Evening star., 1926-05-28

ed over 1t constitute more tnhH HoaI
the charm. F,od may be cooked out
doors by boiling, stewing, frying,
FASTING, baking and in other ways,
according to the apparatus you use.
Many a. promising outing has come
to an abrupt end because Of the in.
competence in the commissary de-
partment. For this reason it Is I'M
portant that q boy understand some.
thing about camp cooking. His
mother or sister will be glad to give
him some lessons, which should in
olude the making of corn bread. tea
and coffee. The second course OF les.
sons should have to do with prepar-
ing meats, baked, broiled and boiled;
frying fish, boiling eggs and potatoes
and the making of stews and soups.
With these fundamentals mastered 1t
will be possible for him to enlarge his
scope Of work when necessity for do
ing SO arises.
Emergency Cooking.
A steak or chops or bacon can he
well cooked without a frying pan or
- ripler. which does away with the
CARRYING of utensils. The inexperi.
enced camper chooses short, straight
stick. usually a dead, dry branch
that he finds ready at hand without
cutting. When he has sharpened the
stick at one end he thrusts 1t through
the chop or steap from side to side.
lie then holds Il In his hand as he
Squats before the Are and slowly
'troils--himsef The stick. being dry,
takes fire in few minutes and prob
ably burns off and drops the chop in
the ashes. but even If that does not
happen the meat shrinks in the heat,
the hole in it enlarges and the chop.
instead of turning when the cook
wants it to. only slips round on the
stick. AS the next step he gets
stick with fork at the end. W hich
he thrusts into the chop the same as
lsefore. from side to side. That is an
improvement, for the two proncs
keep the chop from slipping round.
hut the fault with this stick is that
It. allows only the edges of the meat
to he presented 10 the fire and not al
ternate sides. as the camper wishes.
For such cooking the experienced
camper selects a limb from a young.
growing birch or other sweet.fla vored
tree. lie cuts It about feet long,
leaves fork at one end and sharp.
ems not only both prongs.. but the
other end of the stick as well. The
two sharp prongs he inserts firmly in
butt end he sticks into the ground at
such a distance and angle as will
hiring one side Of the meat to a suit.
allie proximity to the fire. He makes
the butt end secure by putting one
stone under 1t and another over 1t,
and then enjoys his leisure until one
side Of the meat Is done. A turn OF
the stick brings the other side next
to the fire. and the job Is soon fin.
fshed. Being green. the stick does not
burn off. Being long. Il can be made
In support itself instead of having to
he held, and being thrust into the
edge rather than into the side of the
chop or steak. 1t permits the meat to
he cooked evenly all through.
To cook bacon the experienced
camper cuts the same kind: Of
stick, but uses 1t somewhat different.
~ Instead Of sharpening the prongs
ne leaves them blunt and splits them
down a little way with his knife.
then he places a slice OF bacon in the
splits across the fork OF the stick.
Placed in this way the bacon cannot
curl. and 1t can be turned at will.
While the camper is eating his first
silce the stick can be cooking the
second one for him, so that his meal
comes to his plate crisp and hot.
Roasting Fowl or Cuts of Meat.
A simple and satisfactory method
OF roasting fowl or large cuts of meat
before an open fire is little known, or
seldom practiced by campers. 1t can
be recommended Tor cooking launches
OF venison, legs of lamb or veal or
Joints of beef. To obtain the best re-
suits, II is necessary to have a fire
with back log TO reflect the heat.
Directly in front of the fire drive two
stakes about feet in height, one on
each side. They should stand at least
feet apart. Cut a stiff cross pole,
long enough to span the space be.
tween the stakes. and lash it firmly
In place near the top Of the stakes
Prepare the fowl or meat In the
usual manner for roasting Run q
Ions. slender wooden pin through 1t
from side to side, at the wings, II
IL Is a. fowl, in such a way that the
ends of the pin protrude about an
inch from the sides. In like manner
run another wooden pin through the
fowl directly behind the legs. Now
secure one end of piece of stout
twine to the center of the cross pole,
and at the lower end of the tWine,
dangling near the ground. form a
loop large enough to slip over the
ends Of one Of the wooden pins that
pierce the fowl. Adjust the length Of
the twine so that the suspended fowl
swings just high enough above the
ground to permit a pan to be placed
beneath 1t to catch the dripping
gravy.
An occasional twirl Of the twine
will keep the fowl spinning, and so
expose all sides equally to the heat,
and insure 1t against burning. The
fire should not be permitted to blaze
high enough to singe the twfne. With
properly regulated fire the end. OF
the fowl nearer the ground will cook
more rapidly than the end from which
the bird is suspended. Therefore. re.
move the fowl for minute midway
in the process of cooking and sus-
pend it from the other pin. You can
test the progress of the cooking by
thrusting a sharp silver of wood into
the fieshier parts of the fowl. If
white juice follows the silver, the fowl
is ready to serve. If the juice Is
tinged with red, the roasting is not
complete. A large fowl will usually
he cooked in hours. chicken In
considerably less time. Follow the
same method In cooking cuts Of meat.
Handy Camp Stove.
Have blacksmith or other worker
In iron take five strips of heavy band
Gf hoop iron. Is inches long, about an
inch and half wide and an eighth,
pf an inch thick. and rivet them
bosely together, So as to make a
continuous chain of five arms that
will move freely at the joints. Build
the camp fire between two parallel.
or nearly parallel, logs, close enough
together to permit use Of the partially
extended stove, or between rocks sim.
tlarly placed. Lay the riveted ends
Of the stove on the logs or stones.