Make a CLAY COOKING POT and Use It
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- Опубліковано 7 лют 2025
- In this video I show the whole process of creating an unglazed clay cooking pot from a raw lump of clay to the finished, fired pot. Then I use that pot to cook on my kitchen stove, showing how to make a cooking pot but also that a primitive, unglazed pot can be used for cooking and eating food. Think outside of the box, move beyond glaze. Our ancestors cooked in unglazed clay pottery and millions of people still do.
#cookingpot
#handbuilding
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If you enjoyed this video, check out the first video in this series where I made and used a primitive coffee mug ua-cam.com/video/4z3x8psUUbE/v-deo.html
Yes! Thank you! This is what I'm here for...cooking pots and usable items. If I'm going to put in all this work, making a kiln, finding clay (thankfully, extremely easy here on the South Canadian River in Oklahoma), making and firing said item, I want to be able to use the darn thing for more than a pretty on a shelf. ;-)
I'm excited about it though, regardless!
@@JanicePhillips I used to live near the south Canadian in Byng, OK. Stay tuned there are more practical items coming up.
@@AncientPottery Well, I've actually been there before! I've been to quite a few places in this great state in my 48 years. I'm subbed and hit the bell and can't wait to get my hands dirty that isn't in the garden or in the barn!
I have wild clay do you have to add anything to it? HOw do I make it so that it is not fragile once used?
How long does this last?? Before it cracks
There's no meal quite as good as one cooked and prepared in unglazed earthenware! I have used several clay pottery pieces for cooking and I am impressed with the durability and flavor imparted. Great video!
Haha chad....you have found andys channel🤗....very cool. Like the Video.
So true and something I didn’t mention in the video but that flavor can’t be beat.
@@philipptroger4288 Philippppppp!!! Good to see you here! I just recently learned of Andy's channel. Andy lives fairly close to me.
I agree, I didn't realize it until I moved overseas and cooked in one myself
Absolutely.
Dear Andy, just several words here to tell you how much I respect your work. So real, so authentic, so inspiring.
Wow, thank you, I glad to be able to inspire you.
The best teacher in clay making on UA-cam.
Thank you
Yes
Again, i am so happy i found your channel. I have a bunch of learning disabilities that i have to work with but your videos are so clear and conscise (and no fillers to confuse me!) that I dont have to replay them! We went for a walk yesterday and i grabbed a couple bags of 'dirt' (more sand than anything but im not done collecting) and have a mental list of how and what i can use for a kiln, whether it be a pit or 55 gallon barrel or what. Ive learned to take my time, use what i already have and ruminate on things in my old age - things go a lot easier that way!😄
That's great, it sounds like you are taking on pottery on your own terms. Thanks for watching, I'm glad I can help you out.
Rara, hello! I just found Andy's channel and he makes pottery seem doable. I hope you find this new hobby enjoyable!💕
im so making this for halloween, its going to make a nice lantern, i want to try using different source clay to get the colors and textures you would see in a natural pumpkin, the stalk skin ect. Good vid thank you.
Earthenware is just as good as any other material used for cooking in. In fact, you can use an earthenware bowl that you might use to eat out of, as a vessel for the stovetop in an open fire or even in a oven, so long as you place it in the oven before you heat it up, that is the only thing you need to do when baking in earthenware. Otherwise you could shock the vessel and it may break. Another thing the ancients used for cooking is a Cob oven and I'd love to have one in my backyard so I can cook in it and keep my house cool in the summer. Making bread in a cob oven in earthenware bread pans would be nice but would take a bit of time to learn how hot to keep it and ho long to cook things in it. Cob ovens are a great way to keep your home cool but still have hot food to eat in the summer. In fact a Cob oven would be good for a local community as they were used by many people all at once and they would just keep track of their own vessel and the oven had heat enough to spare for everyone to use for cooking!
My grandfather had a "summer kitchen" that was used for outdoor cooking in the summer to keep from heating the house up. We are so spoiled and out of touch with real life these days.
Stop it. You two are making me miss my grandmother and great grandparents.
lol.
Lucky are we that were taught, or taught ourselves, the ways of old.
