Dutch Oven Enchiladas - Camping Recipe by Fresh Off the Grid (2024)

FAQs

What can you cook in a Dutch oven camping? ›

Sear, pan-fry, sautee: A camping Dutch oven is also a great stand-in for a cast-iron skillet. Anything that can be cooked in a cast-iron skillet can be done in a Dutch oven too, like searing steaks, browning chicken thighs, sauteing vegetables, etc. We find the high sides help prevent grease from splattering.

To prevent your tortillas from tearing or becoming soggy, quickly fry each corn tortilla in any oil you like for about 10 seconds on each side, until it starts to get crispy but is still pliable. This will add a barrier that will keep the tortilla from absorbing too much sauce, and also adds a little extra flavor.

Take your oven's diameter in inches and double it. This is the number of high-quality, standard-size charcoal briquettes you will need to heat your oven to 325 degrees every time. For a 10-inch oven, you need 20 briquettes. For a 12-incher, you need 24 briquettes, and so on.

Too much of a good thing

According to Kitchen Seer, classic enchiladas should be fried a little before stuffing and baking. This toughens up an otherwise soft tortilla which would become drenched in whatever sauce is used.

Dutch ovens, like the Camp Chef Classic Dutch Oven, have been used for wilderness cooking for ages and are a wonderful way to cook nourishing food in the great outdoors. They retain heat and enhance the transfer of heat through the food.

Assemble the remaining enchiladas. Then spread any remaining sauce evenly over the top of the enchiladas, followed by any extra cheese. Bake. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, until the enchiladas are cooked through and the tortillas are slightly crispy on the outside.

Bake uncovered 15 to 20 minutes or until hot.

The 1.5 quart dutch oven is perfect for side dishes and desserts, but we recommend a 3 quart or 4.5 quart for people living alone and cooking mostly for themselves. The larger size will fit most recipes for 1-2 people and can better accommodate one-pan meals.

Nearly all dutch oven cooking will come out ok if your dutch oven is about 350 degrees. Some things should be cooked hotter and some cooler, but that's the temperature for all recipes that fail to include a temperature suggestion.

Pepper jack is great too. Queso fresco is soft, not greasy when it melts, cotija adds a dry saltiness to green enchiladas, combine with Jack which is like asadero, mozzarella, or queso quesadilla. If you don't have options, buy a blend and add pepper jack. Use a fresh cheese, like panela or canasta.

Are enchiladas better with corn or flour? ›

Corn tortillas go well with Mexican dishes like tacos, enchiladas, and tamales. They are also perfect for use in tostadas, sopes, and quesadillas. Flour tortillas are often used in burritos, fajitas, and chimichangas. They are also great for making quesadillas, sweet dishes like dessert tacos, and breakfast burritos.

Rebecca, try this: Heat one cup vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until the oil bubbles immediately when you stick the edge of a tortilla onto the surface. Working one at a time, fry a tortilla, turning once, until it just starts to brown and crisp (about 10 seconds per side).

Be Mindful When Cooking Acidic Foods

In an enamel-coated Dutch oven, prolonged cooking with acidic ingredients may discolor the interior coating but doesn't erode it.

Definitely. You can do just about anything in a dutch oven, from a roast chicken to soups to baked beans to desserts. One thing it's good for is baking bread in your home oven.

For this dish, place your Dutch oven over a fire on a metal grate or rack, which will be hotter for sauteeing. If you don't have a grate, let the fire burn down, and then bury the oven well into the coals so there's plenty of heat.