Backwoods cooking

No it is not backwards cooking!

Backwoods cooking is possibly the most fun you can have making a meal. You cook food without utensils and leave nothing behind to show that you were there. Sounds like a small person's dream. No washing up and preparation must be simple. There is usually a chance to use a knife or axe too.So why is it so difficult to get right?

The answer is equally simple. tell anyone that they are going to do a barbeque and they start backwoods cooking without thinking. Tell them to cook a meal without pots,pans, foil or bowls then panic sets in as everyone starts thinking of meals that really need all the things that take all the fun out of it.

So what are the successful elements of backwoods cooking?

1. A good cooking fire. A fire for cooking is one like a barbeque - lots of hot embers but little or no flame. The embers need to stay hot long enough to cook the meal. A few twigs lit and then allowed to turn to ash are no good. Nor is a bonfire of dancing flames 15 cm tall. This kind of fire just makes things black! Soot is soot and tastes of soot.
Start a fire from kindling, build it up as quickly as possible to material of 2cm or more in diameter and let it burn until the fire turns to coals. A fire in two halves allows you to have one side burning while the other becomes embers and can cut the cooking time without the risk of the fire going out through some accident. Think carefully about the wood to burn and of course green wood (live) may burn but will smoke ruining again the flavour of the food. If you are lucky and you use fragrant woods then your food will add this to its flavours.

2. Good food. What on earth does this mean. Choose food that does not have too much fat since this will cause the fire to flare and ruin the food. Think also about how long your food takes to cook. Potatoes are a favourite backwoods dish when baked but do take a long time to cook through especially if large.

To begin why not try twists or dampers
Put some flour in a plastic bag and add water slowly mixing with your hand until a dough is formed. Wrap the dough around a peeled stick and hold over the fire turning occasionally until the dough is brown all over. Pull off the stick and fill with sweet stuff like jam or cream. Delicious!

A few Simple recipes
Remember that most recipes from barbeque books work just as well but you will have to improvise the griddle

Kebabs
Possibly the simplest of all things to cook. Peel a number of sticks and make skewers. Cut up vegetables and meat (if so inclined) into pieces and thread on the skewers to make an attractive looking kebab. Now the bit that everyone finds so difficult. How to cook them without getting covered in ash. Easy! Split a couple of thick logs and pin them either side of the fire. Lay the kebabs on the split logs and put the split halves on top to trap the kebabs. OR Cook two large potatoes for half an hour in your fire then remove them and skewer them with the kebabs and replace them on your fire to continue cooking and the meal will be completed together. A simple marinade of olive oil and herbs drizzled over the kebabs as they are periodically turned will stop them drying out.

Cabbage patties
Sounds awful but it is a way of cooking meatballs or even scotch e.g. style meals. Cut up onions, seasoning and herbs (apple is good) and mix with minced meat or fish and cooked potato to make a fishcake or meatball. Now wrap the whole thing in a cabbage leaf and tie up with a piece of twine or nettle stalk. Put in the fire for 10 minutes turning occasionally and it will be cooked.

Marrow curry
This is just such a cheat. Make the fire in a hole in the ground about 30cm deep. The marrow is used as a pot. If you are luck enough to have spaghetti plant even better. Hollow out the marrow or large courgette. Now fill the hole with mince, tomatoes, rice, fruit and curry spices. Spike the end on with some sharp peeled sticks and place in your fire. Now cover the fire up with the earth that you removed and leave for about an hour. You should have a cooked curry which you serve by splitting the marrow. This should work with a melon or squash but I have not tried it.

Poached eggs
You need to make a pan for this one and it is pretty easy to do so. Go find an origami paper bowl on the internet like these box 1 or box2. Now put it on your fire with water in to boil the water. Break the egg into the water and cook for 4 minutes. Afterwards pour out the water for a hot drink and use the paper saucepan as a bowl. This works for cooking noodles too. The paper bowl does not burn because of the water inside which keeps the temperature to 100 degrees (boiling point) A cup can be made the same way and impress any judge.