Dutch Oven Cooking – A Brief Introduction

Brought to you by the Prairie Dog Chapter of the Lone Star Dutch Oven Society

Introduction and Background

Dutch ovens were the cooking ovens of our pioneer forefathers. They hung them over the
fireplaces in their eastern colonials and their wilderness log cabins. They carried them in
their covered wagons and push carts as they headed west over the Great Plains. They
cooked with them over their wood and buffalo chip stoves in their dugouts and sod huts
on the prairies. They carried them in their chuck wagons on the great cattle drives. And
they used them in their ranch houses and adobe homesteads when they got to where they
were going.

Once the basic cooking utensil of the everyday pioneer kitchen, Dutch ovens were almost
forgotten, except for a few die hard cowboy cooks. But over the past couple of decades,
Dutch ovens have made a remarkable comeback thanks to a growing group of weekend
pioneers and enthusiastic members of Dutch Oven Cooking Societies around the world.
Almost any weekend of the year, in any part of the world, you can find Dutch oven cooks
gathered attending local, regional or even national DOGs.

So what’s a DOG? A DOG “Dutch Oven Gathering” is a group of Dutch oven cooks
getting together to share recipes, cooking techniques, fellowship, education, and most of
all enjoy the fruits of their labor by eating some really good food. Some of the DOGs,
local, regional and national, involve competitive cooking. Although for the most part,
DOGs are gatherings of good folks that like to cook in their Dutch Ovens.

Why the growing interest in this throwback to the Iron Age? It’s fun, simple,
entertaining and if you do it right, the results often taste better then anything you could
produce in its modern equivalent. And it is known to stir up some repressed memories in
our own collective consciousness.

Dutch Ovens – Early European history

(Wikipedia contributors, "Dutch oven," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dutch_oven&oldid=261452695 (accessed January 2, 2009).)

During the late 1600s the Dutch system of producing these cast metal cooking vessels
was more advanced than the English system. The Dutch used dry sand to make their
molds, giving their pots a smoother surface. Consequently, metal cooking vessels
produced in the Netherlands were imported into Britain. In 1704, an Englishman named
Abraham Darby decided to go to the Netherlands to observe the Dutch system for making
the cooking vessels. Four years later, back in England, Darby patented a casting
procedure similar to the Dutch process and began to produce cast metal cooking vessels
for Britain and her new American Colonies. It is possible that because Darby’s patent
was based upon his research into the Dutch foundry system that the cooking vessels he
produced came to be referred to as “Dutch” ovens. Other researchers believe that this
term may have come from the itinerant Dutch traders who sold cooking vessels out of
their wagons as they traveled from town to town and door to door. Maybe both accounts
are true. In any event, the term “Dutch oven” has endured for over 300 years.

Dutch Ovens – American history

Over time the Dutch oven used in the American Colonies began to change. The pot
became shallower and legs were added to hold the oven above the coals. A flange was
added to the lid to keep the coals on the lid and out of the food.

The cast-iron cookware was loved by colonists and settlers because of its versatility and
durability. It could be used for boiling, baking, stews, frying, roasting, and just about any
other use. The ovens were so valuable that wills in the 18th and 19th centuries frequently
spelled out the desired inheritor of the cast iron cookware. For example, Mary
Washington (mother of President George Washington) specified in her will, dated 20
May 1788, that one-half of her "iron kitchen furniture" should go to her grandson,
Fielding Lewis, and the other half to Betty Carter, a granddaughter. Several Dutch ovens
were among Mary' s "iron kitchen furniture."

When the young American country began to spread westward across the North American
continent, so did the Dutch oven. A Dutch oven was among the gear Lewis and Clark
carried when they explored the great American Northwest in 1804-1806. The pioneers
who settled the American West also took along their Dutch ovens. In fact, a statue raised
to honor the Mormon handcart companies who entered Utah’s Salt Lake Valley in the
1850s proudly displays a Dutch oven hanging from the front of the handcart. Mountain
men exploring the great American frontier used Dutch ovens into the late 1800s. Dutch
oven cooking was also prominent among those who took part in the western cattle drives
that lasted from the mid-1800s into the early 1900s. You wouldn’t be able to find a chuck
wagon without the cook’s prized cast iron cookware, including his Dutch ovens.

Even state legislatures recognize the importance of cast iron Dutch ovens. The Dutch
oven is the official state cooking pot of Utah. Arkansas designated the cast iron Dutch
oven the official state historic cooking vessel in 2001. On June 28, 2005 our 79th Texas
Legislature decreed in Resolution Nine the cast iron Dutch oven be the official Texas
state cooking implement.
So how do you start?

First you’re going to need to buy a Dutch oven. There are quite a few choices here; you
can find them at stores like REI, Gander Mountain, Sportsman Warehouse, Bass Pro
Shops, Wal-Mart, and Cabela’s. Lodge is one of the best known manufacturers of Dutch
ovens, and makes a consistently good product. Another very good brand is Camp Chef.
You are going to need, what we call, a “camp oven” which is different than the regular
Dutch ovens that are used to cook in an indoor kitchen. When we talk about a Dutch
oven, we’re specifically talking about a “camp oven.”

Choosing the right oven:

For outdoor cooking, you need to purchase a “camp” or “outdoor”

Dutch oven that has three stubby legs on the bottom and a flanged lid.
The legs create space for coals or charcoal briquettes under the oven,
and the flanged lid is to keep the coals from rolling off of the domed
lid, thus supplying the necessary heat to the inside of the oven. Camp
ovens come in a variety of sizes and capacities from 8 inches up to a 24 inch. The 12 inch
is probably the most popular and versatile.

