1. Chili
A big pot of chili is the perfect camping dinner. With the exception of the base ingredients, there’s a lot of variations and room for experiment.
Top tip: Coolers keep food cold and relatively safe, but not at in the same way that a refrigerator would. If you’re going to cook your chili with ground beef, turkey or venison, ensure that it’s on your first night if you’re just using a cooler. You don’t want to risk getting sick and ruin the trip.
Ingredients
- 2 cans of stewed tomatoes.
- 2 cans of beans (one kidney, one pinto).
- 1 chopped onion.
- 2 jalapeños.
- 1 packet of chili powder.
- 2 cups clean water.
Instructions
After browning meat over a fire or camp stove in a Dutch oven, pour off some of the fat and add the ingredients listed above.
Let it simmer until everything is soft and warm. Then enjoy!
2. Hotdogs
Grilling meat is about as simple and antiquated as it gets in the cooking world! There are few things more delicious than roasting a hot dog on a stick over a roaring campfire, and reaching that point when the skin pops as you bite into it.
You should always pick up a cheap eight pack. Also, because they’re processed, they keep with minimum refrigeration.
Great on a grill, and great on a stick in front of a big fire.
Franks and Beans
Beans are a staple as much as hotdogs are. They can be prepared and served in a variety of ways, but this is an easy method with just a few additional ingredients that turns beans — which are satiating since they’re filled with both fiber and protein — from a side dish into a meal.
Ingredients
- 1 pack of hot dogs.
- 1 onion, diced.
- 2 cans of baked beans.
- Ketchup.
Instructions
Tear up a pack of hot dogs into slices.
Fry them with some onions in a skillet until the onions turn brown.
Pour off the excess fat.
Add the baked beans, and stir repeatedly to avoid sticking.
Serve it hot with ketchup.
3. Pancakes
Easy to make and very filling. All of the ingredients are easy to pack and store.
Instructions
Take three stacked spoonfuls of flour (white or wheat).
Add a pinch of salt, and mix in enough water to create a batter.
Coat the bottom of a skillet with fat (maybe saved from cooking the sausage).
Pour in the batter.
Flip when the edges curl.
4. Perfect Paella
A tasty and filling meal. This recipe will comfortably feed three hungry campers.
If you’re a vegetarian, you could place the meat with tofu cubes. Just be sure to pan-fry the tofu in hot oil with the onion, garlic, chilli, and salt and pepper until golden, before adding other ingredients.
Ingredients
- Olive oil.
- 3 cloves of garlic, sliced.
- 1/2 large red chilli, sliced.
- 1.5 chorizo sausages, chopped up.
- 1 medium-sized brown onion.
- 2 chicken breasts, sliced.
- Smoked paprika.
- 2 cups of vegetable stock.
- 1 strand of saffron.
- Salt and pepper.
- 250g frozen prawns.
- 2 cups of rice.
- Water.
Instructions
Heat the pan and apply olive oil.
Throw in onions. Let them cook for about four minutes.
Add the garlic and chili. Leave for another six or seven minutes.
Add the chorizo and chicken breast. Wait for the chicken to brown.
Add the spices, and salt and pepper.
Prawns are optional (bit of a luxury out in the wilderness). They’re great in this dish though.
5. Marvellous Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups of macaroni.
- 1 cup of milk.
- 3 1/2 tablespoon of butter.
- 1 1/2 cups of regular cheddar cheese, grated.
- 1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese, grated.
- 2 tablespoons flour.
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
Instructions
Prepare pasta before you leave, and store it in a sealable container. Do the same thing for the grated cheese.
Place a big Dutch oven on your barbecue. Melt butter over charcoals and mix in milk. One tablespoon at a time, whisk in flour until it has thickened (you’re looking for a roux sort of consistency). Salt and pepper to taste.
Gradually stir in each of the cheeses until they have melted into the mixture. Don’t use all of it, because you’ll want to put some on top of your macaroni.
Add cooked pasta to the oven and stir. Put the lid on the oven and allow to cook until it is heated throughout (approximately five minutes).
6. Grilled Eggs
This is a great one. It can feed many simply and inexpensively. The perfect use for a muffin pan!
Ingredients
10 eggs.
Instructions
Preheat an outdoor grill and lightly oil the grate.
