Open Fire Cooking

by gunner

Okay…you have the tent all set up, everything is placed right where you want it to be…the table is set over there, with the cooler is right next to it…you have your chair set up looking at a breathtaking view (no TV tonight, you have nature's own big screen) and the Coleman lanterns are ready and waiting for darkness…

You now have the fire pit dug and surrounded by baseball-sized rocks.  The logs are arranged in a tee-pee fashion, and the fire is burning just right.  You place the grill over the flame, and now it is time to start the cooking.  You can cook so many ways while out camping, there is not enough space on this site to cover them all…so I will just touch on a few of my favorites.

There are two ways to cook corn over a fire, and both taste great.  One way is to leave the corn in the husk and place on a sheet of aluminum foil with some water and butter.  Wrap tight, and toss them in the bottom of the fire on the hot embers.  I would say this is the most popular among campsite cooks.  But, there is another way.  Remove the husk and cut the corn cob in two parts.  Smear with butter and then place directly over the fire on the grill, adding seasoning to taste.  You get a delicious flame-grilled flavor doing it this way.

At this point I also slice up an onion and some peppers and place them on the grill over the flame as well.  I like the crisp flame-kissed taste these will get.  You can also wrap the onion whole in aluminum foil, add a little water and lots of butter, and place it in the embers also.  And of course, I also fix the aluminum wrapped potatoes.  (Hard to beat these)

As far as the main dish, it can be anything of your liking, such as fresh caught fish or hamburgers or—my personal favorite—thick steaks!  When I pack for the trip, I will place steaks in a big freezer bag and let them marinate in either Italian dressing or homemade seasoning with some sort of marinara sauce.  Nothing tastes better than a true flame-cooked steak…

When cooking the fish, I do not add much to it.  I will splash some lemon juice on it, and maybe add a few spices, but not much.  I am a big fan of fresh parsley…oh, and I forgot to mention, when cooking in a skillet, it IS cast iron, of course…nothing like home fries with bacon and eggs in the morning before you go out on the fishing trip for the day!!!

See you out there…and remember…put out all unattended fires!

gunner