What you'll need
- A shovel
- Dry hardwood, kindling and tinder
- A grill grateSee it on Amazon
- Cast iron skilletSee it on Amazon · ~$30
- Cast iron Dutch ovenSee it on Amazon
- Heavy-duty foil
- Fire-safe glovesSee it on Amazon · ~$25
- A bucket of water or a shovel of dirt
- 1
Check the rules first
Look up burn bans for your area. Never build a fire in drought or high wind. Clear a 10-foot circle of anything that burns, away from your house, fences and low branches.
- 2
Option 1: a simple fire pit
Dig a shallow pit about 2 to 3 feet across and ring it with dry rocks. Never use rocks from a river or creek: water trapped inside can make them crack or burst in the heat.
- 3
Option 2: a Dakota fire hole
Dig a hole about 1 foot wide and 1 foot deep. About a foot away on the side the wind comes from, dig a smaller hole about 6 inches across and angle it down to meet the bottom of the first hole. The tunnel feeds air to the fire, so it burns hotter with less wood and less smoke, and it's hidden from view. Set your pot or grate right across the top.
- 4
Option 3: a keyhole fire
Make a ring of rocks shaped like a keyhole: a round part for the fire and a narrow slot coming off one side. Keep the fire burning in the round part and rake hot coals into the slot to cook on. You always have fresh coals coming.
- 5
Build the fire and wait for coals
Use dry hardwood like oak, hickory or maple. Let it burn down for 30 to 45 minutes to glowing coals. Flames burn food on the outside and leave it raw inside.
- 6
Pick your cooking method
Grate: set a grill grate on rocks over the coals for pots, pans and meat. Foil packets: wrap potatoes, vegetables and meat in two layers of heavy foil and set them right in the coals for 15 to 30 minutes, turning once. Dutch oven: nestle it in coals and shovel more on the lid to bake bread or stew. Skewers: roast meat and vegetables on green sticks or metal skewers. Bread on a stick: wrap pan-bread dough around a stick and turn it over the coals.
- 7
Put it out completely
Drown it with water, stir the ashes, and drown it again until everything is cold to the touch. Fill in a Dakota hole when you're done.
- Hold your hand about 5 inches above the coals: if you can only keep it there 2 seconds it's hot (good for searing), 4 to 5 seconds is medium (most cooking).
- Rub dish soap on the outside of pots before cooking. Soot washes right off.
- A Dakota hole is great in a long emergency when you don't want neighbors seeing a big fire.
- Cooking over flames instead of coals.
- Building a fire under trees or near the house.
- Leaving a fire unattended, even for a minute.
Outdoor cooking
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