@@ladydeerheart1🤦🏻♂️
Albondigas soup, Beef stew or Picadillo Soup would be great to cook over a camp fire. Love these videos, thanks for sharing.
you are welcome
I was anticipating you showing yourself cleaning it out to show how well it can be done with unglazed surface. ha ha Thanks for the other info!
It cleaned up just fine but believe me it wouldn’t be very entertaining to watch me wash dishes.
Now I know how to make lids fit better. Great idea, good vid.
Thanks Wes. I can’t wait to see what you come up with.
For many years, I've cooked many very old traditional, multicultural recipes in a variety of earthenware vessels, and was happy to stumble across your video. Making my own cookware is an adventure I look forward to. Thank you!
I learned something new today and after I bought a $230 ceramic pot, I could make several pots with that money hehe. Please do more videos like this.
It's a very neat pot, but it's missing the handles on the sides, so you can grab it out of the stove. I'd love to see more pots like this!
Split pea soup is a common and popular dish here in Newfoundland. Ours is made with yellow split peas and we don't use celery. Sometimes we will add ham, but traditionally we use Salt Beef which for us is made from beef plate cured in a salt brine with a little potassium nitrate thrown in to turn the meat pink and prevent spoilage. A left over from days when people had no refrigeration and had to keep things from going bad.
I'll bet that salt beef is good and probably similar to ham, sounds good
This is exactly why I came to your channel in the first place, super cool to see it actually done. Awesome work!
Glad you like it!
I`ll bet that was one of the best and natural tasting meals you have ever had. Just found your channel and I am not disappointed, I`ll be watching a lot more of your vids in future. It is good to see something real and natural and not the usual emotionally disturbed drivel that fills most of you tube. keep up the good work, good sir!
Ha ha ha, (emotionally disturbed drivel), thank you.
That's an adorable piece! Beautiful and functional.
Thank you very much!
Thank you, I’m learning to make useable pottery for survival in case of our country failing us! I’m learning a lot from you! God bless you!
I'm definitely going to do this. I live in Pennsylvania and my yard is almost all clay. It's going to be neat to cook food I grew on the property in a pot I made on the property.
That would be cool.
Always enjoy your work ! Potters tip for folks who make a similar pot… poke a small hole in a closed form if you think it might dry a lot before cutting open especially if your clay tends to shrink a lot. Trapped air in a shrinking closed form can cause deformation or cracks 👍
For sure. This did cross my mind as I waited for this pot to firm up while sealed.
@@AncientPottery was a real good looking pot Andy ! I only mentioned that cause I have done many closed forms on the wheel, and have forgot sometimes to poke a hole . And got cracks at leather hard . Anyway, as I said before I always enjoy and learn from your channel . Thanks for sharing !
What do you mean by a "closed form"? Are you talking about the raw clay or the pot after making?
@@alimay1011 yea, a wet clay form that has a hallow closed inside with air . Will crack as it dries and shrinks unless a hole is made so the air cannot compress inside.
Oh thanks I didn't know that @@coopart1
Thank you Andy! It is a pleasure to see you go down the path of making something new to you. Another super video, and I expect we will be seeing an uncommon abundance of notch-lidded pots around here, in short order!
Might you please do something on micaceous-ware someday? I know it's kind of a New Mexico thing, but it really is a unique, and amazing clay body. I suppose that folk who care about such thing would really appreciate your take on the matter. Micaceous beans of any sort...now there's a taste like no other! 👍
Warm regards from Scholle, NM 🌶️
Thanks! I would love to take on micaceous ware, I am adding this to my list for future videos.
I really like mica clay too. Man it fires nice and is seemingly vitrified at camp fire temperatures . I tested it in my gas kiln too at much higher temps and it still held up well
Thank you dear Andy! Lovely pot, loved the process and all that you learn through it:) the soup looks delicious too💐
You are welcome.I'm glad you enjoyed the video, the soup was delicious too.
That's Awesome! BTW palo verde beans picked and dried when they are still green make excellent soup beans in split pea recipes. The young beans are also delicious raw before they get tough (about half grown) or nice cooked like peas.
