CAMPING FOOD IDEAS

No vacation is complete without great food and going camping is no exception, however, the thought of cooking on a camping stove, having all the equipment and keeping the food fresh and ready can be a little… overwhelming.

As camping families, we at Bellisima have experimented and figured out what works – so you don’t have to!

Although there are various ways to keep food cool when camping, we’ve found that getting food which doesn’t need to go into a refrigerator makes everything so much easier.

We have a row of baskets filled with lovely food in the tent and it’s so much better than worrying about a camping fridges or icepacks getting warm!

… And with a little bit of thought, you can still have so much variety!

We recommend you invest in a good two hob gas stove (the Campingaz Xcelerate are great, they have rings that deflect the wind!) and forget the camping pots and pans (camping pans are rubbish in my experience!!) – A couple of good-sized, regular kitchen pans and a decent wok will do the job! A good big sieve is useful too.

CAMPING FOOD THAT DOESN’T NEED REFRIGERATION

  • Vegetable oil
  • Eggs
  • Bread / barms / muffins / tortilla wraps etc
  • Butter
  • Vegetables
  • Salad
  • Primula spread cheese
  • Long life milk
  • Tofu
  • Jackfruit
  • Cereal / muesli
  • Tomato purée
  • Peanut butter
  • Gnocci
  • Dried herbs and spices
  • Tin cans – there’s a huge range of soups and ready meals that come in cans now!
  • Pouches – there’s a huge range of nice meals, sauces and rices that come in pouches now!
  • Jars – pickled vegetables, olives, sauces
  • Dried food – pasta, lentils, risotto etc
  • Small sachets – ketchup, BBQ sauce, mayonnaise, jams, spreads etc

Make a shopping list and go wild…

If you do need a cooler, we definitely recommend you use a plug in one when possible or a Coleman Xtreme Marine cooler!

BUT WHAT TO MAKE?

We are certainly not Michelin Star chefs here, but we do know that good food equals a good mood, so let us share some of our favorite camping meals!

BREAKFAST IDEAS

  • Brioche / pan au chocolate
  • Croissants
  • Cereal
  • Fried / poached / scrambled egg sandwiches / wraps
  • Dipping eggs

LUNCH IDEAS

  • Wraps / sandwiches:
    • spread cheese
    • Crisps
    • Tuna Mayo
    • Various spreads
    • Egg mayonnaise
  • Crisp wraps
  • Soup & bread
  • Quesadillas
  • Fried bread
  • Eggy bread
  • Omelette with fried onions / mushroom / sweetcorn
  • Hot dogs
  • Pot noodles!!

DINNER IDEAS – COOK FROM SCRATCH

  • Vegetable stew
  • Lentil dahl
  • Vegetable curry
  • Vegetable stir fry
  • Mushroom katsu
  • Creamy lentil curry
  • Five bean stew
  • Pea and asparagus risotto
  • Crispy gnocci and vegetables
  • Salt and pepper tofu
  • Savoury rice
  • Egg fried rice

DINNER IDEAS – EASY

  • Pasta & sauce
  • Gnocci & pesto
  • Mac n cheese in a can / packet
  • Heinz Creationz
  • Quesadillas – five bean with some tomato puree / ketchup / cumin / chilli / whatever you have!
  • Lentil dahl in a packet
  • Vegetarian sausages and beans in a can
  • Rice – pre cooked sachets fried in butter
  • Another idea is to head to the local village and get tapas style nibbles for a picnic style meal with no cooking involved!
  • Curry in a can

ACCOMPANIMENTS

  • Bread and butter
  • Nachos
  • A big bag of supermarket prawn crackers
  • Poppadums

Can’t do toast? Why not make fried bread or crispy fried tortilla wraps!

FOR THE KIDS

  • Boiled new potatoes and butter
  • Mashed potato, butter and gravy
  • Hot dogs
  • Vegetarian sausages
  • Ketchup rice
  • Pasta and sauce / butter
  • Quesadillas – our favourite hence they’re in every list!!

WHAT SHOULD I COOK ON?

The Campingaz Xcelerate stoves are amazing! They have specially designed gas rings which shield the wind so they can stay hot whilst you cook! They are quite expensive though so if you’re looking for a cheaper option, you really want to stretch to the Campingaz Elite double burner. This uses proper refillable gas bottles and has a double ring, its lid acts as its own wind shield / splashback.

We really don’t recommend the little single burners. The gas runs out quickly and its very hard to get any sort of good cooking temperature.

… We would love to see pictures of your camping grub and please share any great recipes you have too! info@bellisimacamping.co.uk