Dutch Oven cooking

[Mr. 16 gauge]

Greetings;
I received a dutch oven for a Christmas present, and now that the weather is starting to warm up, I am getting excited at the thought of finally getting to use it. I have a few questions, though:
- I read in the latest issue of Woods-n-Waters an article on dutch ovens, and it mentioned a way of seasoning the oven using cooking oil and heating it in a conventional oven. Is this how most folks do it, or are there other ways?

-Does anyone have any good books that the can recommend on the subject. Specifically dutch ovens, not just a blurb here or there in a cook book somewhere.

-finally, I am looking for some simple recipes to start with....nothing to fancy like cooking wedding cakes or any of that nonsense. It doesn't necessarily have to be a game (or even a meat) recipe, as long as it is pretty simple and easy to prepare and doesn't require a lot of skill to cook in the oven (oh, and "tasty" helps too!:D )
Thanks in advance for the help!

[unregistered55]

The BSA sells a cook book specifically for Dutch Ovens. The closest office to you in on Telegraph near the Oakland county court house. Their phone number is 248-338-0035.

[trout]

I believe some dutch ovens are shipped "waxed" so you must first wash them in very hot water several times.
Then they can be oiled and set in a oven and warmed up.
Over time they season more from oiling
We never use harsh soap on ours here.

When used outdoors there is a ratio of charcoal to diameter on the top of the lid, but I have no idea what that is.

[gunrod]

When I was in Boy Scouts we used to do pies in them. Set 3 or 4 bottle caps in the bottom, make a fruit pie with crust just like you would for a conventional oven and place your pie tin on the bottle caps. Place the oven on coals and put coals on top. There's no set cooking time so you have to check it often. For some reason they always came out better in the dutch oven.

Good luck, they can be fun. Like trout said, never use soap when cleaning. It will remove the oil from the oven.

[Salmonsmoker]

Over the past few years, we have accumulated a large number of recipies for Dutch Ovens. I just ran a search and found 66. Go to the top of the page and click on "Search", then enter Dutch Oven. Many of the recipies that will show up have Crock Pot in the title. You will find that many Crock Pot recipies work equally as well in a Dutch Oven cooking over the campfire.

[Salmonsmoker]

In the Wild game Recipies.net section - just below the "Others" forum, I brought forward a thread titled "Cast Iron Fry Pan" which has many suggestions on curing Black Iron.

[PrtyMolusk]

Howdy, Mr. 16 gauge-

Here are some pretty good DO sites....

I think the first one was the one I liked best; a wealth of info, including seasoning instructions.

You'll find additional links when you check 'em out!

www.macscouter.com

www.ceedubs.com/

www.camping.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?

Have fun!

[tangleknot]

Simple ham recipe

Get a decent ham and put some slices in it if it is not a spiral sliced ham and set it in your dutch oven. Start your charcoal going so it is ready when the ham is prepared.

Mix in a bowl, brown sugar, oj, and a pinch or two of ginger. Slowly add oj till you get a pretty thick paste. Baste the ham and and top with pineapple and marashino cherries(optional).

We had a 14 pd ham this weekend while camping so we had to perform a little surgery to get the lid on the oven. I put about 15 coals on the bottom and 8 on the top which ended up being too much. It cooked alot faster than I had expected and was ready in less than an hour! Next time and I will use less coals on the bottom and skip on the top(salmonsmoker probably knows a good ratio), to have a slower cook.

Baste throughout cooking time.




Creates lots of leftovers for sandwiches, bean soup, etc. while camping.

Here's a link to a fuzzy pic of the ham!

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/shaning/images/ham.jpg

[Salmonsmoker]

Tangleknot,

Since heat rises, and it is easier to heat the bottom of a DO than the top. Thus, the ratio usually is 1/3 of the charcoal on the bottom, 2/3 on the top. The number of coals that you used was OK but reverse their location and go from there - also, how many coals depends a lot on ambient air temp and wind, moisture content of the briquetts prior to lighting, how tightly compressed the briquetts are (Kingsford is always a well-compressed birquette - bargan briquetts are usually not so tightly compressed thus they burn faster/hoter).

