How to Tailgate With Dutch Ovens

Your Dutch oven cooking pots are versatile enough to take on the road when you tailgate. Dutch ovens are heavy weight and sizeable pots, perfect for feeding a crowd. You can fry, boil, or even bake on site using a Dutch oven. Dutch Ovens can double as serving pieces too. If your Dutch oven isn’t ready for a close up, never fear. Camouflage your trusty cooking sidekick and let it do duty at the tailgate party with rave reviews.

Things You'll Need

• Dutch oven

Instructions

1. Cook onsite using a Dutch oven. Dutch ovens are versatile and large enough to handle your cooking needs at a tailgate party. Place a Dutch oven directly over your grill grates or even down among the charcoal briquettes to cook a big pot of Four-Alarm Chili or simmer a big batch of bratwursts in a beer bath.

2. You can fry foods on the barbecue grill in your Dutch Oven. Fill the Dutch Oven about 1/2 full with vegetable oil. Let the oil come up to temperature. Dip the handle end of a wooden spoon into the oil and if small bubbles form around the handle, the oil is hot enough for frying. Fry up a batch of Hot Chicken Wings in your Dutch Oven and the whole tailgate crowd will come round from the aroma.

3. Bake a delicious tailgate dessert on site in your Dutch oven. A dump-a-can dessert like a Cherry Fruit Crumple is easy to mix and make outdoors in a Dutch oven. Simply put a big dollop of butter into the bottom of the Dutch oven, add a can or two of cherry pie filling, and then sprinkle on a crumb topping or even a dry cereal like Honey Bunches of Oats with Pecans. Cover with the Dutch oven’s lid.

   Nestle the Dutch oven directly among the charcoal. Position the coals so that the Dutch oven sits evenly. Add a few briquettes to the top of the Dutch oven and bake for about 30 minutes. Delicious and easily done right in your Dutch oven.

   Never put an empty Dutch oven over coals or it may crack. Always start cooking with food inside. Never add cold liquids to a very hot pot as it may crack.

4. Serve food directly from your Dutch oven. Situate a new or decorative colored Dutch oven prominently in your tailgate smorgasbord spread. Dutch ovens are perfect for keeping cold foods such as potato salad or cole slaw chilled because their thicker sides make for good insulation. Be sure to keep foods with mayonnaise in a cooler on ice until it's time to serve.

5. Use a Dutch Oven as a stand-in for serving bowls. Put snack chips, cookies, even cold beverages on ice in your Dutch Oven.

   Dress up a battered Dutch oven that will be used as a serving dish in your team’s colors. Wrap a scarf with the team’s colors around the Dutch oven to make it a celebratory part of the event. Use a baseball cap with the school’s emblem as a lid topper on your Dutch oven.

Resources

• EssentialCook.com