| ’Tis the season for outdoor cooking, those magical summer nights when family and friends commune around a warm, glowing fire under a starry, starry sky. But telling ghost stories, engaging in singalongs and waxing poetic can’t be done on an empty stomach. So, whether you’re cooking at a campsite with a view of the Rocky Mountains or at your backyard firepit with a view of a few flowerpots, treat yourself to an equally lovely meal. Wieners and marshmallows may be campfire food classics, but eating in the great outdoors can be so much more.
FIREPIT SPECS
Standard wood-burning firepits are 22 inches in diameter, portable and come with a spark screen, cooking grate and cover. Add charcoal in the base for grilling. Higher-end units have a stainless steel or copper base. For a selection of firepits, try Barbecues Galore (3505 Edmonton Trail N.E. and 5875 - 9 St. S.E.).
BACKYARD FIREPIT RECIPES
Outdoor enthusiast and Caffè Beano owner Rhondda Siebens sings the praises of cooking with tin foil.
Breakfast Frittata
Fold tin foil into a pie-crust shape with high edges, put in eggs, butter, onions and chopped chorizo sausage, and place on cooking grate. Depending on how hot the fire is, your frittata will be ready in minutes.
Hash Browns
Chop potatoes into quarters, add onions, butter, salt and pepper and place on tin foil. Seal tin foil into a package and throw it on the cooking grate or the upper burner of a barbecue and voila!
CAMPING AND EATING
Tired of eating freeze-dried chili on her outdoor adventures, Toronto’s Nicole Bassett decided to write her own camping cookbook, Chef in Your Backpack: Gourmet Cooking in the Great Outdoors (Arsenal Pulp Press, 192 pp., $21.95). "If you’re going to buy the best tent and the best sleeping bag and the best pack, why not put effort into your food?" says Bassett. Her recipes require some at-home food prep and are designed for a one-burner white-gas stove, such as a WhisperLite (Mountain Equipment Co-op, $76).
Tips:
· Lay your food out in front of you at home to see what sauces and spices you’ll need to pack (cinnamon for oatmeal, Tabasco sauce for quesadillas, garlic salt, dill, salt and pepper).
· Store spices in film canisters.
· Place food in Ziploc bags; they’re flatter to pack than Tupperware.
· Use your camping mug as a measuring cup or your water bottle if it has measurements.
· Pack the heaviest items at the bottom centre of your backpack; keep lunch and snacks closer to the top of your bag.
· Keep your food in a bear cache at least 200 feet from your campsite and downwind.
CAMPING RECIPES
The following recipes are courtesy of Chef in Your Backpack:
Sausage and Zucchini Pasta
200 g (7 oz) cured Italian sausage
375 ml (1.5 cup) zucchini, sliced
125 ml (1/2 cup) green bell peppers, chopped
75 ml (1/3 cup) fresh basil, chopped and packed down
15 ml (1 tbsp) olive oil
1 ml (1/4 tsp) salt
1 ml (1/4 tsp) pepper
625 ml (2.5 cups) uncooked rotini pasta
50 ml (1/4 cup) Parmesan cheese, grated
1.4 l (5 cups) water
In kitchen: If possible, leave the sausage in its original packaging – this allows it to keep longer. Otherwise, chop it up and add to vegetables. In a bowl, combine the zucchini, peppers, basil, oil, salt and pepper, and store in a plastic bag. Store the pasta and cheese in their own plastic bags.
At camp: In a pot of water over high heat, boil the pasta for 10 minutes. Drain and rinse. Add the sausage and vegetables to the pasta. Stir through until vegetables become soft and sausage is warmed through. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Makes 2 servings.
Shrimp Jambalaya
250 ml (1 cup) tomatoes, chopped
250 ml (1 cup) onions, chopped
125 ml (1/2 cup) green bell peppers, chopped
125ml (1/2 cup) celery, chopped
2 ml (1/2 tsp) dried thyme
1 ml (1/4 tsp) chili powder
1 ml (1/4 tsp) cayenne pepper
1 ml (1/4 tsp) paprika
1 bay leaf
1 170 g (6 oz) can of shrimp
125 ml (1/2 cup) uncooked rice
1 vegetable or chicken bouillon cube
375 ml (1.5 cups) water
In the kitchen: Combine the vegetables and spices and store in a plastic bag. Bring the can of shrimp. Store the rice in a plastic bag. Bring the bouillon cube.
At camp: In a pot of water over high heat, bring the rice to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed. Keep rice on heat and add 250 ml (1 cup) water. Add the vegetable mixture and shrimp and mix well. Cook until vegetables are tender.
Makes 2 servings.
COOKIN’ WITH BEER
In the opinion of The Surreal Gourmet’s Bob Blumer, just about anything can be cooked over an outdoor grill, including pizza. (To read his recipes for Chinese chicken pizza with hoisin sauce, and corn, brie and pesto pizza, go to www.surrealgourmet.com.) So what’s an article about outdoor summer cooking without a recipe for beer can chicken? Here’s one from The Surreal Gourmet:
Beer Can Chicken
Q: Why did the chicken cross the road?
A: Because it couldn’t remember where it left its beer.
1 1.8 kg (4 lb) whole chicken
1 can of beer
30 ml (2 tbsp) salt
15 ml (1 tbsp) black pepper
45 ml (3 tbsp) of your favourite dry spice rub
30 ml (2 tbsp) vegetable oil
Remove neck and giblets. Discard. Rinse chicken inside and out; pat dry with paper towels. Rub chicken lightly with oil, then rub inside and out with salt, pepper and dry rub. Set aside.
Open beer can and take several gulps (make them big gulps so that the can is half full). Place beer can on a solid surface. Grabbing a chicken leg in each hand, plunk the bird cavity over the beer can. Transfer the bird-on-a-can to your grill and place in the centre of the grate, balancing the bird on its two legs and the can like a tripod.
Cook chicken over medium-high, indirect heat (i.e. no coals or burners on directly under the bird), with the grill cover closed, for approximately 1 1/4 hours or until the internal temperature registers 92 C (165 F) in the breast area and 100 C (180 F) in the thigh, or until the thigh juice runs clear when stabbed with a sharp knife. Remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes before carving. |
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