How to Cook in a Dutch Oven, Its History and Recipes
Day 4: Cooking Potatoes and Onions in a Cast Iron Skillet over an Open Fire
Editor’s Note: This week we’ll learn about Dutch-oven cooking from the man who wrote the book, “The Complete Book of Dutch Oven Cooking,” my longtime friend, J. Wayne Fears Hampton Cove, Alabama. Fears grew up on Tater Knob Mountain in north Alabama. His dad harvested and sold ginseng, besides trapping, hunting and fishing – like the original mountainmen and survivalists. During his early years, J. Wayne Fears followed along behind his dad and learned how to survive in the wilderness. At college, Fears got a degree in forest recreation and has been an outdoor writer for more than 40 years. Dutch-oven cooking was a natural way of life for the Fears’ family.
Another important cooking utensil for the frontiersmen and the chuck wagon cooks of the Old West was a large, cast-iron skillet. Besides being great for frying steaks, bacon and ham, they also could be used to fry-up potatoes with onions, salt and pepper to provide a hearty, tasty dish that was quickly prepared and easy to cook. The potatoes were often served with a stew, with fresh-killed game or with any type of pork, beef or fowl that the early settlers had. Using a cast-iron skillet, Robert Graves shows us how he prepared a big skillet of potatoes and onions for the Wounded Warriors who attended the Camp OutAmongEm (email Statler1020@comcast.net) hunting and fishing retreat recently held in north Alabama.
To learn more about cooking in a Dutch oven, you can buy Fears’ book from www.skyhorsepublishing.com. Fears’ “Backcountry Cooking,” “Cooking the Wild Harvest” and “Field & Stream Wilderness Cookbook” are available from www.protoolindustries.net and come autographed.
** Enjoy this video with Robert Graves on cooking over hot coals in a large cast-iron skillet filled with potatoes and onions.
