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Old 05-04-2016, 10:32 AM   #1
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Cast Iron Dutch Oven Fryer??

We are heading out later this month after the kids get out of school for a 4 day trip. They have recently taken to Fish....catching and eating. I have wild dreams of lugging stringers of crappie back to camp for dinner (not likely) and frying them up like we used to do years ago. Question, anyone ever deep fry with their dutch ovens? I debated on getting one of those propane burners and pots for crawfish boils and what not for home use.... but it feels like just something else to pack and take camping. Opinions?
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Old 05-04-2016, 11:15 AM   #2
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I think it will work fine, it may take a while for the oil to recover temp between frying,375 is ideal, a large cast skillet might work better , because of a larger heating surface, either way it sounds good !! Fresh caught fish over a wood campfire. Enjoy
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Old 05-04-2016, 11:49 AM   #3
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Your cast iron dutch oven will do fine with most any heat source. I use mine over gas, wood, charcoal, etc.

Where you can't turn the heat up or down with wood/charcoal, you can move it around which accomplishes the same thing.

Breaking from tradition, I use an infrared thermometer to keep an check on the oil temp when frying.
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Old 05-04-2016, 01:15 PM   #4
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Pic

We do it all the time, usually use the lid to my Dutch Oven. Here are a few trout.


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Old 05-04-2016, 01:35 PM   #5
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Only done this with trout, but should work for you. Clean fish wrap in bacon and aluminum foil. Few minutes on each side on hot coals ( depending on size of fish). No additional weight or pot/pan to clean.
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Old 05-05-2016, 11:47 AM   #6
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We take the grands and friends flounder fishing in Rhode Island first week in June. Our dutch oven is frying fish for lunch and dinner. I have small red cones for "NO GO" zone for running kids. Works great!
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Old 05-05-2016, 11:48 AM   #7
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Excellent idea!

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Originally Posted by ryand View Post
We are heading out later this month after the kids get out of school for a 4 day trip. They have recently taken to Fish....catching and eating. I have wild dreams of lugging stringers of crappie back to camp for dinner (not likely) and frying them up like we used to do years ago. Question, anyone ever deep fry with their dutch ovens? I debated on getting one of those propane burners and pots for crawfish boils and what not for home use.... but it feels like just something else to pack and take camping. Opinions?
We have done fried chicken many times in the cast iron dutch overn over the "turkey" fryer propane cooker. Corn oil tends to be very stable for this kind of cooking, just use common sense / caution to avoid any unwanted fires. Happy eating!
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Old 05-05-2016, 01:33 PM   #8
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We have done fried chicken many times in the cast iron dutch overn over the "turkey" fryer propane cooker. Corn oil tends to be very stable for this kind of cooking, just use common sense / caution to avoid any unwanted fires. Happy eating!
I have found that peanut oil works really good, it doesn't burn as easy.
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Old 05-05-2016, 02:03 PM   #9
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Deadly for us

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I have found that peanut oil works really good, it doesn't burn as easy.
I agree, it's probably the best all around frying oil but one of my sons has a deadly allergy to peanut protein so we choose corn oil over some of the other non deadly choices and it has served well. Works great to ramp up the dying campfire when the cooking is done also!
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Old 05-05-2016, 02:35 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ryand View Post
We are heading out later this month after the kids get out of school for a 4 day trip. They have recently taken to Fish....catching and eating. I have wild dreams of lugging stringers of crappie back to camp for dinner (not likely) and frying them up like we used to do years ago. Question, anyone ever deep fry with their dutch ovens? I debated on getting one of those propane burners and pots for crawfish boils and what not for home use.... but it feels like just something else to pack and take camping. Opinions?
I have do have the big pot for seafood boils but only bring it when I am planning a boil. You will want and certainly remember to bring it after paying for the shrimp and lobster tails…

For my normal travels, I carry a short propane burner and a 20lb bottle in a milk crate. They both travel well in the bed of the truck. Under one of the TT booth seats, I keep the shallow fryer pan and pan strainer.

The propane burner, pan and strainer may or not be used on a trip but are there if the desire arises.

I always use the 20lb bottle and a two piece gas tree with my Coleman stove and lantern. Those little bottles are damn pricey.
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Old 05-05-2016, 03:47 PM   #11
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If the crawfish boiler is anything like a turkey fryer, they are very dangerous. It also takes a lot of oil. A good cast iron skillet will take less oil and you just flip the fish over for the second side.

