Cooking Basics

Easy Camping Recipes Using 5 Ingredients Or Less

When you are out camping, hiking, and backpacking you have a lot on your plate. Sadly, gourmet food is usually not one of them. It can be downright impossible to pack enough food and gear to make delicious and varied meals, right? Wrong! With the right know-how you can make amazing food without a lot of gear or ingredients. Check out these easy camping recipes that use 5 ingredients or less and you'll never cook (or eat) the same way again. Again, please do not cook inside of the vans!

  • Nothing beats a stack of flapjacks cooked over an open fire. Luckily, vegan pancakes are actually a little bit easier to make at the campsite than normal pancakes as we are using soymilk instead of dairy, which can be hard to have at the campsite. The only 'trick' to this recipe is to flip the pancakes at the right time and quickly. Too early or too slow and you'll have a broken, gooey pancake. You'll need: 1 Cup All Purpose Flour (you can go Wheat flour if you want) 2 Tablespoons Sugar 2 Tablespoons Baking Powder 1 Cup Soymilk 2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil Pinch of Salt Structure and procedure is very important with this recipe. Because we are using so much Baking Powder we need to assemble this very carefully. Take the Flour and the Baking Powder and mix it together. We want to make sure there are no lumps and the mixture looks light. Now add the Sugar and salt and mix again. In a separate bowl mix the soymilk and the vegetable oil. Now add the dry stuff to the wet stuff as you heat up your pan. Don't over mix but you do want it smooth. Simply cook your pancakes and serve with whatever you prefer.

    • Eggs

    • Water

    • Clarified Butter

    I know what you're thinking, 'everyone makes scrambled eggs; this isn't special.' But hear me out. Most scrambled eggs that people make are lifeless, bland mounds of disappointment and regret. Especially the eggs that are made when camping. But when you master this recipe sublime, cloud-like eggs will be your reward.

    Usually we would be using simple non-salted stick butter, but not everyone will have a cooler or a refrigerator that can fit 'extras' like butter. Clarified butter will do what we need, but if you can bring stick butter, use that instead. As you can see, I only listed 3 ingredients without any amounts. That's because it depends on how much you are making. The ratio is this : for each egg add 1 tablespoon of water and 1 tablespoon of butter (clarified or not).

    Add your ingredients to a sauce pan. Yes, a sauce pan. A pot. Not a frying pan like you're probably used to. I like to leave the egg yolks unbroken at first. If one breaks while cracking, that's fine. Start off away from the fire and just stir, getting the egg whites and water to mix. Then put the pot over the fire. Once the eggs start to get warm you can break the yolks and get the eggs all mixed together. At this point the butter should start to melt, too. Once the butter is melting take the pan off the heat and keep stirring. You want to keep taking the eggs off the heat and then back on. We're looking for a slow warm that barely cooks the eggs and allows the butter to melt, but nothing more. It's usually going to be a routine of 30 seconds over the fire, 15 seconds off. Once the butter is completely melted and mixed together you can leave the eggs on the fire a little bit longer. Keep stirring until your eggs just come together. Your eggs will not seem done, and they aren't. But take it off the heat anyway. The residual heat in the pan will take your eggs to perfection. Oh, by the way, you can cook yours eggs at home like this, too.

    • 6 Cups Rolled Oats

    • 2 Cups Pecans or Almonds or Cashews

    • ½ Cup Vegetable Oil

    • ½ to 1 Cup Maple Syrup

    • 1 Cup Dried Cranberries

    Sure, you could make granola at home before you head out to the campsite. But when you make your granola fresh and over an open fire you instill it with tasty qualities that add flavor, aroma, and texture.

    Get a cast iron pan nice and hot. Add your nuts and toss them around. It's a good idea to take the pan off the fire as you toss them around to ensure you do not burn them. Once they start to have a nice nutty smell you can add the rolled oats. Cook this slowly over the fire until it becomes brown and nutty.

    Take the pan off the heat and add the Vegetable oil and the Maple Syrup. Depending on the consistency you like, you may want more or less syrup. Toss this together and when it's completely mixed put it in a bowl. Add the dried Cranberries and eat warm. You can also keep it covered and it will last for more Breakfasts to come.

    • 2 Diced Medium Potatoes

    • 8 Eggs, stirred

    • 1 Chopped Onion

    • 2 Chopped Peppers (your choice)

    • 2 Tablespoons Butter

    This wholesome breakfast is an easy camping meal and a great way to start the day. It cooks up in one pan and serves about four.

    First, add 1 Tablespoon of Butter into your cast iron pan and put it over your fire. Melt it and spread it around.

    Second, add the Potatoes, Onions, and Peppers. I like the Potatoes to be in chunks and for the Onion and Peppers to be chopped, but it's your choice. Cooked these until the Potatoes are tender and the Onions and Peppers are nice and cooked. It takes about 20 minutes, but it depends on your fire.

    Third, add the next Tablespoon of Butter and, once it's melted, add the Eggs. The Eggs will fill all the spaces in between the Potatoes, Peppers, and Onions. But to ensure even cooking time, cover the pan with lid or tin foil and let it cook until the eggs are nice and ready, about 4 minutes.

    • 8 Hot Dogs, Chopped

    • 1 Small Onion, Chopped

    • 8 Ounces Chili

    • 3 Tablespoons Barbecue Sauce

    • 12 Hot Dog Buns, gutted

    This is a terrific twist on the old style kind of hot dog. These still have the same old Hot Dog flavor so kids will still love them, but now it comes with a few nice depths of flavor and sustenance so adults tend to like them, too.

