3 Easy Ways to Make Great Camping Meals - Panergy

There are many perks to camping. Sight seeing, relaxation, or just getting away are a couple of these perks. As there is an upside to camping, there is also a downside. Cooking while camping could be considered, by many, one of these downsides. We are not always able to prepare rich barbeques, hearty stews, or varied meals for varied tastes. While it would be possible to have gourmet cooking while camping, the amount of space, time, effort, and money to do so is not in line with the camping mentality. But, with just a few tweaks in your mindset, you'll be able to make great food without making a great hassle.

How to Cook While Camping

COOKING POT MEALS

This is something most people bring along while camping anyway, a large cooking pot. The cooking pot serves as a perfect way to slowly make a hearty meal while spending time with friends. The two most common things to make are chili and soup. Most of the ingredients come from cans and spices, which is easy to bring while camping. The cooking pot, placed above the fire, takes time to blend all the flavors together, but time is what makes it taste so good. Starting this mid day, adding stock and spices, vegetables and meat, as the day progresses gives a hearty, tasty meal at the end of the day.

TIN FOIL MEALS

Tin foil makes for a very camping friendly way to make meals. Simply, you make folds in the tin foil to form a pocket, usually using a couple layers to give it structure. Inside the pocket you can place almost anything you want: vegetables, fish, chicken, rice, noodles, or tofu. Add some liquid and fold a seam in the tin foil, closing it. Then you just stick them on top of a grate over the fire for 30 minutes to an hour, depending on the thickness of your food. The liquid will boil and the steam will cook the food. Because steam is not a harsh form of energy, most types of foil pockets will be finished around the same time. These tin foil pockets are great for numerous people because each person gets what they want, in the exact amount.

MUFFIN TIN MEALS

A muffin tin pan is another fantastic tool for cooking while camping. Obviously, muffins are an option, but there is so much more than just that. The muffin tin holds up to the campfire and disperses the heat evenly, so any bread mix can go into a muffin tin and cook up fast. Using a simple pancake or bread mix along with your favorite vegetables and meat make hearty individual servings, like chicken pot pie or shepherd's pie, all without taking up too much room. You can even use a muffin tin for desserts. Of course they're the perfect size for holding onto s'mores, if you don't want the direct heat and burn from a fire. But along with that, a muffin tin is the best place to make pineapple upside-down cake. Simply put a slice of pineapple on the bottom and fill it with a cake mix and cook.
While camping food might not be the most anticipated meal you'll ever have, using a little bit of creative insight, some preparedness, and a couple undervalued tools, you can make some very good, filling food that will become another reason to go camping, instead of a reason to avoid it.