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What are your favorite trail recipes?


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Boullibase

---------------------------

1 6 oz can shrimp

1 6 oz can solid white tuna

1 6 oz can clams

1/2 package Knorr boullibase mix

1 package ramen noodles

3 cups water

 

In a pot add all ingredients including juice from canned seafood

bring to boil and serve.

 

Spaghetti and clam sauce

 

At home, chop 2-3 cloves garlic. place in small 2 oz Nalgene container and fill with olive oil.

Grate 1/2 cup parmesan or romano cheese and place in ziploc

 

Put in bag with:

salt and pepper

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 6 oz can of clams

6 oz angel hair pasta

 

In camp:

 

boil pasta until done, drain, set aside and keep warm.

Pour olive oil/garlic into pan and saute for a minute or two (careful not to burn)

Add clams and juices, heat until it just starts to boil

 

Toss olive oil, clams, salt pepper, pepper flakes and cheese with pasta and serve

 

For the trail I like to carry a block of cheddar and some dried sausage, pepperoni or chorizo and eat them for lunch on Triscuts. Leftovers can make a nice dinner:

 

Potatos with cheese and sausage

 

At home pack 1/2 cup mashed potato flakes and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese and 1/4 cup powdered milk in a Ziploc.

 

At camp:

 

Dice about 2 oz cheddar and 2 oz dried sausage, chorizo or pepperoni and set aside.

 

Boil 2 cups water. Add all ingredients and stir until cheese is melted. Serve.

Edited by briansnat
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Being mostly vegetarian, and having to eat an extremely low-fat and completely dairy free kind of a diet... camp food is the bane of my hiking/camping existence. For day-hikes I don't take much - luna bar, bagel, triscuits, jerky (I said _mostly_ veg!) ... and I won't eat but about half of whatever I've brought. Eating is just not my 'thing'. (Shh. Don't tell me how bad that is for me!)

 

I do have a pretty groovy book called "Freezer Bag Cooking: Trail Food Made Simple" by Sarah Svien. I've had my copy since it first came out, but I believe she's working on an updated version. You can find her info on the book at her website, Freezer Bag Cooking and she's a very active poster on NWHikers.net.

 

I have a friend that uses the recipes out of the book a lot more than I do, and he loves them. I have hiked with people who aren't too fond of eating out of the bags when I've been in charge of 'food prep'. You might imagine how well that goes over... You don't like it? Please feel free to bring your own food.

 

If anyone has figured out how I can pack a bag of salad (keeping it cold, and unsmashed, of course) and some fixin's for dinner after a long day of hiking... let me know!!

 

michelle

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If anyone has figured out how I can pack a bag of salad (keeping it cold, and unsmashed, of course) and some fixin's for dinner after a long day of hiking... let me know!!

 

Romaine is pretty durable so I just put a two hearts of romaine in a ziploc along with some bean sprouts.

 

Tried regular tomatos, but they got squished , so we went with cherry tomatos. Put them in a bag inside the cook kit to protect them.

 

Red onion pre sliced in a Ziploc.

 

Bring other fragile veggies like cukes whole and slice at camp.

 

Dressing in a small Nalgene bottle.

 

Prepare the salad in camp. Make just what you need for the meal. As long as you keep items, particularly ones with lots of liquid (like cukes and dressing) apart the salad won't get too mushy.

 

This will give you salad for the first night and probably the second. Maybe even the third if its not too hot out. Beyond that its back to jerky.

 

I have a small backpackers cutting board to slice anything that needs slicing at camp.

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Criminal and I made cheesecake last summer on an overnighter:

 

Heat 2 cups of water

Tear open the blueberry pouch

Add ½ cup of cold water to the blueberry pouch

Tear open the cheesecake pouch

Add 2 cups of hot water to the cheesecake pouch, stir, and let sit for 10 minutes

Pour blueberry pouch into cheesecake pouch

Tear open the graham cracker crumb pouch and pour into cheesecake pouch

Eat.

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Being mostly vegetarian, and having to eat an extremely low-fat and completely dairy free kind of a diet... camp food is the bane of my hiking/camping existence. For day-hikes I don't take much - luna bar, bagel, triscuits, jerky (I said _mostly_ veg!) ... and I won't eat but about half of whatever I've brought. Eating is just not my 'thing'. (Shh. Don't tell me how bad that is for me!)

