Please Bring BackThe Outback Plus 10 Oven

These are handy little ovens in my opinion. I’ve had mine for about 20 years and still use it regularly. Unfortunately they have been discontinued by the manufacturer and were at one time sold by Backpackers Pantry. I wish they still made these, but you can find them for sale online on rare occasions if you search for them. I like mine so much that I scrounged up a second one so I’d have spare parts handy if I ever need them.

The thing is — they’re pretty bulky to carry around in a pack. They were not light weight enough to haul them for miles and miles on end in an age where ultralight packing is the new normal. Those through hikers on the AT, or the long distance hikers are pretty serious about every ounce of weight they have to carry on their backs. These ovens nest down to only about an inch or so thick, but they’re 10” in diameter. They hog up space in your pack.

But me ? I only hike shorter distances of 20 miles or less these days. I’m an old Marine who no longer has to haul a dump truck’s worth of gear on my person anymore, so my hikes are purely for pleasure these days. Mostly just to get away from other folks and be by myself. Well…… me and my dog that is.

These are handy little ovens in my opinion. I’ve had mine for about 20 years and still use it regularly

Outback Plus 10 in action

Better still….. I’m a motorcycle camper kind of guy. I have two Harleys and a Russian URAL motorcycle. One of my Harleys has a big sidecar attached. And the URAL is a lighter weight bike with a sidecar that has 2WD so I can get into some really remote terrain in the Maine backwoods. One or two of these jammed down in my saddlebags ? Oh yes please ! I have a small metal folding windscreen that I wrap around the base to help retain more heat. It comes in handy on windy days.

Prep work for an apple pie

What better way of going motorcycle camping with my service dog than to have the nice little luxuries of home that you can haul out into the middle of nowhere ? I’ve been riding motorcycles for over 50 years. (Giving away my age, hahahaha). Strap on a tent, throw on a sleeping bag, my portable kitchen, a fly fishing rod, a small flask of single malt scotch, and a couple good maduro cigars — and you might not see me for a week or two. Load the dog in the sidecar seat and we’re off !

Outback Oven viewed from the top

I like food. I’m older, somewhat softer around the middle, and I have nobody else to impress. So why not bake myself an apple pie way out at my campsite or remote picnic area when I feel like it ? Why not enjoy a fresh 10” pepperoni and cheese pizza ? A Hamburger Helper casserole baked with some nice ground up lean buffalo meat ? A pan of homemade biscuits first thing in the morning ?

What better way of going motorcycle camping with my service dog than to have the nice little luxuries of home that you can haul out into the middle of nowhere ?

Now here’s the only tricky part. There’s no real way of knowing exactly how hot the oven currently is. There’s a metalized hood that fits over the clamshell oven itself, and the knob handle that allows you to open it up and remove the food has a small red needle on it. The trick is to regulate the heat from your stove by opening or closing down the fuel going to the burner. See that little writing that says “BAKE” ? When the red needle gets between the letters K and E on bake — you’re right about 375 * at sea level. Well — I’m in Maine. Not but a few places are really high enough in elevation to worry about lack of cooking power on a stove.

Browning the crust

When the heat is ramping up to BAKE, I start my timer and let it go until the prescribed time is done once it reaches the guesstimated temperature. Naturally since I’ve had this thing for 20 years now, I’m pretty proficient with it. I’ve baked pizzas, casseroles, pies, brownies, muffins, biscuits, and small cakes with this thing ! Basically if you can make it in your kitchen at home, I can do so on a smaller scale just about anywhere.

Now with a convection type oven like this, you don't have a mass for heat retention on top, so you don’t get things browned much. I work around this by bringing along a tiny kitchen torch and simply browning the tops of foods by hand.

Apple pie on the plate

I do all my prep work at home the night before my trip and stick the stuff in the freezer overnight. I don’t have to worry about anything getting too warm and spoiling that way. It slowly thaws in my saddlebags on the ride to my destination. Imagine this — you roll 20 miles down an old log skidder trail and you set up camp literally in the middle of nowhere. You set up your camp, and get a decent fire pit going. Next, you break out your little oven and bake yourself a fresh apple pie miles from the nearest kitchen. You’re not lugging a whole pre made pie in there and worrying about squashing it because it’s fragile. Heck no ! You’re legit baking this thing in the backwoods.

To all you scrambler type motorcycle riders out there who love to ride the fire trails and logging roads in the backcountry — take note. This is a piece of gear you should be considering and looking for.