Cooking experts, fall out !

Well I dont know about damper, but tea tonight is:

Roast leg of pork
Spuds (jacket)
brussel sprouts
Corn cobbs
Carrots
Onion Gravy (with balsamic vinagar)

Now I do 90% of the cooking an SWMBO eats everything I cook.

I read somewhere on this site that someone has not had backed beans whilst camping, well they have missed a treat, nothing like scambled eggs , bacon , backed beans (with a dash of HP sauce) with toast and coffee for breakfast , on a cool morning out in the open air.

Nope sorry but I'm not a damper fan at all......

BTW I have a nice bottle of Merlot that needs to be drunk (its been in the bottle since 2001)
If I were camping you could help me drink it :-)

John

Wouldn't eat the stuff if you paid me.

Lots of great bread recipes around but I usually use the packs of pre-mix intended for bread making machines. You can easily do them by hand 'cause it's usually the devil's own job trying to find a 240V socket for a bread maker in the bush :)

Mike Harding

Breads and the like:

Bread Baking when Camping
Premixes are by far the most convenient method of producing bread on a small scale, and Laucke “Bread Machine Premixes“ are available in 5kg and 10 kg Packs, containing all the required ingredients to bake bread except water. These Premixes are eminently suitable for the production of bread by other than a Bread Machine, except that the rate of water addition as suggested on the Bread Machine instructions must be reduced, as a Bread Machine can ‘handle’ a much more sticky dough.
Typical Ingredients required
Ingredients kg
Premix 1.0 (6 standard cups)
Yeast (dry) 0.010 (10 grams or 4 teaspoons))
Water 0.600 or 2½ cups (approx, to be varied to suit) or up to 0.700 (3 ¼ cups) for wholemeal premix.
Butter, Margarine or oil. (optional) 0.020 (20 grams or 4 teaspoons)

Typical Equipment required:
Spoon & Cup & Liquid measures, 10 litre plastic bucket with lid or just the camp oven itself.
Directions
Our Premix packs contain Instructions for use, but these need to be interpreted, bearing in mind that they are directed toward the production of bread by Machine at Home. The principles of bread making remain the same, it is only the application that is different.
Mixing
Combine dry ingredients, add warm water (unless the weather is cold, the water should usually be no more than warm or 35 deg C ) and mix together into a dough.
Add enough water or liquid to provide a fairly soft dough initially. This dough will, as you continue to knead, become smooth. It is much easier to add a little more premix later than more water.
Kneading the Dough
This is very important to obtain good bread.
If you knead vigorously and well, this should take about 10 -15 minutes. When mixed, the dough should be about 28 to 30 deg C. (a perception of warm, not cool, to the touch). If it is warmer than this, then next time adjust your water temperature down; and vice versa. The dough can be mixed in the camp oven and the resultant dough transferred onto your plastic cutting board for kneading but a 10 litre plastic bucket with lid is ideal.
One to two glasses of cordial will need to be consumed to help you knead the dough.
Dividing and Moulding
Once mixed, either place the dough straight into your oiled camp oven and go to the proofing section. Or for rolls or tin bread continue reading this section. Cover the dough by lidding the camp oven or the bucket and placing in a warm spot.
After 15 to 20 minutes remove the dough from the container and cut into the sizes required for your product. e.g. Rolls at say 100 grams (size of a tennis ball), small loaves at 500 grams, and larger loaves such as those for a tin the size of a sliced sandwich loaf are weighed at 800 grams. A large camp oven will hold a 1.6 kg dough as suggested
Rolls and small items should be rounded or shaped as required into a nice smooth form, and placed straight on to a greased tray, a fabricated alfoil bucket or ready made baking tray, or direct in to the baking container. Spacing of the dough pieces is dependent on the expected final proof size (expect double or triple the original size) and preferred final appearance.
For a loaf of bread, shape the cut dough piece into a round, smooth ball. Place this moulded dough piece into the slightly greased baking container with any seams at the bottom.
Proofing
The final proof can now take place in a warm, moist and draught free environment.
An esky with a boiled billy in it is best for trayed doughs; or use a camp oven sitting in a warm place such as on a warm motor or in warm sand, or a preheated fire bed, or next to the fire but not in contact with coals or flame.
Note that if it is easier to proof the dough in an esky, then the Alfoil bucket is ideal, and the camp oven can be preheated to the correct temperature.
The dough is usually ready for the oven when it has doubled in size. Usually this occurs after 30 - 40 minutes, providing the dough did not become too cool during the kneading and rounding stages.
Baking
When the proofed dough is ready to bake, shovel some hot coals into a hole slightly larger than the oven and place the oven on these coals, and then add a few more coals to the lid.
Maintain, where possible, an even, low heat.
Just maintaining a few live coals on the lid is generally sufficient to give a lovely brown top crust.
Judging the temperature of the oven is often difficult, but more bread is burned by excessive heat than is under baked.
A simple test of oven temperature is to place a piece of paper into the hot oven and leave it for several minutes. The correct temperature is indicated when the piece of paper is baked to a medium brown colour.
Whole dough pieces placed in the oven should take about 30 to 40 minutes to bake, and smaller products such as Rolls should bake in about 15 to 20 minutes. Products are considered baked when they are evenly coloured and sound hollow when tapped.
Tips:
1. Enjoy the bread and the cordial.
2. When making buns or adding other things such as nuts and seasonings these additives can be prepared at home and stored in little zip top plastic bags or freezer bags.
3. Pre weighed portions of bread mix can also be bagged up.
4. When space is at a premium don’t forget your camp oven will hold a fair amount of product.
5. Do not open yeast sachets until you are ready to use them and keep them in a sealed zip top bag in your fridge or esky ensuring they do not get wet. Do not leave bagged premix near a window or exposed to direct sunlight in your vehicle as the yeast will degrade. If travelling in hot weather (35 Deg C+) remove the sachets from the Premix and store as above.
6. Experiment with beer or milk in place of water, add cheese and/or bacon to your doughs.
7. If you want bread quickly on your first night out then make the dough using cold water and 1 teaspoon of yeast at home before you leave and place it in a sealed plastic 10 litre bucket. Upon arrival knock it down and place it in your oiled camp oven and allow to rise and bake as per previous instructions. You can also make enough dough for two bakes using this principle provided you have enough space in your fridge to store half the dough for another 24 hours allowing for some expansion and maybe having to de gas it occasionally.
8. If you do not have a recipe for cordial most licensed bottle shops have it already 24 to a carton.