 

I do have a pretty groovy book called "Freezer Bag Cooking: Trail Food Made Simple" by Sarah Svien. I've had my copy since it first came out, but I believe she's working on an updated version. You can find her info on the book at her website, Freezer Bag Cooking and she's a very active poster on NWHikers.net.

 

I have a friend that uses the recipes out of the book a lot more than I do, and he loves them. I have hiked with people who aren't too fond of eating out of the bags when I've been in charge of 'food prep'. You might imagine how well that goes over... You don't like it? Please feel free to bring your own food.

 

If anyone has figured out how I can pack a bag of salad (keeping it cold, and unsmashed, of course) and some fixin's for dinner after a long day of hiking... let me know!!

 

michelle

 

I tried cooking in a freezer bag once. It melted, put out the fire, and ruined dinner. :P

 

As for salads, I've been reading up on local flora and there is a lot that can be picked at most any time of year. To cool it down, loosely pack a gallon freezer bag and let it sit in the local creek.

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Criminal and I made cheesecake last summer on an overnighter:

 

Heat 2 cups of water

Tear open the blueberry pouch

Add ½ cup of cold water to the blueberry pouch

Tear open the cheesecake pouch

Add 2 cups of hot water to the cheesecake pouch, stir, and let sit for 10 minutes

Pour blueberry pouch into cheesecake pouch

Tear open the graham cracker crumb pouch and pour into cheesecake pouch

Eat.

 

That's SO good! I usually go for the easy prep - easy clean-up stuff.

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I tried cooking in a freezer bag once. It melted, put out the fire, and ruined dinner. :P

 

As for salads, I've been reading up on local flora and there is a lot that can be picked at most any time of year. To cool it down, loosely pack a gallon freezer bag and let it sit in the local creek.

 

But I bet the smoke kept the bugs off'a ya!

 

:)

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I use an EZIDRY dehydrator and take dried meals that just need boiling water and simering for a couple of minutes - spag bol, chili etc. Also dries fruit very well - mango, strawberries (ace aroma around the house while drying) apples etc.

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This stuff is great! My parents had it years ago at Seven Wives Inn, someplace in the NW and got the recipe.

 

JohnTee

 

Seven Wives Inn Granola

 

Ingredients:

 

8 C. regular oatmeal (not quick)

 

1-1/2 C. brown sugar

 

1-1/2 C. wheat germ

 

8 oz. coconut (wide unsweetened, if you can find it)

 

8 oz. almonds

 

8 oz. cashews

 

3 oz. sunflower seeds

 

1/2 C. water

 

1/2 C. oil

 

1/2 C. honey

 

1/2 C. peanut butter

 

2 tsp. vanilla

 

Directions:

 

Mix first seven 'dry' ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well and bring

 

to boil the next five 'wet' ingredients. Add wet to dry. Blend well.

 

Spread on 2 large cookie sheets. Bake for bout 2 hours in a 200

 

degree oven (until coconut becomes brown around the edges). Add 1 C.

 

raisins after baking, if desired. Makes about 5 lbs. Recipe can be

 

halved and substitutions of nuts made depending on what you have or

 

can get.

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One of my favorite trail food staple...banook Bread

 

1 cup of flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

Cooking instructions:

Combine ingredients in freezer bag prior departure... on site, add enough water to make firm dough kneed in freezer bag, once all ingrediants mixed well,remove from freezer bag and form into cake about 1 inch thick, fry in a well greased pan over medium heat, cook until golden brown.

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Steak and Mashed Potatos

 

This is really just a "luxury meal" that I'll reserve for my first night on the trail. For the steak, when you grill steak at home prior to your trip, freeze a hefty piece along with any sauce in a ziploc bag. On the day of the trip, grab the steak out of the freezer and stuff it in your backpack as you're heading out the door. During the course of the day it will slowly thaw and by the time you reach your camp site it should be at ambient temperature. Fire up the stove and boil about a cup (or two) of water, letting the steak basks in its baggie. When hot, remove the steak from the bag and place on a plate. Use the still-hot water to mix with some instant potatos. Your campin' buddies will be so jealous while they're suffering through their ramen noodles!

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Steak and Mashed Potatos

 

This is really just a "luxury meal" that I'll reserve for my first night on the trail. For the steak, when you grill steak at home prior to your trip, freeze a hefty piece along with any sauce in a ziploc bag. On the day of the trip, grab the steak out of the freezer and stuff it in your backpack as you're heading out the door. During the course of the day it will slowly thaw and by the time you reach your camp site it should be at ambient temperature. Fire up the stove and boil about a cup (or two) of water, letting the steak basks in its baggie. When hot, remove the steak from the bag and place on a plate. Use the still-hot water to mix with some instant potatos. Your campin' buddies will be so jealous while they're suffering through their ramen noodles!

