One of the biggest joys about camping is the chance to cook outside alongside Mother Nature. There are several methods that you can use when cooking outside at a campsite, each one designed to create a delicious meal away from home. You may have to get creative and catch your own dinner if you choose not to bring your own, but the amount of fun you will have cooking it is worth the effort. Here are some of the more popular methods you can use for some easy camping meals.
Roasting over an open campfire is the most popular way that campers cook in the great outdoors. You can make a spit out of sturdy branches and cook wildlife or fish that you happen to catch. Skewers provide an excellent way to create shish-ka-babs and to roast just about any kind of food you would bring to a campsite. One of the more popular items that campers roast over an open fire is the marshmallows that many of us use to make S’Mores. It goes without saying that roasting is by far the simplest way to cook as it requires little or no tools and pans like some of the other methods that are mentioned.
Many people who go camping bring a small barbeque with them so that they can grill the fish they catch or any meat that they bring along on their camping trip. There are two different kinds of grills that you can use when camping. A hand grill is typically placed over the fire and requires more attention than your typical hibachi grill that comes along on such trips. Hand grills can be placed directly on the fire with caution so as not to burn the food.
Hibachi grills will require either coals or propane. Working with coals and fire will help to make the experience more authentic and will prevent the need for traveling with propane. Some campers even elect to use wood chips to add another element of flavor by creating a smokehouse within the grill itself. Grilling is popular with both solitary campers and those who choose to camp in groups. However, it is more of a group activity since a grill might be too much baggage for a solitary camper.
Frying pans provide a method of cooking over an open fire that does not require the use of a heavy pan, unless you choose to take a frying pan that is made of cast iron. Light pans and cast iron pans both have their pros and cons. Light frying pans are easier to transport, but cast iron pans help to ensure that the food is cooked evenly and also protects the food from burning easily.
Cooking food over a fire, especially when frying, requires care in ensuring that the food is cooked thoroughly. If the frying pan is held in one place too long, it will cause the food to be overly cooked in one area while undercooked in others, rather than cooked through evenly on all sides. To avoid this, the pan should be consistently rotated over the fire and the food should be turned often.
You do not have to limit yourself to frying meats or any vegetables while camping. Frying pans can be used for a variety foods including breakfast. Pancakes and light deserts can be lightly fried and toasted in a frying pan, making the pan universal. Many people will bring either vegetable oil or margarine as a frying agent due to the fact that they do not require refrigeration. There are many backpacking recipes that can be utilized with a frying pan.
While not impossible, baking is difficult to do at a campsite. Unless you are going to be camping for an extended period of time, the need for baking may never arise. In order to bake you will need to have your own version of what is known as a masonry oven. Campers who choose to bake normally make their own ovens out of a baking sheet along with the use of a metal or cardboard box that is lined with some aluminum foil. This was made popular back in the olden days before the modern and convection ovens were invented. The use of this method tends to be seen more with group camping expeditions rather than solitary campers.
If you are looking for some camping food ideas, consider using a Dutch oven for meals such as soups and beans while camping. They rest above the campfire and are usually made out of cast iron. They can also be used to bake, rather than creating a rendition of the masonry oven as mentioned above. Because a Dutch oven is heavy it is not commonly used, except in large groups when there are a lot of people to feed. They do come in a range of sizes, but are usually always made out of cast iron to withstand the heat they will endure.