Protecting families from contaminated food and water
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Protecting families from contaminated food and water
Posted in Food Safety,Our Blog on June 21, 2026
The weather is warming up and campers are rejoicing. While many people pack a camping grill others like to rough it a little more and prepare their foods over an open flame. I love cooking this way and it definitely brings out the times gone by and allows us to be really creative and explore different types of recipes. The food always tastes better for some reason, maybe because by the time we can eat it’s usually when we are starving from being outdoors all day and we really crave this meal.
Of course, there are some safety tips for cooking outside over an open flame. Some are simple and pretty common, but others can be overlooked because we get busy and complacent or that we are just that hungry and rush the process.
A great meal starts with a well-built fire. Follow these steps to create a stable, hot, and controlled cooking fire.
The type of fuel you use significantly impacts flavor, heat levels, and cooking efficiency.
• Hardwoods (Best Choice) Oak, hickory, maple, and ash burn longer and provide consistent heat.
• Fruitwoods apple and cherry add a sweet, smoky flavor to meats and vegetables.
• Charcoal Ideal for temperature control but lacks the natural smoky flavor of firewood.
• Avoid Green wood produces too much smoke, and softwoods like pine contain toxic resins.
Choose the right fire structure based on what you’re cooking.
• Stack kindling in a cone shape.
• Add larger logs around it.
• Light the tinder at the base.
• Lay two logs parallel.
• Stack another layer in the opposite direction.
• Continue stacking for a square shape.
• Grill Grate Creates a stable cooking surface over open flames.
• Cast Iron Skillet/Dutch Oven Retains heat well and is perfect for slow-cooked stews, breads, and roasts.
• Long Tongs & Fire-Resistant Gloves For safely handling hot food and adjusting logs.
• Heavy-Duty Roasting Sticks Perfect for hot dogs, marshmallows, and kebabs.
• Direct Cooking on Embers Works well for steaks, flatbreads, and charred vegetables.
• Foil Packet Cooking Wrap fish, potatoes, or vegetables in aluminum foil and place in hot embers.
• Tripod Cooking Suspends a Dutch oven or pot above the fire for slow cooking.
Making sure that all foods are kept cold or warm in some instances is very important. We like to bring coolers with lots of ice or ice packs for our meals that need to stay cold. I am really a bear to deal with over this because I find myself always checking to make sure everything is cold enough.
We make sure that our meats and vegetables are separated. This is so important to prevent cross contamination.
Lots of ways to sanitize our hands is really important too. A high alcohol content hand sanitizer works well, but soap and water are the best. I like when we cook like this at home and have access to fresh hot running water, but that isn’t always available.
I bring our portable meat thermometer and always make sure the batteries are working before we pack up. This ensures that meats are cooked to perfection and lowers the risk of food-borne illness.
Have trash bags available to pack up the trash when you are finished cooking. This not only keeps animals away but prevents contamination from containers that held raw meats.
Have a way to extinguish your fire.
Check local regulations on burning outdoors.
Use food safe materials for cooking, including any grates and utensils.
Wishing you a wonderful Summer filled with many memories made with those important to you from Make Food Safe.