The best food I’ve ever eaten was cooked over a campfire. Sometimes it was half raw and half burnt, but it was still amazing. It was amazing because food is more than just sustenance, it’s about sharing and friendship, and few things are as conducive to friendship as sitting around a fire.
As the popular BBQ site Amazing Ribs puts it, “Ever seen people pull up lawn chairs, encircle the gas grill, roast marshmallows, and sing Kumbaya? Didn’t think so.” Sadly, I have seen exactly this. I winced when I saw it, but it happens. Fire bans in Western national parks are depriving people of this experience, and it’s a shame. If a backyard is where you spend your time outdoors, you might want to stop reading right now because the rest of this is just going to make you sad at what you’ve lost.
Campgrounds generally have fire rings, but when I head into the backcountry—if open flame fires are permitted—I am a devoted fan of Firebox stoves. It’s a stainless steel box that can be folded up flat for easy packing. It comes with an ash pan, two fire sticks, and a carry bag. You can use multiple types of fuel, from wood to coal, and you can cook over it using your cookpot. It completely changed the way I backpack. It’s not practical to hike around with a grill strapped to your pack, but the Firebox stove makes building a compact fire and cooking over it simple.
For the entire history of human existence—until the past 60 or so years—if you wanted cooked food, you were starting a fire. Cooking is the act of bending fire to the human will, of steering this potentially dangerous, often out-of-control thing to render fat, roast meat, and simmer beans.
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I was first attracted to cooking not because of the food so much as the way cooking meant taming, controlling, and wielding fire. To my great disappointment when I started cooking professionally, my first job was as a garde-manger, meaning I was in charge of the pantry, preparing salads, appetizers, deserts, and other cold foods. To make it worse, I stood right next to the fish station and got to watch as my fellow chefs played with fire while I stood shucking oysters and sprinkling bacon on Caesar salads.
Fortunately, that only lasted a few months. I moved up the kitchen hierarchy until I reached head chef, and there was plenty of fire—and learning to work with fire—along the way. Still, the “fire” here was always carefully regulated gas stoves. The kitchens I worked in never used coals or wood flame. It wasn’t until I started to travel full time in an RV that I started to cook outside, first on a propane stove, then over coals, and eventually over open wood fires. I haven’t yet invested in a “spider” pan, but over half of the meals I cook these days are over open flames (technically coals, but that doesn’t sound as good).
I discovered the Firebox stove through the company’s YouTube channel, which is an eye-opening backcountry cooking guide told through the adventures of Firebox founder Steve Despain. Before encountering Firebox stoves, I thought I was pretty good at backcountry cooking. I am a former cook, after all. I dehydrated my meals and whipped up what I thought were pretty tasty dishes. However, my kids did not agree. Especially on the trip when I forgot the cheese for the mac and cheese. Still, rehydrated sausage and grits for breakfast? This is high living for backcountry food, right?
Then one day, I stumbled upon Despain’s videos and saw him grilling steak and fish over an open flame in compact little stoves. Suddenly, dehydrated anything felt, well, lame. I bought a Firebox stove and never looked back. I’ve seared many a backcountry steak, enjoyed a morning cup of coffee made over the fire, and even baked a few cakes.
There’s something primal and comforting about cooking over a campfire. It connects us to our ancestors who relied on fire for survival, and it brings us closer to nature. As I sit by the fire, surrounded by friends, the smell of smoke and food fills the air, creating memories that will last a lifetime. It’s a reminder that food is not just about sustenance, but about the experiences and connections it creates.
So, if you haven’t had the chance to cook over a campfire, I urge you to give it a try. Whether it’s in your backyard or in the backcountry, the experience is worth it. Invest in a Firebox stove or find a fire ring at a campground. Gather your friends and family, and let the fire bring you together. The best food you’ll ever eat may just be cooked over a campfire.
