5 Best Campfire Recipes
Chef, surfer and outdoor enthusiast Sarah Glover gave us 5 of her best camp recipes.
1. Camp Fire Toasties
Feeds 4
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 loaf sourdough (or whatever bread you like)
300 g mozzarella (finely grated )
300 g sharp cheddar (grated or thinly sliced)
1/2 cup sauerkraut
Olive oil
Dried chilli flakes
Salt
Light your fire and let it burn down for about an hour until you obtain a medium heat.
Spread a layer of mayonnaise on both sides of your bread slices.
Top half the slices with a layer of mozzarella, cheddar and sauerkraut, then sandwich with the remaining bread.
Heat a large cast-iron frying pan in the coals of the fire and add a little olive oil.
Place one sandwich (or two if they’ll fit) in the pan and place a rock on top to weigh it down.
Cook for about 3 minutes, then flip and cook the other side for 3 minutes or until the cheese is oozy and melted.
Sprinkle with chilli flakes and salt to taste, cut into pieces if you like and get stuck in.
2. Creamy Campfire Cauliflower
Feeds 4
1/2 head cauliflower (cut into florets)
Handful of green olives (pitted and diced)
1 cup brown mushrooms (sliced)
1/2 cup white wine
Olive oil
Salt
1 cup pouring cream
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Light your fire and let it burn down for about an hour until you obtain a medium heat.
Place the cauliflower, olives and mushrooms in a Dutch oven, add the white wine, a splash of olive oil and a good pinch of salt.
Toss to combine and cover with the lid, then place in the coals of the fire and cook for 15 minutes or until the cauliflower is lovely and soft.
Take off the lid and add the cream, then allow the liquid to reduce down to a thick sauce.
Season to taste with salt and scatter the lemon zest over the top. Enjoy!
3. Campstove Kangaroo Curry
Feeds 6
2 Tbsp Ghee
2 Brown Onions
2 Tsp Black mustard seeds
1/4 Cup Freshly grated turmeric (or 4 Tsp ground turmeric)
10 Cardamom pods 1 Stalk lemongrass (grated)
1 Tsp Garam Masala
1 Tsp Fennel Seeds
1 Tsp Caraway seeds
500g Kangaroo meat (cut into large cubes)
4 Pink-eye potatoes (cut into bite-sized pieces)
1/2 Cup Coconut cream
Melt the ghee in a large pot over medium heat, add the onion and cook until softened.
Add the mustard seeds and cook until they pop, then add the remaining spices and herbs and cook, stirring, for a few minutes until fragrant.
Toss in the kangaroo meat and cook until nicely browned, about 5 minutes or so.
Pour in enough water to cover and simmer for 3 hours or until the meat is so tender it falls apart easily.
Add the potato and coconut cream and simmer until the potato is soft.
I like to let my curry sit overnight before eating – it gives the flavours time to mingle and intensify.
But if you can’t wait, I get that too!
4. Coal Sweet Potato Smash
Feeds 4
Salt
3 medium sweet potatoes (cut into strips)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon dried chilli flakes
1 tablespoon ghee
Light your fire and let it burn down for about an hour until you obtain a medium heat.
Place the sweet potatoes on a chopping board, pour over the olive oil and season with the dried chilli flakes and a generous pinch or two of salt.
Rub the spiced oil over the potatoes, then wrap them in foil – make sure the foil is well sealed as you are going to put the potatoes in the coals of the fire and you want to protect them from dirt and so on.
Place in the coals and turn every 15 minutes with tongs or a tea towel so you can feel when the potatoes are soft and therefore cooked through.
Carefully take the cooked sweet potatoes out of the foil. Heat a cast-iron frying pan on the coals (rather than over flames) and add the ghee.
Break up the sweet potato and place in the ghee to caramelise all the sugars, seasoning with salt as you go.
Gently flip the pieces over with a spatula, taking care not to break up the flesh you’ve just browned.
Season with a little more salt and eat.
5. Campfire Abalone Sandwich
Feeds 2
1 abalone
40 g butter (plus extra for spreading)
2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
Handful of chives (roughly chopped)
1 lemon (cut into wedges)
4 slices sourdough
Light your fire and let it burn down for about an hour until you obtain a medium heat.
To prep your abalone, take it out of the shell and remove the guts and beak (I leave the frill on mine).
Pound the abalone with a large rock to tenderise it, then slice as thinly as possible.
Heat a large cast-iron frying pan until it’s smoking, then toss in the butter and abalone – it will sizzle!
Remove from the heat, add the garlic and cook until the abalone starts to curl at the lip (about 3–5 minutes).
Toss in the chives, and a little squeeze of lemon.
Cook your bread if needed (otherwise fresh is good), and spread with butter if you like.
Pile the abalone mixture onto the bread and enjoy the ride.
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