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Tips For The Best Cooking Over A Campfire

Tips For The Best Cooking Over A Campfire

There are many benefits to cooking over an open campfire. Not only is it relaxing, but it gives the food an incredible natural wood flavor. In addition, you get to hear the flame crackle with the warmth of the fire on your face while taking in the fresh air. Consider these tips when cooking over your next campfire, including the best way to season your BBQ Fire Pit Grilling Grate. 

FIRE PIT BBQ GRILLING GRATE

Correctly Build Your Campfire For Cooking

If you plan to cook food over your campfire, you have to know how to build the perfect campfire. This means you have to burn a lot of wood until it is red hot for even cooking. Hickory and oak are good options for wood that will burn evenly and slowly. A safe location for your campfire, such as a pre-dug fire pit, is another necessity. It must be protected from wind, grass, debris, and leaves. You want the area to be clear of power lines and trees with 10 feet of clearance on all sides. Create a perimeter around your fire with green wood or rocks. You want to lay tinder with dry grass or a Sure-Fire Starter, then pile thin twigs in a vertical cone on top of the tinder. Then light the tinder and add larger branches as the smaller ones catch fire. Add firewood to the kindling and allow it to burn until the white coals are left. This process could take as long as 45 minutes. 

Use Proper Tools When Cooking Over a Firepit

No matter how many amazing recipes you have to cook over a campfire, without the right tools, you may not get the best results. A Firepit BBQ grilling grate is a great cooking surface. This is where you can grill vegetables and meat directly on the Firepit BBQ grilling grate. You can also use the grate to boil water in pots and pans. If you plan to cook over an open fire with a Dutch oven or Skillet, you will need a BBQ grate that holds the weight. The Firepit BBQ Grilling Grate holds up to 200 lbs and can stand up to the test of your meal.

Season Your BBQ Grill Grate Before Campfire Cooking

When the grate is cold, coat both sides with a high heat cooking oil, such as peanut oil or canola oil. You can also use a spray bottle to apply this cooking oil. The excess oil must be wiped off with a paper towel, leaving a thin layer behind. Once you light the fire, put your Firepit BBQ grilling grate over the flame and let the oil burn off or the grate smokes. The shiny finish will turn bronze or dark brown. The more seasoned your grate is, the more evenly your food cooks, and your food gets flavor from the oil and fat that the grate collects. 

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Food Prep is Essential Before Campfire Cooking

If you are away from home or camping, you’ll want to do as much food prep as possible at home, where it is much easier to cook your food. You’ll typically have better tools in your kitchen to slice vegetables and meat. The following ingredients can be put in containers, taken to a campfire, or easily transferred to a backyard fire pit! When camping, you might consider vacuum-sealing your items at home, so they stay fresher. 

Avoid Cooking Your Food Over Naked Campfire Flames

If you cook your food over direct flame, you are going to burn it. The intense heat may cook your food unevenly or completely char the outside of the meat. It is not safe or appetizing. Once the coals are white-hot, you can cook on them. Or you can use a cooking surface and keep your pots and pans above the heat. 

Watch For Flare-Ups When Campfire Cooking

Flare-ups can happen as a result of grease splatter. In addition to flare-ups being potentially dangerous, they can cook your food unevenly because it impacts the heat distribution. If an ember goes wayward, you can stomp it out or spray it with water to help contain the fire. Always attend an active fire and be prepared for this possibility when cooking over an open fire.

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