GATHER YOUR FRIENDS AROUND THE FIRE

I’ve always loved playing with fire. Growing up, our house was heated entirely by fire—we had a potbelly stove in the kitchen and a fireplace on each floor, and we’d cook many a family dinner outside in the backyard fire pit, then sit around the coals, talking and telling stories late into the night. These are some of my happiest memories, so for me, one of the best things about summer is a crackling wood fire, especially when I’m camping. One of the first things I do when setting up camp is get the fire going, both to set the tone, and to get everything nice and hot for when dinner rolls around. I love the challenge of cooking on a live fire—getting the coals just right, that beautiful sizzle when you toss a fat, juicy steak or burger on a hot grill, waking up at the crack of dawn to cook up a cast iron skillet full of insanely delicious-smelling breakfast sausages. The char, the smoke, the crackle and smell of grilled meat—there’s nothing better! Sometimes if I’ve had a long day hunting or fishing, I like to slow cook a Dutch oven full of smoked kielbasa and beans in the coals while I kick back with a cold beer. Or, to make things even easier, I’ll grab a pack of foot-longs or brats and a sturdy stick, because nothing beats a good old-fashioned campfire weenie roast. Except maybe the whiskey nightcap afterwards.

—Elias Cairo, OP Founder & Head Salumist