Category Archives: Campfire Cooking

Spicy Apricot Chicken

October 1, 2021 The Captain & the Cook Leave a comment

This spicy apricot chicken is my twist on the classic apricot chicken recipe my mum used to cook us all the time. It was my favourite of mum’s go-to weekly dishes. Dwayne also loves the original apricot chicken and often craves it. However, now that I have dressed it up somewhat and given it a touch of Oriental piquancy, I’m not sure we will ever cook the classic apricot chicken again.

This chicken has the sweet and savoury flavours of the original, but the addition of garlic, ginger, five-spice and chilli gives it a taste of Asian yumminess.

If like us, you enjoy cooking on a campfire, you’ll love this dish. So easy to make. However, it is just as easy to cook in your oven or slow cooker. Follow each step but instead of placing the ingredients into a camp oven, put them into your casserole dish or slow cooker. Cooking with coals and oven instructions are below.

Our camp kitchen

We cooked this delicious, hearty dish while camped at “The Gap” on Yorke Peninsula.

Ingredients

6 Maryland chicken pieces, skin removed (joint each piece into leg and thigh if you prefer)
2 tablespoons of plain flour
1 onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon of ginger paste
2 teaspoons of Chinese five-spice
2 teaspoons of chilli flakes
820g tin of apricot halves in natural juice or apricot nectar
40g French onion soup mix

Method

Place the flour in a ziplock bag and add the chicken. Close the bag and shake well to lightly coat the chicken.

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cook chicken, in batches, for 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until golden, and place into the camp oven.

Add a little more oil to the pan and sauté the onion until soft, then add the ginger and garlic and cook for another minute.

Add the five-spice and chilli and cook for a couple more minutes.

Add the can of apricots & juice or the nectar and the soup mix, bring to the boil. Mix all the sticking spices from the bottom of the pan. Pour over the chicken (in the camp oven or slow cooker).

We cooked it in the camp oven for 1 – 1 1/2 hours until the chicken was cooked and falling off the bone.

To cook in the oven

Preheat oven to 180c. Follow the above instructions, placing the ingredient into a casserole dish with a lid. Cook for 1 – 1/2 hours in the preheated oven.

For more instruction on cooking with hot coals

If you want to cook on coals from a campfire, you need to burn a good amount of wood to create hot coals. It can take an hour or so for your campfire to make enough coals to cook with. Be sure to factor the process of producing the embers into your prep and cooking time. Alternatively, if time or good wood is in short supply, use heat-beads as they heat up quickly and hold their heat well.

The easiest way to cook in a camp oven over hot coals is to lift the coals out of the fire with a long-handled shovel. Select a safe place next to the fire and put a small amount of *coals on the ground. Place the camp oven onto the coals. Get some more coals from the fire to place on top of the oven. Getting the right amount of coals is not always easy. Be aware of cooking the casserole too hot and burning it. It will take some experimentation to get the temperature right. Therefore, check the chicken after 10 minutes to ensure you are not cooking it too hot or not hot enough.

Alternatively, hang the pot over the heat with a tripod (or, in our case, a star-drop acting as one) and then top with coals.

*you only need a small number of coals under the camp oven or none at all. Too many, and you will burn the bottom of the oven.

Many factors determine the heat of the coals, such as ambient temperature and wind. If it is windy, the coals will cook hotter. Make allowances for wind by reducing the number of coals used.

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Breakfast/Brunch, Campfire Cooking

Ham and Cheese Scones

May 10, 2021 The Captain & the Cook Leave a comment

Campfire and home oven instructions to follow…

I have a simple scone recipe I use when camping. None of the ingredients needs to be refrigerated. I use self-raising flour, long-life cream and long-life milk, which is super handy if you have limited fridge/esky space.

Near the end of our last camping trip, I noticed I had ham, cheese and some herbs that I needed to use up, so I decided to make ham and cheese scones. I had never cooked them in the camp oven before and was super pleased they turned out as delicious as they did.

As always, Dwayne was in charge of cooking the scones over the fire. I simply told him I would usually cook them at 200C for about 30 minutes and let him work on getting the right temperature over the fire.

Further on, you will find some instructions about cooking scones in a camp oven and some tips on what you need to consider when producing the cooking heat. I hope you enjoy this recipe and be sure to let me know how they turn out.

Our camp kitchen

We cooked these yummy scones on a recent camping trip on Kangaroo Island. We were camped at American River.

