How to Cook On Your Fire Pit (Plus 3 Christmas Recipes)

Lighting up a fire pit creates a warm, cosy and festive atmosphere immediately. People have been connecting over the fire for ages, and probably that's why we're so drawn to it even to this day. 

But did you know that your garden metal fire pit is not only a decor piece but can be used for cooking too? Yes, if you cook something on a grill, you can cook it on your fire pit! 

With the Holidays coming up, you have the perfect opportunity to put your fire pit to the test and make some delicious festive treats. Need some beginner tips? We've got you!

Here's how to cook on your firepit (plus three yummy Christmas recipes).

Preparing for grilling on a fire pit 

Before we get to grilling and enjoying these delicious goodies, let's prepare the work area to stay safe and avoid accidents. 

Safety first 

Pick a spot far from flammable objects and anything else that could burn down along with your jacket potatoes or veggie skewers! 

Place your fire pit at least 4-5 meters away from any bushes, trees or furniture, so you can focus on the food and not on possibly starting a fire. 

Secondly, always, and we mean, always have a bucket of water nearby. Yes, fire pits are generally safe, but the expression "don't play with fire" didn't appear out of nowhere! 

You will also need this water to extinguish the fire after you're done cooking. 

Kindling and firewood 

Kindling 

To start a fire, you need a bed of kindling. That means smaller pieces that burn fast and hot because if you start with big chunks of timber, your fire might start smoking, and it will also take some time to get it burning. 

Getting the fire burning fast keeps everyone excited about the whole grilling process while standing around the fire pit for hours puts a damper on even the most positive crowd. Nobody wants to wait for their s'mores forever! 

Firewood 

Okay, so you've got your fire going, now it's the time to add your firewood logs. This is where it gets really exciting because different types of firewood will add different flavours to your food. 

For home-cooking, your best call is buying your firewood at the store. Try such options as hickory, cherry wood, almond wood, hickory, mesquite. You can also experiment with ironbark or red gum. 

Alternatively, you can also use charcoal, and if you're outside in the wilderness, why not find something out there (stay away from pine though, as it's full of sap).

Grilling on the fire pit

Okay, not it's time to prepare your fire pit. It's super easy to do - simply add a fire pit grill on top, and you're set. 

Ember Fire Pit Grill

 Learn More About Ember Fire Pit Grill

Now on to other tools. You want to have the basics such as skewers, tongs, a heat resistant pan and a pot as well as aluminium foil. 

Skewers are perfect for grilling your hot dogs, vegetables, tofu; tongs will help to flip things quickly, and aluminium foil just makes life easy! 

You can wrap pretty much anything (chicken, meat, fish, vegetables, potatoes etc.), drizzle some olive oil, sprinkle some spices, seal the foil packet and place it on the grill or even directly onto the fire. It will cook to perfection and have that irresistible firewood flavour! 

For cooking things in liquids, use cast iron pots and skillets.

Practice makes perfect

Many people don't even try cooking on their metal fire pits because they're afraid they will fail. And while it is a little bit more challenging to control the heat on a fire pit than a grill, with time and practise, you'll get a handle on it! The result? An incredible experience and delicious, smoky dishes! 

Holiday cooking on a fire pit 

Christmas and the entire Holiday season is perfect to start experimenting with cooking on your fire pit. You have your friends and family to keep you company, and the traditional dishes will be even more delicious when infused with the aromatic firewood smoke! 

Our Campit Bundle has everything you need for grilling at home, or you can take it to someone else's backyard effortlessly too!

The Campit Bundle 

 Learn More About The Campit Bundle 

It includes the portable Campit fire pit for camping, home and travelling, fire pit grill and the Campit Carry Bag. The fire pit is very easy to use and transport as it has unique cut-out handles, fits perfectly in the carry bag and is lightweight. It's also effortless to assemble and pack it up. 

Christmas recipes

These three Christmas recipes are easy to make and will be an excellent introduction to fire pit cooking. They are also delicious, so make sure you have enough for a crowd! 

S'mores skillet 

You need:

1 cup of Nutella or other similar spread

20 large marshmallows

Graham crackers or digestive biscuits 

Cinnamon (optional)

Cast iron pan

Preparation

Spread your Nutella in your fire pit skillet (22 cm diameter) and top with the marshmallows. Sprinkle it with cinnamon if you'd like. Place it on your fire pit and let it cook for a minute or a few depending on your fire pit heat. Don't leave it out of your sight, and once it gets golden brown, take it off the fire pit and serve it with the biscuits for dipping.

Baked Apples

You need:

Apples (one per person)

Cinnamon and sugar mix (depending on a crowd, approximately 2 tbsp of sugar/half of a tsp cinnamon per person)

Aluminium foil 

Preparation

Cut a hole in each apple and take out the core. Leave the skin on. Place the apple on a sheet of foil, sprinkle it with the sugar mixture. Wrap the foil, place it on your fire pit and bake for about 10-15 minutes. 

Serve immediately, but be careful with the boiling hot juices! 

Mulled wine 

This one's super easy, but let's be honest, very important for a cosy Christmas Eve or Christmas day feast! 

You need: 

A few bottles of red wine (depending on the crowd size)

A little bit of sugar (to taste, about 2 tbsp per bottle, but you can do less or more)

Cinamon, cloves, orange peel or orange segments

Preparation

Pour everything into a large pot, place it on the fire pit, heat up just until it starts boiling (don't get it to the boiling point) and serve. 

You can make this kid-friendly with grape juice.