cooking or boiling water without a stove ?

If you don't have one of the handy little camping stoves with you . How do you cook stuff and boil water . I have a little folding grill - the legs fold flat - that you can put over a small fire .But I don't like it very much . Other than just putting a pot of water or whatever directly in the fire , is there a better way to do it ?
I was thinking that I could just bring a length of wire and rig some sticks so I could hang the pot over the fire with the wire .
What do you do ?

Thanks , in advance , for your replys

Sometimes I'll make a spit and hang a pot (especially the Swedish Army messkit) but many times, I'll place a good size log alongside and on each (2) side(s) of the fire and put the pot on the logs and over the fire. That technique works best (only) with a small fire. It only works for making one meal before the support logs have burned enough to get too weak to use again.

you can put meat and bread on a spit and hang it over the fire, make flat bread on a hot flat rock, use heated stones to boil water (PITA), pack leaves and mud around your dinner and place it directly in the fire(my personal favorite). There are as many ways to cook over and in a fire as there are things to cook your imagination is the limit.

Purcell Trench makes a number of superb grills. Check out their Stix...a pair of stainless steel tubes that are minimal and effective.

http://www.purcelltrench.com/

I just got a Packer grill and a pair of Stix. Excellent place to do business and the site has a ton of helpful articles.

You just use ye olde campfire tripod, made from three branches tied together. Like this: http://www.wisementrading.com/outdoorcooking/tri-pods.htm

Sue

I liked some of the philosophy on the purcell sit such as "leave a trace". Interesting site

Or you find two big rocks- those last for several meals.