Ingredients

3 cups self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
1/2 cup chopped ham
1 cup coarsely grated cheese
A pinch of salt
300ml cream
About 75 ml milk

Method

Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl, add the chives, rosemary, ham, cheese and a pinch of salt, then mix well.

Make a well in the middle of the bowl and add the cream and most of the milk. Mix well add more milk if necessary. The dough should not be too wet and sticky. Do not over mix the dough.

Turn dough out onto a floured board and knead a little (do not over-knead). Shape the dough into a ball and then flatten to the shape of your camp oven. Place on a greased piece of baking paper and cut into wedges (you do not need to cut all the way through.

Heat your camp oven over the coals. Carefully lift the dough/scones by the baking paper and place them into the camp oven.

Cook the scones with a little heat under the camp oven and coals on top. Our theory is to cook it from both top and bottom with more heat on top. We hung our camp oven over a small fire. Using a star-drop (as a makeshift tripod), Dwayne was able to lift the camp oven higher to reduce the heat or lower it to increase the heat. We used heat beads on the top of the camp oven because we hadn’t had time to develop many coals and the heat beads hold their heat better, making this ‘brunch’ reasonably quick to make. We checked every 10 minutes until the scones were ready. Again, we adjusted the heat, if needed, when we checked it.

Use a knife to see if the scones are ready. Dig in deep with the tip of a knife; if the knife comes out clean, scones should be ready.

To cook in your home oven.

Place the scones on a greased oven tray and bake at 200C in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes.

For more instruction on cooking with hot coals.

If you want to cook on coals from a campfire, you need to burn a good amount of wood to create hot coals. It can take an hour or so for your campfire to make enough coals to cook on. Be sure to factor the process of producing the embers into your prep and cooking time. Alternatively, if time or good wood is in short supply, use heat-beads as they heat up quickly and hold their heat well.

The easiest way to cook in a camp oven over hot coals is to lift the coals out of the fire with a long-handled shovel. Select a safe place next to the fire and put a small amount of *coals on the ground. Place the camp oven onto the coals. Get some more coals from the fire to place on top of the oven. Getting the right amount of coals is not always easy. Be aware of cooking the scones too hot and burning them. It will take some experimentation to get the temperature right. Therefore, check the scones after 10 minutes to make sure you are not cooking them too hot or not hot enough.

*you only need a small number of coals under the camp oven or none at all. Too many, and you will burn the bottom of the scones.

Many factors determine the heat of the coals, such as ambient temperature and wind. If it is windy, the coals will cook hotter. Make allowances for wind by reducing the number of coals used.

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Australian, Breakfast/Brunch, Campfire Cooking, From the pantry

Fruit and Nut Damper

March 17, 2021 The Captain & the Cook Leave a comment

Traditional damper, developed by the Aussie stockmen, is made with plain flour and water and typically cooked in the ashes or coals of a campfire. Nowadays, there are hundreds of variations to the original recipe.

I usually make beer damper, just flour and beer. However, on a recent road trip from Darwin to Adelaide, I decided to try something different and threw in a heap of fruit, nuts and cinnamon for a sweet treat.

Chocka-block full of fruit, nuts and seeds, I didn’t bother adding a sweetener. I got Dwayne, who likes things a little sweeter than me, to add his sweetener with honey or jam. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth and enjoy my damper with dripping hot butter.

Our Camp Kitchen

I made this yummy fruit and nut damper when camping at Burra Creek Gorge with Dwayne, our friends Kate and Martin, and their dog Boris.

Fruit & Nut Damper – Ingredients

3 cups of self raising flour

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1 cup of raisins

1/2 cup of walnuts, roughly chopped

1/2 cup of pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup of sunflower seeds

About a cup of water

Method

Mix all the ingredients with a wooden spoon or your hands and shape into a cob shape.

Line the camp oven with grease baking paper or a layer of flour to stop the damper from sticking.

Put the damper in the camp oven, put the lid on and coat the lid with hot coals.

To cook the damper with hot coals.

If you want to cook on coals from a campfire, you need to burn large logs to create hot coals. It can take an hour or so for your campfire to make enough coals to cook upon. Be sure to factor the process of producing the embers into your prep and cooking time. Alternatively, if you have time limits or a lack of good wood, use heat-beads as they heat up quickly and hold their heat well.

