Charred and scarred is apparently all I know about cooking while camping. Yet the cowboy sophisticate in me is still enamoured with the Dutch Oven. After plenty of research, I thought I would make a couple of notes in hopes of future success.

First of all, Mis en place.

Things you can't cook without:

Leather gloves

Lid lifter

Shovel or tongs

Scoop and fork (for serving)

Lid stand (tuna can or rocks)

Storage bag or box

Paper towels

Oil

Whiskbroom

Aluminum Foil

Briquettes

Matches

Other stuff:

bio soap	cheese grater	veggie peeler
spice rack	measuring cups	can opener
hot pad holder	water bottle	pie tins
knives	cutting board	cooking oil
bottle opener

Time and Temp:

Most campers claim briquettes are the only way to predict cooking success. But being the Utah child of Carlos, I am thrilled to have found the Dutch oven Dude who offers a much more thorough approach, and prefers coals.

#1 Hand test the temp- count down from 550, (one second =50 degrees) until you can't keep your hand in the heat.

#2 Rule of 3- Usually you double the diameter to count the number of briquettes needed. But the rule of 3 is to take 3 from the bottom (leaving 9) and add 3 on top (15) (on a 12 inch D.O.) This needs to be changed depending on the type of cooking you are doing.

Baking	More heat from top so bottom does not burn. Place 3/4 coals on top and 1/4 underneath.
Roasting	Heat comes equally from top and bottom. Place 1/2 coals on top and 1/2 underneath.
Stewing, Simmering	Most heat from bottom. Place 1/4 coals on top and 3/4 underneath.
Frying, Boiling	All head from bottom. Place all coals underneath.

The Dutch Oven Dude has an awesome little calculator to figure out how to achieve the temperature you want. Check it out!

or #3, "A Real Scotsman Never uses Briquettes!"

A ring around the top and the bottom is about 325 to 350 degrees.
Remove every other briquette (or coal) underneath to make 300 degrees.
Add a second ring to the top to make 375 degrees.

*Remember to turn your pot and lid (in opposite directions) every ten minutes in order to avoid hot spots.

*Coals should last 35-40 minutes, check your coals every 20.

*stack Recipes from coolest to hottest, hottest on top. In other words, breads and desert first, then meat, then stews etc.

#4 so, how did it go?

I tried the bacon spuds tonight.

It took forever to get going. It convinced me to get one of those briquette starters. They cooked very slow and very steady; I really had to double and triple the number of briquettes that I used though-- Instead of a ring around the edge, I used an entire cirle top and bottom. Two hours later when finished, the briquettes were 1/4 - 1/2 in smaller but still glowing red.

PS. He's got a good collection of recipes. Black forest Cobler, Spiced Rhubarb, Bacon spuds, Jambalaya, even German Pancakes.