Hidden away in an idyllic Surrey woodland, The Salt Box is a celebration of seasonal food and open fire cookery. Since 2017, it has hosted a range of experiences inspired by the natural world and fuelled by flickering flames, including open fire cookery courses, game butchery workshops, foraging walks, and more. Co-founder Beckie Wingrove shares her top tips for outdoor cooking this summer.
Why fire cookery?
We’re firm believers that feasts taste far better cooked over flames. But for us, it’s also about spending time outdoors and connecting with the natural world. Fire is the world’s oldest cooking method, and it has fed civilisations for millions of years. In an era where technology dominates many aspects of our lives, there’s a growing desire to reconnect with simpler ways of living. Traditional fire cooking techniques also add a unique complexity of flavour and texture to dishes.
What are your favourite dishes for an open fire?
Our menus change weekly as we champion seasonal and local ingredients, and we focus strongly on wild game. Recent favourites include tandoori venison cutlets, hay-baked shoulder of venison, and pan-seared pigeon breasts. Cooking over fire is also a fantastic way of giving vegetarian dishes incredible flavour and texture, from coal-baking and chargrilling to smoking and hay-baking. There’s magic that happens when veggies meet the flames. Grilled radishes are a glorious thing!
What advice do you have for an open fire beginner?
At our cookery school, we use a variety of equipment, including fire frames from FireMade UK, ceramic cookers from Big Green Egg and Kadai fire bowls, but you don’t necessarily need any fancy kit. Start with a spot on the ground with some bricks around it, or a fire pit, kettle BBQ or similar.
A sturdy grill is a must in order to create space between the hot embers and your ingredients to cook them evenly. This could be purpose-built, or just an old oven rack propped up with some bricks.
An accurate temperature probe is one piece of kit we wouldn’t be without. Cooking to temperature – rather than time – is key over flames.
Sourcing good quality ingredients is essential, including both food and fuel. We cook with a combination of good quality charcoal, locally sourced seasoned wood and flavoured woods such as cherry wood. These give the perfect combination of flavour and smokiness to our dishes. Petrol station forecourt charcoal is an absolute no-no.
Being patient is possibly one of the most important skills to learn. Allow the fire to burn down to a good bed of embers and don’t be tempted to start cooking until the fire is ready. Some days this will take longer than others – every time you light a fire it will behave differently. Always work with it, not against it and don’t rush it.
Practice as often as possible. You’ll never know what you are capable of if you only get the fire pit out of the shed a handful of times a year!
The Salt Box produce a range of hand-blended seasonings designed for feasts cooked over fire. Blends include chilli, fennel and orange; beetroot, horseradish and caraway, and a BBQ barn blend – perfect for summer grilling. £18 (inc. 4 x blends), available online.
The Salt Box is based on Priory Farm Estate in South Nutfield, near Regiate in Surrey. For recipes and information about upcoming events and full and half day open fire cookery courses, visit wearethesaltbox.co.uk.
