There's something almost primal about a wheel of camembert going soft and molten over glowing embers — the rind blistering slightly, the whole thing turning into a pool of warm, garlicky cheese you tear bread through with your hands. It's the kind of dish that needs almost no effort and gets almost all the praise, perfect for the lull after the flames have died down and the coals are glowing steady. Gather everyone round, hand out chunks of crusty bread, and let the fire do the work. This is adapted from Lennox Hastie's book Finding Fire, well worth a read. Top tip: double skin the cheese with the wooden lid and base.
Ingredients
- 1 whole camembert (in its wooden box)
- 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 4 small rosemary sprigs, broken into short pieces
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for the ciabatta
- 1 ciabatta loaf
- ½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
- 0.3 teaspoons black pepper, freshly cracked
Method
Step 1: Prep the fire
Get your fire down to a steady bed of glowing embers with no active flames. You want consistent, moderate heat, not a roaring blaze — flames will just scorch the rind.
Step 2: Score the camembert
Remove the camembert from its box (keep the box — you'll bake it in the bottom half). Using a sharp knife, score the top rind in a criss-cross pattern, cutting about halfway into the cheese.
Step 3: Stuff and season
Push the sliced garlic and broken rosemary down into the scored cuts. Drizzle the top with the olive oil, plus extra for the ciabatta, and season with the flaky sea salt and black pepper.
Step 4: Place on the embers
Set the camembert, still in its wooden base, directly onto the embers at the edge of the fire. Nestle it in so it's stable and in even contact with the heat.
Step 5: Bake until molten
Bake for roughly 10–12 minutes, checking after 10. It's ready when the cheese is fully soft and jiggly in the centre and the top is bubbling and golden. Rotate the box slightly if one side is heating faster.
Step 6: Slice and oil the ciabatta
While the camembert bakes, slice the ciabatta loaf thinly and drizzle both sides with olive oil.
Step 7: Toast around the embers
In the last few minutes of the camembert's cook time, lay the ciabatta slices directly on the embers around the cheese. Toast for about 1–2 minutes per side, watching closely, until golden with charred edges.
Step 8: Serve immediately
Lift the camembert (still in its box) off the embers onto a heatproof board. Pile the toasted ciabatta around it and dip straight into the molten cheese.
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