There’s nothing more enjoyable than dining in the great outdoors, and a camping trip provides the perfect opportunity for some al fresco cooking too!
Cooking under the stars is one of the highlights of any camping holiday and after a long day hiking and exploring, you will be grateful for a hearty meal to help you refuel. Camping food doesn’t just mean tins of baked beans and a loaf of bread, there are plenty of delicious camping recipes that you can easily cook and eat outdoors. The best camping meals are easy to prepare and can be made with ingredients that can be easily stored without a refrigerator, such as bread, pasta and vegetables.
Here are our favourite camping food ideas that are perfect for cooking and eating outdoors.
1. Scrambled Egg & Baked Bean Croissants
After a long (potentially sleepless) night in a tent, these croissants make a great breakfast or brunch to give the whole family lots of energy for the day ahead. Scrambled eggs are easy to rustle up in a pan using eggs and a splash of milk, and you can simply heat the baked beans on the camping stove (be sure to pack tins with ring pull openings, or pack a tin opener!) or mess tin. To serve, halve the croissants and stuff with your filling of choice. Why not add some sliced ham or grated cheese for an extra delicious twist?
2. Halloumi and Vegetable Kebabs
Halloumi is a great cheese for grilling outdoors either on a portable grill or barbeque. This recipe should be followed on your first evening at the campsite if you don’t have a fridge, as the halloumi can be stored in a cool box for the day and you can prepare the vegetables at home before you leave to make this a quick and simple dinner. Use a selection of vegetables of your choice, such as courgettes, onion and peppers and arrange on skewers with cubes of halloumi. Glaze with olive oil or balsamic vinegar, grill and serve.
3. Tuna Pasta
This simple one-pot recipe can be easily cooked on a portable cooking device and only uses ingredients that do not need refrigeration – making it the perfect camping meal. Boil some water in a pan or camping kettle and follow packet instructions to cook the pasta. Once cooked, drain the pasta and stir in a tin of tuna and tinned sweetcorn. This dish is really versatile and can be easily adapted to your taste. You could add mayonnaise, tinned chopped tomatoes with chopped onion and garlic or grated cheese. Pack some dried herbs, salt and pepper to season, or why not swap the tinned tuna for tinned hot dog sausages for another variation?
4. Marshmallow kebabs
Nothing says camping like toasting marshmallows on the campfire and marshmallow kebabs make a great dessert. All you need is a bag (or two!) of marshmallows and some kebab sticks and away you go! Simply jazz up your kebabs with the addition of fresh fruit and berries, such as fresh strawberries – you could even melt some chocolate for a real fondue treat!
5. S’mores
This classic American Girl Scout recipe makes the perfect camping treat. Simply toast a few marshmallows until they start to melt and sandwich with a square of chocolate in between two biscuits and voila! You can even experiment with the fillings by adding bananas, nutella or peanut butter, too. Alternatively, for a slightly messier but fun option – heat the marshmallows and chocolate in a pan or mess tin and use cookies or crackers to scoop up the gooey mixture.
