Sometimes when you’re out camping, you just want a nice, simple meal. Like a toasted sandwich, or grilled cheese, or a pizza pocket (my personal favorite pie iron recipe). Though pie ironapple pie is delicious.
But normally, you simply cannot cook any of these things over a campfire. It’s not at all safe. You can’t physically hold your bread over the flame without getting burned.
And with no electricity at camp, you can’t bring your toasted sandwich maker or panini press.
The only solution to this problem is to get yourself a pie iron.
The box opens up for you to put your sandwich ingredients in or pie ironpizza , and you use the stick to hold the sandwich in its box over the campfire to cook.
It could be just what you need to feed the family in just minutes after a long day of hiking.
We’ve been checking out some of the best pie irons on the market, and after much deliberation, we were able to hand pick our top 5 favorites.
And our reviews are coming up next.
After that we’re going to present you with a buying guide, which can give you a little more background into pie irons, and picking the right one for you.
You may want to stick around for some bonus sections at the end.
Now, this product is available in several versions, a single cooker, a double cooker, a single broiler and a double broiler.
As the name suggests, the double cooker can take 2 sandwiches whereas the single cooker takes just one.
The broilers meanwhile, are very similar to the cookers but are rounded to take rolls or muffins rather than traditional sandwiches.
What we love about these models is just how affordable they are.
The handles are particularly long at 27 inches, so you can stay well away from the campfire flames. And they feature stay-cool wooden grips on the end.
We love the inclusion of the S-clip to hold the two handles together. This way you don’t have to work hard to press the handles together, and you don’t get hand fatigue.
And because it’s cast iron, you can put the pie iron directly on the coals, and rest your hand and arms.
Moreover, the cast iron is pre-seasoned, which means it's good to go straight out of the box.
The handles are removable, so it’s easy to pack the contraption away, store and transport them.
This pie iron may come from a less well known but it has become a bestseller with online retailers, and has been met with very positive customer feedback.
We love the size of this pie iron, it’s big enough to take 2 chunky toasted sandwiches. Great when there are several hungry tums to feed.
We also love the handles. They are heat resistant and safe to hold, thanks to the wood. They’re quite long at 13.8 inches, but you can extend them out to 21.7 inches, which means that you can keep your hands well away from the flames.
The handles are also completely detachable, which makes it easier to stow the parts away for easy transport.
This durable cast iron sandwich maker comes pre-seasoned, so it’s good to go as soon as the box arrives. And it features grill lines for that extra burst of flavor.
It’s also easy to clean, thanks to being non-stick. All it takes to clean is a little hot water and a pat dry.
And there’s a free bonus - a downloadable ebook of pie iron recipes. Some great inspiration there.
This pie iron comes from one of the top brands in the industry, Rome Industries.
What we love about this model is that it’s a double pie iron rather than merely a single one. This basically means that it can toast 2 sandwiches at a time rather than just the one.
It’s a very durable, heavy duty model with excellent heat retention for even heating.
The large cast iron sandwich box comes on a long steel pole with very nice, elegant wooden handles. Your hands will be kept well away from any dangerous campfire flames.
It’s a bestseller with online retailers and comes highly recommended, with more than three quarters of Amazon customers rating it at 5 stars out of 5.
On average, customers rated this pie iron at 4 and a half stars out of 5 for versatility, durability, and sturdiness.
Overall, it’s very well made and is of excellent quality.
Here we have another great pie iron from the top well-established brand, Rome Industries.
And what makes this particular pie iron different from the rest of the pie irons in our shortlist is that it’s round rather than square or rectangular.
This means that you can use it for English muffins and crumpets, rather than your more traditional sandwiches.
It’s a very durable and heavy duty pie iron.
And it;s solid cast iron construction means that you can place it directly onto the campfire coals, and leave your hands free to do other things while your English muffin is being cooked for you.
The handles are very long, so that when you want to place it on the fire, or take it from the fire, you can keep a good distance from the fire and be completely safe.
The handles feature wooden grips that are cool to the touch. And you don’t have to worry about the campfire heat being conducted straight from the flames to your hands.
It has been met with very positive customer feedback, with about three quarters of those who bought from Amazon rating it at 5 stars out of 5.
It’s also available at a very fair and reasonable price.
Rome Industries is a very good, well established brand in the arena of pie irons.
This is one of Rome Industries better selling models, and has earned really good customer ratings on online retailer websites.
It’s quite a durable and heavy duty beast, made of real cast iron. It makes very light work of toasting all your favorite sandwiches over the campfire.
The handles are very long at 18 inches, so you can keep your hands well away from those pesky campfire flames. And the handles have wooden grips that are cool to the touch.
Three-quarters of those who bought from Amazon rated this model at a full 5 stars out of 5.
Overall, it’s a very easy to use pie iron and is also easy to clean and maintain too.
Pros
Fair and reasonable price
Top well established brand
Made of real cast iron
Extra long handles
Cons
Handles are not detachable
The cast iron is not pre-seasoned
The 5 Best Pie Irons Buying Guide
As promised, here’s your buying guide. Let’s talk about what to look for in your pie iron.
Long handles that are safe to hold
In order to be safe to hold over the campfire, you will need a long handle to ensure that whoever is using it doesn’t get too close to the flames.
We recommend going for handles that are at least 16 inches long.
These handles need to be very heat resistant, so that the heat from the campfire is not conducted straight through to your hands. A wood handle would be a good choice.
Shape and Size
Pie irons are available in a range of different sizes and shapes. The more standard size will fit a regular slice of bread. But you can also get doublers which agre great when you have many mouths to feed.
Or you can get round ones to fit an English muffin, like the kind you get in McDonalds.
What it’s made out of
We would argue that the best pie irons are made from cast iron.
But that’s by no means your only option. You can also get pie irons that are made out of aluminum. Aluminum irons tend to be easier to use because they aren’t as heavy, and they are more versatile.
On the other hand however, aluminum pie irons can warp or melt, which is why we prefer cast iron pie irons overall.
Brand
There aren’t a lot of brands in the pie iron market. But it’s clear that Rome Industries is one of the main and most popular brands.
It is also the brand that has received the most positive feedback from customers overall. We included several models from this brand in our shortlist of top 5 picks.
Cost
Fortunately, pie irons are very affordable. But they do vary in price. You can get some for less than $10, and at the higher end you could be paying about $50. B
ut to be honest you can get a good quality pie iron at both the higher and the lower end of price point.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Can You Make In A Pie Iron?
Of course, pie irons are best known for their ability to produce some excellent toasted sandwiches. But don’t be under the illusion that that’s all their good for.
Here’s a quick list of foods you can make in a pie irons:
Cassie brings decades of experience to the Kitchen Community. She is a noted chef and avid gardener. Her new book "Healthy Eating Through the Garden" will be released shortly. When not writing or speaking about food and gardens Cassie can be found puttering around farmer's markets and greenhouses looking for the next great idea.