The easiest way to cook in a camp oven over hot coals is to lift the coals out of the fire with a long-handled shovel. Select a safe place next to the fire and put a small amount of *coals on the ground. Place the camp oven onto the coals. Get some more coals from the fire to place on top of the oven. Getting the right amount of coals is not always easy. Be aware of cooking the damper too hot and burning it. It will take some experimentation to get the temperature right. Therefore, check the damper after 10 minutes to make sure you are not cooking it too hot or not hot enough.

*You only need a small number of coals under the camp oven or none at all. Too many, and you will burn the bottom of the damper.

Many factors determine the heat of the coals, such as ambient temperature and wind. If you have wind, the coals will cook hotter. Make allowances for wind by reducing the number of coals used.

The time it takes to cook the damper is directly related to how hot you cook it. It should take approximately 30-40 minutes. You can tell when the damper is cooked by tapping on the top. If it sounds hollow, it is ready. Alternatively, stick a knife in it, and if it comes out clean, it should be ready.

To Serve

Serve with butter, maple syrup, jam and cream, chopped fruit or any other topping you desire.

Like this recipe? Please share or pin using the image below… thank you!

Fruit and Nut Damper cooked on the campfire over hot coals. Full of dried fruit, nuts, seeds and cinnamon. #campfirecooking #fruitandnuts #damper #campcooking

Campfire Cooking, Seafood

Crumbed Calamari

December 13, 2020 The Captain & the Cook Leave a comment

Camping by the beach was bringing back unforgettable memories from our time in 2004 travelling around Australia. Back then, we were towing a fishing boat and living in a tent. Now we were towing, and living, in a camper trailer and we had a kayak to fish from. We were camped at The Gap on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia.

Our very first attempted of fishing from a kayak was a little daunting – for me at least. The water was cold, and I did not relish falling in. There was a little wind, and the water was choppy, and I worried about the balance of the kayak. Probably not the best time for our maiden voyage especially as we had a couple of fishing rods, a crab net and a squid jig on a reel.

We put the net in and then attempted some fishing. After a while, with no luck, we decided we’d better check the crab net. As there was a bit of current, and chop we had to paddle against to keep balance, we had drifted quite some distance from the net. The float, a plastic water bottle, was not very visible. In fact, I am super surprised we even found it. We did, and all we caught was a rock crab. After returning the little crab back to his watery home, we put the squid jig in and soon Dwayne had a hit. Unfortunately, the squid got away. He had three more squid escape before he bagged one. Now a happy little fisherman, he said we could paddle for shore.

Back on shore, Dwayne cleaned the squid and then got the campfire lit and heated the oil. In the meantime, I crumbed the squid rings and made a salad.

Our Camp Kitchen

We were camped at The Gap, on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. Read about our stay at The Gap it here.

Crumbed Calamari

Ingredients

2/3 cup of flour
2 cups of bread crumbs
2 eggs, whisked
1 large calamari (squid)
Rice bran oil for deep frying
Salt and pepper

Method

Remove the head, tentacles and wings from the cleaned squid. (You can crumb the tentacles and wings as well). Cut the tube into rings.

Prepare the crumbing ingredients in three shallow dishes. 1. flour 2. whisked egg 3. breadcrumbs.

Lightly coat a squid ring with the flour. Then dip the squid in egg and then coat well in crumbs. Set it on a plate and repeat with the rest of the squid.

While I crumbed the squid, Dwayne heated the oil over the fire. Once the oil was hot enough (check by testing a small piece of squid), Dwayne fried the squid in three batches.

Season with salt and pepper and serve with a tasty salad and a zesty dressing.

Australian, Campfire Cooking, Game

Crocodile Burgers

September 26, 2020 The Captain & the Cook Leave a comment

We purchased some crocodile meat from a butcher in Alice Springs with the idea of making a yummy croc burger. Taking into account the delicate flavour of the crocodile meat, I decided that I would baste it with a little honey, soy and ginger, and serve it in a bun with simple salad and avocado.

What does crocodile taste like?

People often ask, “what does crocodile taste like”? As I mentioned, the flavour is delicate. It is a little like a cross between chicken and fish. I personally think the texture of crocodile is more like fish than chicken, however a little firmer than fish.

Why eat crocodile meat?

It is high in protein, low in fat and cholesterol. In fact, is has more protein than chicken breast, and is chockablock full of ‘good’ fat Omega-3s.

Other croc facts!

Australia saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) was named a protected species in 1974, and commercial farming began in the late 1970s.
It is the largest living reptile. Males grow up to 6m (20ft).
There are 13 commercial croc farms in Australia.