 

I may have to try this is BBQ chicken.

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This stuff is great! My parents had it years ago at Seven Wives Inn, someplace in the NW and got the recipe.

 

JohnTee

 

Seven Wives Inn Granola

 

Ingredients:

 

8 C. regular oatmeal (not quick)

 

1-1/2 C. brown sugar

 

1-1/2 C. wheat germ

 

8 oz. coconut (wide unsweetened, if you can find it)

 

8 oz. almonds

 

8 oz. cashews

 

3 oz. sunflower seeds

 

1/2 C. water

 

1/2 C. oil

 

1/2 C. honey

 

1/2 C. peanut butter

 

2 tsp. vanilla

 

Directions:

 

Mix first seven 'dry' ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well and bring

 

to boil the next five 'wet' ingredients. Add wet to dry. Blend well.

 

Spread on 2 large cookie sheets. Bake for bout 2 hours in a 200

 

degree oven (until coconut becomes brown around the edges). Add 1 C.

 

raisins after baking, if desired. Makes about 5 lbs. Recipe can be

 

halved and substitutions of nuts made depending on what you have or

 

can get.

 

I made a half recipe yesterday -- this stuff really is great, and very easy to put together.

 

Even a half recipe makes quite a bit, but it's also good for breakfast, on ice cream, and grabbing a handful while walking through the kitchen.

 

Walking through the kitchen a lot.

 

Thanks!

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This is a easy recipe that you can start and forget about for several hours. This is how it's done, and yes, it may sound rather primitive.

 

Find three good sized rocks 1 about the size of a softball and two at least 1.5 inches thick and shaped roughly like a triangle or rectangle. Place them in the campfire to get hot. Sometimes you get a rock that will crack when heated so it is wise to place a couple of extras in to heat, just in case. Oh yes, by the way, the rocks have to get VERY, VERY HOT!!!!!!!! Let them heat up for about an hour.

 

While the rocks are getting hot take a whole chicken and clean inside and out, then rub it down with salt and pepper to taste. Optional: stuff 2 whole celery sticks and 1 whole onion into the chicken.

 

After the the rocks are HOT, take a pair of B-B-q tongs remove the rocks and wrap in a single layer of foil. Stuff the softball rock into the chicken with the celery and onion. Place the chicken on a large sheet of tinfoil and take the other two rocks and place one under each wing covering the chicken breast..

 

Now wrap the chicken in Heavy duty tinfoil, about 3 layers. Remember, if you don't use enough the rocks may burn through and/or you will lose too much heat to cook the bird.

 

Then take wet newspaper and wrap it around the tinfoil. Also make sure you wrap at least 10 layers of newspaper around it, although 20 or more is best. this will hold the heat of the rocks in extremely well. In cold climates wrap it in a blanket.

 

And your done!!!!! The heat of the rocks will cook the chicken to a fine turn in about 3 hours, giving you time to go fishing, for a walk, or if you are like me, take a nap

 

Ive done this several times. Sometimes we spread BBQ sauce on the chicken before the rocks go on the outside. I did this once on a boy scout hike. We, the leaders, assembled it in the tent so the kids didn't see what we did. when it was together we tossed it in my day pack. Then we went on a day hike from base camp. All morning the kids kept smelling the chicken but had no idea it was in my day pack. Come lunch time the leaders had a hot lunch and the boys learned a new trick. It does work really well. I have also done it with Dry paper. To be honest it seems to work great either way.

 

 

 

Truth in advertising. I stole the write up from here http://www.thecampingsource.com/camping_re...-Rock%20Chicken . I was tool lazy to write it up and just edited it to suit the way we do it.

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Made this while backpacking this weekend. It's a good meal for the first night out:

 

Pad Thai

 

In a small Nalgene bottle fill with:

 

3 tbsp Thai fish sauce

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp rice vinegar (or substitute white vinegar)

1 tsp finely chopped garlic

1 tsp sugar

 

Pack:

1 package Thai rice noodles (about 6 oz)

1 bag of bean sprouts (about 1 cup)

1 small (6 oz) can of shrimp or chicken or same amount of firm tofu cubed.

