Dining Under the Sun and Stars:

When we do not have a stove to heat with wood or turn on with the flip of a switch, we have to find a way to cook. Additionally, using natural cooking solutions saves money and reduces dependence on "the grid". Our ancestors found a way to cook . . . even in winter. These Videos, Podcasts and articles explain how to cook good healthy food for a fraction of the cost of conventional cooking methods. DUTCH OVEN COOKING: There is something nostalgic about Dutch oven cooking over an open flame. The smell, the feel and the taste of this experience cannot be replicated by any other method of cooking. The Dutch oven brings out that warm feeling of being “home” regardless of where I may be in the world. As I huddle around the fire ring with my group, preparing our meal, the Dutch oven becomes part of my extended family. Dutch Oven Cooking Video Tutorial Dutch Ovens on Amazon.com SOLAR OVEN COOKING: When we do not have a stove we can heat with wood or turn on with the flip of a switch, we have to find a way to cook. Our ancestors found a way . . . In these Podcasts and Videos Learn:

How to harness the power of the sun to cook, dehydrate, purify water and be better prepared for emergencies.

How to never have to worry about burning dinner again.

How to use a SUN OVEN to naturally dehydrate fruits and vegetables, and enhance winter sprouting.

How to reduce your utility bills and the amount of fuel you need to store for emergency preparedness while helping families in deforested developing countries around the world.

Everything you need to know about using a SUN OVEN to bake, boil and steam foods. See how practical and easy it is to cook in a SUN OVEN and discover the many economic, health and environmental benefits of cooking with the sun.

Cook in the middle of winter and get out of the hot kitchen in summer. [Recipes and How-to Videos] [Solar Oven Cooking]    [Let's Cook with the Sun!] [Comparison of Solar Ovens/Cookers] [Solar Ovens on Amazon.com]

PRIMITIVE COOKING: Learning to cook with a campfire, without man-made utensils, can be one of the most relaxing and rewarding experiences. Whether you're camping or in an actual emergency situation, common primitive cooking methods are skills worth knowing. The first skills necessary, however, are knowing how to start and build a fire. Then choose the primitive cooking method appropriate for the situation, available resources and weather.

Ash Cooking: Gather the food and large, live, non-poisonous plant leaves (preferably edible with stems or vines still attached). Slowly let the fire die while flattening the hot coals (but not burning with flames). Wrap the food in the leaves, using the stem/vine to hold it together. Place the food onto the coals. Use a stick to move some hot coals over top of the food so it can cook on both sides.

Broiling: Unless a pan is available, make something that can hold the food over the fire without it falling in. Strong, live, non-poisonous branches fashioned into a basket-weave pattern may do. Then lay the food on the boiler to cook. Flip the food as needed to cook thoroughly.

Hot Stone Cooking: Use a flat surface rock no less that one inch thick. Make sure the rock is clean but dry. Heat the rock on coals or over the fire until hot to touch. Place the food on the rock to cook.

Plank Cooking: Best woods for making planks are poplar, cedar, and oak; not conifers (pines). Cut into planks or rounds large enough for your food and cook similar to Hot Stone Cooking.

Steam Pit Cooking: Wrap food in large leaves, as with ash cooking. Dig a pit in the ground a foot to two feet deep. Line the bottom of it with hot coals. Place the food on top of the coals and then cover it with the earth you dug up. Allow it to sit for at least a couple of hours (even small food will take a while to cook this way). Then dig it up, and dig in!

Spit Cooking: Like a whole chicken spinning slowly on a rotisserie, that's spit cooking. Bury two "Y"-shaped (the top of a K is a better shape for pounding into the ground) branches, one on each side near the fire. Another straight, non-poisonous, hard-wood branch will pass through the food and hang on the two "Y"-shaped branches. Secure the food with non-poisonous vines or twine so it doesn't fall off as it cooks and turns. Turn the food occasionally to cook completely.

Clay Cooking: Wrap food in large leaves, as when ash cooking. Dig far enough into the ground and you'll, usually, find clay. Make sure that the area you dig wasn't once the place of toxic chemicals. Pack the clay around the food, in an even layer, to promote even cooking. Lay the clay-covered package over hot coals and allow it to cook. The time of cooking will depend on not only the size of the food being cooked, but also the thickness of the clay.

Shovel Skillet: Most backpackers and bug-out-bags will carry a small, foldable shovel to dig a latrine, fire pit or cover fire coals to put out a fire. A Not-So-Primitive cooking method is using a shovel as a skillet when no pots, pans or griddle are available. The metal shovel is excellent for cooking meats, veggies and breads. The [usual] long handle, makes it convenient to maneuver the food in and around the fire for different temperatures.

Makeshift Cooking Tools help with the cooking process. A Rake or Pitchfork can be used as skewers for roasting meats. A metal fork can be repurposed into a pan handle by poking holes in a metallic can in line with the fork tines, inserting the tines into the holes then bending the tines in an alternating pattern. This provides a safe, sturdy handle to move the can of food in and around the fire.

[Campfire Cooking Tips 1]    [Campfire Cooking Tips 2] [Campfire Cooking Tips 3]    [Campfire Cooking Tips 4] Related Resources: Cook a Raw Egg, in its Shell, in Campfire Ashes Boiling Water in a Leaf, Paper Cup or Plastic Bottle Uses For Wood Ashes Cooking and Heating With a Wood Stove Checklist and Essential Tips for Campers [Author's Reference Link]

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