Dutch/Camp Oven cooking
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Re: Dutch/Camp Oven cooking
It can be used to bake, stew, roast and fry, yes fry. The flat lid inverted over or in coals doubles as a none stick fry pan. The flat surface makes this easy.
When in camp I will often saute stuff on the lid while browning meat in the pot part and then combine to finish. Bacon and eggs cooked on the lid turn out wonderful. The flat lid is also essential for baking and roasting, coals on the flat top and a few under the oven turn this tool into a real oven.
Re: Dutch/Camp Oven cooking
Re: Dutch/Camp Oven cooking
TEMPERATURE CONTROL
Temperature shock (cold-to-hot or hot-to-cold) can damage your oven --either by cracking or warping. However, a well-made dutch oven (ie not a Chinese import) is much more forgiving than you'd expect. You can safely put your pot right onto coals if the coal temperature isn't too hot to cook.
Different foods and dishes require different cooking temperatures. The following guide is for an aluminum dutch oven. Increase the number of briquettes by about one-fourth for a cast-iron oven. Actual temperatures will vary due to charcoal quality and weather.
Desired Temperature Range Ten-Inch Oven Twelve-Inch Oven
250-300 - Low 8 on top/6 under 10 on top/8 under
300-350 - Medium 10 on top/7 under 12 on top/9 under
350-400 - Hot 12 on top/8 under 14 on top/10 under
400-450 - Very Hot 14 on top/9 under 16 on top/12 under
When coals are 'hot', they are barely covered with white ash and you can hold your hand near them for only 2 or 3 seconds. You can hold your hand near 'medium' coals for about 5 seconds. Low coals are covered with ash. You should be able to hold your hand near them for about 7 seconds.
Many dutch oven cooks use the "three up, three down rule." For 325 degrees in a 12-inch diameter iron oven you need 12 briquettes + 3 = 15 briquettes for the top and 12 briquettes - 3 = 9 briquettes for the bottom. To get 350° F, add one more coal on both the top and bottom. Each two additional coals will give you about 20° F more heat.
The objective is to get the oven hot enough to cook the food before it dries out, yet not so hot you can't control the cooking process. In most cases, if the food is sputtering and popping a lot, the heat is too high. If the temperature is hot enough to suit the needs of a blacksmith, it's too hot to cook and could likely damage your dutch oven. Using your tongs, remove about one fourth of the briquettes at a time from the top and underneath until the cooking slows to a steady simmer.
Preheating your dutch oven isn't normally needed. I can think of a couple of exceptions. For example:
When you want to sear a roast prior to roasting, bring the oven up to temperature, then brown the meat on all sides in a bit of oil, then add vegetables, etc. and cook.
When using the lid as a griddle to cook pancakes, turn it inside up, place over your coals and bring to cooking temperature before pouring the batter. I judge pancake temperature with a couple of drops of water. If the water droplets pop or explode into vapor, the lid is too hot to properly cook pancakes. If the water does nothing or gently sizzles, it's too cool. If the water dances around the lid, you're ready to cook.
Witches Brew
More temperature info and a recipe...
From Backwoods Home Magazine:
Here's a secret that even most seasoned outdoor cooks don't know: You can prevent burned bottoms, raw tops, and dried-out foods by using properly sized and spaced coals to control the interior oven temperature. Virtually all baked goods can be baked successfully at 350°, which is the ideal temperature for a Dutch oven. To establish and maintain this temperature, the first thing to remember is to use coals from a fire that are roughly the same size as charcoal briquettes.
Or, for more consistency, use briquettes. Charcoal briquettes will burn longer and more evenly than coals from a fire. Use the best briquettes you can afford. There is a difference in quality, and the more expensive brands are generally worth the additional cost.
The number and placement of the coals on and under your oven is critical.The optimal number of coals used for any oven is based on its diameter. For example, if you are using a 12-inch oven, you will need two coals per inch, a total of 24. More coals will likely burn your food and less may necessitate too long a cooking period. To determine how many coals go under and how many go on top, remember the magic number 2:
· 2 coals per inch of oven diameter
· place 2 more coals than the oven size on the lid, and
· place 2 less than the oven size under it.
Example: For a 12-inch oven, 12 - 2 = 10 coals under the oven, and 12+2=14 coals go on the lid, for a total of 24. The same formula applies to all ovens. A 10-inch oven should have 8 coals underneath and 12 coals on the lid. A 14-inch oven should have 12 coals underneath and 16 coals on the lid.
The placement of the coals is also an important part of proper heat regulation. The proper layout for coals or briquettes under the oven is circular. Coals should be approximately one inch apart in a circle under the oven. Never place coals directly under the center of the oven. If you do, you will create a hot spot and burn whatever you are cooking. By placing the coals in a circle, the natural conductivity of the oven will distribute the heat evenly and effectively.
The coals on the lid of the oven should also be placed evenly in a circle along the flange of the outer lid. However, four of the coals should be placed toward the center of the lid, two on either side of the handle. This coal placement will produce an even, consistent temperature within the oven of approximately 350° and maintain that heat for up to two hours.
In the event that you need to generate a higher temperature inside your oven, “cheat up” the coals. Additional coals placed two at a time, one on the lid and one under the oven, will add another 50°. Two additional coals top and bottom would bring your oven's temperature up to 450°. It is extremely rare to need a temperature of 450°, and you should never need one higher than that.
Present by Backwoods Home Magazine
This recipe is from the same source:
Prairie chicken
Using the correct number of coals under the oven, brown both sides of enough clean, uncoated chicken pieces to cover the bottom in a hot Dutch oven with a bubbling ¼ inch of oil. When the chicken is browned to your liking, remove the excess oil from the oven and discard. Season the chicken generously with the following pre-mixed coating:
2 Tablespoons each, parsley flakes & thyme
1 Tablespoon each, marjoram, oregano, celery salt, & rosemary
1 teaspoon each, garlic salt, onion salt, ginger, ground black pepper, sage, & paprika
Put lid on oven, arrange coals as noted earlier (top and bottom) and cook for 45 minutes to one hour.
Re: Dutch/Camp Oven cooking
Dutch Oven Stuffed Game Hens