Damper Mix
Ingredients:
3 level cups Damper Mix and 1 cup water will produce a damper which is equivalent to a loaf of Bread. If scales are available, add water at 57% of Premix weight.
Method:
1. Place Damper Mix into a mixing container.
2. Add water and mix until a soft dough is formed. Knead until smooth.
3. Leave the dough piece whole, or cut it into smaller pieces and mould.
4. Place a camp oven beside or over hot coals but not in direct contact with flames, and add extra coals to the lid.
5. Bake approximately 20 to 25 minutes if the dough is whole, or 15 to 20 minutes for smaller pieces. Bake at 200°C to 220°C if baking in a conventional oven.
Variations
Try adding one or some, but not all of the following ingredients in Step 1. The figure in brackets below is the suggested percentage of premix weight for inclusion:
Cheese (5 to 10%), bacon pieces (to 15%), mixed herbs (1 to 2%), whole egg (2 to 5%), Mustard (0.5%), peppers (1 to 2%), etc.
For sweet fruit damper, add sugar (5 to 10%) and dried fruit (10 to 20%).
Experiment with other additions eg. Roll out the dough and spread butter, cinnamon, sugar and fruit on it, and roll it up to make cinnamon logs.
Suggested Toppings.... Prior to baking in Step 3, use any of the following. Whole or crushed grains such as kibbled rye or rolled oats, cheese, bacon, sesame seed, poppy seed, herbs, spices, tomato paste, egg. These should be added or rolled into the dough surface instead of dusting flour.
Laucke Mills
2 Callington Rd Strathalbyn SA 5255
Phone: (08) 8536-2475 Fax: (08) 8536-3636
Email: bread@laucke.com.au

QUICK GRILLED SCONES
1 cup self raising flour
Pinch bi-carb soda powder
2 tablespoons butter
Milk to make dough of mix

Mix flour and bi-carb then rub in the butter.
Add a little milk at a time until soft dough.
Grill in a little olive oil until golden brow.
Add raisins if you like.

FOOLPROOF SCONES
5 cups self raising flour
300g cream
1 can lemonade

Method
Measure flour into bowl; add cream and lemonade in any order and mix
Put on floured board, roll and cut out
Bake in hot oven or cook in batches in pie dish on trivet in camp oven on side of five coals – cover with shovel load of coals
Cook for 10 minutes

DATE SCONES IN THE CAMP OVEN

2 cups self raising flour
2/3 cup to cup powdered milk & water
2 to 3 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of butter or oil
1/2 to one cup chopped dates
1/2 to one tablespoon cinnamon & nutmeg

Mix lightly & don’t handle too much.
Flour hot camp oven & place handfuls of mix to cook with hot coals top & bottom.