Simple beer batter recipe:
4 heaping tablespoons of flower
4 heaping tablespoons of corn flower
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1/2 tablespoon of baking soda
Garlic powder to taste
Salt to taste optional
Italian seasoning or Mrs Dash optional
1/2 can of beer approximate (can substitute milk, condensed milk, or water)

Mix dry ingredients together in appropriate size dish (about the size of a pie plate) and add the beer until the mixture drips off the fork easily. Wash the fish and then tamp off excess moisture with paper towels. Heat the oil in a pan or fryer. Flick a drop of water on the oil and when the water starts to pop, the oil is hot enough. Stand back so you don't get splashed. Dip the fish in the batter, drain off the excess, place it in the oil and fry until golden brown. With a fry pan, you will have to flip it to brown the other side. Remove the fish and place on paper towels to remove the excess oil and serve.

Most recipes do not include the baking soda, but the backing soda will brown quicker and the fish does not have to be overdone. We do all of our fryer cooking with canola oil. And we never use salt. Cooking time is 4-5 minutes.

Note: If you use an electric fryer, set the temperature to 400 degrees. It takes a liter of oil and can be reused. When the light goes out, the oil is hot. You can cook 3-4 pieces at a time. By the time you have the last piece in fryer, the first piece will be about ready to come out. You may also have to turn the fish to equally brown on both sides. Keep rotating through until all the fish is done. It doesn't take long in a deep fryer.

Fries are pretty simple. Cut up precooked potatoes (skins on) and brown them in oil like American fries.
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Old 05-05-2016, 07:03 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ryand View Post
We are heading out later this month after the kids get out of school for a 4 day trip. They have recently taken to Fish....catching and eating. I have wild dreams of lugging stringers of crappie back to camp for dinner (not likely) and frying them up like we used to do years ago. Question, anyone ever deep fry with their dutch ovens? I debated on getting one of those propane burners and pots for crawfish boils and what not for home use.... but it feels like just something else to pack and take camping. Opinions?
I have deep fried fresh caught fish in my dutch oven and it worked just fine. I also have one of the aluminum pot with a basket in it that I use on a propane camping stove andthat also works great. The dutch oven is heavy and adds a few pounds to your camper! good luck and enjoy!!!
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Old 05-12-2016, 08:24 PM   #13
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Use it on camp chief all the time. Also get a potato slicer great fries
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Old 05-12-2016, 08:39 PM   #14
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Cast iron is great to fry in. The deeper the better, less splatter. Don't wash it, just dump the old grease, wipe down with paper towel, voila.........done.

Crappie is why I live. The rest is just gravy.
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Old 05-21-2016, 05:14 PM   #15
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Another plus about deep frying in a cast iron dutch oven is that all that oil keeps the oven well seasoned. Won't rust that way. We use our for that all of the time.
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Old 05-21-2016, 05:49 PM   #16
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Dutch ovens work great as a fryer. Back when I was a Scoutmaster I would hold a one day event every September for the new scouts who had just joined the troop and had little or no outdoors experience. I would have older scouts work with them on things like knot tying, firebuilding, map & compass and other outdoor skills. While they were working on that I would get the charcoal going, dump a large can of Crisco into the dutch oven and get it heating up. I would bring half a dozen cans of Poppin Fresh dough biscuits too. Pop open the biscuits, cut each one into quarters and roll them into a ball. Once the Crisco melted and was hot, carefully drop the dough balls into the fat and let them fry until golden brown. Out of the fat and into a paper bag that had a couple cups of sugar and cinnamon in it for a quick shake. Voila, donut holes. I'd pass them out to the new scouts as a demonstration of something you can cook and enjoy without having mom's stove and oven. None of them ever turned their noses up at them and I never had to take any home...even if I wanted to.

As others have mentioned, using the dutch oven as a fryer helps to season it and keep the seasoning with the heated oil in it.
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Old 06-04-2016, 04:55 PM   #17
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Frying in the dutch oven can be fun and add to the recipes for camping. You can get a nice frying basket made just for dutch ovens. I got mine at Bass Pro shop. We made deep fried bacon and cheddar macaroni and cheese balls at a recent Scout Campout and took the first prize in the cooking contest. mmm some beer battered fried halibut might be appropriate this weekend.
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