I really enjoyed your article on hearth cooking, Hearth Cooking: An Ancient Cooking Technique Revisited. A few years ago, while trying to find a place in the backyard to have a wienie roast, I put my mind to work and came up with a simple but workable plan for a cooker of my own. I call it my “portable, backyard cement-block fireplace.”
I used standard-sized cement blocks and recycled grill racks. I didn’t use mortar, so we can move the portable outdoor fireplace to a different location if the need arises.
For my family and friends, it has been an enjoyable and useful backyard wood cooker, cooking everything from smoked sausage on a stick to our Thanksgiving ham. Plus, the kids love it!
Ronnie Norwood
High Point, North Carolina