This is actually something that I’ve been playing with for months now. I first tried it at my parents house in Colorado for new years dinner. They had just built a fire pit in their new back yard and I thought what better way to not only enjoy a fire in the frigid temperatures, but to cook some amazing food in it at the same time?
As you may know, my girlfriend and I spent the last week at Big Bear Lake enjoying some much needed time in the outdoors. I was able to fish every day while there and even got some catfish to cook. While we didn’t have a true fire pit at our cabin (we did have a fireplace inside but it was far too hot to fire it up), we did have a charcoal grill outside. I figured this would be a perfect opportunity to try out this recipe on charcoal instead of a fire pit. It came out amazing. This is definitely one of those perfect (and utterly simple) recipes that you can enjoy by campfire.
Now if you don’t have access to a fire pit or charcoal grill, fear not. I’m not allowed to have either of those at my house since I live in an apartment and it’s gas grills or nothing. Below, I’ve written out a simple way to make this same recipe on a gas grill. The cook time is the same, but instead of putting the potatoes directly on coals, you just put them on the grill instead. Easy peasy.
- 2 large sweet potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1/4 cup duck fat, melted
- 2 tbs herbs de provence
- salt and pepper to taste
- About an hour before you're ready to cook, soak a large handful of wood chips in water.
- Place tallow, herbs de provence, salt and pepper in a glass bowl and place over a small pot of simmering water. This will melt the duck fat and incorporate the seasonings without burning them.
- While duck fat is melting, preheat your grill to medium heat using only one burner
- Remove wood chips from water and place in a smoker box.
- Add smoker box to grill over the active burner
- Remove bowl from pot and toss sweet potatoes in the herb duck fat mixture coating evenly.
- Wrap sweet potato mixture in aluminum foil leaving the top open and place on the coolest part of the grill for indirect cooking. Cook for 45-60 minutes or until fork tender
- Remove from grill and serve immediately
****Disclosure: If you purchase any of the products linked in this post or products through the links on the right side of my page, I receive a small percentage from the respected affiliate programs****