One of the best parts about camping is eating. Of course, I could say that about most anything – hot dogs and ice cream in a tiny helmet at baseball games or table after table of potluck dishes at family reunions.
But camping meals are a different breed. For the most part you’re cooking outside, either over a campfire or on a grill. That means the food will be healthy, since most meals will be made from scratch. It also does somewhat limit your menu options. But there are so many wonderful meals that can be cooked when camping, the menu options are all delicious.
So, with napkins in hand, let’s look at how to plan a menu for your RV camping trip:
Plan Your Menu
Get out your calendar and for each day that you are away from home, create a daily meal plan – breakfast, lunch and dinner. Also plan on snacks, and by all means don’t forget the ingredients for s’mores.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew when planning the meals. Hot dogs cooked over the campfire are perfectly fine. But elaborate meals with tons of sides means extra time cooking and extra time cleaning, not to mention extra time packing and less space for other things.
Another tip: get everyone involved in planning the menu.
Once your meals are planned, create a list of everything you need and materials to make them with. Note: don’t forget cleaning supplies.
Mix, Package and Label
Just before you leave, measure out and mix up the ingredients ahead of time. Separate and package each with labels of what they are and recommended date to be consumed. Gather up your meal plans and recipes and store them safely. This not only saves space in the camper, but it gives you more time to enjoy the outdoors.
Meals now have been planned, pre-mixed, packed and stored for convenience. All you need to do now is take them out and cook them to your liking.
Common Camping Meals
Breakfast: eggs; sausage; bacon; hash browns; cereal; juice; coffee; biscuits and gravy.
Lunch: cold cuts; hot dogs; PBJs.
Dinner: steak; hamburgers; corn on the cob; Dutch oven recipes; baked potatoes; hobo pies; chicken – actually, anything that can be cooked over an open fire!
Snacks: fruit; granola bars.
Dessert: S’mores.
See you next week when we talk about How to Survive a Group RV Camping Trip.
Rick Kessler
(Gr8LakesCamper)
Gr8LakesCamper celebrates the world of RV Camping in the Great Lakes region. Gather around the campfire and share tips, ideas and stories on RVing, camping and travel destinations. Follow Gr8LakesCamper on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and the Gr8LakesCamper blog.