Camping Food Ideas

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Shweet_heart
Shweet_heart Posts: 51 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm going camping for the first time in a decade, and I'm wondering if anyone knows of any good, healthy, and easy things to prepare while out in the woods. We're planning on going on a long hike one of the 2 days out, and will need something to keep us going!

Ideas for snacks, breakfast, lunch and dinner are all appreciated! Thanks!

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  • TimeWarp9
    TimeWarp9 Posts: 91
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    Is it a campsite that you drive to and then hike for leasure :smile: or are you hiking to the campsite? If you can drive up to the site, you have a lot more options since you won't have to haul everything on your back. I love having fried bacon cooked on a fire; you can fry some eggs right in the same pan/griddle. Hard boiled eggs and tuna packs are good for carrying on the hike, as are the protein snack bars. Remember lots of water and give your body adequate fuel for the hike. Have fun!
  • UrnAsh
    UrnAsh Posts: 207 Member
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    Fruit salad, veggies and ranch, chicken.
  • Shweet_heart
    Shweet_heart Posts: 51 Member
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    Is it a campsite that you drive to and then hike for leasure :smile: or are you hiking to the campsite?

    We will be driving up, and hiking for leisure. So, we'll be able to pack more in the car. I never thought of protein bars or tuna packs! Awesome idea!
  • Yukongil
    Yukongil Posts: 166 Member
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    when we go camping those are our "cheat days". We do enough exercise (hiking, setting up camp, taking down camp, walking the dog, hiking to the bathroom, killing grizzlies, avoiding gangrape by appalachian mutants and the eventual panicked run from the ensuing forest fire) to offset all the wonderfully bad things we eat.

    but if you just MUST eat healthy, I assume you have a cooler or three, if so you can take and make pretty much anything you can at home while camping, tin foil and dutch ovens are your friends!

    Have fun!
  • Shweet_heart
    Shweet_heart Posts: 51 Member
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    We do enough exercise (hiking, setting up camp, taking down camp, walking the dog, hiking to the bathroom, killing grizzlies, avoiding gangrape by appalachian mutants and the eventual panicked run from the ensuing forest fire) to offset all the wonderfully bad things we eat.

    This literally made me LOL. I plan on eating my weight in marshmallows, so there goes the healthy eating part of it. Which is why I want some other healthy additions. :D
  • drojen
    drojen Posts: 203 Member
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    Bumping since we're camping next month and I'm wondering the same thing. While my nephew considers camping "junk food paradise", I would like to maintain whatever weight I am that week, not gain. LOL. We will be doing a lot of walking and biking, at least, that is my intent right now.
  • chileheadmike
    chileheadmike Posts: 78 Member
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    Beans
  • chadraeder3
    chadraeder3 Posts: 288
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    Someone asked about camping food yesterday here is my post:

    For camping I really like to grill things veggies and fruit grilled are great and you can do some chicken in there or even a beef filet which would be low fat. Another idea is foil dinners make you can make anything that steams in foil dinner chicken is great, fish does well too. Or go real old school and kabobs lots of veggies and lean meat on skewers chop them up before you leave and it is quick and easy people can eat what they like and you get lots of veggies, for kabobs if you put all the same item on a skewer cut the same the whole skewer gets done at the same time unlike if you have different items on the same skewer one thing might be char while another is raw. Instead of smores maybe try popcorn over the fire a dutch oven some oil and popcorn. Heat the oil and a couple kernels of popcorn up covered once the kernels pop you have the oil at the temp, take the dutch oven off the fire drop in the popcorn cover and let it work off the fire for a 30 seconds to a minute move it back over some coals and shake until the popcorn slows the popping
  • Ejwelton
    Ejwelton Posts: 331 Member
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    In the uk we can buy pots of porridge (oatmeal) that you just add boiling water to. I tried a cinnamon one this week and it was quite good.
  • kganc001
    kganc001 Posts: 317
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    At girl scout camp, we always put raw chicken, veggies and spices in to bundles of tin foil and cooked them on the camp fire. :) They were always tasty and SUPER healthy/lean! :D
  • Buddhasmiracle
    Buddhasmiracle Posts: 925 Member
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    Cheese sticks and fruit, premade salads-- beet and goat cheese, bring a container of egg whites, easier than eggs, precut veggies, Honestly, as long as you have a cooking stove or fire, you can bring about anything. It's the prep work to package that helps. You can "steam chicken and vegetables and potato in aluminum foil right on a fire. I think in a prior post someone suggested "foil dinners." Great idea
  • nvpixie
    nvpixie Posts: 483 Member
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    We eat better when camping than at home...LOL.

    We have a trailer so it's pretty much like a mini apartment on wheels, but as far as meals go, we grill chicken, steak, burgers, and ribs.

    I prepare a large salad at home and pack it in gallon size storage bags. I usually bring a couple cans of baked beans. If you like to marinate your meat, do it beforehand and pack in storage/freezer bags. You can freeze the meat and then pop it in a cooler when you're ready to head out.

    We always have fresh fruit on hand--apples, oranges, bananas. For breakfast we make eggs and bacon or pancakes (pre mix the dry ingredients) and sausage.

    We do bring SOME junk food. I love having chips and salsa on hand. I bring a few special things for the kids that they don't get at home every day (like chocolate and lollipops). And of course, we bring marshmallows to roast on the campfire...and lots of beer.
  • verdemujer
    verdemujer Posts: 1,397 Member
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    Boy Scouts do things like omelets in a freezer zip lock bag in boiling water (pre-chop the ingredients, add what you want and drop in an egg). They also will do dessert - bananas in the skin, split open and add chocolate and what ever else, close back up, wrap in tin foil and bake until done. A cored apple works the same way - stuff what every you want in the the middle, wrap in tin foil and bake in the fire until done. Taco salad in a bag - cook the meat, add the cheese, vegs, chips (or not), salsa, and no dishes to do afterwards. A scout told me once Fritos, left in the bag, make great fire starters. Must be all the grease in them. I didn't like the eggs in the orange cups. Oranges and eggs don't taste right together to me

    I've seen something on pinterest lately that I think would work well for camping - potates (sweet or white) sliced in thin layers but not all the way through, put what ever you want between the slices, wrap it up and bake it. . Here are a couple sites for you. And since you are car camping, you can take anything you want. I love humus with veggies for hiking, apples/celery and peanut/almond butter, snack bags of dry almonds or what ever nut you like, dried fruit if it works, they have an adult version of the 'drink your veg/fruit' things that are a bag with a plastic lid and you suck it all out. Look through your grocery store. I think you might be surprised with what is on the shelf for now. Pre-freeze your drinks in ziplocks - you've got both your ice and a cold drink when you need it straight from the cooler.

    http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com/camping-breakfasts-to-cook-in-the-fire/

    http://www.artofmanliness.com/2010/07/20/cooking-around-the-campfire-9-easy-and-delicious-foil-packet-recipes/
  • djeffreys10
    djeffreys10 Posts: 2,312 Member
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    I can't help a whole lot. For me, camping means backpacking. I eat whatever I want. PB crackers, gorp, instant oatmeal, jerky, at least one mountain house freeze dried meal per day (usually dinner).
  • merediththemom
    merediththemom Posts: 9 Member
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    These are great suggestions, I am going camping with the family for 5 days next week and was just going to ask this question too, thanks!
  • GrendlStig
    GrendlStig Posts: 55 Member
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    My family is a huge fan of homemade protein bars for camping trip breakfasts and/or snacks. Here's a link to the recipe:

    http://www.healthygreenkitchen.com/homemade-protein-bars.html

    They keep well at room temp for many, many days!

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