Cooking in the wild: three wood-burning stoves reviewed

21 Apr 2016


Heading into the great outdoors doesn't have to mean living on tinned beans and roadkill, at least not if you've got one of these wood-burning stoves. WIRED put this selection to the test to find to discover which model can truly take the heat.

How we tested

WIRED took to the wilds of Essex with a bag of logs, a box of matches, a sharp axe and a mountain of sausages. Each stove was rated on ease of lighting, how quickly it reached a usable temperature and how evenly distributed the cooking heat was.


Thanks to its screw-in legs, the Ozpig stands at a comfortable working height and won't scorch the ground, while the collapsible chimney removes smoke swiftly. Quick to light, it can grill or griddle food, and boils a kettle with ease. The powder-coated steel body also retains a lot of heat, so it's cosy to sit around after dark. The big downsides? The size and weight - it's a whopper. 7/10 £300

Weight 19kg
Dimensions D41.5cm x H36.5cm

Horizon Stove

This latest horizon stove weights almost a kilo less than the previous model

Roger Stillman


This ingenious clean-burning cooker was designed for use in disaster zones. The Horizon generates a respectably high temperature - we were able to boil a pan of water in 12 minutes with just a little kindling, and the wire cage makes it safe to move, even when lit. The pan stand is well balanced, though the fire chamber requires almost constant attention to maintain performance. 8/10 £68

Weight 1.8kg
Dimensions D24cm x H27 cm

Biolite Basecamp Stove

To avoid burn marks on the ground, you can add 20cm legs to the Basecamp stove

Roger Stillman


Combining a smokeless biomass stove and a thermoelectric generator for USB charging, the Biolite Basecamp needs only a small amount of wood to get very hot, very quickly. On first use, the stove and charger performed flawlessly. But on repeated use, results were less impressive, particularly for charging. It's also too bulky to take anywhere remote. 6/10 £340

Weight 8.16kg
Dimensions D33.6cm x H38cm (58cm with legs)