Camping Tips: Quick And Easy Meals For The Camp Stove

There is nothing like a camping adventure to rewind our clocks. Getting away for some rest and relaxation in the great outdoors can be so rejuvenating for the spirit. Throw in a little fishing and hiking and the world makes sense again. But with all that, we still need to eat.

Some people like to buy all kinds of elaborate cooking equipment, to make meals easy as cooking at home, but that’s not really camping. Sure, you can buy a propane grill and lots of fancy kitchenware, but you will miss some of the ambiance that is camping. Give me some cast iron cookware, an open fire, and some charcoal briquettes and away we go.

I love cooking with cast iron. Not only is it virtually indestructible and great for camping, but also it is known for its health benefits. Do you know that every time you cook with cast iron you add iron to you meal? More iron is released into the food when cooking foods high in acid. The tomato sauce you use in your chuck wagon chili will be even healthier. One of the best inventions is the Dutch oven. The lid is flat to place briquettes on top for even cooking and baking. So you basically only need a Dutch oven and cast iron fry pan and you’re good to go.

Seasoning your new cast iron cookware is easy. Just coat lightly with vegetable oil and place in 350-degree oven for 1 hour. Wipe dry when cooled with a paper towel and store in a dry place. Do not use abrasives, or soap when cleaning. And never put them in the dishwasher. Make sure you dry the cookware completely before storing. For the first few uses, use a little oil and preheat pan before cooking.


Cooking over an open flame is not difficult or stressful if you do a little preparation before hand.

· Roughing it dose not mean you can’t bring supplies from home. Take along some food like canned chili beans, marshmallows, hot dogs, ground beef, canned vegetables, Bisquick mix, or Hungry Jack dinner rolls. You can also bring some fresh vegetables and fruit. Freeze you meat and bacon in Zip Lock Freezer bags. Water, tea or Koolaid can also be frozen in gallon water jugs.

· Plan your meals ahead of time and bring what you need. If you’re planning to fish and eat the fish you catch, you might want a lemon and some butter. You can also bring along some packages of condiments leftover from take out.


Other types of campfire cooking are foil cooking, stick cooking and can cooking.


Foil cooking is simple. Wrap fish, meat or chicken pieces with vegetables and seasonings in foil and place on hot charcoals. Remember fish cooks fast and may become dry so add butter and maybe lemon.

Bake potatoes in foil and insert into charcoals.

Try cooking a whole beef briquette with garlic and seasonings. Double wrap briquette with heavy-duty foil and cook most of the day on a medium heat. The meat comes out so tender, it falls apart.

Make grilled ham and cheese sandwiches wrapped in foil. Just prepare sandwich and wrap in foil and place at the end of the coals. Sandwiches don’t take long to cooks so turn it over in about 5 minutes.

Try a sliced banana, mini marshmallows and chocolate wrapped in foil for a quick dessert. Have fun experimenting with foil cooking; it’s quick and easy.

Stick cooking is also easy. You can make kabobs with this method. Just find two larger double-pronged sticks and push them into the ground. Build your fire in between sticks and hang your kabob stick on top of the two sticks within the groove. Place meat and vegetables on the kabob stick and turn stick in half turns for even cooking.

Can cooking is great for desserts. I like peach cobbler. Just get a can of sliced peaches in heavy syrup draining off about half of the syrup. Be careful to leave the top of the can still intact. Mix up about a handful of Bisquick mix to a pancake consistency and spoon over the peaches in the can. Press lid down to keep out any ashes and place in charcoals at the end of the campfire. Cook until Bisquick forms a hard dumpling and carefully remove from fire. Try cooking beef stew and dumplings, chili with cheese, or soups in a can too.

Another fun cooking tip is to cook using oranges. Cut an orange in half, remove the fruit and save for breakfast. Place inside one cinnamon roll (refrigerator type) in each half. Wrap in foil and place on charcoals. This makes a great breakfast alongside some bacon and eggs. You can also cook an egg inside of an orange half wrapped in foil. Or even a Jiffy cake mix inside half of an orange with this method.

Cooking at the campsite is very easy and with a little imagination you can make almost anything. The best part is cleanup is a breeze.



By   Renee Rotto