Favorite camping foods

I'm going rafting next week for 6 days and need to plan a menu for 2 nights. I think I'll make couscous with pistacios and raisins and vegetables for the first night. Maybe creamy risotto for the second. I have to pack my stuff in, so it has to be reasonably non perishable. Any suggestions?

Take a lot of beef jerky.A great source of protein,and it should be good for a week.

You just got to have bacon and some potatoes to fry in the bacon grease.

Geoff

Granola bars hold up really well to temperature extremes.

Hmmmmmm........Pop-Tarts and Coffee........(Okay, that's just what I eat for breakfast...........I really wouldn't suggest that for camping) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/happy14.gif

I like weiner winks in BBQ sauce, as well as marshmallows for roasting over the fire.

Don't know which 2 out of the six nights you're planning, but I usually like to go all out on the first night--steaks, baked potatoes and salad. Makes for a memorable meal and sets a nice tone for the trip. You don't have to worry too much about perishable foods for the first couple of days if you have a cooler.

For meals around day 3 or 4 you can consider preparing food ahead and freezing it. This then becomes the "ice" to keep your other items cool. Corned beef hash is a good one for breakfast. Stroganoff is a good one for dinner.

The last couple of meals will most likely not be refrigerated. I like your risotto idea. Also, you can probobly get away with cheese fondue (Swiss Knight is good). Needs to be refrigerated, but should be o.k. for a day or so being mostly cheese and alcohol. A little cheese fondue w/ french bread (kept in ziplock) would be a classy meal at the end of a camping trip. Greens usually can't make it long on a trip like this, but if you want a salad at the end you might consider taking a head of cabbage and a couple of carrots to make slaw.

Can you tell I want to go? I love to cook, especially outdoors. Have fun.

Greg

Our cooking situation is pretty limited. One or two pans. And I have to pack all the food in my boat, so no Ice. I have a food sealer, and that will be good for keeping my perishibles sealed and separated. The easiest thing to do is just open a bunch of cans and heat them up. I like to have something made from scratch that kicks ***.

My dad brought spam along one year. I thought it was a joke, but I went hungry that night. (Ate my snacks) No one appreciated it, but he thought it would be a big hit.

Chicken in a can is a great product. It's a whole chicken stuffed cooked into a can. Use it in any chicken recipe.

How about Chicken enchiladas?
Chicken and Dumplings?
Curried Chicken over jasmine rice?

P.M. me if you would like any more ideas or have any questions about something you want to try. I'm a chef and would love to help. Not much call for cooking advice on this website. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Greg

beef jerky is good make ya own is easy and cheap. peanut butter has protien tuna fish is protien and cheap and yummy

One of my more favorite dinners is Sausage, you know, the kind that is folded over kinda. Precooked, just need to hit it with the flames. And with that, Pork and Beans. Now they make awesome cans of those beans. They are smaller, one person sized, and they require no can opener. So you crack the lid with the little pull tab, then dont open it any more. Stick that in the fire, and once you see it boiling/bubling out the little hole you created, they're done. Easy, cheap, and good!

Cameron

A case of 12 MRE's. LOL, I just gave a few of mine to an old room mate for when he goes on his week long romp in the woods.

Advice above seems good, I've never been camping so I can't say anything about regular food. All I eat was MRE's when we did not have access to a mess hall.

I always like to have some canned kalamata olives to serve as an appetizer. Nice and salty.

Anythink I can cook with carrots and celery is good as those are easy to pack. Beef stew maybe.

Chef-boy-r-dee mini ravioli are a big hit. You have to have enough cans for everybody. I also like cheese tortellini al pesto. Some real dry parmesan cheese adds a lot.

I always bring limes to add to whatever food.

spaghettios
baked beans in a can
pre-flavored tuna in a foil pouch
lipton rice sides, beef flavor
famous amos choc chip cookies
cheetos
borden chocolate milk
power gu mixed with raw oatmeal
hot dogs
cherry cobbler (can of sprite/cherry filling/cake mix)
canned peaches

Something I "discovered" in one of my "what the heck can I make out of this" camp cooking modes:

One of those aluminum pouches of tuna, some boiled "sticky rice" (I like Niko Niko "Calrose"), and a can of Italian seasoned stewed tomatoes. Cook the rice, drain and then stir in the rest - not bad! I usually have folks ask for more!

Add some black pepper and/or parmesan cheese if desired...

Try it at home first, too easy and not expensive - yet "interesting taste"!

Man, letting out my "secret recipes"! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Well:
On a raft you'll need plenty of liquids and protein, I would recommend nuts, Jerky, Gatorade and/or water.

For breakfast: bacon, eggs, hashbrown in one pot. (breakfast casserole)

For lunch: Sandwhiches

For dinner: burgers, hotdogs.. such things
-tom

I always found cooking from a can of whatever was more trouble than it was worth for backpacking or hiking. Too much weight and too much to carry back out. If you go real light weight and use freeze dried foods just be sure to hit the spice aisle in the supermarket. That makes a world of difference.

Many different meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner). Only one big warning -- I never could get used to freeze dried meatballs -- always thought I could see "Titlest" printed on 'em and they were just about that edible. The rest of the stuff ain't bad at all, especially if you can figure out what spices and herbs you like on them. Light weight, easy to use, and very little to pack out.

Heck, I even like the freeze dried ice cream. It looks like a chunk of kids' sidewalk chalk but actually tastes like Neopolitan ice cream ('cause that's what it is). If you're new to this stuff, try one or two at home before you go into the wild and woolies. I prefer 'em but better you find out you whether you like 'em or not before you have no choice and the grocery store is two days away.

we take freeze-dried stuff. yumm-yummy!

Don't laugh too loud, but Spam IS edible. My bro-in-law turned me on to Breakfast Spammiches on a camping trip a few years back. He took Spam, sliced it thin, fried it, and then put it on a bagel with some maple syrup. Yummy stuff.

The freeze dried stuff, like Moutain House is just too $$ for me. Seven bucks a meal is outrageous. The Lipton noodle and rice mixes are a staple when I'm backpacking. Another idea is too look for "rice bowls" in an Asian market or on the Asian section of a grocery store. Think ramen but a million times better. There are also some really great "just add hot water" Thai and Indian dinners that I can find in the Asian market than I go to.

If you you have a food dehydrator, almost anything can be camping food. Some people I know have aqctually dehydrated spagetti sauce. It ends up looking like a fruit roll-up. The possibilities are endless for the do it yourselfer.


Ordin

Pasta and some canned tuna/salmon. They'll last till whenever its time to cook... You could do the same with packets of instant noodles too, boil the noodles till soft, drain, then dump in the tuna/salmon while its hot, or just heat it up a little over the fire and you should be good to go. Spam is great for breakkie food...