Dutch Oven Campfire Recipes:

Easy Once You Know How!


Now that I have some great Dutch oven campfire recipes, I want to use my cast iron camping Dutch oven every time we go camping!

You may be familiar with metal or ceramic Dutch ovens for use at home on the stovetop or in the oven. A camping Dutch oven is something else.

Dutch oven in the fire

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What is a Dutch oven?

A Dutch oven is a heavy, thick-walled pot. It may be enamelled.

Follow this link to purchase a Dutch oven at a good price!

It is used on the stove top or in the oven. For more information about camp stoves, follow this link to our propane camp stove page.

What is a camping Dutch oven?

A camping Dutch oven is made of cast iron or aluminum and has some additional features:

A tight-fitting lid

The lid keeps the heat in so that the food cooks efficiently.

Three short legs

These allow you to put the Dutch oven directly in the coals of a campfire without burning the contents.

A dutch oven in the campfire pit


A sturdy wire handle

This allows you to lift the oven out of the fire. (It's hot! Use oven mitts!)


You can also suspend the oven over the fire from a Dutch oven tripod.

A rimmed lid

You can put coals on top of the oven for a nice even heat from all directions.

My camping Dutch oven is made of cast iron. With a bit of special care, it is an amazingly non-stick pot. Click here to learn how to care for a Dutch oven.


How to use a Dutch oven

  • Prepare your ingredients and place them in the Dutch oven.
  • Place the Dutch oven directly on the coals of a campfire or on charcoal briquettes.
  • Check the food occasionally.
  • When your meal is ready, serve and enjoy.
A man stirring a dutch oven with a wooden spoon

That's all there is to it!

Click here for detailed, easy-to-follow instructions for each step of Dutch oven cooking.


Camp Dutch oven cooking tips

Be sure that your oven is well seasoned.

A well-seasoned cast iron pot is the best kind of non-stick cookware available. Click here to learn how to season a Dutch oven.

Give yourself lots of time

Dutch oven cooking takes a while.

Before you can begin, you'll need a good, hot fire - and then you'll need to let the fire burn down to coals.

Perfect dull red campfire coals

Do your planning early in the day and start the fire long before you'll want to eat.

Give meal preparation your full attention

If you have small children, I have a piece of advice for you:

Save the Dutch oven for when your children are older.

Although Dutch oven cooking isn't hard, it does require your full attention - and it's HOT!

Keeping your toddlers away from the fire and ensuring their safety will distract you from your cooking. Unless there is another adult available to be on 100% child duty, make your life easy and don't use the Dutch oven just yet.

Use oven mitts or barbecue gloves.

Did I mention that a Dutch oven will be hot? Always protect yourself with oven mitts or special barbecue gloves.

We owned a Dutch oven for quite some time before I got around to actually using it. I had the mistaken idea that cooking in a Dutch oven is difficult. I couldn't have been more mistaken!

With a Dutch oven and some good Dutch oven campfire recipes, you can create some amazingly tasty meals - and have fun at the same time!


Dutch Oven Campfire Recipes

I'm going to test new Dutch oven cooking recipes every time we go camping. 


Do you have a good recipe for me to try? Contact me here!

Check back here often to see what I've cooked up recently!


Ham and Cheese Gratin

Ham and Cheese Gratin is the perfect Dutch oven campfire recipe to try when you are first learning to use the Dutch oven.

Ham and Cheese Gratin

 It's a hearty and complete meal that the whole family will enjoy.


Layered Bacon, Potato and Cheese Supper

Oh, this is good!

Layered bacon and cheese in a dutch oven sitting on the ground at a campsite

I want to have this every time we go camping! Click here for the recipe.


Dutch Oven Rice Pizza

This crustless pizza instantly became a family favorite!

Crustless pizza in a dutch oven


Click here for the recipe for Dutch Oven Rice Pizza.


Baked Apples

Here's a real comfort-food dessert that's easy to make in a cast iron Dutch oven. Just core some apples...

cored apples and apple corer

 . . . and fill their cavities with butter and brown sugar. Put the apples in your Dutch oven and put a bit of water in the bottom.

cored apples filled with brown sugar and butter

Put on the lid and place the Dutch oven in the coals. Check periodically. When the apples are soft, they are ready to eat!

Baked Apples in a Dutch oven

Careful! They are hot!


Now that you have some Dutch oven campfire recipes, check out the rest of my camping food ideas!

Visit The Camping Family home page for guidance with every aspect of planning a camping trip.


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