The Dutch Oven - A Great expanding to Your Survival Kit

If you're one of those folks without power, heat or warmth because of the recent snow storms, you have probably recognized the need for a cooking tool that can bake, boil, fry and saute. And it should be able to function with a range of heat sources, since you don't know when the electricity might come back on.

My nomination for this wonder implement has been around for hundreds of years. It's easy to find, cheap and effective. Get a cast iron or aluminum Dutch oven. The cooking tool has a proven track record. Hurricane Katrina was due to hit land in a few hours, and my relatives in Mississippi, about 150 miles north of New Orleans, weren't sure what was going to happen. I overheard my wife talking on the phone to her sister, Patti, of Clinton, Ms. In the middle of the hurricane preparation discussion, they started talking about recipes and what to cook, using a cast iron Dutch oven! Everyone near Katrina faced a power outage that could last indefinitely. Among the urban survival necessities was a way to cook and purify water. Patti had a hand-me-down cast iron camp oven with the lipped lid and three legs. Designed to be heated on top and bottom with campfire coals or charcoal, that type oven was taken on the Lewis and Clark expedition, used by travelers on the Oregon trail, and was requisite in countless cabins, lean-tos and soddies on the frontier. Technically, a "Dutch" oven has a rounded top and no legs and can be used in a approved oven on top of a stove, or on an outdoor propane fish cooker of grill. My propane fish cooker stays operational year-round on my patio, because it is used constantly. Even when there is snow on the ground, we still go face to fry bacon or cook fish. Today, a camp oven is on my short list of tools for my disaster survival kit. And if you're one of the people stranded because of the report snows, or anticipating some sort of disaster, you need a Dutch oven too. A Dutch oven can be used to boil water, make a stew, bake bread, and cook virtually anyone that can be fitted inside. And if you were forced to evacuate an area, a camp and/or Dutch oven is covenant and light enough to be authentically transported. My wife's guidance to her sister was to go to Walmart, get at least 50 pounds of charcoal and three of the round, 14-inch diameter metal pet food dishes. Put the oven, these items and some basic cooking utensils in a quadrate milk crate for storage. I've been cooking with Dutch ovens at hunting and fishing camps for decades, and on many camping trips and Boy Scout and Girl Scout outings. I am oftentimes asked for a basic list of tools to get started in Dutch oven cooking. So, here's the basic, bare-bones list of Dutch oven survival kit necessities, proven over the years. - 1 - 12-inch Lodge brand shallow cast iron oven: I like Lodge cast iron best, because it is made in America and has a proven potential record, but that's just personal preference. Other experienced Dutch oven cooks may use distinct brands, so chose anyone you like. Sometimes, I'll take an aluminum oven on outdoor excursions instead of cast iron to save weight. - 3 - shallow metal pans with lipped rims: These are critical, and coarse dog food pans work very well. Put one pan underneath the oven to protect the coals from dampness and help regulate heat; and an additional one pan is used to store coals. The third is a spare that is used to cover the oven and protect it from rain or snow while cooking. - 1 - lid lifter: In a pinch, a pair of channel lock tongs will work. - 1 - trivet or tripod: This is a wire or metal rack that holds the lid while you stir the contents of the oven or adjust seasonings. It keeps the lid out of the dirt and clean. - 1 - knife. You probably don't need a tactical or survival knife, (even though, in an emergency, the knife you have is a "survival knife") but you will need something that will work for food preparation. - 1- nylon spatula: This is used for cooking and cleaning the oven. - 1 - large nylon spoon The lid lifter, trivet, "survival knife," spatula and spoon all fit inside the oven. All these items fit into a nylon market Dutch oven holder. an additional one great way to carry all is in a quadrate milk crate. Put the metal pans on the bottom, and the oven won't tip over. The loaded crate stacks nicely. Cleaning a Dutch oven is easy. Take the spatula, scrape out any food residue, and fill it with water. (Never put cold water into a hot oven. It might cause it to crack.) Put the oven back on the coals, and boil the water. Commonly this will be enough to clean the oven, and all that remains is to scrape out the softened food debris and wipe it dry. Hit the cast iron with a light film of oil to protect against rust. Obviously, there are other "nice-to-have" cooking items that could be included. But this basic Dutch oven survival kit will get you by.