Our camp kitchen

We cooked these scrumptious crocodile burgers while camped at Ross River Campground in the East MacDonnell Ranges.

Tasty Crocodile Burgers

Ingredients

500g crocodile tail meat
1 Tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
2 Tablespoon ginger, grated (or ½ tsp. powdered ginger)
2 Tablespoon honey
1 Tablespoon soy sauce

To serve

4 Hamburger buns
Avocado
Lettuce
Tomato

Method

Combine the first four ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Grill crocodile over hot coals, basting frequently with soy sauce mixture.

Alternatively, crocodile can also be browned in a non-stick skillet, then add the soy sauce mixture and simmer 5 to 8 minutes.

To serve, spread the hamburger buns with mashed avocado. Top with the crocodile meat, lettuce and sliced tomato.

Bon appetite.

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Campfire Cooking, Pork, Soup

Rustic Camp Oven Soup

September 9, 2020 The Captain & the Cook Leave a comment

This Rustic Soup has to be one of my favourites. It is so tasty and a perfect warmer for a cold, blustery night. However, cold and windy was not the case when I cooked the soup this time. In fact, we were camped at Litchfield National Park in the tropical heat of far north Australia.

Having spent much of the past few years in South East Asia, where getting such produce as smoked ham hock and chorizo is not an easy task, I was yearning for this soup and could wait no longer. Yes, if I had waited until we were further south, I would have found plenty of wintery weather that this soup would have suited perfectly. For example, once we arrived in Alice Springs, the nights were a frosty 2 degrees Celsius! However, the weather did not detract from its yumminess, and I devoured it along with some long-coveted crusty bread.

Our Camp Kitchen

We cooked this delicious soup while camped at Florence Falls Camp Ground at Litchfield National Park in the Northern Territory.

Rustic Camp Oven Soup

Ingredients

1 Can of mixed beans
1 Stick celery, roughly chopped
1 Carrot, roughly chopped
1 Medium onion, finely chopped
3 Cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 ½ Tablespoons of olive oil
300g Bacon, chopped
1 Smoked Ham hock
4 Chorizo, sliced (approx 500g)
700g Potatoes, cut into large pieces
Crusty bread to serve

Camp Oven Method

Heat oil in a 9 quart camp oven. Add celery, carrots and garlic, cook stirring for a couple of minutes, until veggies soften.

Add the ham hock and 2-3 litres of water. Hang the camp oven over the fire using a tripod and bring to the boil. Then, to simmer, reduce the heat of the fire – move the fire, i.e. burning wood away from the bottom of the camp oven. Simmer for 1 – 1 1/2 hour. Remove hock from the pan and set aside to cool.

Add beans, bacon, chorizo and onions and cook for another 30 minutes.

Add potatoes to the pan and cook for 10 minutes until they are almost tender.

Remove meat from the hock and chop into bite-size pieces. Add meat to the camp oven and heat for 5 minutes.

Serve with chunks of fresh crusty bread.

rustic soup with ham hock cooking in the camp oven

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Australian, Campfire Cooking, From the pantry

Beer Damper

August 19, 2020 The Captain & the Cook 1 Comment

Damper is a traditional Australian bread which is cooked on a campfire. Created initially by Australian stockmen and swagmen who roamed remote areas for prolonged times. These stockmen survived with only basic rations of flour, sugar, tea and whatever meat they could catch.

Why is it called damper?

I was recently told that damper is called damper because it is damper than bread. However, when I googled to see if this was indeed a fact, I found two alternative theories. According to historian James Bonwick, the name derives from the way the fire is “dampened” by covering it with ashes. And the Australian Dictionary Centre claims the name is derived from a Lancashire expression meaning “something that damps the appetite.” Whatever the truth may be, damper is delicious bushtucker that is a must when camping.

A traditional damper is made with plain flour and water and typically cooked in the ashes or coals of a campfire.

Nowadays, damper is more likely cooked in a camp oven and made with all sorts of ingredients including, sugar, milk, butter and beer to name but a few. I love the yeasty taste of beer damper and often make this simple, two-ingredient, damper in our cast iron camp oven over the campfire.

Our Camp Kitchen

We cooked this yummy beer damper while camped at Mount Bundy Station near Adelaide River in the Northern Territory.

Ingredients

1 375ml can (or bottle) of beer
3 cups of self-raising flour (works with plain flour also)
Pinch of salt (optional)

Method

Place flour (and salt) in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour warm beer into the centre and mix using a butter knife. Add more flour or beer if needed.