I have heard that before but never tried it. I am a big fan of mesquite beans so I need to try that. Thanks.
Bravo Andy, very smart job! And very easy. Aris from Greece.
Awesome! Thank you!
hey pot man. i love your shows. simple things made beautifully! its a great pleasure to watch your pots...lol
Thanks!
Great tutorial.
You are so kind to share your knowledge!!
Thank you so much!
You're welcome
This was perfect. A start to finish "how to" pot and you used it in the kitchen. Exactly what I needed. Thank you.
You are so welcome!
Thanks For Sharing 🙋🏻♀️👍🌷
Welcome 😊
Soups looks great. Your pot also.
Peoples used earthenware all the time for cooking and storage of foods.
Sure fatty foods might go rancid, or cooking meats and other proteins might allow the vessel to grow some bacteria.
But I can't help but think if you cleaned and dried them well, then fired them back up to 700-1000 degree now and then. That they would go right back to being food safe again.
Thanks for another great video Andy
You are correct, there are many people to cook out of these all the time without problems. Thanks.
Awesome piece!! Good to see how to make these kind of utilitarian vessels, keep up the good work !
Thanks you, now go make your own.
@@AncientPottery definitely will go and give it a try 😁!
you and atomic shrimp have the same vibe love it
That’s the same way I do my lids. Nice pot! Wait until you try baking beans in it sooooo good.
I saw a photo of yours on Facebook after I had already made this and realized I should have added handles. Oh well, next time.
@@AncientPottery You saw it at the kiln conference too. But yours looks good without the handles too.
@@jakehartner4156 I can’t remember stuff from 4 months ago, I’m old.
I was thinking, can you include the weight of the clay used in projects like this? It'll be a good info for beginners like me
Hey, I used to have a boss named "Brian K". I almost never weigh my clay, I open my container of clay and use it until I finish the pot so there is no set amount. Would you suggest I weight the lump of clay I start with or the finished pot? And can you help me understand how this information could be useful?
I looked through your videos to see if there was any content on making lids for pots, as you did in this video. Unfortunately, I found none. A video on pot lid styles would be nice if you have the time. Cheers.
Hi Andy, I just discovered your channel and it is very fascinating. I am curious if you have ever made a baking stone? I don't know how much there were used in Ancient Native cooking if at all. I have owned a couple and used them to make breads or pizzas and they worked very well.
No, I never have but that would be a fun project
another great video, thanks
Thank you
I liked the lip on the bottom of the pot from the plastic bowl. It made it different.
I definitely made it different, so there's a new technique you can try.
lovely pot, congrats! Nice to see how it’s used
Thanks!
love the sound effect addition at 6:43 😆
LOL, yes
Good show Andy.
Glad you enjoyed it
Hi, that was great, is there a reason the stove pot wasn't also fired outside? I don't have a kiln.
This renewed a 30yr old love of playing with clay. And, I happen to have a huge pile to work with. Bought as a load of garden soil... totally ripped off, it's pure red clay, like it's never even been beside soil, let alone passable as garden soil! Anyway excited to find something to do with it, it's half a dump truck load. Haha. Going to make a whack of pots I guess. lol
I don't know what you mean by "stove pot". There was only one pot made here and it was the cooking pot which was fired outside.
Thank you. Learned why my pots always sag around the middle/ edge of the puki. Really appreciate your input
Glad to help.
I really love your channel. I was trying to make a kiln out of some clay that I had dug from a construction site. They clay here is a light brown slightly yellow type of clay that's super sticky. When I was working construction my boots would get so caked in clay and mud that they would weigh an extra 20 lbs each, not even joking lol. I always thought that it would be nice to use the clay for stuff so I could save some money.
Thanks!
Loved watching this, thank you. 🤗
You’re welcome.
Excellent video! Keep making these. I am learning a lot from you.
Thanks, will do!
Such a talented, inventive guy! That cooking pot is beautiful!! I’d love to try your methods with clay but our temps are going to drop close to zero tomorrow with highs in the low teens & that’s not the kind of temps I want to hang around the outdoors in. Think I’ll wait for spring up here before I make an attempt at this. Lol.
