Camping On-the-Go Foods

Discussion in 'General Survival and Preparedness' started by Motomom34, Apr 18, 2022.


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  1. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    Car camping is an in thing and I have plans this summer. I am asking Monkeys for Go foods suggestions. Looking for foods/meals that you have prepared easily while camping or traveling. I do not want to eat out and will only have a small Igloo cooler. I will do a small Coleman propane burner for heating water and cooking. I need to make a 4-day menu.

    For the normal day or two camping we do instant oatmeal, granola bars and ramen with a canned veg mixed in. I need suggestions please.
     
  2. hot diggity

    hot diggity Monkey+++ Site Supporter+++

    Car camping is easy. If you miss the wood smoke smell of a fire and camp in firewood or fire restricted national parks you can still use a wood pellet TLUD (Top Lit Up Draft) stove. I never got any harassment about this since it's in a container. Could cook my meal, make my coffee and burn my popcorn over wood flames, then have heat to sit around after dark.

    Spam, canned ham, canned white chicken salad, eggs, precooked bacon, hot dogs and a loaf of bread. (all that stuff can make sandwiches) Potatoes, onions, carrots, Granny Smith apples and pop corn all travel well. Bananas are good early in the trip. Add some dandelion greens and wild onion with vinegar and you even have a salad. If you can boil water you need coffee, cocoa, maybe some beef stock cubes. With a little imagination, some popcorn oil and a frying pan you can make all sorts of tasty dishes.

    I don't cook anything that I can't prepare "easily." If you can't cook an egg or fry potatoes and onions with spam and hot dogs just stick to the precooked bacon and cold sandwiches.

    If the small Igloo is enough for you you may not need this trick, but since larger coolers nowadays don't have the water drain in the end like the old Coleman coolers I carry a length of clear plastic tubing in the cooler to siphon water out as the ice melts. This keeps things from sloshing around and means you don't have to unpack all the food to add ice. (I'm a McDonald's and motel ice bandit)
     
    Last edited: Apr 18, 2022
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  3. hot diggity

    hot diggity Monkey+++ Site Supporter+++

    Do you take a tent? My transition to car camping was aided by a scout master who always camped in amazing comfort. Roll of carpet on the tent floor, inflatable bed, folding tables and chairs. All sorts of stuff that was too heavy when I was carrying stuff on my back or even on a bike or in a canoe.

    Then there's "car" camping. Like the '63 Willy's Wagoneer I camped in, or the early 1970's Chrysler New Yorker I lived in for a while.
     
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  4. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    Kraft Mac&Cheese with chopped up Hotdawg…
    Put chopped Dawg in when you boil the Mac…
    Drain when Mac is soft, and stir in cheese…
    Good Calories, and Protein and only need water and heat..

    You can replace the Mac with Rice too…
     
  5. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    @hot diggity I agree on the canned chicken. Few mayo packs, relish and mustard to make a chicken salad. Was thinking of trying dinner rolls instead of bread. Bread always gets smashed and packing out a sandwich gets soggy.

    I see two votes for hot dogs. They are easy and pre-cooked so they should keep in the cooler.
     
  6. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    No tent. I will be sleeping in the Jeep which is why I am bringing a smaller cooler. Trying to bring minimal amount of stuff.
     
  7. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    When I lived in the North Cascades for two years, we lived on Rice, local fish, Hard Salami, Block Cheese, and French Beard with garlic butter… All available at the local Tackle & Hardware Stores along the trail, by the highways…
     
  8. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    @BTPost like the hard salami idea. What did you eat for breakfast when you were in the North Cascades? Oatmeal is always easy and filling plus nutritional but any suggestions?
     
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  9. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    Local greens, “Grunionons”, and rice… maybe local fish, if fishing was good…
     
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  10. hot diggity

    hot diggity Monkey+++ Site Supporter+++

    Tie the bread bag to the back seat coat hook or grab handle. Won't get smashed there.
     
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  11. Ura-Ki

    Ura-Ki Grampa Monkey

    Dinty More Beef Stew in the can, simply cut the lid about 3/4 of the way round, peal off the wrapper and set right on the fire and stir till done, the lid can be folded around it's self to make a handle ( use a hanky or bandanna to grab, HOT). when done, rinse it out and fill with water and put back on the fire till almost boiling, add hot coco and your golden. One spoon is all ya needs! Save the empty can, drop a couple strips of bacon in the bottom, and add sliced/diced taters and what ever spices you want,( maybe a bit of onion?) cook till the bacon is krispy, and set aside till the taters is did, drop a couple cracked eggs in the bottom and fry till done and vola, breakfast! You can get extra fancy and use the same can to cook up some biscuits too, couple more strips of bacon first so ya gets the lard, drop a couple a table spoons of batter in the bottom and bake over the fire! Hot dogs suck, swap out for polish sausage and slit down the middle and pan fry them till the outside is nice and browned, slice into bite sized chunks and add to red beans and rice, again, use your soup can and spoon! Got some potted beef, your livin high on the hog, spoon out a few big dollops and add to the fry with the eggs and biscuits for a hearty lunch! Make some extra biscuits and save for later, packets of honey or jam are perfect for later! Dinner time is spaghetti with meat sauce, home made from your put up stocks is best, again, use your soup can to make your meal, the can is the right size for making single meals on the go, and all you have to do is clean it out once or twice!
     
