Favorite easy camping meals

When it comes to camping, I believe in keeping my meals simple but still nourishing and delicious. Since I cook so much in my day to day life, I make a point to make sure I have to do as little cooking/prepping as possible when I’m camping.

This usually means prepping everything ahead and eating things that are extremely easy to make that also bring me joy.

Below are my go-to camping meals. There are a lot of other creative things you could make, but camping for me is a time to get back to enjoying the simple things, food included!

Breakfast

Camping breakfasts are special. It’s a time to sit around the fire, sip on your hot coffee, take in the quietness of the morning, and enjoy a cozy breakfast together.

My breakfasts pretty much always consist of one of the below meals: 

• Oatmeal loaded up with seeds, dried fruit, chia, and nut butter and topped with Greek yogurt and fresh seasonal fruit. I’ll mix together the dry oatmeal mixture ahead, then you can cook this in a pot or use quick oats and just pour boiling water over. 
• My make-ahead chia oats topped with Greek yogurt, fruit, granola or nuts/seeds. This is a cold no-cook version of the oats above that I’ll prep ahead. I make some version of the base from this recipe, usually using almond butter.
• Bacon or sausage, eggs, potatoes and/or bread with avocado. This is my favorite breakfast – some combination of meat, eggs, and carbs cooked over a fire or on the camping stove with some avocado on the side. To speed things along, I like to chop and roast the potatoes ahead and then just reheat them in the skillet. You could do the same with the sausage/bacon.

Lunch

I have one word – sandwiches!! They’re packable and easy to throw together and I just love sandwiches so much!

I always make a point to bring a big loaf of good sourdough bread. Usually it’s a peanut butter and banana sandwich (my hiking sandwich of choice) or an egg + avocado sandwich or toast with a slice of tomato or pickle in there (I like to boil a bunch of eggs to bring camping for easy protein).

You could also prep ahead a simple canned tuna or salmon salad for easy lunch sandwiches.

Below are a few no-cook sandwich recipes:

• Turkey Arugula Sandwich with Artichoke Pepper Spread – make the artichoke pepper spread ahead.
• Pesto Turkey “Wraps” – but use bread instead of the cottage cheese wrap. Make the pesto ahead.
• Avocado Mozzarella Sandwich with Balsamic Basil Spread – make the spread ahead.
• Marinated Tomato Mashed Bean Sandwich – marinate the tomatoes  and mash up the beans ahead.
• Favorite Tuna Melt – prep this tuna salad for sandwiches.
• Garlic and Herb Salmon Avocado Melt – prep this ahead, but don’t add the avocado until you’re ready to eat it. 

Another easy thing to make ahead for lunch (or as part of dinner) is a big grain salad. Make sure to bring toppings (nuts, cheese, pickled onions, avo, lemon or lime wedges).

Below are a few salads that come to mind:

• Best Ever Lentil Salad
• Crunchy Broccoli and Lentil Salad with Dates
• Thai Crunch Rice Salad with Sesame Peanut Dressing
• Summer Couscous Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing
• Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa Salad with Cranberries and Pecans
• Kale Farro Tahini Caesar Salad
• Italian Sausage Broccolini Bean Salad

Dinner

My favorite camping dinner is all about quality and simplicity! A local sausage with some seasonal veggies, a few slices of good cheese, and sourdough bread with my favorite French butter. All you have to do is cook the sausage and veg, which can both be done quickly over a fire or on your camping stove. Or you could bring a different protein (salmon, chicken, steak, pork) and pack a sauce to smother it in if you want (this chimichurri is my go-to). 

Make a basic bowl or plate: prep a sauce and choose a protein (sausage, chicken, boiled eggs, canned fish), and pack some chopped veggies. Cook the protein and veggies on whatever cooking device you have and serve with the sauce and a side of buttered toast. Bring toppings (nuts, cheese, pickled onions, avo).

Mac n’ cheese with hot dogs or sausage. I’m talking about a good old box of Annie’s white cheddar shells served with hot dogs or sausages that you roast over the fire on your marshmallow sticks. If you want veggies in there, throw some broccolini (or any veggies) over the fire and have that on top or on the side.

Chili loaded with all the toppings. Depending on the time of year, a hot bowl of chili loaded with cheese, etc…is a non-negotiable! This Chipotle Chili is my go-to for camping or this White Chicken Quinoa Chili. Both can be made ahead, of course!

If you’re feeling more adventurous and want to do more “cooking”, you can make most skillet meals over the fire or on the camping stove (just search “skillet” on the Cooking Club recipes page). The general formula is cook meat + veg in a skillet, then cover with cheese or have a sauce or other toppings to go with.

Or make pizza if you can swing the set up (a pizza oven or a hot grill). I brought our pizza oven camping once and, though it was a lot more work, it was insanely delicious!

Tips for prepping

The most helpful thing to do is fill out your meal prep chart with all of the things you can make ahead. This will make you so much more relaxed, knowing that all the work is done and all you have to do is heat it up or throw it together!

Common prep ahead items for camping:

• Chopping veggies
• Making sauces
• Sandwich prep
• Make soups or salads that you can eat or reheat
• Prepping any toppings for soups, salads, etc…
• Prepping oatmeal or chia oat breakfasts
• Boiling some eggs or making other snacks

I hope this helped to streamline your camping meals and planning if it’s something that typically stresses you out! Camping is a time to get away from the stressors of everyday life and take pleasure in the simple things, like enjoying a nourishing meal with the people you care about in nature 🙂