Campfire Beef and Capsicum Skillet Tacos

L Tacos have a rough reputation at camp. People picture three pans, a bowl of lettuce sweating in the esky, and a spill down the side of the Engel before anyone has eaten. This one skips all of that. Everything happens in one cast-iron skillet sitting straight on the coals. Beef mince, capsicum and onion go in and come out smoky, a little sweet and hot enough to make a cold drink the obvious next move. The rest is assembly, which is exactly the sort of job you can hand to someone else while you keep an eye on the fire. Twenty minutes, one pan to scrub, and a filling that works just as well cold in a wrap the next day. What you need Ingredients Serves 4. 500 g beef mince 1 red capsicum, sliced into 1 cm strips 1 brown onion, halved and sliced 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp smoked paprika 1/2 tsp chilli flakes (optional) 2 tbsp tomato paste 1 tbsp olive oil or ghee 8–12 small soft tortillas 1 avocado, sliced 1 lime, cut into wedges Small bunch coriander, roughly chopped Salt and black pepper For the lime crema: 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 tsp lime juice, pinch of salt Gear 25–30 cm cast-iron skillet Heat-proof gloves and a sturdy lifter or tongs Fire ring with a flat bed of coals, or a hotplate grate over the fire Small bowl for the crema Clean tea towel for the tortillas Knife and small board How to make it Get the coals right first. Light the fire 30–40 minutes before you want to cook. You are after a bed of grey-ashed coals with a deep orange glow, not leaping flame. Flames will scorch the outside of the pan and leave the middle of the mince raw. Make the crema. Stir the sour cream, lime juice and salt together in the small bowl. Sit it somewhere shaded and forget about it. Warm the tortillas. Wrap the stack in the tea towel and set it on a rock near the fire, close enough to take the chill off but not on the coals. They will steam gently while you cook. Pan on. Gloves on, skillet onto the coals. Add the oil and let it come up to heat for a minute, until it shimmers and moves easily. Onion first. Add the onion and cook for 2–3 minutes until it softens and turns translucent at the edges. Garlic, then capsicum. Throw in the garlic for 30 seconds, just until it smells sweet, then the capsicum. Cook 3–4 minutes, stirring, until the strips slump slightly and pick up dark blistered spots. Brown the mince. Push the vegetables to one side, add the mince and break it up with a spoon. Leave it alone for a minute at a time so it browns rather than stews. Five to six minutes, until no pink is left. Season it properly. Stir through the cumin, paprika, chilli flakes and tomato paste. Cook another 2 minutes so the spices lose their raw edge. If it looks dry, add a splash of water rather than more oil. Finish. Squeeze over half the lime, season with salt and pepper, and scatter most of the coriander. Lift the pan off the coals and let it sit for 2 minutes — cast iron keeps cooking long after the heat is gone. Build them. Tortilla, filling, avocado, a spoon of crema, the rest of the coriander, and a lime wedge on the side of the plate. Camp tips Prep at home and save ten minutes. Slice the capsicum and onion into a container, and measure the cumin, paprika and chilli into one small jar. At camp that is one less board to wash and one less thing to think about. Swap the mince freely. Pork and veal mince both work, as does diced chicken thigh cut smaller and cooked a few minutes longer. Plant-based mince behaves much the same, though it needs a little more oil. Control the heat with the pan, not the fire. If it starts catching, slide the skillet to the edge of the coals instead of trying to cool the whole fire. A dry patch of dirt beside the ring is your parking spot. Leftovers earn their keep. Cold filling in a wrap with a bit of cheese is a good lunch on the road, and it makes a serious jaffle the following morning. On a gas stove instead? Same order, medium-high heat on a two-burner, but put a lid on while the capsicum softens — you will get there in about half the time. The one bit of gear that matters A heavy cast-iron skillet is the closest thing to a full kitchen you can carry. It holds heat through a gust of wind, tolerates being dropped on gravel, and does not care whether it is sitting on gas or coals. If you are still cooking after the sun drops, a decent 12V light over the camp table does more for the meal than another gadget — you can see when the mince is actually browned rather than guessing at it. Our range of 12V accessories covers the lighting and power side of that. Cook it once at home on the stove to get your timing, then do it properly on the coals.