1/4 cup chopped peanuts

4 scallions finely diced.

1 tbsp peanut or olive oil

 

-Boil water, remove from heat and soak noodles about 20-30 minutes until soft. Drain and set noodles aside.

-In the largest pot in your cook kit (or a mini wok if you have one) heat oil. Add scallions, shrimp (or chicken or tofu), saute then add bean sprouts, then noodles. Heat through, add contents of nalgele bottle (fish sauce, etc...). Toss, sprinkle with peanuts and serve.

Edited by briansnat
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This is a easy recipe that you can start and forget about for several hours. This is how it's done, and yes, it may sound rather primitive.

 

Find three good sized rocks 1 about the size of a softball and two at least 1.5 inches thick and shaped roughly like a triangle or rectangle. Place them in the campfire to get hot. Sometimes you get a rock that will crack when heated so it is wise to place a couple of extras in to heat, just in case. Oh yes, by the way, the rocks have to get VERY, VERY HOT!!!!!!!! Let them heat up for about an hour.

 

While the rocks are getting hot take a whole chicken and clean inside and out, then rub it down with salt and pepper to taste. Optional: stuff 2 whole celery sticks and 1 whole onion into the chicken.

 

After the the rocks are HOT, take a pair of B-B-q tongs remove the rocks and wrap in a single layer of foil. Stuff the softball rock into the chicken with the celery and onion. Place the chicken on a large sheet of tinfoil and take the other two rocks and place one under each wing covering the chicken breast..

 

Now wrap the chicken in Heavy duty tinfoil, about 3 layers. Remember, if you don't use enough the rocks may burn through and/or you will lose too much heat to cook the bird.

 

Then take wet newspaper and wrap it around the tinfoil. Also make sure you wrap at least 10 layers of newspaper around it, although 20 or more is best. this will hold the heat of the rocks in extremely well. In cold climates wrap it in a blanket.

 

And your done!!!!! The heat of the rocks will cook the chicken to a fine turn in about 3 hours, giving you time to go fishing, for a walk, or if you are like me, take a nap

 

Ive done this several times. Sometimes we spread BBQ sauce on the chicken before the rocks go on the outside. I did this once on a boy scout hike. We, the leaders, assembled it in the tent so the kids didn't see what we did. when it was together we tossed it in my day pack. Then we went on a day hike from base camp. All morning the kids kept smelling the chicken but had no idea it was in my day pack. Come lunch time the leaders had a hot lunch and the boys learned a new trick. It does work really well. I have also done it with Dry paper. To be honest it seems to work great either way.

 

 

 

Truth in advertising. I stole the write up from here http://www.thecampingsource.com/camping_re...-Rock%20Chicken . I was tool lazy to write it up and just edited it to suit the way we do it.

Uh,this is awesome.I wish I had known about this when I shot the Partridge last summer.Yeah this is definately being done next outin' with the boys. :):laughing:

Thanks Michael.

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Uh,this is awesome.I wish I had known about this when I shot the Partridge last summer.Yeah this is definately being done next outin' with the boys. :):laughing:

Thanks Michael.

Ok, someone's gotta ask...........

Was the partridge in a pear tree?

 

[edit]

Oh wait. You typed "Partridge"; with a capital P. Proper noun. Please tell me the Partridge you shot was Danny. He was an annoying little twit.

Edited by Mopar
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Uh,this is awesome.I wish I had known about this when I shot the Partridge last summer.Yeah this is definately being done next outin' with the boys. ;):o

Thanks Michael.

Ok, someone's gotta ask...........

Was the partridge in a pear tree?

 

[edit]

Oh wait. You typed "Partridge"; with a capital P. Proper noun. Please tell me the Partridge you shot was Danny. He was an annoying little twit.

Uh,I think the rest of the country calls them Ruffed Grouse.We call em' partridge.And there's no pear trees in GMNF. :D

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Criminal and I made cheesecake last summer on an overnighter:

 

Heat 2 cups of water

Tear open the blueberry pouch

Add ½ cup of cold water to the blueberry pouch

Tear open the cheesecake pouch

Add 2 cups of hot water to the cheesecake pouch, stir, and let sit for 10 minutes

Pour blueberry pouch into cheesecake pouch

Tear open the graham cracker crumb pouch and pour into cheesecake pouch

Eat.

