In this extract from Outdoor Cooking: River Cottage Handbook No, 17, Gill Meller shares his favourite recipes for cooking over the fire or in a wood-fired oven, including his simple but super-tasy pizza and rosemary focaccia.

Whole roast brill with fennel seeds, lemon, chilli

“Brill is a sensational flat fish with firm white flesh and a great flavour – just as good as turbot, its more celebrated cousin. When you cook it in the wood oven, its skin crisps, blisters and tears and it gets deliciously smoky. I love it with this butter – flavoured with fennel seeds, black pepper, chilli and lemon. As it melts, it finds its way into the fish, keeping it beautifully moist” – Gill Meller. This is an edited extract from Outdoor Cooking: River Cottage Handbook No.17 by Gill Meller. (Bloomsbury Publishing, $35). Out August 5, 2019.

Onion and kale pizza with mozzarella and anchovies

“I’ve been making this pizza for years because it’s just so good: sweet from theonions, salty from the anchovies, rich from the cheese, with a kind of ‘crisp around the edges texture’ from the kale. Sometimes I like to add a healthy scattering of dried chilli flakes before it goes in the oven. A pizza ‘peel’ (a metal paddle on a long handle) is extremely useful, or you can also use a sturdy baking sheet” – Gill Meller. This is an edited extract from Outdoor Cooking: River Cottage Handbook No.17 by Gill Meller. (Bloomsbury Publishing, $35). Out August 5, 2019

Simple flatbreads

“Quick to make, these tear-and-share flatbreads are perfect for cooking over an open fire. I have a cast-iron frying pan that I keep especially for this purpose. It’s a robust old thing, which I sit directly in the embers. When it’s smoking hot I lay the flatbreads down in the pan and they cook very quickly. You could use a large flat stone, instead – just make sure it’s really hot” – Gill Meller. This is an edited extract from Outdoor Cooking: River Cottage Handbook No.17 by Gill Meller. (Bloomsbury Publishing, $35). Out August 5, 2019

Rosemary focaccia with chorizo and goat's cheese

Best served straight from the oven. This is an edited extract from Outdoor Cooking: River Cottage Handbook No.17 by Gill Meller. (Bloomsbury Publishing, $35). Out August 5, 2019

Coco's garlic bread

“Whenever we make pizzas, my daughter Coco likes to make these garlic breads as well. Sometimes she pushes the boat out and covers them with grated cheddar too. For this recipe, you will need to divide the risen pizza dough into four before shaping into balls. A pizza ‘peel’ (a metal paddle on a long handle) is extremely useful, or you can also use a sturdy baking sheet” – Gill Meller. This is an edited extract from Outdoor Cooking: River Cottage Handbook No.17 by Gill Meller.