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  12. hot diggity

    hot diggity Monkey+++ Site Supporter+++

    Best piece of gear for sleeping in cars any time, or urban camping in general is a mylar space blanket. If it's cold you sleep under it. I have weights taped to the corners so it stays put. If it's hot you string it up above you on a string like a tent. The beauty of mylar is that in the dark it makes you invisible to anyone looking in with a light, but you can see them like it isn't there.

    They're noisy at first, but get less noisy once they're all wrinkled up. Still just as warm and translucent.

    Sleeping in a modern Jeep should be comfortable. I had to deal with a hard, dusty steel floor that was cold and made my sleeping bag wet. Only good bit was that I had roll up windows. Lots of things modern cars do when you switch on the ignition would've given away my parking/camping spot. I'd have to figure out how to disable a bunch of lights and dingers to be able to slip into the woods like I used to. The only one I had to worry about with old cars was the brake and reverse lights.
     
  13. hot diggity

    hot diggity Monkey+++ Site Supporter+++

    [​IMG]
    I was just thinking of your poor squashed bread. ;)
     
  14. hot diggity

    hot diggity Monkey+++ Site Supporter+++

  15. BlueDuck

    BlueDuck Monkey+++

    A can of Chile with some cut up hot dogs or sausage makes a great poor persons Beany Weenies only better.
     
  16. SB21

    SB21 Monkey+++

    Not sure if anyone thru in tuna ,, canned or bagged ,,, the bags are lighter. I throw tuna in mac&cheese ,, sometimes I add peas , corn , and or diced tomatoes.
    I liked HotDiggitys Dandelion greens idea ,,, I've actually been trying to find a good sized patch of'em to cook up a few ,, and try a tea. Been years since I've had them.
    Good luck MM ,,, be safe and post pics .
     
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  17. DKR

    DKR Raconteur of the first stripe

    2/3 cup "Quick", not instant, oatmeal with sunflower seeds. You can find UHT milk in 1 Cup containers (small box, like kiddie drinks), Instead of sugar, use chipped dried dates. 2/3 cup boiling water. Wait a couple of minutes, add milk to cool to the temp you like for a hot breakfast. All of this in a zoploc bag. Toss the bag - no cleanup past the spoon
    ***
    Air dried ramen noodles and a 'cup of soup' (Single) chicken noodle packet. Boil Ramen 4 min, drain (rinse if you can spare the water) add coup packet and enough hot water to make a meal. Alternatively, use a can of chicken noodle soup and 1/2 the packet of ramen.
    ***
    Tortillas or bagels instead of loaf bread. Add PB&J or any lunch meat. Roll, enjoy. Very heat tolerant.
    ***
    1 or 2 Eggs, cracked into a "freezer" ziploc bag. Add a dash of UHT milk if you like 'fluffy' eggs. Boil the bag until the eggs are done - use water for tea/coffee or washing up. SC Johnson specifically calls out freezer bags as the only safe ones to use for boiling meals. (YMMV)
    ****
    1/2 pound hamburger, chopped onions or potatoes, with large pat of butter. Wrap in a minimum of 3 layers of heavy foil. Please on or very close to exhaust manifold. At hiway speeds, diner should be done in 2+ hours. Leather gloves recommended for handling.
    ***
    Some of the so-called 'microwave meals' are actually edible Dump contents into a ziploc freezer bag, Drop bag into boiling water. Many of the plastic containers are awkward to fit into anything less than a 2L pot.. I'm not a fan, but many claim these things are tasty...
    ***
    Instant mashed potatoes with canned chicken tuna or any number or other additions. Just add water. Use of freezer bag makes cleanup easier.
    **
    Hope this is of some help.
     
  18. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    Have you personally cooked eggs in a freezer bag?
    & yes, your post helped very much. Love all the ideas. Thanks for reminding me about tortillas, we always have them in the house but for some reason I always think bread.

    Who knew? All one needs is a can of Dinty Moore :LOL: truthfully I have never eaten Dinty Moore stew. My Ex liked it but I never tried it. I am going to pick up a can and try this.
     
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  19. DKR

    DKR Raconteur of the first stripe

    Yes, I have cooked eggs in a freezer bag. I was a cook at a girls camp, this what I recommended for the kids doing a two day trek via canoe in the Ak bush. Less cleanup for them and reduced chance of food bore disease for me.

    Give it a try B4 you jet. Bring water to boil, set bag in water, remove when eggs get stiff. Great over toast

    The ‘new’Dinty stew isn’t as good as the old stuff.
     
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  20. DKR

    DKR Raconteur of the first stripe

    Look at “Omlet in a bag”

    Many sites cover coking food in a freezer bag.
     
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