Cook Wild Year-Round Cooking on an Open Fire

by Fischer-Rizzi, Susanne

• ISBN13: 9780711232815
• ISBN10: 0711232814
• Edition: Original
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-04-24
• Publisher: Frances Lincoln

Summary

Everything tastes better in the open air, around a fire. Here are 100 recipes to inspire you to venture outdoors and eat wild all year round. From the simple dishes that sustained our ancestors to feasts fit for modern foodies, the book draws from a rich repertoire of traditional cooking methods and recipes that have been passed down to this day. Whether it's Lebanese flatbread, hot smoked trout, chicken wrapped in clay, or waffles, chocolate bananas and Transylvanian tree cakes, all are simple and don't need special tools. The author has years of experience of cooking outdoors and the recipes, arranged by season, are easy to follow for both beginners and more seasoned campfire chefs. With clear instructions on selecting wood and making a fire, a range of ovens and cooking methods and even suggestions for wild ingredients to forage, this is a book for anyone who wants to enjoy the thrill of cooking outdoors, with woodsmoke, companionship and fresh air to sharpen the appetite.

Author Biography

Susanne Fischer-Rizzi is a traditional healer, herbal expert and outdoor specialist. She is a lecturer at ARVEN in Sulzberg, Germany, her school for medicinal plants, aromatherapy and wilderness wisdom, and she has also been imparting her knowledge in seminars, workshops and lectures for over 30 years. She is passionate about cooking on an open fire and has honed her skills on the countless wilderness seminars she has headed. Of her twelve published books, three are available in English: The Complete Earth Medicine Book, The Complete Aromatherapy Handbook and The Complete Incense Book. She lives in Sulzberg in Germany.

Table of Contents

7 Foreword:

A Dash of Adventure

10 Fire:The Heart of the

Outdoor Kitchen

10 Taming the fire devil

10 The fireplace

10 Fire and wind

10 Flames, embers and ashes

11 Regulations and laws

14 Wood: Heat, Flavour

and Atmosphere

14 Kitchen or living room

14 Gathering wood

15 Lighting the fire

15 Different qualities of wood

16 Types of firewood for

outdoor cooking

17 Cooking Methods

17 Cooking on embers and

ashes

17 Cooking on embers with

clay

18 Cooking on a flat stone

18 Cooking in a leaf

18 Ember pit

18 Ember pit, earth oven

19 Ember stones

19 Ember burning

20 Clay pot

20 Skewers

21 Grill rack

21 Wickerwork

21 Pots, roasters, pans

22 Pot stands

22 Jugs

22 The Dutch oven

23 The hobo oven

24 Muurikka

24 Tajine

24 Pressure cooker

25 Fire pit

25 Swedish log fire

25 Cooking in bottles

25 Clay overn

26 The Art of

Improvisation

28 Wild Plants for Outdoor

Cooking

28 Gathering with care

28 Where to gather

28 What to gather

28 Wild plants as vegetables

28 Wild plants for seasoning

30 Tips for cooking with wild

berries

30 Nuts and seeds

30 Herbs for cooking with hay

30 Herbs for tea

33 Baking Bread in the Fire

34 Recipes for All Seasons:

34 Spring

80 Summer

124 Autumn

172 Winter

212 Acknowledgments

214 Index

Excerpts

MY VEGETABLE TAGINEA Moroccan-style feastServes 41 tbsp of olive oil1 onion, peeled3 potatoes, peeled3 carrots, peeled1 courgette1 red bell pepper, pitted1 can of chickpeas, rinsedSauce:2 tbsp olive oil2 garlic cloves, finely chopped1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped1/2 tsp ground cumin1/2 tsp paprika powder, sweet1 generous pinch turmericabout 600 g (1 1/3 lb) 3 1/2 cupsstrained tomatoessalt, pepper1 bunch flat-leaf parsleySoak the tagine for about 30 minutes and dry.Cut the onions, potatoes, carrots and courgettes into thin slices and the bell pepper into long strips. Grease the bottom of the tagine with oil and cover with onion and potato slices. Layer the carrot and courgette slices on top of that, lay the bell pepper strips on top in a star shape and finally put the chickpeas on top. Press everything down if necessary.For the sauce, heat the oil in a pan and lightly fry the garlic and the ginger. Add the rest of the spices and continue frying. Add the strained tomatoes and let the sauce simmer for 15 minutes. Add the chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the vegetables. Put the lid on the tagine and fill the dent in the top of the lid with water. Put the tagine over the embers on a tripod or place on a tagine oven and cook for 1 hour. Eat directly out of the tagine with flatbread. You can also serve couscous with it (see recipe, page 56 and 57).Alternative: tagine with goulash In the tagine, fry 1 kg (21/4 lb) 41/2 cups of diced beef or lamb in oil and season with salt and pepper.Then pile up the vegetables on top and cook as in the previous recipe.Cooking utensilsA tagine (about 28 cm/11 inches in diameter), a tripod or a tagine oven, a small pot for the sauceFireA keyhole fireplace or a fire with enough embers or wood charcoalfor a tagine ovenTipsVegetarian dishes and meat, fish or poultry alike can be prepared gently and deliciously in a tajine. Serve with Moroccan tea in glasses, which is easily prepared as follows: mix equal parts of green tea and Moroccan mint (fresh leaves are best, but dried will do), pour boiling water over and leave to steep for a few minutes. Sweeten to taste with rock candy. In Morocco this tea is served very sweet.