 

Oh no, wish I had never seen this :ph34r:

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Criminal and I made cheesecake last summer on an overnighter:

 

Heat 2 cups of water

Tear open the blueberry pouch

Add ½ cup of cold water to the blueberry pouch

Tear open the cheesecake pouch

Add 2 cups of hot water to the cheesecake pouch, stir, and let sit for 10 minutes

Pour blueberry pouch into cheesecake pouch

Tear open the graham cracker crumb pouch and pour into cheesecake pouch

Eat.

 

Oh no, wish I had never seen this :o

You have no idea how incredible it is. :ph34r:

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I realize this is an old thread, but we just came back from another camping trip at Yosemite and are looking for more recipes. I thought geocaching might be a good place to look :unsure: Figured I'd share mine as well. Ours can take a little bit of prep since we're not eating on the trail, but we like as less prep at camp as possible so these are still little prep.

 

Potato Package

Pre-cook some potato's in the microwave -they should be somewhat soft, but not so soft that they fall apart. Slice potato's and place on large sheet of heavy duty foil. Add some grated cheese, seasoning, polish sausage or anything you like - green onions, garlic, whatever. You also need to add some cut up butter or drizzle with olive oil. Close over the foil and then wrap the entire package again in HEAVY DUTY foil. You can, if you like, wrap a third time to be really sure nothing burns. Place on grill and cook long enough to make everything good and hot.

 

Foiled Chicken

1 sm Green pepper; chopped

1/2 sm Red pepper; chopped

10 Mushrooms; chopped

4 lg Chicken breasts

1 cn Pineapple slices (8oz)

Non-stick cooking spray *or* 1 tsp butter

Garlic powder, salt and/or pepper to taste .

4 Squares heavy duty foil (16x16 inches)

 

Divide the bell peppers and mushrooms into 4 equal parts. Coat a small area in the center of the foil with cooking spray or a small amount of butter. Place a portion of peppers and mushrooms on the greased area of the foil. Top with a chicken breast and a pineapple slice. Season with garlic powder, salt and pepper to your taste.

 

Fold the foil securely and check for leaks. Place on the coals for 10 to 15 minutes per side.

 

Tex-Mex Dinner

canned corn (drained)

cooked rice

Carving Board Chicken Strips

canned black beans (not drained)

tomato salsa (I prefer Herdez Hot)

salsa verde, green salsa

shredded cheddar cheese

 

Mix all ingredients, spoon and seal into aluminum foil packets. Seal well and put into Ziploc bags to keep water out while stored in your cooler. At the campground, just place over the grill or campfire to heat. (This was so good and easy! We took pre-cooked chicken and dinner took less than 10 minutes to cook over the fire!)

 

Sweet Potato Packet

1 sheet (18 x 24-inches) heavy duty aluminum foil

4 medium sweet potatoes (1 1/2 lbs.), peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices

2 Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples, cored, thinly sliced into rings

1/2 C. dried cranberries or raisins

1/2 C. packed brown sugar

3 T. butter or margarine, melted

1/2 t. ground cinnamon

 

Center sweet potatoes, apples and cranberries on sheet of aluminum foil. Sprinkle with brown sugar. Combine butter and cinnamon; drizzle over brown sugar.

Bring up foil sides. Double fold top and ends to seal, making one large foil packet, leaving room for heat circulation inside.

Grill 20 to 25 minutes in covered grill until sweet potatoes are tender. Makes 5 to 6 servings. (Hubby doesn't like too much sweet stuff, but he loves this desert and has pretty much started to expect that we have this for desert the first night of camping on every trip. The sweet potatoes can take a bit long though so I think we might try canned next time.)

 

Banana Boats

1. Slice one side of an unpeeled banana end to end. (Like baked potato style)

2. Fill the slit with chocolate chips and mini marshmallows.

3. Close the peel back over the banana, and wrap the whole thing in foil.

4. Place on the embers of your campfire, and cook for 5 minutes or until the chocolate chips and marshmallows have melted.

5. Allow the banana boat to cool; then open and eat with a fork. This is SO yummy and a good change from smores!

 

Salmon Packet

salmon piece

some white wine

some sundried tomatoes & chives

We combine all this not paying too much attention to "measurements" and cook it the first night. SO yummy!

 

Two recipes we want to try next time (we got in this month's Backpackers):

 

Vanilla Pudding Parfait

1/2 packet vanilla pudding mix

3 T powdered skim milk

6-8 oz water

2 T granola or Grape Nuts (we'd prob opt for granola)

 

At camp add vanilla, milk, water to bowl and mix well. Add the granola and let soak in, eat. Makes a heaping half-cup. This sounds really cool cuz it's like "fresh" pudding right at the campsite.

