5 Easy Cooking Tips While Camping

If you’re going to be roughing it in the woods, these 5 easy cooking tips while camping will make mealtimes more convenient. Whether you’re planning on making your meals over a campfire or on a campstove, make sure you bring all of the regular essentials like charcoal, lighter fluid and cooking gear. Don’t forget to follow basic fire safety rules while cooking outdoors.

1. Make it quick. Prepare food before you go camping to reduce cooking time. Cover prebaked potatoes in foil and store them in your cooler. Bring precooked meats, such as breakfast sausage and bacon. If you plan on roasting vegetables, cut them up at home and put them in zip lock bags. Make chili, stew or soup ahead of time, freeze it then put it in the cooler when you leave. Instead of having to wait for it to cook, you’ll just be heating it up.
2. Use a Dutch oven. Place 4 to 6 pieces of charcoal, which should be white with no flame,  under the oven and put 12 to 15 pieces on top of it. You can add more or remove pieces as needed. Rotate the oven about every 15 minutes to keep your food from burning. You can also use the oven’s lid as a frying pan by turning it over and placing it on coals. Boil an inch of water in the oven after removing the food for easy cleanup. Don’t use soap and make sure to let the oven dry thoroughly before you put it away.
3. Don’t forget the tin foil. Heavy duty aluminum foil can serve multiple purposes while camping. Use it to cover food on the grill or place it over a Dutch oven or pot if you want to speed up the cooking time. You can also use a wadded up ball of foil to scour dishes with burnt or caked on food that’s hard to remove. 
4. Avoid burnt barbecue. If you plan on barbecuing any meats during your camping trip, such as chicken, grill the meat until it’s about halfway done before coating it with sauce. Barbecue sauce only needs to be heated up, not cooked. Having it over the fire too long will cause it to burn. 
5. Have leftovers for breakfast. Cook omelets using as many leftovers as possible so you don’t have to worry about wasting food or storing it to bring home. Meats such as ham, sausage or even chicken work well, along with a variety of vegetables. If you do have any foods you won’t be using, follow the campground’s rules and instructions for throwing away garbage.