A fire pit is the best seat in the backyard, and with a cooktop it becomes the kitchen too. These 23 recipes are made for cooking over a live wood fire on a fire pit grill: a center grill grate over the flames for searing, and a round steel griddle around it for everything that would fall through a grate. Each one was written for the Arteflame and works on its fire pits with cooktop as well as its grills.
How to cook on a fire pit grill
- Use hardwood or lump charcoal and build the fire in the center. Allow 30–45 minutes for the steel cooktop to heat through.
- Cook by zone, not by dial. On an Arteflame Classic 40 the cooktop runs about 450–550°F near the fire and 250–350°F toward the outer edge. Sear at the inner edge, finish and keep food warm further out.
- Sear over the flames. With the center grill grate in place, steaks, chops and burgers sear at 1,000°F+ over the fire.
- Season the steel. Wipe on a thin coat of oil after cooking to build a natural, low-stick surface.
- When dinner is done, lift off the cooktop and enjoy the open fire.
Breakfast around the fire
Start the fire, let the cooktop heat through, and cook breakfast for everyone at once on the flat steel ring.
- Grilled Pancakes: Fluffy Flat Top Style
- Irish Breakfast Fry Up: Wood-Fired Sausage & Bacon
- Huevos Rancheros: Smoky Wood-Fired Breakfast
- Grilled Quail Eggs & Vegetables: Healthy Flat Top
- Chorizo & Egg Breakfast Nachos: Grilled & Cheesy
Dinner for a crowd
Sear over the fire on the center grate and cook the sides on the steel around it, so everything is ready together.
- Crispy Lace Smash Burger Recipe
- Tomahawk Steak: Perfectly Seared & Juicy
- Grilled Paella: Smoky Wood-Fired Seafood
- Grilled Fish Skewers: Citrus Marinade (Spanish Style)
- Juicy Grilled Meat Skewers (Greek Style)
- Grilled Fajitas: Three Pepper (Arizona Style)
- Grilled Fish Tacos: Wood-Fired Flat Top Style
- Grilled Mussels: Garlic Butter (Belgian Style)
- Grilled Bratwurst with Onions & Peppers (Kansas Style)
- Grilled Hot Dogs: Wood-Fired & Loaded Toppings
Snacks and sides to share
Easy things to pass around the fire while the main course cooks.
- Cheese Fondue: Perfect Wood-Fired Recipe
- Grilled Stuffed Bell Peppers: Healthy Wood-Fired Recipe
- BBQ Chicken Pizza: Wood-Fired & Crispy
- Crispy Quesadillas al Comal (Mexican Style)
Desserts by the fire
When dinner is done, keep the fire going for something sweet.
- Grilled Butter Tart S'mores (Canadian Style)
- Grilled Bananas Foster: Easy Wood-Fired Dessert
- Grilled Caramel Apple Skewers (New Hampshire Style)
- Grilled Campfire Cones: Marshmallow Filled Dessert
The fire pit grills these recipes were made for
The Classic 40" Fire Pit with Cooktop (from $1,995) and the 40" stainless steel fire pit grill (from $2,495) are fire pits first, at a relaxed 22" seating height, with a removable ½" steel cooktop and a center grill grate. Prefer to cook standing up? The same cooktop sits at cooking height on the Arteflame 40" grill & griddle combos. All are made in Phoenix, Arizona, and ship free in the contiguous US.
See all Arteflame fire pits, or browse more recipes by U.S. state and country.