 

Tuna Pizzazz

1/2 c dry instant brown rice (though I would probably bring it already cooked)

1 tuna pouch

1/2 c sundried tomatoes

1 T Knorr Garlic/Herb powdered sauce mix

1/4 c powdered skim milk

1 slice cheddar cheese

 

At camp cook rice. Reconstitute tomatoes in water (we like sundried tomatoes so we'd probably skip this step too, just put the sundried tomatoes in the tuna mix). Into the rice stir the sauce mix, milk, and 1/2 c water. Then mix in tuna, tomatoes, cheese and pepper. Makes 2 cups.

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When weight isn't an issue (canoe or car camping) we love our Dutch oven. Being able to bake, braise, and stew adds a whole dimension to camp cooking which is typically limited to things that are boiled or fried (blech!) Cinnamon rolls, cobblers, beef stew, deep dish pan pizza. Wortha whirl if you haven't tried before. There are aluminum dutch ovens out there that work well but are touchy (you have to keep a close eye on the fire -- the best case scenario is you burn your dinner. Worst case, you ruin your oven.)

 

Love the recipes so far!

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Corn tortillas with hummus. and

Homemade jerky:

1 lb thin sliced beef round (further slice into 1" wide 1/8 to 1/4" thick pieces)

1/3 c Worcestershire sauce

1/3c soy sauce or terriaki marinade

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tblsp salt

 

pop it all into a ziplock and marinade over night. Remove the beef strips and pat dry with paper towels. Place on oven rack (be sure to put something under to catch drippings unless you're just really crazy in love with cleaning ovens) in 200 deg oven. Objective is not to cook, just dry out the beef thoroughly. If you have patience, you can accomplish the same thing by sun drying. When it's dry (I like it almost brittle but that's a bit overdone) you're done.

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When weight isn't an issue (canoe or car camping) we love our Dutch oven. Being able to bake, braise, and stew adds a whole dimension to camp cooking which is typically limited to things that are boiled or fried (blech!) Cinnamon rolls, cobblers, beef stew, deep dish pan pizza. Wortha whirl if you haven't tried before. There are aluminum dutch ovens out there that work well but are touchy (you have to keep a close eye on the fire -- the best case scenario is you burn your dinner. Worst case, you ruin your oven.)

 

Love the recipes so far!

 

As a boy scout on week long camp outs we would tie a 6 qt. 12" dutch oven to a pack frame. The guy that carried the oven divided his gear among the other guys except for his sleeping bag. We did many long term camps at the end of a 15 mile hike with that oven. It made some great meals and we always had baked goods and pizza. ( we were a large patrol of animals that would pack in anything the leaders let us. So lots of food was not a problem. I'm sure we were way over the now suggested max weigh on a boys pack but we had fun and ate very well. One year we even got a Javelina and slow cooked it in a pit on a camp out.

Javelina.jpg

(yes I Know. fire pits are evil. well 40 years ago they were allowed :unsure: )

In SW AZ where I grew up firewood was every where. We have access to mesquite and Ironwood. as hard woods. Great for cooking with.

Edited by Michael
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LOVE dutch oven cooking. Always loaded when the kids & I go car camping. Got all the bugs worked out before going out, doubles as a wash pan when we are done eating.

 

The best dinner we had out of the dutch oven (while car camping) was chicken & biscuts. 4 cans of Progresso chicken soup (pour off broth from 3 cans) - top with (can or homemade) biscuts and cook until biscuts are done.

 

Granted the dutch oven is NOT something you want to carry too far off trail :unsure:

 

Good dutch oven site with recipes & oven care

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Well I have some different recipies I like to use while on the trail. I kind of split them into two categories, one is "normal" camping and the other is deep wilderness hiking.

 

For camping I'll pack out a small cooler and fill it with meats, fruit, and vegetables, and usually it's more of a family-friendly experience (tents, sleeping bags and sleeping mats, chairs, things like that). I normally also drag a "firepit" with me, consisting of a 45-gallon drum cut in half with a grill on the top so I can do such favorites as foil-wrapped chicken with a garlic butter sauce, slow cooked smoked hickory ribs, hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled steaks, turkey sausage, and baked potatoes and bring a pot for soups and a pan for bacon and eggs and things like that - eating well is very important to me when camping with friends and family! :drama: I normally take the other "half" of the drum and cut it down to a quarter for my non-cooking firepit.