    Take all the ingredients, except the gutted Hot Dog Buns, and mix it in a bowl. Lay out each Hot Dog bun on its own sheet of tin foil. Fill the Buns with the mixture and then wrap the tin foil so the whole thing is sealed. You can grill these over a flame for about 20 minutes. Or you can put them deep in coals and cook them for 15 minutes. Timing obviously depends on how much heat your packing, but we're just looking to cook the Hot Dogs all the way through.

    • 1 Pound Fish Fillets, One half pound per person, serves two

    • 1 Cup Buttermilk Pancake Mix

    • 1 Cup Beer

    • 1 Cup Flour

    • ¼ Cup Cooking Oil

    First step is to open the beer and take a sip. We want the Oil to be nice and hot right when we have finished preparing our Fish Fillets, so we should heat that up now. Nice job! Take another sip of beer!

    We need our Fish Fillets to be cleaned and dried. You COULD buy these Fish Fillets from a store, but hopefully you caught, skinned, cleaned, de-boned, and dried them yourself (because I can't do that). Anyway, take your Fish Fillets and dredge them in the Flour. We want just an even coating of flour all over the fish. Take another sip.

    Now we want to mix the Pancake mix and about ¾ Cup of beer together. The rest of the beer is for you. Mix it with a fork until it is smooth. Now we want to take our floured Fish Fillets and dip them in the Batter. Again, we want an even coating.

    Put these Fish Fillets into the oil and cook until the outside is Golden, Brown, and Delicious. Once the outside is done the inside should be nice, moist, and shiny. Only cook two at a time as over crowding the pan when frying is a big No-No.

    Once they are all done (and you ate the first Lightly Fried Fish Fillet just to make sure it was done and then finished the beer) let them drain a little bit on a paper towel. After that you can sprinkle a little dill, pepper, or lemon on them, but that's not really needed. They are pretty perfect just the way they are.

    • 1 Pizza Crust

    • 1 Can Tomato Sauce

    • 1 Cup Cheddar Cheese

    • 1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese

    • 20 Slices of Pepperoni

    The Dutch Oven is a great and effective place to cook a pizza. Take out your Pizza crust and place it in the bottom of your Dutch Oven. If you want to bring Pizza Dough, just let the Dough cook up for about 5 minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients to give yourself a nice base on which to build.

    Next, layer out your Tomato Sauce. Try not to use too much, a little bit goes a long way. You can substitute the tomato sauce for things like Buffalo Sauce, Barbecue Sauce, or Store bought Pizza Sauce.

    Now Add the Cheddar Cheese. Spread it out so you have even coverage. I prefer to have my Pepperonis not too crispy so I like to add them next. Make sure they are flat and that you have even coverage. Now add the Mozzarella.

    Put your Dutch Oven onto the coals. Now place the lid on the Oven and put five or six coals on top of the lid. This will cook the Pizza from both sides so it should only take about 10 minutes.

  • Servings: 4 quesadillas

    Ingredients

    • 4 medium flour tortillas

    • 2 - 8oz chicken breasts, grilled and sliced

    • 1 jar Tostitos salsa con queso

    • 1 can black beans rinsed and drained

    • 1 c. shredded Mexican blend cheese

    • tin foil

    Instructions

    Spread 1 Tbsp salsa con queso over one side of a tortilla.

    Place 1/4 c. chicken on half the tortilla over the salsa con queso. Sprinkle 1/4 c. black beans and about 1/4 c. cheese over the chicken.

    Fold other side of tortilla over to cover ingredients. Place on a piece of tin foil large enough to cover the quesadilla. Leave the ends open.

    Place the foiled quesadilla on the grate directly over the campfire. Keep over fire to cheese is melted and tortilla is crispy.

    Remove from the grate and cut in four pieces. No plates needed because you have the foil!

  • Before you start, take a moment to quarter the mushrooms, dice the onion, and mince the garlic.

    Begin by warming up your cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. While that’s going, liberally salt your steak on both sides. Add a couple of tablespoons of cooking oil into the skillet, then crank the heat all the way up to high. Once the oil starts to smoke, place the steak in the center of the skillet, and don’t touch it (1).

    Let it sear on one side for 3-4 minutes, flip it, and sear on the opposite side for another 3-4 minutes (2). Remove from the skillet, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest on a cutting board.

    Meanwhile, reduce the heat down to medium and add in your mushrooms and onions. If the pan feels a little dry, feel free to add some more oil. Toss occasionally with your tongs, until mushrooms and onions start to pick up a nice brown color (3). Then add in minced garlic and knock that around it becomes fragrant.

    Now add the beef broth. The liquid will instantly boil once it hits the hot skillet, which will deglaze the fond stuck to the bottom of the skillet and release a ton of great flavor (4).

    Add in the Worcestershire sauce, thyme, and egg noodles. Bring the broth to a simmer and stir the noodles frequently. As the noodles cook they will absorb most of the liquid (5).

    Once the noodles are fully cooked, it’s time add in the sour cream. In a small container put half of the sour cream and a few spoons full of hot broth from the skillet (6). Mix thoroughly. This process tempers the sour cream so it doesn’t curdle once it hits the hot liquid in the skillet. Add this mixed sour cream to the skillet and mix thoroughly. Then add the rest of the sour cream directly to the skillet (7).

    Uncover your steak, cutting against the grain, slice into thin strips or medallions (8). Add to the noodles.

    Chop up some fresh parsley and sprinkle on top to garnish. Enjoy!

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