Food and Cooking

Cooking on an Old Plow Disc

My favorite way to prepare camp food.

“Yo, Bro’! I have a birthday gift for you,” said my fishing buddy, John.

I’d met John during a fishing trip when I’d forgotten coffee. I walked up to his camp with a handful of fishing flies to trade for some grounds, noticed a large metal disc for cooking next to the fire pit, and commented how much I loved it. A few hours on the river made us mates; months later, he made me a cooking disc for my birthday.

I was in the middle of a divorce, and my old dog had died, so the gift meant a lot at the time. That’s one of many things fishing, surfing, and my passions have done for me: deliver friends.

The Disc is made from an old plow disc. John filled in the axle hole and welded two anchor chain rings for handles. The result is a 20” diameter carbon steel cooking machine. I’ve heard it called a Cowboy Wok, but I like calling it The Disc.

I’ve cooked nearly a hundred meals on it since he gave it to me seven years ago. While I have a wok burner to use The Disc at home and during open fire bans, it shines while camping and cooking over a fire.

It’s safe to say no spice can rival the flavor of food cooked on a campfire in nature. Toss in the hysterics of friends, and you have one hell of a sauce.

During one trip, I caught a steelhead in the morning and cooked it on The Disc for my buddies. With a big fish like a steelhead or a salmon, I like steaking them instead of filleting so no meat is wasted. Those fatty pieces of meat against the bone or along the belly can be the most succulent mouthfuls of a fish meal. With the Deschutes River singing her song steps away, my mates and I ate well that night.

On New Year’s Eve, 2022, I camped on the Deschutes with my kids. We had snowboarded and skied the night before, so a large fire was needed to dry our gear as much as it was for warmth and cooking. It was a chilly day with the winter sun barely poking over the canyon rim and temperatures never climbing out of the thirties. After a day of hiking and a little fishing, I reflected on my life and another year gone by while making a chicken-stir fry noodle dish on The Disc.

I often don’t want to take the time to document my adventures as it takes away from the pure experience of it. I also feel we live in a society of sharing overload, and I can get self-conscious about doing things for the wrong reasons. With it being dark at 4:00, though, shooting video, prepping, and cooking gave me a creative buzz and prolonged the whole process.

The large diameter of The Disc allows for temperature regulation by simply pulling cooked food to the outside edge like a griddle. When cooking meat, I like to flash-sear it to seal the juices and then slide it to the edge. This way, when I cook the veggies, I can add them accordingly so none are overcooked and I slide the meat in last. If I want a little gravy, I pour a mix of broth and cornstarch into the mix.

Making taco fixings on The Disc is a dream because I can keep all the ingredients warm, and the residual heat on The Disc is enough to warm tortillas and melt the cheese. Another memorable meal was when a home inspection client gave me halibut. It was at the height of my divorce anger, and my poor buddy, Jed, listened to me rant the whole night. The least I could do was cook him a good dinner!

Preparing breakfast on The Disc is a cinch, too. While my diet is mostly pescatarian and plant-based, anything goes when I’m camping. I make it a point to cook bacon on it, as the grease helps season the carbon steel.

The sizzle of bacon and the crackle of a fire on a cold morning is a duet that warms the heart as much as food pleases the palate.

On a trip in October 2023, I finished the bacon and eggs just in time to make a breakfast taco and watch the eclipse next to a mountain lake. That’s Pro-Grade, as I like to say.

Presentation matters when serving food, and there’s no doubt that food served on The Disc adds zest. I may have John make me a bigger one so I can have a Big Disc and a Little Disc.

Thanks for reading! Happy cooking and Happy Eating! As you can tell, I spend a lot of time on the Deschutes River. It’s my happy place. For more pictures and a story about the Deschutes, click on the link below!