There is nothing better than cooking in the wild over a fire. The flavors you achieve from wood smoke and the char created by hot coals take any recipe to another level, and the process triggers a sort of primal joy. This recipe is no exception and is sure to be a crowd pleaser as it blends the sweet and spicy flavors of Mongolian beef with the smokiness of the Mexican chipotle pepper in adobo sauce. 

When cooking over a fire, the key to success is to maintain a bed of super-hot coals. If you plan to cook for a larger group, you will want to divide your fire pit in two—an area for your grill and coal bed and an area where you can maintain a fire that will continue to produce fresh cherry red coals that you can transfer to the grilling area to replenish the heat. More on this later… 

Some butchers cut steak tips differently, so I recommend approximately 1-2 sirloin tips per person, depending on the size of the cut and your appetite. About half a pound per person is a good estimate. Once you know the weight of your tips, make the marinade based on the measurements in the ingredients list and multiply/divide to match your steak order. You can save a dish by mixing your marinade right in the sealable container that you’ll use to store the meat as it marinades in the refrigerator. 

Ingredients (Approximate, adjust to taste)

4 lb Prime Angus steak tips

4 oz honey 

6 oz soy sauce (tamari for gluten-free)

2 Tbsp sesame oil

Half of a 7 oz can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (use a mix of peppers and sauce)

1 Tbsp fresh ginger (crushed/grated/or finely chopped)

2 Tbsp fresh garlic (crushed/grated/or finely chopped)

1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced 

1 Tbsp red pepper flakes

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Our steak tips were the star of some DIY Mexican rice bowls, but feel free to pair them with whatever you prefer!

Start by mixing the honey, soy/tamari, and sesame oil to dissolve the honey. Now add all of the other items, including the steak tips. Massage the marinade into the meat to ensure all sides of all the steaks are covered. If you skip this step, the steaks will stick together and create pockets of non-marinated areas. I like to let the meat marinate overnight. 

Pro tip: On a recent backpacking trip, I hiked in a large batch of these steak tips to grill for dinner on the first night. In the morning before the trip, I put them in the freezer until they became leather-firm and then wrapped them in one of my insulating layers in my pack. They were still cold by the time dinner came along that evening. If you’re car camping, you can just keep the container on ice in the cooler until your fire is ready for cooking. 

Now, back to the fire. Car camping sites usually have a ring with an adjustable grate, so you’ll just let your fire burn down and then lower the grate. When cooking over a primitive fire ring (usually made with rocks), it’s a good idea to plan where you will place your grill before you build the fire. Locate a couple of rocks within the ring that are adjacent and of similar height, and then collect one or two rocks of similar height to put in the center of the fire pit to eventually support a level and stable grate a few inches over the coals. 

Make sure you stack your rocks before starting the fire; you want to ensure a stable surface for the grill before things heat up.

Once you have a good fire going, stack about 6-8 pieces of dry hardwood on top and let it all burn down to coals. Next, brush your coals into the cooking location and add your center support stones into the center of the fire pit, close enough to the ring rocks to support the grate in 3-4 spots. (Remember to save a portion of your coals and push them to the other side of the fire ring and build that fire back up in case you need to replenish the coals under the grate.

Now, place the grate over the rocks and ensure it will be stable under the weight of the steaks. Start placing some of the steaks onto the grill, but don’t overwhelm it. There will be some spots that are hotter than others, so you’ll want to be able to rotate the steaks as you flip them to get an equal amount of char/exterior caramelization and interior doneness. Airflow is important for heat dispersion as well. Sirloin tips are thick and juicy and handle fire roasting well. They’ll also need a balance of medium-hot heat to get their internal temps up to your desired level of doneness. I prefer medium to medium rare with this cut. It takes some time getting to know a fire's nuances and what spots are the hottest. This is very active cooking, and you’ll want to be in close monitoring and adjusting as needed, as the fire will change over time. If the fire is really hot (you’ll feel it on your hands quickly as you turn the steak) things can happen quickly. High heat is what you're looking for—the trick is to find the balance. You don’t want the steaks to burn, but you also don’t want to move them around too much, either, or you won’t get a good sear on the outside. If you sense the heat lowering, add more coals sooner rather than later to keep the temperature consistent. 

Enjoy!