If you’ve never cooked over a real wood fire, it can look like a high-stakes, burnt steaks adventure. Cottage-country chef Paul Laforet, a live-fire and outdoor-cooking specialist, explains how he evens out the hot spots.
Q: How do you build a good fire for cooking?
A: A few years ago, I would start by lighting the fire early, getting a big pile of coals, and treating it like a charcoal barbecue. But then, like with charcoal, the heat spikes or drops rapidly, unless I was constantly stirring or adding new coals. Now I use a method I learned from an American chef. Lay half-burnt pieces of wood flat over the coals, with maybe an inch between the wood for airflow. This gives you consistent heat you can adjust—move the logs a little and stir the coals for more heat; move the food away to cook more slowly.
Use part of the fire, or a second fire, to partly burn standing logs so they’re ready to add to the main fire. Once you’ve learned to arrange the wood and coals, cooking over live fire is no more scary than charcoal.
I’ve used all kinds of wood—maple, oak, cherry, walnut. Any heavy hardwood is great. Softwoods burn too fast, but as long as you’re really paying attention, even they can work.
Q: Do you need any special cooking equipment?
A: I have a free-standing grate with adjustable legs. I can set it to the right height over the heat—usually no less than four inches and no more than six. That’s important. Good fire gloves are essential—silicone, lined, and long enough to protect your fore-arms. You can grab coals, burning wood, or cast iron pans and move them around safely.
Q: If you’ve never cooked directly over fire, what’s a good food to try first?
A: Don’t start by cooking the protein—it’s expensive, and it’s horrible if it’s overcooked. Vegetables are full of water, so they’re more forgiving, and they teach you how to work with hot spots. And if you burn a couple of carrots or peppers, who cares?
Q: How did you get started?
A: I was working in a hotel restaurant, and my sister-in-law asked me to cook over fire at Glen Oro Farm for a bachelorette party. I’d never done this before for a group, but they were friends, so it was low stress. The owner of Glen Oro asked me to do more fireside dinners for guests, but it wasn’t until Covid—and my restaurant job was all but gone—that I started cooking over fire again. I started in December, outside and about as socially distanced as I could get.
Q: What dishes do you enjoy cooking most?
A: A perfectly cooked risotto over the fire is very satisfying. Making hollandaise is fun too, or something with dough, like a flatbread or pizza right over the coals.
Q: S’mores or wieners?
A: I’m partial to both, but I do love a good hot dog cooked over the fire. To cook the wiener evenly, keep it to one side of the flame and rotate it constantly.
Q: What’s your go-to spice, herb, or secret ingredient?
A: Salt and pepper. Learning to use salt properly improves food exponentially. It’s the key to flavour, and it opens your taste buds. Be brave, loosen up, and season your food like a restaurant, which is more salt than most home cooks are willing to use. I use kosher salt—a flaked salt is easier to control, so there’s less opportunity for error.
Q: Do you get annoyed when people add salt to food at the table?
A: When I was a younger cook, I did, but I’ve learned everyone just has their own flavour preferences. You should try the dish before adding anything, but I won’t tell anyone how to eat.
Q: What are your most memorable meals cooked over the fire?
A: Last April, I was cooking two dinners during an ice storm. A tree had fallen on the road driving in, and the whole time I was outside I could hear branches falling in the forest. That cook felt dangerous.
Another time that really stands out was early on. I was hired to cook at a cottage in Tobermory. The firepit was built into the dock, over rocks at the shore. The dining table was set up there too. The sun’s setting, I’m cooking next to the lake, I can’t picture a more beautiful setting—and I’m getting paid to be here. I felt like pinching myself.
This article was originally published in the Early Summer ’26 issue of Cottage Life.
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