Dutch Oven Baking
What is a Dutch oven, and why is it the greatest outdoor cooking appliance known to mankind?
Okay, that’s just my opinion, but read on to learn how this simple, cast-iron pot with a lid changed our wilderness camping experience. I highly recommend buying the kind with short legs, and a concave lid to hold the coals.
I made this Orange Carmel Pull-Apart Cake in my Dutch oven using the setup shown here. It was absolutely delicious! I couldn’t believe we had such a tasty treat while boondocking. Even my wife was impressed with my baking skills.
I’ve made lots of delicious dishes in my Dutch oven, like chicken and dumplings, beef stew, and blueberry crunch, but for some reason it never dawned on me that a Dutch oven can be used like an oven to bake things.
The culinary opportunities just blossomed before me. Heavenly days!
The recipe is in the Dutch Oven Baking book shown below, page 122.
Here’s are the essential tools I use for Dutch oven baking
| 12″ Dutch Oven |
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Dutch Oven Baking Recipe Book
Every Dutch oven cook should own a cookbook devoted to baking.
This recipe book has hundreds of prize-winning recipes and tips from a world champion breadmaster Bruce Tracy. Bruce is a master of baking in Dutch ovens, and serves up some of the finest breads and treats you’ll ever taste. With this cookbook, he offers some of his prize-winning recipes and tips for cast iron baking.
Give his Cheese Onion Rolls, Challah Holiday Bread with Parmesan Dipping Butter, and Orange Caramel Bubble Crown a try.
My next experience is going to be the Buttermilk Cinnamon Rolls on page 114.
See more great outdoor cooking books on this page: Outdoor Cooking Books
Charcoal Versus Fire
You can use several heat sources to bake with a Dutch oven: charcoal, wood fire, or even your stove top.
Charcoal
I like cooking with charcoal because it’s easier to maintain a constant temperature. The temperature is decided by how many coals you place under the Dutch oven, and how many coals are arranged underneath and around the lid.
Keep a temperature chart like this one handy. The coals should last long enough for most recipes. But you can remove spent coals and replace them with freshly started coals if needed.
I lifted this Dutch oven baking temperature chart from the Campfires and Cast Iron blog. It’s a great resource with lots of recipes and how-to ideas.
You can download a printable version of this chart from Stacy’s blog.
You must resist the urge to peek during the cooking process because this lets the heat out of the top and may cause the bottom to burn before the top is done.
Cooking With Fire
Cooking over a fire is a completely different animal. When using open flame, I usually cook dishes that won’t be harmed if the temperature fluctuates. Cast-iron cookware is exceptionally good at evening out the heat through the entire pan. You’ll need a sturdy grate like the one shown here.
While campfire cooking is better know for grilling, making coffee, and toasting marshmallows, Dutch oven cooking offers a lot of additional options.
Because the temperature fluctuates, a cooking thermometer is a must. I’m not gonna kid ya. It’s a little tricky and a lot of work to keep the temperature just right.
Another method of cooking over a fire is to create a hot bed of wood coals which cook just like charcoal. Wood coals don’t last as long as charcoal briquettes, so they need to be replenished from the fire often.
The Keyhole Fire Pit
The best type of cooking fire I’ve found is the keyhole fire. Just like the name infers, it looks like an old time keyhole in a door lock. The wider area has a roaring fire as a constant source of embers. The embers, or coals, are scooped as needed to the narrow end of the fire ring under the cooking grate.
You need a good scooper with a long handle to move the coals.
If your Dutch oven has short legs, you can place it right on the coals without using a grate.
Cleaning Your Dutch Oven
Cleaning a Dutch oven after use couldn’t be easier. Just wipe with a paper towel and rinse with hot water. If food is stuck on, use a stiff brush or nylon scraper tool to get it off. Sometimes I fill my Dutch oven with water and boil it over the fire for a few minutes.
Never use harsh soaps with degreaser or strong fragrances like Dawn or Ajax. You may use a gentle soap like unscented Castile dish washing liquid. It’s strong enough to remove the food and grease, but leaves the seasoning layer undamaged.
Never put cast-iron cookware in the dishwasher.
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Extending Our Living Space Outdoors
Click on image to buy this Dutch oven cook set from Etsy.
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