Cooking While Camping: Heat Sources

When planning your food for a camping trip, it is important to consider what heat source and cooking methods you will be using.  Here's a quick review of different heat sources and some pros and cons of each.

Propane Camp Stove
The first thing I think of what I think of a camp stove is the classic green Coleman Stove.  They are available in different sizes and power-outputs but that green case will always be iconic. They are durable and dependable and work well for many different situations.  They require very little maintenance or work to start - just like a gas bbq at you, you just light it and go.



Pros:
Inexpensive
Durable
Reliable
Fuel Canisters are easily available at outdoor or sporting goods stores
For longer camping trips, you can get a hose adapter to use a propane tank

Cons:
Fuel Canisters are not refillable
Bulky and heavy
Don't work well in very cold or very windy conditions

Butane Stove

The butane stove works very similar to the propane stove, but they use aerosolized butane canisters instead of propane.  Many families have one of these at home already for cooking stir-fry or bananas foster, so it's a great option if you are just getting into camping and don't want to spend a lot of money.


Pros:
Inexpensive
Durable
Reliable
Light-weight

Cons:
Fuel canisters not refillable
Don't work well in very cold or very windy conditions

Backpacking Stoves

There have been huge improvements to small, light-weight backpacking stoves over the last few years.  They have gotten lighter, quieter, and with the advent of JetBoil and the all-in-one cooking systems, they are much easier to prime and operate now.



Pros:
Very lightweight, the only option for backpacking
Very efficient for small quantities of water
Some have refillable white-gas (fuel) canisters (JetBoil does not)

Cons:
Inefficient for large quantities of water
Single-burner limits cooking options

Fire-Pits

Nothing says camping like cooking over a fire pit.  But despite the nostalgia, they aren't the cleanest option for our lungs or our environment.  Be sure the fire regulations for your camping area BEFORE you plan to rely on fire-pits as your heat source.  Many don't allow fires at all, or some areas limit fires during times of high fire-risk.  If your campground does allow fires, nothing beats warming your face around a campfire while you cook up hobo packs or s'mores!



Please note:  If your campground allows wood fires, DO NOT bring wood from home.  Transporting wood to non-native environments can spread foreign bugs and disease. Purchase wood at the campground kiosk or store instead.

Pros:
The true 'outdoorsy' experience

Cons:
Smoke
Fire Danger
Need a Fuel Source like Wood (not always allowed) or Charcoal

I found this tutorial from Sunset Magazine very helpful on how to use your Dutch Oven with wood or charcoal in a firepit:

"How to Use a Dutch Oven
1. Prepare the fire. If you have a campfire going, move any large pieces of still-burning wood to the side and level out your hot coals to fit the size of the dutch oven. If the campground doesn't allow wood fires, burn 50 charcoal briquets till they're mostly gray, 10 to 15 minutes, and spread into an even layer the size of the dutch oven.
2. Set up the oven. For many recipes, you just set the dutch oven on top of the hot coals ("bottom heat cooking"). But there are times when you'll need to heat both the top and bottom of the oven. Just scrape about half the coals to the side and arrange the rest in a circle the size of the dutch oven's outer edge. Set the oven on top of the circle of coals, then pile the rest of the coals on top of the lid.
3. Start cooking. Lift the dutch-oven lid occasionally to check the food and temperature. To decrease the heat, scrape away some fuel. To increase the heat, or to cook longer than 45 minutes, add 6 to 10 new briquets or more wood embers (from that still-burning wood you moved to the side of your firepit) every 30 minutes."