New Cooking MB

[yarrow]

The new badge includes lots of food prep and handling safety features. Has anyone started this badge? I haven't done much dutch oven cooking but would like to learn and run this badge at summer camp next year. What is the basic equipment I would need? Recipes?

 

On another note......what happened I was a Senior Member and Now I am a Forum Member. Did I get demoted, LOL?

[ScouterPaul]

yarrow

You'll need the obvious of course. I recommend and least 1 dutch oven to start with. I also recommend the following: Charcoal chimmney, tongs, heavy gloves and a lid lifter.

 

As to recipes there are tons of them on the internet. My neighbors think that I'm quite strange. I use my dutch ovens like some people use their grills. I love to play around with recipes.

 

I can feed 50 - 60 people with 4 - 6 dutch ovens and a box oven.

[Bob White]

Hi yarrow,

What basic equipment you need depends really on the type of camping you want to teach. The Cooking requirement mention lightweight soves and packing out garbage so I perceive that they are leaning toward backpack cooking. This would certainly be a more adventurous way to go. However if you want to include heavier style base camp methods there is room for that as well.

 

I'll let others go into base camp cooking and just give you my ideas on the specific items to complete the merit badge.

 

You'll need

*a Food Pyramid to teach the basic groups and to guide the scouts in menu planning.

 

*a lightweight camp stove for food prep

 

*Reference books on one pot and backpack recipes (several good ones are available at your Council Service Center or local book stores)

 

* one-quart pots for cooking

 

* Water

 

*Freeze dried food examples

 

*Zip Lock bags and Squeeze tubes to demonstrate repackaging to eliminate glas, metal and rigid packaging.

 

*Biodegradable soap for hands and dishes

 

*Lightweight, durable eating utensils

 

*food for demos

 

*menu planners

 

*transportation to a local store to sample pricing

 

Again you can also demeonstrate base camp cooking however the merit badge requires only backpack methods.

 

Have fun at camp,

Bob

 

 

 

[Quixote]

I agree with Bob White, but would add that you don't have to neglect "base camp" cooking either - I was in a high adventure Explorer Post growing up and we did quite a lot of backpacking (week long trips up to 50 miles) and using the patrol method, were able to backpack in a dutch oven and all the fixings to make some nice stews, cornbread, fruit cobler, etc.

 

 

[sctmom]

MacScouter.org has a bunch of dutch oven recipes and links.

I have Lodge cast iron dutch oven I bought at the well known mega store (much less expensive than the Scout store). I also recently bought an aluminum dutch oven from campmor.com

It's also worthwhile to have a dutch oven bag so you don't have the thing rolling around and dirtying up the car or truck.

 

Anything you can cook in your regular oven can be cooked in a dutch oven. A tip to make clean up easier -- line with foil or use disposable foil pans inside of the oven when baking.

 

I also cook in mine in the backyard (the neighbors already know I'm crazy....lol). I prefer to try out recipes at home so I'm not so embarrassed on campouts.

 

About the food pyramids, when I went over this with Webelos, they all moaned because they think they've seen it way too many times. A fun tip I heard is take bags of groceries to the meeting. Each group of boys gets a bag of groceries and must sort them by the food pyramid. Have each bag contain the same items and have a little competition. Throw in some interesting things that fall into multiple catergories and non-food items (like toilet tissue). Also, be prepared that the boys will want to eat some of what they see (especially if it is candy.)

 

There are TONS of recipes on the web -- camping, one pot, home, etc. Focus on the things most boys like to eat --- tacos, chili, pizza, desserts, cinnamon rolls.

 

I like the way the new cooking merit badge includes the food safety and the cooking at home.

 

[yarrow]

I didn't realize the cooking badge went more to backpack cooking. I assumed it was base camp cooking. I have taught a lot of cooking for Girl Scouts, base camp style, but only occassionally used freeze dried items. Love the grocery bag pyramid idea. I will need to look at the MB book and see the direction they are going. I understand there is more food safety and nutrition, but I thought it was more about cooking and not just rehydrating. I have only used a dutch once or twice but would like to do more. We have done mostly one pot, skillet, foil, and solar cooking. Thanks for your ideas. Keep 'em coming.

[Bob White]

Don't think that because it's backpack cooking that you are limited to Dehydrated foods. There are alot of other foods that lend themselves to backpacking. Characteristics you look for are: nutritional value, durability while packed, minimal packaging, correct portions, and ability to maintaion freshness. For the most part backpack menus are designed for no more than 2 persons.

Items such as fresh eggs, milk and raw meat rarely lend themselves to this situation. But dried meats, grainsand many fresh fruits and vegetables. work quite well, as do dehydrated foods.

 

I enjoy base camp cooking as well, such as dutch oven (by the way there are back pack oveds that work with lightweight stoves) and novelty cooking like a Roast wrapped in wax paper and laid in the coals, or meals cooking in a cardboard box oven.

 

My original comments were based on my impressions from the cooking Merit Badge requirements which seem to me to lean toward backpacking.

Bob

[sctmom]

Bob, have you seen the new requirements for the cooking badge? Two of the requirements (5 & 6) are about trail cooking. The rest are camp cooking and home cooking. So there are lots of different things to cover now compared to before 2002. This badge seems much more time consuming than before, yet more beneficial in my opinion.

 

Looking at the requirement, another thought comes to mind. Have handy some flyers from the grocery stores about how much things costs. Some of the requirements are about calculating the costs of the meals.

 

For those doing this with your troop, check out any nearby cooking / chef schools. From what I hear they are always more than willing to help. Also, I would try chefs from catering businesses and high quality restaraunts.

 

[Bob White]

I don't disagree sctmom, although I will point out that part of requirement 4 includes backpack cooking as well.

 

I was addressing the original question of "what basic equipment was needed". I'm sure with all of our varied experience we could fill a patrol box or two with cooking supplies, however the MB can be completed with far less.

 

I also agree with getting a pro chef to come give a demo. You can get some great tips on simple but unique meals.

[sctmom]

Oh, the reason I recommend is a pro chef is so the boys don't equate food service with only the lunch room ladies (no offense intended to anyone). But I think this is one of those areas where the boys really need to see this as a viable career option for men. Male chefs that I have talked with absolutely love their jobs and could show the boys that cooking is cool (like Emeril), is more than lunchroom cooking or slinging hashbrowns at the local greasy spoon.

 

Yarrow, I would think you would need to choose if you want to cover the backpacking cooking requirements and / or the base camp cooking. Having never taught merit badges at that level, I'm not sure if you can cover both in one week.

[OldGreyEagle]

Its off the subject, but mom, a greasy spoon??? Such things harken me back to my days around chicago with a loaded hot dog and chips. Cant find them in the sterile suburban area I live, you made me homesick

[FScouter]

How about a dog with potatoes, eggs, chiles, and cheese? Try the Oki-dog on Melrose Blvd. at 2 AM. Nothing better.

[yarrow]

Ok, I've read the requirements. There is provision for base camp cooking, backpack cooking and at home cooking. Has anyone worked this with several boys? Do they each cook for two people plus themselves or can they all work together in the planning and preparation of these meals for a larger group. We could scatter the cooks around the year a various campouts but wouldn't want to cut into the time needed for those scouts needing cooking for rank advancement. How have you worked it?