I do.

One of the best Dutch oven cooking shows I've watched was the PBS series of about 40 30 minute shows by C. W. "Butch, Cee Dub" Welch. A many years Idaho back country game warden and extraordinary D.O. cook, his videos are outstanding illustrating many, many recipes and methods of slingin' those ol' black pots out in camp.

I also met him at a D.O. cooking seminar here in Boise. A very likable and helpful gent.

If you like D.O. cooking out in camp, Cee Dub is your huckleberry.

http://www.ceedubsproductions.com/

L.W.

looks good, we can't get it here!

Whelenman, Cee Dub's videos and recipe books are certainly worth buying. I've been cooking "Dutch" for 45 years out in camp and on my patio and I picked up a bunch of helpful tips and great recipes from him. He knows his stuff.

L.W.

I have been around a lot of Dutch oven cooking, but have not done so much of it myself. Certainly, I am a newb when it comes to baking in one.
I do a lot of camping, and have been served many a great meal by others. I want to learn more about the whole cast iron/camp cooking thing.
I am building a separate fire pit in the back yard, where I'll be practicing, and developing a new skill set.

I was invited to a West Texas mule deer hunt some years ago, a corporate thing, and every meal was cooked via Dutch oven out of the ranch roundup trailer. The Mexican guy running the show did an incredible job, from eggs in the AM to enchiladas and cherry crisp for dinner. Just unbelievable to watch him work the mesquite coals and pots.

Yep, using limb wood coals is a different ball game altogether than charcoal briquettes. Good hard wood coals such as those from mesquite, oak, maple, hickory, walnut, pecan, apple and cherry trees, etc., are far better retaining heat and controllability than the various coniferous tree soft woods. The D.O. cooks of older day really knew how to handle those limb wood coals.

I've not used limb wood coals in years as I became a big fan of charcoal briquettes years ago. Around here there is very little hard wood. Kingsford for me.

L.W.

most of the fellows that I camp with, are using oak or hickory wood, and not the briquettes. I find it easier to fire up a couple dozen briquettes though for practice cooking, rather than build a fire, and wait for the coals to develop.
At the camp, I am always first up. My first chore is to rake the previous night's fire, add wood and get it burning.
When the others get up, the coals are just right for cooking a big breakfast casserole, or a pot of sausage gravy. Oh, and eggs in the skillet.

been working the DO's for about 10 years, all I use is charcoal for the convenience. Watched a lot of Cee Dub over the years.

I use one almost every day or close to it when the weather is good. I roasted a chicken in one Sunday, along with onion carrots celery and potatoes. I will be eating off that bird for the whole week. One of Frank Perdue's Oven Stuffer Roasters. They are worth there weight. I have three, and I can do quiet a bit with them.

Does anyone ever "bury" their dutch ovens? IIRC, Calvin Rutstrum wrote of such. Basically digging a hole, kicking in a set amount of coals, placing the DO, then adding a few on top and covering it with soil.

IIRC, this was for stews and the like.

TAK, I've done it quite a few times, both when I was in the Boy Scouts many years ago, and in hunting camps later.

Using a 12" D.O., I always dug a large hole deep enough that the lid of the D.O. would be about three inches from the top of the hole. Then I'd build a good size fire in it. When it had burned down to a good base of coals, I'd shovel out a bunch, place the D.O. in, shovel back the coals over the top, then cover it all with dirt. Great for stews, roasts, etc. Do it early in the morning and when returning to camp in the evening, chow is ready and hot.

One trick to remember is to always raise the handle on the D.O. straight up before covering the coals with dirt. With it sticking an inch or so out of the ground, you'll have no trouble finding it, or having to do a lot of digging to pull it out of the hole. Makes things simple.

L.W.

Thanks Leanwolf. I figured it would work best for a wet dish like a stew. Start it in the morning, go fishing, and come back to a hot meal if you get skunked. I'll have to give that a try

Buried DO is like a slow cooker. Oh man the taste.

Knew the fire in a pit and bury the DO method long before the charcoal method