Thank you, looking forward to hearing about your cooking pot when the weather warms up.
yes!!
you are my hero, food and ceramics...
Thanks, glad you liked it.
Excelent! Thank you for share your proccess!
My pleasure!
I actually like the shoulder and think it would help grip while lifting, particularly if it’s hot and you’re using a towel.
Good idea
trouble is, if it's too big the heat differential might cause a crack at some point. aside from that it's also just built-in the most likely place for a pot to crack when dropped, whereas a smoother walled pot is less likely to.
Very nice! I hope you do more of these. Did you know there is a Japanese clay pot they added a paint to bottom so it can be used with induction cook top?
My favorites are the 2 I have with conical lid that has opening in top. I think the big one is called a " Tagine" which I find flavors superior to mexican cumal. My little one is like it's metal counterpart with hollow handle & conical lid with opening at top just like tagine except body is more like regular pot. Tagine is more like plate with sides & huge lid. They are both great for breads. Fact is homemade bread in clay pots are great.
What type of paint was used on the bottoms?
@@treilly261 why would I know what they use? For all I know it is Japanese trade secret. Here is info about pots ;
Kinto Kakomi Ih Donabe (about $87) not only lets you simmer but also steam, thanks to its removable tray. It is safe for halogen and gas, and has a special coating applied to the bottom that allows it to work with induction cooktops.
Thanks, good info. I hope to make a bread cooking container in a video soon.
@@AncientPottery yes! Please do!
Lovely result ! And super cool video ! I am seriously considering trying to make 2 or 3 to offer as personal gift for Christmas
Great idea, thanks
Great and useful project. Top marks thanks Andy. Also the soup looked delicious 😋
I learned a new thing from a couple from India. That is they make a past of Ash then smear it onto the bottom of any pot clay or metal that is going on fire. It keeps the pot from being discolored by flames or coals they said. I shall have to try. They said it protects pot & is easy to clean up.
That's a cool tip. Camping tips sometimes tell you to rub soap over the bottoms of pans that will be used over open fire to keep the soot from sticking. I imagine the same trick would work for clay pots.
@@AncientPottery my post Should say paste not past. Anyway I shall have to try that & your use of soap. I assume bar soap?
Love your work chief….could you make planting pots, toothbrush holders et cetera…..differert things with utility…..god bless
Thanks for the suggestions.
Thank you for clarifying that earthenware can be used for cooking. Always love your videos, because you demystify and keep it it simple.
Thanks you.
Pretty dope 👍🏻😎
your cloth should dry the bottom a little. what you might do, take a hot spike out of one of your fires and melt some holes in the dollar store puki. melting does not crack plastic like a drill might
There are many different possible ways to do it, I was satisfied with the way I did it. Feel free to experiment.
Hi Andy. I don't know if anybody else asked this question (too many comments for me to read them all).
I was wondering why you didn't like the shoulder from the puki. Was it just the look of it or does it affect the pot in other ways? I thought it might be quite practical to have it for more grip when lifting it.
You could leave it if you want, I just like the pot to appear smooth and even all the way up. On the other hand some handles would have been useful on this pot.
Amazing. One tip: use a colander instead of a plastic bowl to keep it aerated
Great job on the pot..and cant go wrong with pea and ham soup..perfect choice, Did you manage to smooth out the inner coil joins after cutting the lid or had it gone to hard by then? ..as ive mentioned before we use a tagine and cook meat /veg over coals outside ..as long as you give it a good clean and re coat in olive oil,no bacteria issues..used the same one for a few years now. Going to attempt one like your now..handles or no handles ...good work Andy
I smoothed out all the coil seams just fine. If you look at 5:58 you can see the inside of the lid which were the last coils to be attached and were smoothed after I cut the pot open. Thanks for the encouragement.
Amazing video. Thanks for sharing. I am going to try my luck at this one .
I love this video. I would have liked to know more about how you used it. Did you just fill it with water directly from the kiln and then boiled your soup in it or did you season it and soaked it first?
