7 Easy Camping Meals Your Family Will Love
Easy Camping Meals From Your Kitchen Shelves
When meal planning for a camping trip with your family, the first thing to come to mind is usually roasting hot dogs and marshmallows over an open fire. Both of these are fun, but your diet doesn’t need to be limited to such clichéd foods. Cooking at a campsite doesn’t need to involve expensive freeze dried meals in single serving packages, either. Easy camping meals are not hard to prepare. A little bit of advance planning and a portable grill can make cooking for a group infinitely easier. The Coleman Road Trip grill combines all of the benefits of a full sized propane grill with the portability of a mini charcoal grill.
You can prepare all kinds of delicious meals using groceries that you already have in your kitchen. Some shelf stable items to bring on your trip are rice, pasta, canned meats and canned or dried beans. Perishable foods, such as shredded cheese, should be kept in coolers with either ice or dry ice, depending on the length of your trip. Make sure to invest in a cooler that is large enough to store the dry ice as well as anything that needs to be placed inside.
Here are some suggestions for meals that your family will love:
Tuna Mac
● Canned baby green peas
● Canned white tuna fish packed in water
● Garlic or other seasoned salt
● Amy’s Organics or other macaroni and cheese mix
●
Powdered nonfat milk
● Optional: olive or other vegetable oil
Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box of macaroni and cheese. Drain the cooked pasta and put aside while preparing the sauce. In the pot, mix the powdered milk, water, powdered cheese sauce mix, flavored salt and oil. Stir until smooth and simmer until thick and creamy. Add the cooked pasta, tuna and peas. Stir gently until blended and serve in bowls.
Burritos
● Quick cooking brown or white rice
● Canned black or kidney beans
● Jarred
salsa or canned diced tomatoes with chilies
● Bag shredded cheddar or taco seasoned
cheese
● Package white or whole wheat tortillas
Cook rice according to package directions. Add chopped tomatoes and beans to the rice and heat until simmering. Remove from heat and stir in shredded cheese. Top tortillas with rice mixture and salsa, wrap and serve on large plates.
Chili
● Fantastic Foods dehydrated vegetarian chili
● Canned Mexican style corn
with red and green peppers
● Canned diced tomatoes with hot chili peppers
● Jar salsa
● Tortilla chips
Mix together dehydrated chili with water in a large pot. Heat according to directions. When the mix is fully moistened and simmering, add the corn and diced tomatoes. Serve in bowls garnished with tortilla chips and salsa. Flat soup bowls are ideal for this thick soup.
Chicken Stew
● Canned boneless white meat chicken
● Canned mixed vegetables
● Canned
whole potatoes
● Canned cream of chicken soup (use half recommended amount of
water)
● Packaged brown and serve rolls
Mix the contents of the cans in a pot and heat until simmering. Wrap rolls in foil and place on grill while stew is heating. Serve stew in bowls with hot rolls on the side.
Seafood Couscous
● Dried whole wheat or regular couscous
● Canned baby shrimp
● Canned salmon
● Canned green beans
● Grated cheese
● Olive oil
● Italian herb blend
Add shrimp, salmon, green beans, olive oil and herbs to water and bring to a boil. Add couscous and lots of cheese, stir well and cover before removing from heat. After ten minutes, fluff and serve with additional cheese to garnish.
Vegetable Salad
● Head green cabbage
● Canned white asparagus
● Canned pimientos
● Jarred
artichoke heart quarters
● Jarred herbed vinaigrette dressing
Finely shred cabbage, then top with other vegetables. Dress with vinaigrette and serve.
Beef and Pasta Casserole
● Elbow macaroni
● Jarred spaghetti sauce with meat
● Canned stewed tomatoes
● Canned beef
● Shredded mozzarella or pre-seasoned pizza cheese
Cook pasta until firm. When the elbows are cooked, drain and set aside. Heat the spaghetti sauce with stewed tomatoes and beef until simmering. Stir the cooked pasta into the meat sauce and serve in bowls garnished with the shredded cheese.
Cooking easy camping meals while on a camping trip doesn’t require purchasing expensive specialty products. With a portable grill and a quick trip to the supermarket, you can make tasty, nutritious dishes for your family. Try these recipes to get you started!
Author Bio: Stephanie's website, Always-Outdoors, features many posts on camping and hiking as well as other outdoor activities and destinations. She also reviews outdoor products.
