Do you ever cook your meals over a Firepit?

[Divingbiker]

I'm posting this thread here because most folks that remote/backcountry boondock also sit outside in the evening around a warm campfire.

We love to boondock in our truck camper. We sometimes camp in the DEEP south on property that is VERY remote on a bayou in South Louisiana. When I say remote, I mean this place conjures up thoughts of Deliverance and banjos. LOL..... But this place has been in my family for 100 years and we love to camp here. (just trying to give you a mental image of the campsite)

We always build a fire at night to grill or cook in our Dutch oven and the fire was contained inside a short metal fire ring. A few months ago I watched a few videos on several camping firepits. Seems that the two main ones were Solo (built in china) and Breeo (built in the good ol' USA) These things are stainless steel and weigh about 50 pounds. (SIDEBAR, I don't sell or have any interest in either product)

The videos I watched claimed that once these things get up to temperature, they produce very little smoke. I ordered a Breeo and also ordered the optional grill and support rod that holds a cast iron pot. I gotta say, this thing works GREAT and as claimed, reduces the smoke. We are doing more cooking and grilling over this thing and are having lots of fun learning to cook new things. The challenge is getting the coals just right but I think we just about have it figured out. Also, its fun just to enjoy a warm fire without all of the excess smoke.

I was wondering if any of you have ever used one of these smoke reducing firepits and if you have actually cooked meals over it. Grilling a steak counts, but I'm more interested in knowing if you have actually cooked other meals and if so, what they were.

AND of course, we all know that pictures add a lot to these threads so if you have a photo, please post it.

Here are a few photos from the past couple of weeks.....

[saddlesore]

Looks to be an updated version of using an old washing machine drum..

[Old-Biscuit]

Originally Posted by saddlesore

Looks to be an updated version of using an old washing machine drum..

Exactly^^^^^ and at inflated price point

We camped using a washer drum for YEARS
They hold up pretty dang well.

[JHinman]

Looks like a metal cylinder open at each end?

Many Forest Service campgrounds use round metal pits. They are usually wider and not as tall as the device in your pictures. Is the concept similar?

[FL420]

Originally Posted by Old-Biscuit

Exactly^^^^^ and at inflated price point

We camped using a washer drum for YEARS
They hold up pretty dang well.

You guys got me to thinkin' & googlin'. This is what I found.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/7327031...0aApJmEALw_wcB
Tap on the photo and it shows some interesting ways to modify and cook on or in the drum.
Since we're fulltimers I don't know where I would be able to store a washing machine drum. If I figure it out I may be able to also store a 20# propane bottle in it.[emoji848]
[emoji40]

[DavidEM]

We camp in established public campgrounds, but I often hate their fire rings. They are too tall which blocks the radiant heat in the evening. So we got one of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It lets the radiant heat through and the fire is a bit higher. We use a simple folding grill to grill steaks, burgers, etc: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

We often will wrap a couple of ears of corn in foil, dab some butter on and put them inside near the fire while it is burning down and turn them every ten minutes to roast evenly. Fire roasted corn (even in foil) always tastes better.

David

[atreis]

IME, smoke has more to do with the wood (type, and how dry it is) than the fire pit...

We cook dinner over the fire fairly often, perhaps half of our dinners.

[Itinerant1]

Problem with using established fire pits is you don't know what was burnt in it prior to you. Too many times there is plastic, cans and who knows what else still in the pit.:(

Unless you bring your own pit... no thanks.

[UTTransplant]

I occasionally use a fire pit for my DO pans, but I don’t do it over coals. I prefer charcoal so I can manage the heat better. We do cook over fires when camping with the grandkids, but we don’t often do it otherwise. Foil dinners, biscuits on a stick, pie irons - all fun things to do. I have wondered about the Solo campfire containers and wonder how they would work since it is getting harder and harder to find good, clean burning wood due to insect infestations. Since we camp most of the time in the West, many times we have burn restrictions anyway. We bought a propane fire pit, and we sit around it occasionally. Not very good for cooking though.

[Alpine36]

We cook over the campfire frequently. I carry two tripods, one for the Dutch oven for making "whatchagot" stew, and another el cheapo tripod with an 20" grill that raises/lowers with a chain. Cooks the best steaks ever with alder. We also cook oysters over the fire to avoid trashing the bbq.
I usually take the time to clean out campground pits and season the pit hot with fir or hemlock first until a good bed of coals are established, then add wet alder or hickory. If it ain't smokin, it ain't cookin.

[HopsBrewster]

Yes I do cook over a campfire. I have an old BBQ grill I keep just for the purpose. I will clean the trash out of the fire place if needed, using my folding GI shovel. National Park fire pits are cleaned by personnel.

I also use my TT's oven. An anomaly, I know. What I don't use to cook with while boondocking is the microwave or other electric appliances.

[TXiceman]

I grew up camping along a river bank, sleeping under the trees on a cot and cooking over an open fire. Boiling coffee, eggs and bacon cooking over an open fire with a grate...such great smells and memories. Later in the day, fresh caught fish, frying over an open fire and taters baking in the coals.

Ken

[ArtJoyce]

DW just loves a steak cooked over the fire. I have a grate that mounts on a long pole.

A couple we camp with are big duch oven fans. We switch who is doing dinner everyother night. I have seen them use up to three ovens stacked up to make dinner.

[ByeTheWay]

Do you ever cook your meals over a Firepit?

Hot Dogs and Marshmallows