Cooking in a fireplace is a unique alternative to your stove or oven. This technique gives you the open-fire dinners you’ve been dreaming about for a while now. Learn how to use your fireplace for cooking healthy, flavorful meals.
Safety First
Before we begin talking about cooking tips for using your indoor fireplace, let’s educate ourselves on the best safety practices when handling a fireplace. Always keep your flue open when choosing to cook inside over the fire. Leaving the flue closed will expose you to carbon monoxide, which can be detrimental if not addressed immediately.
In addition, move any flammable substances and materials away from the fireplace before you prepare your dinner. Keep a clean chimney and fireplace to avoid disaster. Cleaning your chimney should already be something you do, but if you are unsure when to clean the chimney, contact a professional for help.
Choose Your Cooking Method
Using your fireplace to cook is very similar to cooking over a campfire. There are various options when attempting a meal in your fireplace. Some cooking techniques include skewers, a dutch oven, or à la ficelle (on a string).
I prefer to cook over a fire with a dutch oven. The trick to cooking with a dutch oven is to stoke the fire to produce plenty of heat and hot embers. Once you prepare the meal in the oven, place it on the burning embers with a few embers lying on the lid. Try out all the methods to find your favorite.
Other Tips for Tasty Fireplace Meals
You should not under any circumstances cook in a gas fireplace. You need to keep gas logs clean, and any grease or food particles could make the logs misfunction. When choosing the fireplace for cooking your next meal, choose well-seasoned wood to add more flavor.
Avoid fatty meats, as this can cause a lot of smoke to build up within the chimney and flue. You should also pay close attention to the temperature because it cannot keep it evenly, unlike a traditional oven. For additional safety, you can place a tray below the food you are cooking to catch any grease or particles that might fall.
No Fireplace? No Problem! Use the Ooni Pizza Oven
If you don’t have a non-gas fireplace, the Ooni Pizza Oven is a great alternative and you can cook more than pizza in it. It’s a great way to get the smoke, high heat, and char of cooking over an open flame. Check out my review HERE.
My cooking tips for using your indoor fireplace will indeed become a favorite way to cook delectable dinners. Friends and family will be astonished by how you made a fabulously healthy meal in an indoor fireplace. Always keep safety as your number one priority when cooking in an indoor fireplace. Happy cooking!
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