Camping food recipes

[dantheman]

Although I've never (so far) been cycle touring, I think that a jar off pesto or sun dried tomato paste is invaluable, you can completely change and enhance most food types you'd be cooking with a fire/camping stove.. (I'd probably take some smoked paprika also).

 

[Grant Fondo]

Although I've never (so far) been cycle touring, I think that a jar off pesto or sun dried tomato paste is invaluable, you can completely change and enhance most food types you'd be cooking with a fire/camping stove.. (I'd probably take some smoked paprika also).

Like the sound of this. When we used to cycle camp in Dorset we strapped fishing rods to top tube and caught bass and mackerel.. gut, stick through, over fire...perfect!
We did it to save money pre-Bear Grylls.

 

[MichaelW2]

Pesto is really useful cycle camp cooking. Take care to seal and bag the jar.
On longer tours I carry a sealable plastic box of kitchen bits: salt, pepper grinder, stock cubes, mixed herbs, some sachets of sauce ( save and collect). Also spray bottle of olive oil. Tools include flexible plastic cutting/prep surface, paring knife (yellow coloured with guard), small wooden spoon. To much for a weekend but enough to cook a three course meal.

 

[Fab Foodie]

If only there was Vegan Spam....

 

[Blue Hills]

It helps with camping food success I think if you start to cook/experiment that way when at home. Tasty nutritious food can be very fast and not involve much in the way of washing up. When alone I very often cook using one of my small Trangia pans. On the kitchen stove I hasten to add, not on the kitchen floor/in the garden. And despite what some Italians might try to tell you, you do not need a lot of water for pasta and nor do you need to continuously boil or even simmer it.

If more Brits ate "camping food" at home rather than stuff out of boxes, there wouldn't be anything like the current obesity problem.

 

[Julia9054]

I eat cous cous a lot when camping too. Boil water and add to cous cous in a bowl. Whilst it is steeping, make a one pot ratatouille (or heat up a tin of it) and then mix in.

 

[Gravity Aided]

The Sierra Club (in America obvs) put out a cookbook some years ago, pretty much my go to , although MREs may infiltrate from time to time on short trips.

 

[Gravity Aided]

I've seen people using these,

View attachment 431393

Quite tempted to get one myself.

I have one of these, although this picture is from the web. I think it cost $3 new.

 

[MichaelW2]

The Sierra Club (in America obvs) put out a cookbook some years ago, pretty much my go to , although MREs may infiltrate from time to time on short trips.

I can never find a rock or something when I need one.

 

[Gravity Aided]

Use this, throw away the sterno that comes with it, and use some twigs.

 

[uphillstruggler]

It helps with camping food success I think if you start to cook/experiment that way when at home. Tasty nutritious food can be very fast and not involve much in the way of washing up. When alone I very often cook using one of my small Trangia pans. On the kitchen stove I hasten to add, not on the kitchen floor/in the garden. And despite what some Italians might try to tell you, you do not need a lot of water for pasta and nor do you need to continuously boil or even simmer it.

If more Brits ate "camping food" at home rather than stuff out of boxes, there wouldn't be anything like the current obesity problem.

if more Brits cycled or exercised in general, I think we could say the same

 

[Salar]

What about that nasty stuff my better half makes me eat..........porridge.

I've even made it with cold milk

 

[dantheman]

Just to add to my excellent suggestion ( thanks for the thank but it's making my head grow a bit hahaha)

You can't in my mind go wrong with carrying some good salami or cured pork of your favorite type.. to me that's another game (I mean meal) changer.

Though maybe not for you veggies/vegans

 

[HelenD123]

The Sierra Club (in America obvs) put out a cookbook some years ago, pretty much my go to , although MREs may infiltrate from time to time on short trips.

I found it not much good for long term touring as it involved a lot of preparing things at home in advance. Glad you reminded me I have the book though as my tours tend to be between a day and a week now.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

Maybe I'm odd, but I enjoy cooking when touring, unless I'm totally worn out.

I carry a Trangia 1/2 man cookset, a Stanley flask and a ziplock bag of seasonings, spices, soy sauce, stock cubes, olive oil.

I'll always carry a couple of bags of quick boil noodles with seasonings, spam/tuna, fresh garlic, onion, tomato paste, pasta, couscous, and some kind of dried sausage -chorizo, fuet etc. Small tortillas that fit the Trangia pan. Also dried fruit and nuts and dark chocolate. Oh! And coffee!

I love porridge, but I cannot make it at home or on the road without it sticking to the pot, so my preferred breakfast is couscous with cinnamon, dark chocolate and dried fruit and nuts added after cooking.

Lunch can be a tortilla filled with tuna & onion, maybe some fresh peppers if handy. If cheese is handy, a quesadilla with cheese and chorizo can be delicious and warming on a colder day. Or just noodles. Alternatively, some honey, fruit and nuts and a bit of chocolate in a tortilla wrap can be delicious too.

Dinner is typically pasta, half cooked in a pot, transferred to the flask to finish, while sauce is made or from a packet with whatever additions I feel like.
Tomato paste, garlic, onion, some water and tuna can be delicious.
Aldi do some decent pre-made sauces.

A real treat is eggs! I always get a craving for eggs after a few days. If I see eggs for sale outside a farm, I'll often pick up half a dozen and make a simple omelette with whatever is in my bag, then hardboil the other eggs (for transport). They make a great snack.

For snacks I'll have the dark chocolate and dried fruits and nuts as well as some fruity biscuits.

I get a lot of use from my Stanley flask - short and broad for stability. I use it for finishing off pasta, eggs etc while cooking something else and for making coffee, or even carrying hot coffee when the weather is cold or wet. It saves setting up the stove at lunchtime.

I also use a "cosy" (aluminium foil bubblewrap) for my pot to hold heat in and protect my hands/legs when eating.

Olive oil is great because it can be used like butter on bread or to give extra calories when other resources are scarce. It can also be used as very reasonable shaving "foam"!

Of course, depending on where I am, the better option may be to skip cooking - Spain, for example has great food, very cheap but excellent quality so that it makes more sense to eat out than carry food. Or Germany has fantastic snack food like currywurst (washed down with a beer!) that would be sinful to ignore!

The one thing I've learned is always to have something in reserve!

And fuel!