Are you tired of mainly eating hot dogs during your camping adventures? Upping your campfire cooking game doesn’t have to be hard; it just requires the equipment. One piece of essential gear that you’ll need is a campfire tripod. It can help you take your cooking to the next level, and you’ll enjoy delicious food and happy campers.
Today, we’ll share some of the best campfire tripods for sturdy fire cooking. So start gathering the firewood; you may want to cook over a fire by the end of this article. Let’s get started!
What Is a Campfire Tripod?
A campfire tripod is a cooking tool used over a campfire to prepare food. It has three legs, and you can put it over your fire to hold pots, kettles, or dutch ovens.
Because you must move them from one campsite to the next and store them when not in use, campfire tripods are typically lightweight and fold up. There’s no limit to what you’ll cook on a campfire tripod.
Who Needs a Campfire Tripod?
Anyone who does a substantial amount of cooking over a campfire needs a tripod. They’re incredibly helpful with preparing and cooking meals over an open flame. This is especially true if camping in campsites that don’t provide a firepit with a grate for cooking. However, cooking over a campfire with a tripod is something you can do in your backyard.
Cooking over a fire is both a science and an art form. Since campfire meals are usually reduced to a single-pot, meals are often comforting and simple. However, the flavor and satisfaction you get from campfire cooking are hard to beat.
Campfire tripods are convenient and easy to store. They also allow the chef to control the cooking temperature. This can help them to cook food slowly and avoid ruining the meal by burning it.
What to Look for When Buying a Campfire Tripod
You should look for a few things when buying a campfire tripod. Keeping these in mind can help ensure you make a quality purchase to help you get the job done. If you want to avoid experiencing buyer’s remorse, look for these things when shopping.
Material
The materials a manufacturer uses will significantly impact the strength and durability of the campfire tripod. If planning to use cast iron or other heavy pots and pans for cooking, you want to know if the tripod can handle it. While a lightweight tripod works great for hiking, it may not support heavier items. If it can’t hold the weight of your cooking utensils and food, it could collapse while cooking and ruin your meal.
Camping equipment often takes a lot of abuse when it gets used. Like the rest of your gear, you need to know that it can withstand the abuse. Some of the strongest and most durable tripods use cast iron. However, they’re incredibly heavy. On the other hand, lightweight campfire tripods made of aluminum may not last as long.
Size
Always check the product’s dimensions when shopping online or in person because pictures can be deceiving. It’s no fun discovering that an item is much smaller than the pictures made it seem. This is especially true if there’s no time to return the product or order the correct size before an upcoming trip.
Additionally, consider how high the tripod will place the food above the fire. Height adjustability provides some flexibility with temperature and heat while cooking.
Portability
Portability is always important regardless of how you plan to use your campfire tripod. If you plan to backpack, you don’t want it to weigh you down. In addition, if you’re tent camping or RVing, you don’t want it to take up more room than necessary. The more storage space it takes, the less room you have for other gear.
Assembly
Consider the difficulty or time it takes to assemble your campfire tripod. You can’t start cooking until you’ve assembled and moved your tripod into place. The last thing you and the growling stomachs want is a delay in eating due to assembly taking too long.
Finally, don’t forget to consider the type of surfaces you’ll camp on. The ground may not always be level when you cook and set up your tripod. As a result, tripods with adjustable legs and wide footing can work the best.
Adjustability
Sometimes your fire might be bigger or smaller, depending on the available wood supply or fire pit size. Therefore, adjusting the height over your tripod helps with set up and during the cooking process. Adjusting location over the fire also enables greater control over the temperature of your food as it cooks.
Pro Tip: Ditch packing these 10 Overrated Camping Gear Items That You Really Don’t Need.
7 Best Campfire Tripods for Sturdy Fire Cooking
You’ll find many campfire tripods to consider. However, you don’t want to trust just any to do the job. Let’s look at seven of the best campfire tripods you can trust.
1. Stansport Heavy Duty Cooking Tripod
The Stansport Heavy Duty Cooking Tripod uses cast iron for the legs, which makes it incredibly strong. It also uses a nickel-plated chain with an S-hook for hanging food.
- Sturdy three leg design for stability
- Nickel plated chain and "S" hook
- Heavy duty steel construction
This method makes it easy to quickly and easily adjust the cooking height, so you get the temperature just right. Whether hanging a lantern, water jug, or drying clothes, this tripod will do the job.
The strength makes it great for those who plan to use heavier pots and pans or make large amounts of food. While the wide base and heavy-duty legs work great, you’ll need enough storage space. These are best for someone who camps in a tent or RV regularly.
2. Diliboz Campfire Tripod
The Diliboz Campfire Tripod Grill is perfect for the Dutch oven-loving chef. This campfire tripod provides 9.5 inches of separation between the base of your dutch oven and the ground. You’ll have lots of room for a toasty fire that’ll quickly and thoroughly cook your food.
- 💪STURDY & HEAVY DUTY - Three-leg heavy duty and sturdy design...
- 🏋️♂️LEGS LOCK IN PLACE FOR SAFETY - Per our customer...
- 🔥OUTDOOR - Cooking tripod for campfire is perfect for any...