Get your hands in the bowl and make sure the flour and beer are well combined but do not knead. Damper is not kneaded, just mixed and shaped.

Once the dough is shaped, line the base of the camp oven with baking paper and spray with oil, or alternatively sprinkle flour on the bottom to stop the damper sticking.

To cook the damper with hot coals.

If you want to cook on coals from a campfire, you need to burn large pieces of wood to create hot coals. It can take an hour or so for your campfire to make enough coals to cook on. Be sure to factor the process of producing the embers into your prep and cooking time. Alternatively, if you are limited with time or good wood, use heat-beads as they heat up quickly and hold their heat well.

The easiest way to cook in a camp oven over hot coals is to lift the coals out of the fire with a long-handled shovel. Select a safe place next to the fire and put a small amount of *coals on the ground. Place the camp oven onto the coals. Get some more coals from the fire to place on top of the oven. Getting the right amount of coals is not always easy. Be aware of cooking the damper too hot and burning it. It will take some experimentation to get the temperature right. Therefore, check the damper after 10 minutes to make sure you are not cooking it too hot or not hot enough.

*you only need a small number of coals under the camp oven or none at all. Too many and you will burn the bottom of the damper.

Many factors determine the heat of the coals, such as ambient temperature and wind. If you have wind, the coals will cook hotter. Make allowances for wind by reducing the amount of coals used.

The time it takes to cook the damper is of course, directly related to how hot you cook it. It should take approximately 30-40 minutes. You can tell when the damper is cooked by tapping on the top. If it sounds hollow, it is ready. Alternatively, stick a knife in it, and if it comes out clean, it should be ready.

Serve with butter, maple syrup, jam and cream or any other topping you desire.

Like this recipe? Please share with family and friends or pin using the image below… thank you!

Australian, Campfire Cooking, Lamb

Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks

July 24, 2020 The Captain & the Cook 1 Comment

I don’t know about you, but we definitely have a favourite meal that we like to cook when we are camping, and it is this recipe. I have prepared this meal while camping in the Flinders Ranges, in the sand dunes at Canunda Nation Park, on the beach in Thailand and now at Litchfield in the Northern Territory. The rich red wine gravy and the fall-apart tenderness of the shank meat are to die for. If you make this recipe, let me know in comments what you thought!

Our Camp Kitchen

We cooked these delicious lamb shanks in the Florence Falls Camp Ground at Litchfield National Park in the Northern Territory.

Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Gravy

Ingredients

4 – 6 lamb shanks (depending on the size of shanks)
2 tablespoons plain flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
250g bacon, diced
2 large onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
2 cups red wine
1 can of diced tomatoes
2 cups of lamb or beef stock
2 sprigs rosemary
Coarsely cracked black pepper

Method

Lightly dust the shanks with the flour. Heat oil in a large frying pan and cook shanks for 4 minutes, turning, until browned. Remove shanks and then fry bacon for a few minutes. Add onion, garlic and celery, and sauté until soft, do not over brown.

braised bacon onion and celery for lamb shanks

Transfer shanks, bacon, onion and garlic to the camp oven. Add the red wine, tomatoes, beef stock, rosemary and black pepper.

Cook slowly with hot coals underneath the camp oven as well as on top of the lid for two and a half to three hours, until meat is tender.

Hot coals on the lid of the camp oven

Heat beads for heat underneath the camp oven and on top.

Potatoes wrapped in al foil and cooked in the hot coals

slow cooked lamb shanks in the camp oven

Lamb Shanks almost ready

To home cook in the oven

If cooking in your home oven, preheat the oven to 160c. Transfer shanks, onion and garlic to a casserole dish. Add celery, red wine, tomatoes, beef stock, black pepper and rosemary. Cook covered in the slow oven for 2 1/2 hours or until meat is tender. Keep covered to ensure the shanks do not dry out.

To serve

Serve with baked potatoes and your favourite vegetables. Or mashed potato or parsnip. Also good with polenta!

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Breakfast/Brunch, Campfire Cooking, eggs

Camp Oven Eggs in Purgatory

July 13, 2020 The Captain & the Cook 1 Comment

I’m not sure where the term ‘Eggs in Purgatory’ originated. Does it refer to the bubbling red tomato sauce? I’m not sure. However, this recipe is perfect for cooking in the camp oven over a campfire. Perfect for an Aussie bush brunch, this dish is high in protein and super tasty.

Camp Oven Eggs in Purgatory