No, there was no sealing step that wasn't shown. The pot was cooked in exactly as it came from the kiln. The cooking of the peas will help to seal pores.
absolutely amazing, thank you for sharing🌞
Glad you enjoyed it!
Andy, wow, your skills are incredible. Do you know how they make the “comal” in Mexico? Its a clay griddle that is somewhat large for a clay item. Also, it is used daily for cooking . I have found few videos and none that really show the complete process of production.
I know what a comal is but have no idea how they are made. Sounds like an interesting project.
Please do a Comal video someday. I think a typical Central American comal is a very large surface to work with, but even a small diameter would make an interesting video. There are many videos on seasoning a new comal with cormeal, but not much about the manufacture.
Preciosas y funcionales te quedaron! Gracias.Intentaré replicarlo.
I am moving to the Tucson area within the next year. I look forward to exploring and finding my own clay deposits!
Hit me up for some places to look when you get here. Tucson is not rich in natural clays so it helps to know where to look.
Hello Andy, Thank you for your great video! My question is : for how long time do you cook the pot in the fire ? I guess I depends about the size and so on but to get an idea... Thank you !
It's not about the time, it's about the temperature. So I was shooting for about 800 Celsius as my target temperature. My thermocouple was acting up during this firing so I'm actually not sure what temp I reached but judging by the hardness of the pot I feel that I reached around 850 C.
I wonder if you can fire outdoor pots in reduced condition. Much of the European Iron Age pots are handmade but rather grey or even sometimes black, otherwise made with much the same technique as you show. Maybe they did use simple kilns, but I wonder if you could pit fire them, and at the end pour a lot of hot sand on them from around the fire to cover them up maybe dumping a lot of grass on it first, so that at the end the outer surface of the pots would be reduced and take up this blackish shiny colour.
And thanks a lot for these really inspiring videos that you obviously have fun making.
Balint
I have a lot of experience with outdoor pit fires. All you need to do to get those dark colors is to fire with the fuel right up against the pottery. Eastern United States Native pottery look like that too. Thanks for watching.
Thank you, I'll try that out once I get to coil my first pot! Looking forward to it. My two years old son also looks at your videos with interest, I guess he'll be able to make a pot before me.
Love your show can you cover some Mediterranean style and other old world pottery…..or even early USA style pottery and crockery…….amphoras….giant crocks, mugs et cetera……God Bless
You’re going to love my next practical primitive video. It is scheduled to be a Mediterranean style oil lamp.
thank you
Love your work Andy! Tell me, Do you have a any grog in your clay? Kind Regards 🪴
Yes and lots of it. I usually add about 20%, it helps the pottery to withstand the thermal shock in the kind of short, outdoor firings I do.
@@AncientPottery Thanks so much!
Really enjoy watching and learning 👌
Did you preheat the pot before putting it directly on the flame to cook the food???
What about thermal shock causing cracks.
This is the part I am interested in.
Thank you!
This is so inspiring! Thank you for sharing.
You are welcome.
Love your work…..do some crazy stuff…..ceramics are used for and in all sorts of things
Thanks, will do.
Two questions Andy. Did you fire the pot with the lid on? Also how long did you fire the pot, before shutting down your kiln to cool?
Yes, in a low-temperature earthenware firing like this there is no chance for the lid to melt or stick so it is easiest to fire it in place. The total firing time was maybe a couple hours total, I ran it up to my desired temperature (about 850 C) then I just let it cool until it could be handled and removed.
I came across this channel via the "Olla", this is fascinating...where do you get your Clay at. Here in Kentucky we have Clay dirt, is that well suited for making the Clay for these pots?
I collect and process my clay from nature. Here is one way of doing that ua-cam.com/video/u6RlHSG4cY4/v-deo.html
That is the cutest little pot.
Thanks
Thanks for these informative videos!!!
I love the practical implements of the pottery! What a great video! Has that cozy "Hogan" feeling to it! That is a sacred act of building your own cookware and eating out of it. Most of Native Americans I know haven't even done that! Hope your video inspired more people to consider these natural alternatives! Wonderful job, Andy!