Spray some olive oil into the holes of a muffin pan.
Crack an egg into each hole of the pan.
Put the tray on the grill for about two minutes, or to whatever you desire.
7. Worcester and Gorgonzola Burgers
Simple but absolutely luxurious. This is one of my favourite recipes.
Ingredients
- 4 ciabatta buns.
- Worcester sauce.
- 1 pound of ground sirloin.
- 1 tablespoon of minced garlic.
- 1/7 teaspoon onion powder.
- 4.5 ounces of Gorgonzola cheese.
- 1/4 cup of fresh basil leaves, chopped.
- Salt and pepper.
Instructions
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat. Oil the grate.
Mix the ground sirloin, onion powder, garlic, Gorgonzola, and basil together in a bowl until blended. Drizzle in some Worcester sauce. Divide mixture evenly to form four burgers.
Cook burgers on the grill until the meat is brown on the inside (about 5 minutes per side).
Assemble. Add some cheese and garnish if you wish.
8. Salad Skewers
Ingredients
- Garlic Herb Seasoned Skewers (appetizer size).
- 15 cubes of bread (artisan style).
- Cherry tomatoes (10).
- 10 1 inch pieces of red bell pepper.
- 10 1 inch pieces of yellow bell pepper.
- 1 large mozzarella ball, diced.
- 3 tablespoons of basil pesto (can get it stores).
- Olive oil.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
Instructions
Thread onto each skewer in the following order: bread cube, tomato, yellow pepper, red pepper, bread. Repeat it again, and add an additional piece of bread on either side.
Let it cool for about ten minutes.
Carefully brush the contents of the skewers with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Put skewers on a preheated grill and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. Wait until vegetables are crisp and tender. Bread should be browned slightly.
Sprinkle some cheese onto all the skewers, and then drizzle with pesto.
9. Crescent Dogs
These are delectable little treats. A modification of the hotdog.
Ingredients
- 1 tube Pillsbury Crescent Rolls.
- 8 hot dogs.
- Mustard and ketchup.
Instructions
On a flat surface, take out the dough from the tube of crescent rolls. Segment it into triangles.
Put the hot dog at the edge of the crescent roll.
Roll the dough around the hot dog, so that it is largely covered by the dough. Ensure that the crescent dough overlaps at the end, or else it will separate. (If you want to, you can sprinkle some onions into the dough at this point, and then roll them up as well).
Place your crescent dog on a stick and roast it over the fire until it is nice and brown.
Eat immediately. Apply mustard and ketchup if you want to.
10. Chocolate Bananas
This one is easy and very enjoyable.
Instructions
Take a banana, cut it in half lengthwise (but leave the skin on as you do it).
Place small pieces of chocolate in between the two halves of banana.
Cover it in foil and place it on the hot coals.
You’ll know it’s cooked once the banana is soft and the chocolate has melted.
11. Fireside Doughnuts
These are a real treat, and more simple to make than you’d think!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup of white sugar.
- 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon.
- 1 can of biscuit dough (refrigerated).
- 3 tablespoons of melted butter.
Instructions
Quickly mix together the sugar and the cinnamon in a bowl. Put it to one side.
Slice each biscuit into thirds, and roll them up into balls.
Place the balls on a toasting fork, and cook over hot coals, turning very frequently. Wait until golden brown.
Dip them into melted butter, and then roll them in your cinnamon and sugar mix.
12. Pineapple Upside Down Cake
This makes a fun centrepiece for your campsite meal, and might bring back a few childhood memories!
Ingredients
- 1 can of pineapples.
- 1/2 cup of pecans.
- 3/4 cup of brown sugar.
- 1 square of margarine.
- 2 yellow cake mixes.
Instructions
Line the Dutch Oven with aluminium foil.
Place oven onto the heat, and melt the margarine in the oven.
Add brown sugar. Mix.
Add the pineapples and the pecans.
Pour prepared cake mix on top of the glaze.
This dessert doesn’t need too much heat on the bottom; seven pieces of charcoal should be fine.
Bake for about 25 minutes. Check on it every 15 minutes and test to see if it is done when golden brown.
Take it off the heat and take the cake out of the oven by holding the aluminium foil.
Place a pan on it and flip it over so that the glaze is on top. Take off the foil.