Camping Sinks

August 11th, 2009 at 13:54

Camping Sinks

7 Need to Know Campsite Cooking Strategies

Are you sick and tired of not knowing what to bring or what to
cook when you go camping? Do you either pack the entire kitchen
(including the sink) or you bring the absolute minimum and then
have to use a fork as a spatula or two spoons as tongs?

If that sounds even the slightest bit familiar then you are in
the right place. Over the past decade or so I have refined a
list of 7 things that I use every single time I prepare for my
next camping trip.

These strategies are relevant whether you are Car Camping,
primitive camping, RV camping, scout camping or large group
camping. You can very easily apply them across any type of trip,
which is what really makes them worthwhile.

So here they are:

1. Plan the Meals - Okay common sense right? Well If I didn't
include this as the first and most important item I would get
hollered at! But seriously, if you don't plan the meals ahead of
time not only do you not know what you're going to eat you also
have no idea what to pack as far as cooking gear is concerned.
Do you need a spatula or tongs? Do you need a strainer or a
frying pan?

2. Plan the Gear - This follows directly from number 1. Now that
you know what you are going to eat for the trip you can now
figure out exactly what utensils, pots, pans, containers and
other miscellaneous cooking gear you need. And more importantly
what gear you don't need! My family and I do a lot of tent
camping which means that we take my wife's SUV, so we have a
very limited amount of room that we must pack all of our "stuff"
into. If I only need a 2 quart pot and a small frying pan well
guess what, the 9 other pots and 4 other frying pans stay at
home!

3. Plan the Condiments - Have you ever went camping and once you
get there you realize that you don't have ketchup, mustard or
relish for your nice, hot and juicy steakburger you just cooked
for yourself? Have you ever went camping and it took you 10
minutes to find the garlic powder because it found it's own way
to the bottom of the box you keep all your spices in? There is a
fine line between having too many spices/condiments and not
having enough but you have to walk that line. Even if you have a
40 foot Class A Mega Super Duper Motor home, you only have so
much space. Sit down and look at the recipe's you are going to
use and then figure out what spices/condiments you can bring and
which ones to leave at home.

4. 10% Above - Get 10% more food then you think you should take.
If your family usually eats 4 hamburgers, take 5 or 6. If they
usually eat 6 pieces of Corn on the Cob take 8. I don't know for
sure what it is but whenever you go camping everybody seems to
be HUNGRY all the time. It might be because they are running
around doing more stuff or it might be something in the air, I
don't know.

5. KIS - Keep It Simple. Realize that you are going to be in the
middle of the woods. Is it possible to cook a Rack of Lamb with
Herb-Dijon Nut Crust, Parisienne Potatoes, Green Beans Wrapped
In Carrot Ring and Pureed Sweet Potato Basket? Yes it is
technically possible. Should you attempt it? Heck NO! Don't get
me wrong, I'm not saying to plan 3 square of milk and cereal. I
am saying to remember where you are going to be and the mostly
primitive cooking tools you will have at your disposal. 6. Test
Runs- If you are planning on cooking on a campfire, or using a
new grill, or cooking in your RV for the first time on your next
trip...Don't Do It! Always, always, always do a test run at home
before you get out there. Build a little fire in your backyard
and figure out if you need some charcoal to bolster the wood
fire and make it cook more evenly. Make sure you know how to
hook up that new grill and where the hot spots are. It is really
not a lot of fun to get out into the woods somewhere and burn
your dinner to a crisp or have it sitting in the bottom of the
campfire because of a "equipment malfunction". So always do a
test run.

7. Try a new Treat - Remembering strategy number 6, my family
always tries a new treat whenever we go camping. Whether it be a
new recipe for our green bean casserole or a naughty little
after dinner snack, we try something new every time. This
doesn't have to mean something exotic that you're not sure the
animals would even like. Just look around on the internet, there
are a ton of campfire / Dutch oven recipes out there for you to
try.

Well that's it, that's my list of 7 Need to Know Campsite
Cooking Strategies. This is not a wish-list or a group of things
I pulled out of thin air. I use this list each and every time I
plan a trip for my family, my friends and my troop. This list if
used properly will keep you in good stead for your trips. You
won't run out of food, you won't eat bland food, you won't bring
home a ton of unused and possibly spoiled food and most
importantly dinner won't be a chore while camping.

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