Cooking on a campfire

Cooking food on a campfire is tricky, so consider using a portable stove instead. However, if backpacking in an area that allows the gathering of firewood[?], you may decide to cook on a fire so that you do not need to carry a stove or fuel.

A pot hanging over the fire, although picturesque, may spill, and constructing the rigging is not simple. (One may use two tripods, lashed with tripod lashings[?], but the rope will be liable to melt or burn. Dovetail joints[?] are more secure, but difficult to carve.) Easier cooking methods include:

• Some Dutch ovens[?] are specially designed for camping. Set the oven in a bed of hot coals, and place additional coals on top of the lid. (The lid will have a raised rim to keep the coals from falling off.) Dutch ovens are made of cast iron, and are not suitable for backpacking. However, they are the only option for baking on a campout, and are also convenient for cooking dishes that take a long time.
• Reflector ovens[?] are placed on the ground next to the fire, and gather thermal radiation from it.
• Grills[?] are somewhat simpler to use, and better at using convective heating, but they tend to make the food pick up flavors from the smoke.
  • Grills that clamp over the food may be used only for simple tasks like warming food or making toast.
  • Grills that sit above the fire can be used for actual cooking. If the food is simply placed on the grill, it may catch fire. If the food is placed in a pot, the weight of the pot combined with the heat of the fire may cause the grill to bend permanently, and rest upon the coals, interrupting the flow of oxygen to the fire.