There are few things I enjoy more than lighting a proper fire, I think it's my favourite part of cooking with fire.

For years I built fires the way most of us are taught — starting small and feeding them gradually from the bottom up. It works perfectly well, but it can feel surprisingly high-maintenance.

These days I almost always use the top-down method instead.

In this film I’m showing exactly how I build and manage a wood fire for outdoor cooking: choosing fuel, chopping wood to size, stacking for airflow, lighting cleanly, and understanding the difference between flames and embers.

A good fire shouldn’t feel frantic. It should build steadily, breathe properly, and eventually more or less look after itself.

This isn’t survivalism or bushcraft. It’s simply the fire-making method I return to over and over again because it works beautifully.

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