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Sunday, April 22, 2012

Cast Iron Dutch Oven Cooking

Whether over a campfire in the woods or in the backyard using modern conveniences, cast iron cooking with dutch ovens goes hand-in-hand with low and slow barbecue techniques.

I have two cast iron dutch ovens.  One is a Lodge #10 and the second is a #12 purchased at a local sporting goods retailer that imported it from a Chinese manufacturer (I don't recall the brand). I wish I'd held out for another Lodge, but I was in a hurry and needed a larger oven for a backyard event at the in-laws the next weekend. The price was attractive, so I purchased it.

Tonight I decided to cook supper on them.  I pulled out the dutch oven recipe book and prepared two cornish hens in the #12 and a delicious casserole made from potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, and sevreral strips of bacon.

I don't use Kingsford charcoal much anymore,
but it works well for dutch oven cooking.

After combining the casserole ingredients in the #10 dutch oven.

This was one of the best dutch oven dishes I've ever cooked.

I should have used a little more top heat to brown the chicken toward the end of cook.

I forgot how much I enjoy campfire cooking with the cowboy version of a microwave.  I hope to add dutch oven cooking segments to the bbq blog on a regular basis going forward. Now I need to find some more receipes.

For the casserole I started by browning 1 pound of bacon and saving the drippings. Then I sliced 12 small potatoes, cut two large onions into rings, added 1 pound of baby carrots, sliced two large bell peppers into rings, and added a packaged of sliced mushrooms. The mixture was combined and cooked for 1 hour with 10 briquettes for bottom heat and 12 briquettes for top heat.

The cornish hens were cooked for 1 hour in two cups of water and 2 tablespoons of chicken broth using a trivet. I cooked them with 12 briquettes of bottom heat for 1 hour. I added 12 briquettes for top heat during the last 30 minutes of the cook.  The hens were basted with a vinegar and butter mixture every 15 minutes. The end result was a moist chicken that paired very well with the potato casserole.

These two recipes and several others are available from the American West Dutch Oven Cooking cook book.

3 comments:

Chris said...

We have a #12 Lodge. We take it camping and my mom brings her 12 and 10. With the three of them we make some impressive camp fire side meals.

I haven't tried hens in there yet, what a great idea.

Anonymous said...

I can really agree with your comment on the Lodge dutch ovens. I have three dutch ovens and I held out for the lodge and I am really glad I did. I am going try you cornish hens. That sounds really good. I have cooked a turkey in a dutch oven before but never a game hen. Thanks Brad www.mysmokersandgrills.com

Joyce said...

I use what my mother-in-law and generations before them use. The Iron Kettle with a rack. Browing pot roast, adding carrots potatoes and a Lot of Parsley. Cover and forget. It's perfect. Hey my wesite www.BuncoBuddy.com If you know iron kettles you know the dice game Bunco