Camping Meals: 8 Recipes You Can Make While Camping

Before embarking on a camping trip, it’s important to prepare for all your needs in advance, including packing foods you can easily enjoy or make outdoors. Foods you might consider bringing include fresh fruits and veggies, nonperishable items that require no refrigeration, and ingredients you can cook over a campfire or portable stove. Additionally, bring plenty of water for everyone in your group for the duration of your stay. Keep in mind that, to be good stewards of the land, you should plan to leave zero waste behind, including all wrappers, foils, packaging, and so on related to your camping meals.

You’ll likely work up an appetite between meals if you’re spending plenty of time taking in sunshine and scenery all day. Try these four camping food ideas for when you need a little something to tide you over:

1. 1. Crackers and chips: Bags of crackers and chips are easy to transport and simple to snack on. Take some crispy graham crackers with you for s’mores and tortilla chips for campfire nachos. There are gluten-free options available at certain grocery stores should you need them.
2. 2. Desserts: There are plenty of camping desserts to choose from. Heat up chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon rolls, cobbler, and pie over a campfire at the end of a long day outdoors.
3. 3. Fruits and veggies: A nice supply of fruits and vegetables can make for a good addition to your camping snack inventory. Bring along something light like blueberries to enjoy as you hike, or smear some peanut butter on celery to tide you over until dinner.
4. 4. Trail mix: An easy camping food choice, trail mix is a premixed combination of granola, dried fruit, nuts, and more. Trail mix can be perfect for those times you need a snack while out backpacking.

You won’t be able to take your entire kitchen with you when you go camping, but you’ll need to bring some basic items along. Here are four to consider packing for your next camping trip:

1. 1. Camp stove: You can use a host of different implements on your camping stove. Place the apparatus above your campfire and you can heat whatever you need to in a Dutch oven or cast-iron skillet as if you were back at home. Hold your skillet or pan manually above the fire as a thrifty alternative. You can also bring along a portable grill.
2. 2. Foil packs: You’ll need tin foil packets to wrap up your leftovers for storage. If you’d prefer to avoid foil, round up whatever food you plan to eat later in plastic bags or reusable beeswax food wraps.
3. 3. Ice chest: You can pack a mix of nonperishable foods and foods that require refrigeration if you have an ice chest. Load the chest with ice or cold packs as you pack your ingredients and snacks. Depending on the length of your camping trip and how quickly you go through your food stores, you might need to periodically restock the chest with fresh ice.
4. 4. Trash bags: Bring some personal trash bags for clean-up when you go camping. You can’t always rely on an area making public trash cans available, particularly if you will be camping in a remote area. Store your trash bags away from your campsite to avoid attracting animals, but make sure to gather them the next day to avoid littering.
5. 5. Skewers: A quintessential addition to your camping cookout experience, skewers are long, pointed rods that you can use to make s’mores, kebabs, and other camping foods.

Campers should have an arsenal of different meals ready for when they go on a trip to the outdoors. Try these ten easy camping meal ideas:

1. 1. Barbecue chicken: If you have an ice chest and portable grill in tow, it’s possible for you to fire up some barbecue chicken for a savory camping meal. Try these tips for barbecue chicken when trying out this camping dinner idea.
2. 2. Breakfast burritos: Bring along some campfire potatoes, black beans, bell peppers, cilantro, and any other ingredients you’d like to wrap in a tortilla. Consider using the leftovers in a camping breakfast sandwich the next morning or in tacos and quesadillas for lunch or dinner. Learn how to make a homemade breakfast burrito.
3. 3. Burgers: Heat up your grill or skillet and throw some sloppy joes or ground beef patties over the fire. Or you can forgo the meat and serve up grilled cheese sandwiches—just bring along buns and cheddar cheese. Hot dogs are yet another classic camp cooking treat—use skewers to heat the wieners above the fire directly or fire them up in a cast-iron skillet. For a gourmet option, you can learn how to make Chef Massimo Bottura’s famous Emilia burger (substitute your preferred local sausage if you can’t find cotechino) and try preparing it over a campfire instead of a kitchen stovetop.
4. 4. Cornbread: This classic bready staple works just as well as an appetizer as a side dish. Try various mix-ins, like diced jalapeños, cheese, kernels of corn, or others, to make your own custom dish. Try this cornbread recipe.
5. 5. French toast: Rise and shine in the morning, crack some eggs, and get to work making some fluffy French toast before a day in nature. Don’t forget to bring some maple syrup or powdered sugar along as toppings. Give this French toast recipe a try.
6. 6. Kebabs: Skewers aren’t just for s’mores; you can use them in a variety of other ways, such as making kebabs. Heat up a grill or pan to cook this punctured mini meat well. Learn how to make this tender beef shish kebab recipe.
7. 7. Pancakes: Bring a bowl to turn your pancake mix into batter and a pan or skillet for heating the flapjacks. Pancakes can be an easy breakfast for multiple people, such as when you’re camping with friends and family. Give this easy pancakes recipe a try.
8. 8. S’mores: Break out the skewers, marshmallows, chocolate bars, and graham crackers to make s’mores, an all-time campfire classic. Or bring along bananas to make a banana boat, a popular s’mores alternative. Peel a banana down its middle while keeping the ends intact. Add marshmallows and chocolate, then heat the banana and enjoy its softened, sweet texture. Learn how to make s’mores.

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