If the thought of preparing meals for your family while camping is overwhelming, you’ve come to the right place! Below you’ll find a list of ideas for every meal.
The key to cooking while camping is to prep everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) that you possibly can. If it can be chopped in advance, it should be! If it can be made at home and frozen, do it! Then plan your meals according to what will thaw out the most quickly, and eat that first.
If you’re camping with friends I recommend creating a meal plan to share the cooking/prep work. It cuts down on the amount of food you have to bring, and everyone enjoys the break from cooking and cleaning up!
Having a Blackstone Griddle for camping will greatly increase the types of food you can cook and enjoy while you’re camping. It’s worth the investment!
Another pro tip - freeze jugs of water instead of buying multiple bags of ice. I’ve found the jugs that work best for this are the big jugs of cranberry juice that have a thicker plastic than a typical water jug. The larger size stays frozen for multiple days. I usually freeze 3 of them to use if I have 2 coolers, and then we use the water to drink when they’ve thawed.
BREAKFAST IDEAS:
Breakfast Sandwiches on the Blackstone (on English muffins). Bring pre-cooked sausage patties, sliced cheese, eggs, butter and pesto or tomato jam if desired. Cook it up while you’re there, or pre-make them and simply reheat in foil.
Try this twist: use up leftover barbecue pulled pork instead of sausage!
Pancakes - get a mix, add water and get them on the griddle! Don’t forget your whisk, flipper, syrup, butter and some bacon!
Baked Oatmeal - make your favorite recipe at home, freeze it in big squares and then reheat in foil on the Blackstone (bring some milk if desired) OR use oatmeal packets and add water.
Scrambled eggs (in a water bottle (8 eggs fit) or water jug for easy transport) and sausage links. Bring a bag of pre-chopped and frozen onions and peppers to cook with the eggs if desired. Don’t forget your salt, pepper, and any condiments of choice. Ketchup, salsa etc.
My family loves these Breakfast Pockets at home. I make a big batch at home, wrap them in foil, freeze them and then reheat over the fire.
Breakfast burritos - make your recipe of choice at home, wrap them in foil, freeze them, and then reheat while camping. Don’t forget your salsa!
To make the kids happy - try a can of Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls cooked over the fire in foil. It might not be the prettiest thing, but they’ll taste yummy!
For a true camping breakfast over the fire try:
Bird Nest Breakfast:
1 frozen sausage patty
⅛-¼ C frozen shredded hashbrowns
1 egg
Salt and Pepper to taste
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Need: Foil, cooking spray, hot pads
Directions: Take 12 inches of aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray. Put 1 frozen sausage patty down. Add frozen shredded hash browns on top, making a nest in the middle. Add 1 egg to the nest. Season with S&P. Twist foil up like a Hershey Kiss. Place on grates of the fire pit. Cook until the egg is done to your liking. Remove, add cheese. Enjoy with ketchup or salsa if desired.
LUNCH IDEAS:
Deli Meat sandwiches (on wraps or croissants)
Hawaiian buns with ham and cheese
Sliced salami, sliced cheese, crackers
Chicken Salad wraps with canned chicken, cranberries etc
PB&J
Grilled Cheese on the Blackstone
Try some pre-made tuna meals for a quick and filling meal if you’re out hiking. They usually even have a spork included! We like the Bumble Bee Southwest Style Tuna+Pasta bowl and the bettergoods Mediterranean Tuna Salad bowl.
Veggie options (with Ranch or hummus):
carrots, snap peas, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, cucumbers
Fruit options:
grapes, strawberries, blueberries, apples, clementines, or dried fruit
Sides:
pita chips, hummus, tabouleh, chips, pretzels (Dots are our favorite for camping!)
Salads:
Pasta salad, potato salad (versions without mayo are best)
DINNER IDEAS:
Hot dogs over the fire with potato packets
Hamburgers, Patty Melts, or Philly Cheese Steak on the Blackstone (cook your veggies in the grease - yum!)
Marinated pork chops, steaks, or chicken. Freeze in the marinade and cook with a bag of frozen stir fry veggies.
Shrimp, peppers, lemons, and butter on Blackstone. Try couscous (just add boiling water) for a side.
Fajitas (pre-cut the chicken and freeze it in the marinade. Pre-cut and freeze peppers & onions. Bring cheese, salsa, and a lime.)
Gyros (pre-cut, marinate and freeze) on Blackstone. Bring pita bread, feta, cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce (chopped), and tzatziki sauce already prepped.
Purchase a rotisserie chicken and serve it with a veggie and a rice packet.
Pulled pork (made and frozen), buns, bbq sauce, green beans or baked beans (don’t forget your can opener), mac’n’cheese (pre-made in a crockpot if you have electric hookup, boxed if you have a camp stove to boil water, or pre-made from the store and heat through)
Walking Tacos or Taco Salad (cook meat ahead of time and freeze)
Spaghetti (or pasta of choice), sauce, meatballs (pre-made, frozen)
Ramen packages, just the noodles (bricks). Add water squirts on the Blackstone. Cook with meat of choice (steak, chicken etc) with veggie of choice (peppers and onions). Combine and finish with sauce of choice (teriyaki etc).
Apricot Glazed Chicken
1 boneless chicken breast
⅓ C apricot preserves
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
¼ tsp chili garlic sauce (optional)
1 Tb soy sauce
½ package frozen stir-fry vegetables
Mix together preserves, soy sauce, and seasonings (ahead of time). Place chicken breast in the center of a sheet of foil (spray with cooking spray first). Spread half of the apricot sauce on top .
Surround chicken with stir fry veggies. Pour remaining sauce over the whole thing. Wrap in a tent of foil. Place on hot coals and cook for 20 minutes.
Hobo Burgers: Carrots, potatoes, burger meat and Lawry’s seasoning salt on it all. Put it in a tin foil pouch and cook it in or over the fire.
Homemade Hamburger Helper - cook the meat and onions at home and put the spices in a sandwich bag with a beef broth cube.
Campfire Pizza:
Refrigerated pizza dough or a loaf bread
1 jar pizza sauce
Mozzarella cheese
Italian Sausage, cooked and crumbled
1 small package of pepperoni, cut into small pieces
½ bell pepper, chopped
½ onion, chopped
Oil
Directions: Oil a cast iron skillet. Spread the dough in the pan. Place on the fire and cook until browning. Remove from the fire, flip the crust. Brush with pizza sauce, place toppings on, cover with cheese. Return to the heat and cook until the crust is done and toppings are warm.
DESSERT IDEAS:
Make ahead of time brownies, cookies, bars etc. (Most cookies can be made and frozen ahead of time to stay fresh and give you a little extra cooling power in your cooler).
S’mores!
I’ve successfully made a warm dessert to have on our first night and served it with ice cream. Depending on how long you’re driving your first day you have a lot of options!
Campfire Pies
1 can of pie filling, any flavor
1 stick butter
1 loaf bread
Instructions: Warm a pie iron in the fire for a few minutes. Open one end of the butter and run it all over the inside of the pie iron. Place a slice of bread on each open side. Add about 2 TB pie filling and fold the iron back together and cook until toasted on each side. About 5 minutes.
SNACK IDEAS:
Healthy Trail Mix Protein Bites
Dried Cherry Almond Granola Clusters
Dots Pretzels
Trail Mix
Gummy Worms (The Albanese gummy worms are our favorite sweet treat for camping - they don’t melt and everyone loves them!)
Beer Nut Mix
More Meals ideas:
101+ Stress Free EASY Camping Food Ideas! - The Adventure Bite
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