Cauldron cooking in the wild — Free Approach

Approche Libre®

A brand born around the fire...

Everything began by a campfire, with a pot blackened by flames, and the desire to simply get together with friends.

For over 10 years, we have been passionate about bushcraft, bivouacking, and outdoor cooking.
From this passion, Approche Libre was born: an independent French brand, from the Alpes-Maritimes, which designs durable and useful items for living in freedom and cooking outdoors in a cauldron.

Our historical recipe sets

We have designed 3 sets of 10 recipes, engraved on wood, to be used directly around the fire:

Laser-engraved, without ink or plastic, on linden plywood.
Solid and durable, even in humid conditions.
Easy to read and carry, even when bivouacking. Size 80 × 115 mm. Thickness 3 mm.

Our themes:

Gaulish cauldron cooking set
Medieval cauldron cooking set
1930s French cauldron cooking set

Each recipe has been designed to be prepared independently, or around a fire with the family.

→ What to cook in a cauldron? 30 historical recipes for wood-fire cooking

→ Traditional cauldron: How did the Gauls cook?

→ Cauldron cooking: how did Europeans cook in the Middle Ages?

→ Cast iron cauldron: traditional French family cooking from the 30s

Discover Approche Libre®

Cauldron cooking recipe sets: The taste of nature!

Cauldron cooking recipe cards engraved on wood

Equipment made for the fire

To accompany our recipes, we offer a selection of robust equipment, tested outdoors:

Cast iron cauldrons – resistant, traditional, designed to last for decades
Wooden utensils – beech wood ladles, maintenance kit for cast iron cauldrons consisting of 2 FSC® beech brushes – 100% natural
Bushcraft accessories – 100% Merino wool beanies, ferrocerium rods...

Everything is designed for actual use, in the field, by enthusiasts.

→ Our guide to choosing your cauldron

→ Complete guide to maintaining your cast iron cauldron

Traditional cast iron cauldron for wood-fire cooking

Approche Libre ferrocerium with olive wood handle

Fire kit - Approche Libre

Ferrocerium rod and robust striker.

Take what you need to light a fire in difficult conditions... or more simply, to cook in a cauldron with the family

→ How to light a fire with a ferrocerium rod (practical guide)

→ Lighting a fire in the rain: the effective bushcraft method

→ How to manage the fire for slow and controlled cooking

Natural beech wood ladles for cooking in a cauldron

Explore Approche Libre®

🇫🇷 A French company, rooted in reality

Approche Libre is an artisanal company, based in the Alpes-Maritimes.

Our products are conceived and developed in France
Approche Libre is the only French brand to have developed and marketed its own three-legged cauldrons with a strong brand identity, historical recipes and spices, and an outdoor positioning
Our warehouses are in France
The packaging is French
Our wood engraving process uses no ink, to limit environmental impact
Our cards are made to last, gain a patina, and withstand the seasons

For whom?

For nature and adventure lovers
For those who practice bushcraft and bivouacking
For curious cooks who love history and ancestral methods
For those looking for original and useful gifts

Our products form a genuine French bushcraft kit, ideal for wood-fire cooking, whether in the forest, on a bivouac, or in your garden.

→ Barbecue vs cauldron: do you really have to choose?

Why choose Approche Libre?

Because we live what we share
Because our products are tested in the field, and designed to last
Because our approach is French, and passionate

Our vision

Approche Libre is the meeting of bushcraft, ancestral cooking, and the desire to share a free and simple art of living, around the fire.