In addition, the extra wide base and angle of the legs, when locked, help keep it from tipping over. The steel construction allows this tripod to hold an impressive 100 pounds, but it only weighs 3 pounds. When disassembled, it can easily fit in a backpack to ensure you have it wherever your adventures take you.
3. Coleman Tripod Grill and Lantern Hanger
The Coleman brand is synonymous with camping gear and equipment. So it comes as no surprise that they offer a campfire tripod.
- Made of the highest quality materials
- Camping lights lanterns accessories
- Another quality Coleman product
This lightweight tripod comes with an adjustable 17-inch grill grate. You can raise and lower the grate as it hangs over the flames with a strong chain. At the end of your trip, simply fold up the shock-corded galvanized steel legs. Like tent poles, the legs fold up, which allows them to require minimal space for storage.
This is a great option for someone who wants to cook some light meals over the fire but doesn’t require a tremendous amount of weight. Cooking vegetables, meats, and other lighter options over the fire is easily possible with this tripod.
4. Lodge 5TP2 Tall Boy Tripod
The Lodge Tall Boy Tripod gets its name from the 60-inch legs that come with it. The adjustable 36-inch chain ensures you have plenty of options to adjust the height of whatever you cook.
- Tall Boy tripod features 60" legs with 36" chain
- All-steel construction with high-temp black finish
- Adjustable chain to hang Dutch ovens over campfire
Additionally, the all-steel construction ensures it can withstand the heat from the fire and the weight of a dutch oven. This is perfect for anyone needing to do some heavy-duty cooking over a campfire. However, the solid construction results in weighing 11.28 pounds, which means it’ll require some storage space.
5. Texsport Campfire Cooking Dutch Oven Tripod
The Texsports Campfire Cooking Dutch Oven Tripod has 42.5-inch legs forged from iron. The 26-inch chain has an S-hook on each end to make it easy to adjust the height of your food based on the fire conditions or the heat.
- Sturdy and Stable Three Leg Design Constructed of Forged Iron,...
- Heavy-Duty Plated 26" Chain with "S" hook for easy cooking height...
- Designed to hang Dutch Ovens, Coffee Pots etc over a campfire
While it may take some space for storage, you can set it up in seconds and get to cooking. When you combine the ease of use with the fact that it weighs only 7.5 pounds, it’s hard to beat this tripod.
6. Camp Chef Dutch Oven Tripod
Camp Chef’s Dutch Oven Tripod stands 50 inches tall. The iron construction causes it to weigh just over 9 pounds but allows it to hold over 40 pounds of weight.
- Cook with old-fashioned style directly over a campfire
- Made of durable steel
- Includes: Adjustable chain and storage bag
That’s more than enough for most standard campfire cooking needs. Furthermore, it comes with a storage bag to help you protect it when not in use.
7. Xergur Camping Tripod Board
Why measure your tripod in pounds when you can measure it in ounces? The Xergur Camping Tripod Board weighs 5.9 ounces (0.37 pounds). It’s the definition of minimalism and portability. Why carry bulky legs when you can find some at your campsite?
- High-quality and durable: The campfire tripod plate is made of...
- The structure is simple and strong: the camping tripod board can...
- Convenient to carry: The detachable camp tripod plate is easy to...
The Xergur allows you to find solid sticks strong enough to get the job done. It has holes to put your poles in and has an adjustable chain. Now you can free up storage space and not worry about carrying bulky items while exploring.
The Xergur Camping Tripod Board is only as strong as the sticks you find. So be picky about which you choose. However, it likely won’t be hard to find sticks strong enough to hold the weight of a lightweight pot to heat water or food.
Pro Tip: While cooking around the campfire, make sure you know these 9 Campfire Rules You Should Never Break.
What Can You Cook Using a Campfire Tripod?
Campfire tripods provide an incredible amount of flexibility for cooking. As long as the tripod is strong enough, you can cook just about anything in a Dutch oven or over an open flame.
Whether you use it to hang your pot or a grill grate, a campfire tripod allows you to cook more than just hot dogs on a stick. Many consider it an essential tool for campfire cooking. Pots allow you to cook soups, chilis, and other savory dishes. Grates allow you to cook anything from meat steaks to veggies like a grill.
Can You Build Your Own Campfire Tripod?
You can build your own campfire tripod. The design is simple and easy to replicate, but you want to ensure you do it right. Some DIYers have used rope or other durable materials to join downed trees or branches. These are typically not very portable and make a more permanent campfire tripod solution. In addition, if you have some basic survival skills and supplies, you can create a makeshift campfire tripod.
First, you’ll need some rope or paracord. Then find three sturdy branches and tie them together. Ensure you have enough paracord to hang a grate or other cooking surface you plan to use. Will it last for long? Likely not. However, it’ll get the job done for a short time.
Pro Tip: New to campfire cooking? Use this guide on How Long to Boil a Bratwurst for Perfection for a delicious meal.
Enjoy Worry-Free Campfire Cooking With a Sturdy Tripod
Having a sturdy campfire cooking tripod means one less thing you need to worry about while camping. You have to have confidence that your tripod will get the job done.
If not, you could end up with the tripod breaking or tipping over and your next meal spilling onto the ground. Do yourself a favor and eliminate some of the stress of cooking over a campfire by getting a quality campfire cooking tripod.
Which campfire cooking tripod do you think will work best for you? Tell us in the comments!
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