The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook [Paperback]

Sheila Mills (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1997

Marrying the traditional cast-iron pot with contemporary cookware and tastes, The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook offers 225 creative, delicious, and original recipes for Dutch oven cookery­­each of which has been prepared, tested, and refined by one of America's finest outdoor cooks.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The Dutch oven accompanied pioneers west in the chuckwagon and was noted by Lewis and Clark as one of their most valued pieces of equipment. This remarkable cooking pot remains an efficient way to prepare food on an open fire and is considered essential by paddlers, car campers, RVers, and even backpackers (thanks to new, lightweight materials). A simple cast-iron or aluminum container with legs, the camp Dutch oven is incredibly versatile, taking the place of a host of outdoor cooking utensils. With its snugfitting lid, it becomes an oven when heated with charcoal briquettes and can be used for baking, braising, stewing, or roasting. With the lid removed, the oven becomes a kettle for boiling, deep-fat frying, or heating food quickly over a fire.

Marrying the traditional cast-iron pot with contemporary cooking styles and tastes, The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook offers more than 200 creative, delicious, original recipes--each prepared, tested, and refined by Sheila Mills, one of America's finest outdoor cooks. This is not your usual cowboy kettle fare of meat, beans, and biscuits! Rather, these are healthy, innovative, gourmet recipes, developed by Sheila and her friends over twenty years and served to thousands of whitewater-rafting passengers on trips down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River.

Best of all, the recipes are easy to prepare, whether you're on a remote riverbank or in your own kitchen. Sheila has adapted the recipes for indoor cooking, providing alternative instructions, times, and temperatures for the conventional oven or stovetop.

Sheila and husband, David, have a great love and concern for the river environment. The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook includes an invaluable section on low-impact camp cooking, providing techniques and rules of etiquette for gathering and burning firewood; disposing of waste water; keeping food cold, fresh, and safe to eat; and practicing no-kill, catch-and-release fishing. With handy lists of camp cooking equipment and time-saving tips, plus sections on the care and use of Dutch ovens and where to buy them, this truly is a one-stop reference for Dutch oven cooks.

Paddlers, campers, and other outdoorspeople­­--Would you like to add these recipes to your outdoor fare?

BREAKFAST DISHES

• Avocado Frittata
• Huevos Middle fork
• Gingerbread Corn Cakes

BREADS

• Parmesan Popovers
• Sage and Olive Focaccia Bread
• Sweet Potato Pecan Muffins

APPETIZERS AND SNACKS

• Crab-stuffed Mushrooms
• Asparagus and Cheese Sandwiches
• Not-for-the-Fainthearted Nachos

MEAT AND MEATLESS MAIN DISHES

• Dutch Oven Enchiladas
• Polenta with Wild Mushrooms
• Halibut with Pineapple Salsa

DESSERTS

• Raspberry Bread Pudding
• Alpine Apple Crisp
• Sour Cream Raisin Pie

After 20 years of feeding river runners from all over the world, Sheila Mills knows what hungry outdoorspeople like to eat. In the Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook, she uses a traditional cooking tool to create a new dimension of contemporary, innovative recipes for everything from salads to desserts. This is camp cooking as you've never tasted it!

About the Author

Since 1978, Sheila Mills and her husband, David, have operated Rocky Mountain River Tours, guiding thousands of passengers down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho. One of their specialties has always been Sheila's outstanding Dutch oven cooking. So great was the demand for her recipes that she self-published two cookbooks, now combined and updated in this Ragged Mountain Press edition. Sheila has a Bachelor's degree in Home Economics from the University of Montana and is a member of America Outdoors, Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association, the International Dutch Oven Society, Idaho Conservation League, and Idaho Rivers United.

Product Details

• Paperback: 170 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 1 edition (May 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070430233
• ISBN-13: 978-0070430235
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 6.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #381,146 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #6 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Baking > Muffins
  • #33 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Vegetables & Vegetarian > Potatoes
  • #41 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Outdoor Cooking > Camping & Hiking

More About the Author

Our river vacationing guests at rockymountainrivertours.com request recipes which have resulted in my 3 cookbooks. I continue to develop new Dutch oven recipes for our river tours (since 1978) on the Middle Fork of the Salmon in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Yummy ideas, but missing instructions, October 5, 2004

By 

riverlady "riverlady" (San Francisco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook (Paperback)

In preparation for a trip to Death Valley for Thanksgiving, I am wading through a number of "D.O." cookbooks. This book has the best recipes by far, as noted by others here, but it doesn't include instructions on how to cook with a D.O. -- i.e. how many briquets to use, where to place them, how to adjust the temperature. Perhaps a lot of "seasoned" river runners like the authors have been doing it so long they assume everyone knows how, but a basic book should include basic instructions. If you're needing that info, check out "Lovin' Dutch Ovens," by Joan S. Larsen. The recipes are more Betty Crocker-ish (and in some cases frightening), but the instructions go over sizes, quantities and temperature control -- a must for most people in the market for a D.O. book. Oh and, BTW, once you know how to cook in a D.O., the reality is you can pretty much cook any of your favorite recipes.

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy and delicious recipes, December 13, 1999

By 

Blossom Barr (Eugene, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook (Paperback)

Minium campsite cooking impact information was useful and directions very clear and simple. There is no magic required to use the Dutch oven just a few Kingsford brand briquettes. I own several Dutch oven cookbooks which all appear to be written for boy scout leaders, nothing wrong with that, however, Sheila Mills' cookbook is unique yet easy to use if you want rave food reviews in camp. All the recipes I have tried turned out to be delicious.

43 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Doesn't really tell you how to cook with a Dutch oven..., June 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook (Paperback)

I was disappointed in "The Outdoor Dutch Oven Cookbook." I purchased this book looking for information on cooking with Dutch ovens. What I got was a book with some interesting recipes (quite a few that are not made with a Dutch oven!) that was very vague about cooking techniques. There is a section on the differences in cast iron and aluminum Dutch ovens and some info on the various ways you can use them, but nothing on the actual techniques. After reading the book, I have the same questions I started with! Instead of the oddly random general camping information ("catch & release" fishing, human waste disposal, etc.) I would've much preferred some nitty-gritty info on how to use a Dutch oven.