Beach Food

Photo: flickr user Ruth L

Preparation

"Lots of food, lots of courses, lots of friends" is how Chuck Bancroft, a Boy Scout leader and ranger at California's Point Lobos State Reserve, puts together a successful beach barbecue.

The beach, after all, is a great place to barbecue, but hauling all that great food across the sand - in addition to the chairs, coolers, toys, towels and whatnot - can be a chore. The way to make it enjoyable is to keep it as simple as possible and divide up the work.

"But always have plenty of food," Bancroft said. "Get people around the fire eating and talking." Don't wait for a main course, start eating right away, something like bean dip and chips.

Build a fire that is hot and can be controlled. Don't hope to find enough of the right-sized driftwood lying about. Odds are you'll only find a tree trunk.

Besides, wood takes forever to burn down to coals, is tough to start unless you squirt lighter fluid on it, and smokes like crazy, always blowing into peoples' eyes.

Take along, instead, MatchLight or other self-starting charcoal. Probably two or more bags is best, depending on the size of your crowd. That way, a single match produces a hot, even fire that doesn't smoke. Throw the whole bag on the sand and set it alight.

Bancroft is a devotee of special Dutch ovens, made of cast iron with a lid and three legs. Coals from either charcoal briquets or wood are put beneath and on top of the pot, raising the internal heat quickly to 300 or 400 degrees.

"You can cook over an open fire, or you can cook on a Coleman stove, but you can get really creative with a Dutch oven," Bancroft said.

Dishes such as chicken cacciatore can be made in advance, stored in the pot and reheated on the beach. Many beachgoers, however, might not choose to bake a souffle in the sand, but for firing up chili or beans or simply keeping grilled meat warm, a Dutch oven is very effective.

Another problem with beach fires is that they're often big and hot, so it's hard to turn food on them without grilling your hands, and the meat tends to get toasted if it's not attended to closely. This is especially true for hot dogs, which can turn into carbon in the wink of an eye.

However, if kids are eating, hot dogs are usually the food of choice. And it's the only food children can cook by themselves, as long as it's on the end of a long stick. Kids will incinerate hot dogs, drop them in the sand and let the family dog steal them, but if there are plenty, that's not a problem.

Children love to participate and it takes a bit of work off the cook. All they need is a plate of buns and some squeeze mustard or ketchup. As for the sticks, get the kids to fashion their own at home.

For adults who choose not to eat hot dogs, meat in a long-handled cooking basket that can be turned is the best way to avoid the headache of trying to flip burgers or move around chicken on an unsteady grill. It also makes it possible to cook fish or shrimp without tragic losses into the fire.

A basket is too heavy to hold for any length of time over a fire and nobody wants that job. It is easiest to rest it on an old grill you've hauled from home

In a garbage bag. It's possible to dispense with a grill and prop a basket over a fire on rocks or pieces of wood, but be careful - if it slips and falls onto the coals, the diners will be discontented. Always take along an oven mitt and a pair of tongs, just in case.

Take along rigid paper plates, too, so you don't have to take wicker holders for flimsy paper and so diners can use utensils (plastic, of course) if they don't want to eat with their fingers, which inevitably get coated with sand, as does everything.

There is really no kind of meat that can't be barbecued over coals. There should be enough heat to do chicken quarters or ribs. However, food that cooks faster and has less fat is better. The lean stuff won't cause the coals to flame and won't tie one unfortunate person to the fire. Marinate meat in a sealable plastic bag that can be thrown away.

After the adults are done, let the kids make s'mores, using their sticks to roast marshmallows. Just keep the chocolate bars in the cooler.