Thanks Mark, it really feels good to cook from my pottery. I can’t wait to use this on a camping trip, it would be awesome to cook in it over an open fire.
i watched your sealing videos, and probably those things are fine, but i wonder if there is a material that will melt at earth fire temp and form a coating like glazes do.
In ancient times pottery was glazed with lead and tin, both of which provide healthy concerns. Modern glazes require temperatures that cannot be reached without modern kilns. This video however is a perfect example of why glaze or sealant is not always required. This pot never had any trouble being used for cooking without any sealants or glaze added.
Awesome! Practical use. Gotta love it. I don't know if there was anything along the lines of corn tortillas way back then, but I bet you could make them on a flatter piece like a cover sherd. I think fry bread is more recent recipe, but that would be awesome to. Now I want green pea and ham soup. 😉
There is evidence of corn tortillas in ancient Mexico dating back as far as 500 BC
Mr. Andy
You could make a big pot in a wok pan.😁 Think of how much great food you could make in it!!!!!😋😋😋😋😁😁😁
Ha ha, maybe some day I will.
really awesome.
Thanks a lot!
Wow! I’m not a potter but you look like you got some real skills. I have one question. Any chance that your clay has any toxins?
Doubtful
Gostei dá forma de fazer a panelinha hoje vou dá continuidade na minha,parabéns e obrigada pelas dicas!
Fun project Andy Ward! There's something about clay that's really healing, we use it on our skin, we can filter water with it, but the idea that using unglazed pottery is unsanitary seems strange. Leaving unglazed pottery in unsanitary conditions sure, but what if cooking and eating out of unglazed pottery can also be healing? Or using it to help culture foods like cheese?
Any dish or pot can make you sick if a person is not carful and clean. These are no different, be aware of the limitations and use them.
Do you not need to glaze the inside of the pot? Does glazing the inside change how or if you can cook with it?
My pottery is low-fire earthenware and not glazed. The way I fire does not get hot enough to glaze, it is made the way it was made by our ancestors centuries ago.
I want to re make a very large bowl like my used to use to hand mix cakes in The early 60s.
THANK YOU
I LIKE IT.
I'm glad
Hey, its so good to see your techniques!! Learnt a lot by your videos 🙏 just one question, why you used a spoon as a stencil while cutting the lid,( to make little round at one point)
Because a lid like this will only fit correctly in one position. So by making a notch you can always line the lid up so it fits. The spoon just made sure it was cut nice and even
@@AncientPottery thank you 🙏
Great video, Did you fire that pot at a higher temp than would normally be reached in an open fire?
No just about the same temperature I always fire to, maybe around 800 C
Wow that's quite faster than I'm used to for split peas. It can sometimes take more than 3 hrs to cook. I wonder if the rounded shape has anything to do with it or is it some other factor?
I don't know I just followed the recipe.
I actually think the shoulder acts like a nice detail. Maybe needs to be refined but it was appealing
Another great video. The color of the clay after firing is amazing. Is that something you tried to do, or just the way it came out? Either way is is beautiful.
Just the natural way this clay fires. Thanks
Nice work
Thanks Bj
@@AncientPottery your welcome
So you can put clay pot on modern stove fire ? all my pots cracked from the heat is that from the type of clay or are not well seasoned ?
Temper, your clay needs to be well tempered. ua-cam.com/video/uZZdLLCO8Iw/v-deo.html
How long did the water take to boil? And can the pot be used for many years or is it worth remaking one every so often over the years?
I don't remember how long it took for the water to boil but it didn't seem any longer than usual. A pot like this can last for many years, but it is less durable than a metal pot.
@@AncientPottery thank you for the info! I'd like to try this and I find all your videos brilliant and so helpful!
Hey Andy,
How much should be the thickness of the base of the pot to prevent any chance of cracking?
Hi Andy, I live in lower Baja where I easily gather clay from many places in the desert. Is there any danger from toxic elements being in the wild clay, after it's fired and used for cooking?
Highly unlikely.
Do you have a video about building the kiln you used in this vid?
Yes, here it is ua-cam.com/video/t692w4byVrw/v-deo.html