Do It Yourself Cooking Grate

I've watched a few Youtube videos by Alfie Aesthetics and found his ingenious use of a fire grate to cook on. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that the grate wasn't attached to the legs, allowing it to fall over and spill your food into the fire. I also usually have company with me, so I need a larger grate. I chose this on due to it's four raised attachment points and large surface area.

http://www.amazon.com/9x13-Crosswire-Cooling-Broiling-Rack

I bought some cheapo pot metal tent stakes and bent them permanently into circles inside the 4 loops for lifting the cooling rack off a surface. The thing works flawlessly. You can adjust the temperature by how high over the coals your rack is. I generally use it for putting my tea near the fire and heating up water for cleaning up. If I need to boil or cook something, it goes in the hanging pot. It works great as a warming tray as well.

The grate I purchased was chrome plated to keep it from oxidizing or tainting food, so you can cook yourself a hank of deer steak or a nice thick fillet of game fish directly on the grate. To store it, I just apply a rubber band around the grate with the legs folded up and wrap a plastic bag around the outside of the grate and shove in in the outside pocket of my pack. With a little work, it can be used on a tripod or dakota fire hole fairly easily.

The only drawback is that it's all steel. It's a little heavier than I would have liked. I wanted to get an aluminum grate and pegs, but it was rather hard to find. Ti would have been choice if funds weren't an issue, but that's an entirely different matter.