Dutch oven cooking accessories:

You’re going to want to get some accessories to go with your Dutch oven. A charcoal
chimney is a convenient and consistent way of starting your briquettes. You will also
want a lid lifter to get that hot lid off the oven. In lieu of a lid lifter a good pair of channel
locks can do the job. The lid lifter is also useful in moving the Dutch oven around. A
commercial lid lifter such as a Mair Lid Lifter definitely has its advantages. It allows you
to hold the lid in a position that allows for easy disposal of the ashes on the lid. You will
also want a lid rack to keep the lid off the ground and clean.

A set of long metal stainless steel tongs for moving and removing the coals is another
very useful tool to have. (You can try to grab them and move them with your bare hands
but I do not recommend it!) A pair of leather gloves (like the ones used for welding) is
almost a necessity for moving coals and hot ovens around. A small whisk broom can help
you clean the ashes off the lid before opening. Another nice accessory to have is one of
the small pot-metal fireplace shovels to aid in the cleanup process. It helps clean off the
ashes from the cooking surface. Speaking of cooking surfaces, if you’re going to do a lot
of Dutch oven cooking a Dutch oven cooking table is “must” to have. It is a metal table
that is heat resistant and allows you to place your ovens at a convenient height for
cooking.
Let’s Cook

Right off the bat, the number one question we’re always asked is “What can you cook in
a Dutch oven?” The answer is very simple. You can cook anything in a Dutch oven that
you can cook in a regular oven plus lots more. What’s the “more”? A Dutch oven is so
versatile since you can bake, stew, simmer, fry and even flip the lid and you’ve got a
griddle.

Once you have chosen your recipe, you need to determine the right number of coals
needed. You will have to allow for outside ambient temperature changes and even wind
speed. You may have to adjust your heat up or down depending on the outside weather
conditions.

As a rule of thumb you can use the following formula for a 350° cooking temperature. If
you are baking in a 12” diameter Dutch oven, for the bottom coals, you will subtract 2
from the number of inches in the diameter of the Dutch oven, and for the top coals, you
will add 2. In other words, you would put a ring of 10 charcoals on the bottom and a ring
of 14 charcoals on the top. If you are stewing or frying, you would put more charcoal on
the bottom since that is where you want the heat source.

So, logically, the first step to get cooking is to start up some hot briquettes to cook with.
Ignite the briquettes in your charcoal chimney around 15-20 minutes before you need
them. As the coals are getting hot, prepare your ingredients and ovens for cooking.
Should your dish take a long time to cook, for example, over 30 minutes, additional coals
will be necessary and can be started in the chimney with the coals that are already lit. The
number of coals needed will vary depending on the temperature required by the recipe,
the outdoor temperature and wind speed where you are cooking. When it comes to
Charcoal, a name brand charcoal will usually burn easier and more consistently than a
cheap brand. Kingsford seems to be the standard when it comes to Dutch oven cooks.

Arrange the number of briquettes needed under the oven in a circular pattern at least ½
inch inside the edge. Arrange the briquettes on the lid in a checkerboard pattern. Do not
bunch them together on either the top or the bottom as it will cause hot spots and burn the
food or could even damage the Dutch oven. To prevent “hot spots” rotate the oven ¼ turn
every 15-20 minutes and then rotate the lid ¼ turn in the opposite direction. Check your
food occasionally to make sure it’s not cooking too fast or too slow. Be careful when
removing the lid so as not to flavor the dish with ashes. However, resist the urge to keep
opening up the oven during the cooking process, or you’ll lose valuable heat, extending
the cooking time and possibly ending up with a failed recipe.

How do you know it’s done? In Dutch oven cooking we go by the “smell test”. If it
smells like it is done, it’s done, if it smells like it is burnt, it’s probably burnt.
Dutch Oven Temperature Chart and Capacities

This chart, provided by Lodge Manufacturing, is a guide to use as an alternative to the

method of determining the number of charcoal that was mentioned previously. Please
remember the chart is only a guide, you’ll need to adjust the number of coals depending
on outside cooking conditions.

Oven Size
325° 350° 375° 400° 425° 450° Servings Capacity
Top/Bottom
8” 15 16 17 18 19 20 1-2 2 quarts
***** 10/5 11/5 11/6 12/6 13/6 14/6
10” 19 21 23 25 27 29 4-7 4 quarts
***** 13/6 14/7 16/7 17/8 18/9 19/10
12” 23 25 27 29 31 33 12-14 6 quarts
***** 16/7 17/8 18/9 19/10 21/10 22/11
14” 30 32 34 36 38 40 16-20 8 quarts
***** 20/10 21/11 22/12 24/12 25/13 26/14

For example, with ideal outside cooking conditions, if you want to cook at 350° in a 12”
Dutch oven, you would use 25 charcoals with 17 coals on the top and 8 coals on
the bottom.
For additional information, please check the following websites:

Lone Star Dutch Oven Society (LSDOS): http://www.lsdos.com

Prairie Dog Chapter – LSDOS: http://www.lsdos.com/ntp/

International Dutch Oven Society: http://www.idos.com/

Lodge Manufacturing: http://www.lodgemfg.com/

Camp Chef Dutch Ovens: http://www.campchef.com/

Dutch Oven Doctor: http://www.dutchovendoctor.com/

Byron’s Dutch Oven Cooking Page: http://papadutch.home.comcast.net/~papadutch/

Cee Dub’s Dutch Oven Cooking and Camp Supplies: http://www.ceedubs.com/

Mair Dutch Oven Lifter: http://www.mairdutchovenlifter.com/

Cookbooks:

There are several wonderful cookbooks available that are specifically for Dutch oven
cooking. The Lone Star Dutch Oven Society has published its very own cookbook. You
can order below from the following link or from Amazon.

“Texas Treasury of Dutch Oven Cooking”: http://www.lsdos.com/merchandise.html