[tangleknot]

Thanks Salmonsmoker for the ratio info. I plan on cooking quite a few big meals with our dutch ovens this summer so the information will be very helpful.

[Hunt4Ever]

Mr. 16 Guage,

There are lots of recipies on the internet and some good books out there. I have two Dutch Ovens and I'm considering a third.

Here is a link to a similar thead ran last year:

Favorite Dutch Oven Recipies (http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=18282)


Here is mine, it is cinnamon rolls. Done with a boiling pot of coffee, you will be called Camp King for a day.

Here you go. I tried a new version of the recipe this morning. These turned out better. The original recipe did not contain raisins. It came from a book called Cooking the Dutch Oven Way. (just trying to give credit where credit is due)


Brown Sugar Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits

2 Cups Jiffy Baking Mix
.75 Cups Milk
.25 Cups Brown Sugar (very tightly packed)
.25 White Sugar
2 Teaspoons Cinnamon
2 Tablespoons Cooking Oil or Melted Butter
Baking Raisins (not regular raisins, they are too dry)
.5 Stick of Butter or Margarine
Pecan pieces (optional, but very good here)
Almond slices (optional, but very good here also)


1. Blend the mix and milk. Roll or pat out until .25 inches thick. You are going to roll this up in a minute, so try and make sure it is somewhat square.
2. Mix brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and oil.
3. Melt the half stick of butter and spoon or brush it on the dough.
4. Spread the sugar mixture evenly over the dough.
5. Evenly sprinkle baking Raisins, and nuts on top.
6. Roll dough carefuelly like a jelly roll. As you roll, brush butter on the newly exposed dough.
7. Cut the roll into .75-1 inch pieces and CAREFULLY place in a well greased Dutch oven. Pour or brush any remaining butter on the tops.
8. Bake 375, 20-30 minutes, or until done.
9. Serve warm with hot coffee.
10. Let someone else clean up


If you do this recipe in the oven, do not use the lid. Using charcoal, use about 5 briquettes on the bottom and 7 on the top.


Try it, you’ll like it.

Oh, by the way, preheat your dutch oven while your getting everthing ready. If you don't, baking time will at least double.

[tangleknot]

Great recipe, Hunt4Ever! Can't wait to try it. The info to preheat your dutch oven is the stuff I would never think of.

[jpollman]

Mr. 16,

Glad you made this post. I've been wanting to get a Dutch Oven for a couple of years and just never think about it when I'm in that section of the BPS near me. I think next time I'm over there I'll pick one up. But I just took a look on ebay to see what kind of deals they have over there. There were quite a few. I just did a search for "Dutch Oven". Got quite a few "hits". Actually there were a number of recipe books for Dutch Ovens. One was 350 camp recipies for Dutch Ovens and the other was 850 I think. They were about $3 ! Might be a good source for few $$. Check them out and good luck.

[Salmonsmoker]

John,

Thanks for the tip - never would have thought to look on e-bay. When you purchase a D.O., be sure to get a good one. There are many makers of such - most are cheap imitations that are made of thin metal which causes hot spots, and will not hold the heat. Stick with "Lodge" or other such brand names. They are heavy, thick, hold the heat, distribute the heat, and have much less problems with burnt food when cooking over a campfire.

Also, there are D.O.'s made for cooking on a stove, and D.O.'s made for campfire cooking. The one's that I prefer have legs (to put coals under the D.O., and a concaved lid (for coals on top). The D.O.'s for cooking on a stove have a flat bottom and generally have a dome-shaped lid.

I have known several people who bought a Cast Iron Combo set for less than I paid for one D.O. and were very disappointed with the results - burnt food, uneven heating - and soon gave up on D.O. cooking.

Hope this helps

[SEAWEED]

the boy scout store on warren west of woodward has two books both are just on cooking with dutch ovens. They may have them on the web site www.dacbsa.org .