RV and Campfire Cooking Ideas
Travel Ready Food and Meal Planning for Your Next Camping Trip
Listed are foods that travel well and ways to eat like a king outdoors by planning meals and snacks before buying and packing for the trip.
Cooking on the road or outdoors does not have to be a difficult task as long as the planning and organizing of a menu is done before the trip instead of on it. What food will be packed and prepared should depend on the length of the vacation, the amenities available on your RV and in the campground, and access to markets in nearby towns.
Non-Perishable Goods
- Instant and dry cereals-individual cereal boxes can be purchased in a variety of brands to save space and to have different kinds for each family member. Also, this will save from opening many large boxes and possibly having them go to waste by the end of the trip.
- Dried pasta and rice-boil in a bag rice is available to save the time of measuring the rice and water, you just drop the bag in a pot of pre-boiling water and cook until it's soft.
- Instant mashed potatoes that only require water to cook
- Pancake mix that also only requires water
- All-purpose baking mix to use to top one skillet meals, make pancakes, waffles or shortcakes (an electric outlet will be needed for a small waffle maker, griddles can be electric or placed on the grill or fire pit grate, simple desserts can be made in cast iron dutch ovens or in a cast iron biscuit pan on the grill)
- Canned beef stew, chili and soup
- Peanut butter
- Beef jerky
- Breakfast grain and fruit bars and granola bars
- Trail mix, dried fruit, nuts
- Pudding, applesauce and fruit cups in individual packages
- Prepackaged crackers and cookies-individually wrapped servings with 6 or 8 in variety packs are easily thrown in a bag as a quick snack.
- Canned vegetables, fruit, and meat such as shredded chicken, roast beef and tuna
- Canned beans
- Jarred pasta sauces and gravy
- Macaroni and cheese boxes with the ready cheese sauce-the pasta will just needed to be boiled on a propane stove top or RV stovetop.
- Powdered drink mixes that are presweetened will save the space of packing large amounts of sugar, simply mix with water.
- Bottled water, juice boxes, soda in cans or bottles
- Bagged pretzels, popcorn and chip varieties in individual bags travel easily to the beach or activity
- Popcorn designed in the package to cook over the stovetop, grill or fire pit grate
- Canned pie filling to make fried pies with canned biscuits on the stove top or to make pies in a cast pie iron
- Marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate bars for s'mores
- Individually wrapped chocolates or small bags of sweet candy as treats
- Dry seasonings for cooking
Perishable Goods
- Anything dairy, such as: milk, cheese, yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese
- Sandwich bread, buns, rolls, muffins, bagels, tortillas, will not need to be refrigerated but may not have a long shelf life.
- Fresh fruits and vegetables are, with most varieties, able to be left at room temperature but should be monitored each day and thrown out if spoiled. Potatoes, onions and tomatoes do well at room temperature as well as apples, oranges, bananas, melons before being cut up and grapefruit.
- All beef, pork, chicken, hotdogs and fish should be kept refrigerated at or below 40 degrees and should be checked each day to make sure of it's freshness. Be sure to be careful handling meat when away from home as it can be easily contaminated and contaminate other surfaces.
- Leftovers or meals prepared at home make a quick and easy evening dinner. Making meals ahead of time and freezing them make easy dinners or even lunches in the first few days. Put frozen foods in the cooler or RV refrigerator and serve as soon as they thaw. Easy ideas for this are homemade casseroles, lasagna, spaghetti, chili, soups and precooked meats to be chopped up into salads or sandwiches or thrown into pasta made at the campsite as well as many others. Don't be afraid to experiment with your families favorite foods and see how they do freezing and reheating them at the site.
- Breakfast foods like eggs, bacon and sausage
- Homebaked cookies, pies, cakes or other treats usually do well in an airtight container at room temperature but may not last through the whole trip at the peak of freshness or because they were eaten up too quickly!
- Salad dressings or other condiments and marinades
Helpful accessories for meals outside include tablecloths for picnic tables with optional clips to keep them from blowing off in the wind and screens designed to be placed over plates to keep the bugs away. The same can be said for beverages left outside, especially anything with sugar, should be covered or they will draw flies and bees among other not welcome insects.
Food is a large part of RV travel and camping and meals should be something for the family to look forward to sharing together.
The copyright of the article RV and Campfire Cooking Ideas in RV Recreation is owned by Elizabeth Borer. Permission to republish RV and Campfire Cooking Ideas must be granted by the author in writing.