Cooking time.
Depending on heat. 20-30-40 minutes. Check after 20 minutes

Damper
Ingredients
Double qty. for 12 or 16-inch oven
3 cups S.R. flour
½ cup milk
3 teas. Salt
½ cup water or beer
90 gm (3 oz) Butter
Extra flour
Sift flour and salt into bowl. Rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Make a well in centre of the dry ingredients, add liquid all at once. Mix lightly with a
sharp knife in cutting motion. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly.
Knead dough into round and place on foil-covered rack and place in camp oven.
Bake over a slow fire, placing some coals on the lid of the camp oven. When cooked,
after approx. ½ hour damper should be golden brown and sound hollow when tapped.
Variations: Mixed dry fruit or raisins and some sugar can be added to the mix
or grated cheese may be added to the dry mix.
Other variations can be tried to your own taste.

FRIED DAMPER SWEET OR SAVOURY
What you need:

Sweet
Self Raising Flour
Powdered milk
Dried fruit mix or chocolate or both
Sugar
Pinch of salt
Butter or oil

Savoury
Self Raising Flour
Powdered milk
Dried vegetables or dried/smoked meat
Pinch of salt
Butter or oil

Method:
Mix the flour and powdered milk together dry using a ratio of 1:4 or 5 (freestyle here). Add the rest of your ingredients (again open to a little creative flair). When well mixed slowly add water until mixture is firm, a little bit messy for the cook. The size of the damper depends on the size of the pot/billy you use. Form the mixture into a patty and before placing into the heated pot add a little oil or butter. Flip the damper to crisp on both sides and make sure it is cooked through…

ANOTHER VERSION OF THE DAMPER.

Ingredients:

3 cups SR flour (I use organic)
2 tabs sugar
3/4 cup sultanas (optional)
1 teas baking powder
Milk to mix (I use buttermilk)

Method:

Mix ingredients together to dough, brush top with little milk
Place into cake tin inside camp oven
Cook for 40-50 mins with coals top and bottom

NOTE:
Delete the sultanas and make it plain, serve with jam and cream
for something really decadent.

Delete the sugar and sultanas and replace with 1/2 cup grated cheese
to make a savoury damper.

Damper in the Camp Oven

3 cups S/R Flour
¼ cup full cream powdered milk
90grms Butter or Marg
1 cup of water or beer

Sift flour powdered milk into a bowl and then rub in butter using your fingers [wash hands in case you have just changed the oil in your car] until a breadcrumb like texture. Mix in fluid using a knife. When the mixture resembles a dough like consistency, turn out on a floured surface and form into a round loaf. Make a cut on top to allow for rising, place into a camp oven and cook 20 to 30 mins depending on heat of the fire coals.

For a savoury variation add any of the following:
shredded cheese, sliced olives, sun dried tomato or chopped bacon

Kate’s note: Omit the beer and add 2 tab sugar and 1 cup sultanas for a sweet damper

Hope you all enjoy. I am collecting recipes to put on a CD for those that like bush cooking. Hope to sell for about $5-7 - will have heaps on plus camping tips, main meals, lunches - brekky etc.

Hi all,
a couple of weekends ago at the Kembla Grange 4X4 show, I met my sister in-laws friend who was stressing about an up coming trip. Her hubby expects meat 3 veg etc everynight, regardless of what time they arrive at camp etc, etc. I told her that I take 2 minute noodles, pasta sauce mixes etc for those occasions. She said she couldn't possibly dish anything like that up to him!
Well, I wish I could show that so and so male this post.
Happy eating, count me in for the cookbook, reckon it'll be a goodun.
Barb.

Damper (my Nana's Recipe)
5 cups plain flour, 2 tsps bi-carb, 4 tsps cream tartar, 2 tsps salt
Sift all together and mix well with milk (or warm stubby) - not too moist, cook in camp over until ready.
Slice, cover with cold butter and cocky's dream (golden syrup).
Happy camping.

Footloose,

Sorry mate, the recipe I used to cook damper had beer in it.
Actually, don't you know that the alcohol content evaporates from booze when heated?

I don't cook damper any more.
IMO nothing comes close to fresh crusty bread cooked in the Camp Oven, or Cobb Cooker.
Just a cheap bread or cake pan, a packet of Bread mix and plenty of water to wash the dough off your hands after kneading it.