Dutch Oven
Temperature Guide

Do you need to know how hot your coals are? Use this Dutch oven temperature guide to help you determine how hot your fire is and how long you need to cook your meals.

Cooking with Coals...

Preheat coals in a grilling chimney or in your campfire. Place coals under your Dutch oven as well as on the lid. Be sure to have a heavy duty pair of pliers or lid remover (the lid gets extremely hot) to remove the lid and move the oven when replacing or adding coals.

You can use the hand test to see that your coals are ready. Hold your hand over the coals and count how many seconds before you have to remove it (be very careful). Use that number to gauge your temp using the chart below:

Approx. Temp	Type of Fire	8" Cast Iron Oven - # Coals Under/On Top	12" Cast Iron Oven - # Coals Under/On Top	# of Seconds Hand Held Over Coals
250 - 325	Slow	3 under / 5 on top	4 under / 6 on top	6 - 8 sec
325 - 400	Medium	4 under / 6 on top	5 under / 9 on top	4 - 5 sec
400 - 500	Hot	5 under / 9 on top	6 under / 12 on top	2 - 3 sec
> 500	Very Hot	6 under / 12 on top	7 under / 14 on top	1 sec