid fuel stoves for camping
• wood stoves for camping
  • Winnerwell Nomad wood camping stoves
• https://www.freshoffthegrid.com/camping-dutch-oven-cooking/
• Youtube - great camp cooking tips!

• cooking on camp fire coals is a long standing art form in many countries including Australia
• the traditional camp oven bread baked in Australia is damper however there is an art to ensure it is well cooked without burning the outside
• some foods can be cooked on coals by just wrapping in aluminium foil such as potatoes, bananas, corn, etc
• there are camp oven cooking competition events such as https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-02/camp-oven-cooking-growing-in-popularity/101415826
• cooking on coals +/- coals placed on top of the lid:
  • Spun-steel ovens gain and lose heat quickly and are best for desserts and breads
  • Cast iron camp ovens hold heat for a long time and are great for cooking stews and soups and these can be used to sauté, simmer, braise, sear, fry, and bake as they can also be suspended over a campfire using a tripod or placed on a campfire cooking grate over a fire, and it may be possible to use them on top of a wood stove
  • the best coals are from hardwoods (softwoods such as pine burn out to quickly), or charcoal briquettes
  • if one wishes to create coals without a large fire, one can use a foldable chimney to light the briquettes
• an alternative is to use a specialised camp oven:
  • flat fold ovens which sit on top of a wood stove, or,
  • as part of a wood stove chimney such as the Winnerwell pipe oven which provides a more even heating, or,
  • ovens incorporated into a wood stove (these are usually designed for pizzas)
• finally one can buy dedicated wood fired pizza ovens but these tend to be heavy and bulky - see cooking pizzas and camping

• have a relatively flat lid with raised edges to prevent charcoal falling off
• some lids have upward projections
  • these allow the lid to be used upside down as a frypan and the projections become legs
  • they also allow Dutch ovens to be stacked on top of each other
• some lids have an alignment arrow marked to allow you to vent steam
• have a handle which allows rotation and also hang it over flames under a tripod
• usually have small legs to raise it off the ground
• usually have a lid lifter device
• usually come with a trivet to prevent food from being in direct contact with the bottom which might otherwise burn the food more readily when using it as an oven
• various sizes:
  • shallow “bread” ovens - these are the most versatile
    • 8“ is 2L capacity and good for 2-3 people
    • 10” is 4L capacity and good for 2-6 people
      • as a guide, for 180deg C used as an oven, with wind protection, use 21 briquettes with 14 on the lid and 7 under the oven and for cook times longer than 30 minutes, you will need to add fresh coals midway through the cooking process to maintain a consistent temperature. Rotate the lid and body of the Dutch oven about every 15 minutes.
    • can also get 12“ and 14”
  • deep “soup/stew” ovens
• they do need to be “seasoned” before use and re-seasoned if in bad shape
  • cast iron cookware surfaces are made up of microscopic imperfections
  • when oils are heated on its surface, they bond to the imperfections and create a smooth plastic-like polymer “non-stick” surface
  • use a stiff brush (if new) or steel wool (if old) with some dish washing soap and scrub down the entire oven, and remove any rust spots down to bare metal
  • rinse and dry
  • once dry and cool, rub in a small drop of organic flaxseed oil or grapeseed oil (must be polyunsaturated oil) and coat the entire oven and wipe of any excess so it looks nearly dry
  • place it upside down in the middle of your house oven at 230degC (put aluminium foil on bottom rack to catch any drips) and bake for 1 hour
  • turn oven off and let cool with oven door CLOSED
  • once cool, remove and repeat the above oil application and oven steps another two times
  • https://sherylcanter.com/wordpress/2010/01/a-science-based-technique-for-seasoning-cast-iron/
• usage
  • as they take a while to heat up, generally good idea to pre-heat it
  • if baking use metal skewers to slightly raise the lid to allow steam to escape and the food to brown, alternatively, intermittently lift the lid as you rotate it
  • use parchment paper with straps to prevent food sticking to the sides
  • when cooking over a fire, raise the height to adjust temperature
  • when cooking over coals, raise the dutch oven a little above the coals for better heat and longer lasting coals - eg. sit it on a trivet
  • generally need ~70% of your coals on top of it as the top needs to heat the air whilst the food is touching the bottom - for tall foods, rotate them top to bottom
• cleaning to reduce losing the seasoning:
  • avoid scourers and harsh detergents (but metal utensils are fine as long as you avoid gouging)
  • avoid storing when wet
  • avoid cooking highly acidic foods (eg. tomato sauce, white wines) for a long time
  • clean with a plastic pan scraper before it has totally cooled down with a little bit of warm water and if necessary a small anount of soap
  • place it over the heat again to ensure it’s completely dry (even a small amount of water will lead to rust) then add a drop of grapeseed oil and rub the interior down with a paper towel until it is evenly coated
  • store in a dry place

• mainly designed to boild water or stew food but can be used as an oven when turned on its side on coals as below
• much lighter than a Dutch oven and thus more useful for hiking
• can be turned into horizontal position and placed directly on coals but with a metal trivet / grill inserted to keep food off the bottom surface
  • can additionally place stones in the space below the trivet / grill mesh to store heat better
  • keep food away from the sides to avoid burning edges
  • lid may need to have a mechanism of keeping it in place

• these generally have a oven thermometer
• if roasting meat, consider using to Bluetooth meat thermometer such as a Meater to avoid opening the oven door and losing heat

• these pack flat and require assembly then they can sit on top of a wood stove or sometimes on a gas stove if it fits (ensure it is not too wide for the stove that a gas canister may overheat and explode)
• tend to be more spacious inside than a pipe oven but less even temperature
• to reduce burning the bottom of your scones, etc, place a baking stone underneath them (or under your tray)
• eg. Winnerwell Fast Fold oven
  • stainless steel with two racks
• great for cooking potato chips, sausage rolls, scones, camp quality pizzas, re-heating frozen pies, etc

• eg. Winnerwell Pipe oven
  • need to choose the correct pipe size for your stove piping
  • two small racks
  • the medium one allows a small aluminium tray on each rack which is large enough to do a 600g butterflied lamb roast in one tray and roast veges in the other tray
  • the large one allows a 7.5“ wide tray on each rack
    • cooking up a frozen tray of Danish desert
      • you need to cover the Danish with foil and use a lower temperature than the 180degC specified otherwise the Danish top will burn before the centre is cooked

• eg. Winnerwell pizza oven stove

• see cooking pizzas and camping