 

Here's a sampler for those who bring a cooler for their meat:

 

4 whole chicken legs, back attached

1 tsp each garlic powder (not salt), paprika, seasoning salt

1/4 cup unsalted butter or margarine

 

Season the chicken then place individually on foil wrap, put 1 tsp of butter or marg on top then fold the foil over the top. Poke a small hole in the bottoms then place over a small fire for slow cooking. When the butter starts dripping out the holes, unwrap them and place on the grill until complete for a nice grilled flavor. Alternately, leave them wrapped up with no holes and they will cook a little slower and have less "campfire" taste but turn out fall-off-the-bone tender.

 

Ribs can be done the same way - I like to season with hickory BBQ sauce top and bottom and wrap in foil. LOW HEAT! Very important. Alternately, if you have a campfire going and a rock nearby, place the wrapped package on the rock and move near the fire to slow cook. The slower the better! I had a slab of ribs take 4 hours to cook fully before they were ready, you could slide the bones out of the meat with ease and the flavor is remarkable.

 

For real deep wilderness hiking (where trails do not exist and I carry everything I have on my back) I carry as little as possible for weight savings. Since I have to carry a small tent and sleeping bag, typically a rifle, first aid kit, knife, flashlight, compass, maps, GPS, bear spray, whistle, clothing layers and socks, lighter and matches, etc etc, I have little room for food, especially since I pack out for deep woods alone. GORP is a big thing for me, here is my usual mix:

 

raisins

dried banana chips

dried apple pieces

walnuts

peanuts

cashews

almonds

Cheerios

pretzel sticks

 

All the nuts are unsalted of course. Equal parts of each ingerdient is thrown in a large Ziplock and that's about it! Aside from that I pack a fairly large amount of jerky and pepperoni sticks, energy bars, granola bars, and anything else that doesn't need to be cooked and weighs very little!

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I tried the wives granola recipe last night. After burning the first batch (I salvaged bits of it...good if you eat around the char) I took a lot of care with the cooking temperature on the second batch and it came out great. It makes a LOT...basically 4 trays worth...I'll cook up the last batch tonight after work. I'll give out a bit to each of my hiking companions when it is "my day" to cook. And for dinner I have everything for that Pad Thai recipe I saw earlier in this thread. Thanks for the recipes. It gave me a lot to think about as far as not living off of dehydrated meals in foil packs.

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Not...not from Texas...but I did live in Pleasant Valley, Texas (suburb of Amarillo) for a year or two when I was growing up. I knew the title of the recipe had something to do with "wives" but didn't look it up. Here is the official name, listed above: Seven Wives Inn Granola by John Tee. Good stuff. If I had a wife she'd probably have been upset at my first attempt smoking up the place and using the garbage disposal to get rid of the char...then there is the matter of the engine stand in the kitchen... :huh:

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Not...not from Texas...but I did live in Pleasant Valley, Texas (suburb of Amarillo) for a year or two when I was growing up. I knew the title of the recipe had something to do with "wives" but didn't look it up. Here is the official name, listed above: Seven Wives Inn Granola by John Tee. Good stuff. If I had a wife she'd probably have been upset at my first attempt smoking up the place and using the garbage disposal to get rid of the char...then there is the matter of the engine stand in the kitchen... :)

 

Char... once another family member put the ashes from the pellet stove into the trash compactor... not stopping to think about the fact that they were still hot. About ten minutes later I asked, "what's burning?" Imagine roiling smoke upon opening the compactor. Use sprayer from sink to extinguish small combustibles from combusting. Close compactor.

 

For some reason I was home alone that day...

 

"Where the h*ll is all the water on the floor coming from?"

 

We put a dirtbike back together in the kitchen not-so-recently... and frequently bring in smaller tractor parts to be worked on in the heat and comfort of the home. (It's warm, but lonely in the garage, you know?)

 

 

michelle

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Weight being paramount, on long trips I pack Malt-o-Meal. It's hard to find out here in the east, but it's kinda like a mixture of cream of rice, wheat and homney. You don't need sugar, salt or anything for it to taste good, but everyone has their favorite mode and mine is a handful of currants mixed in.

 

For short trips and overnights, it's a simple gorp and plenty of water.

 

1 Tall jar of peanuts

1 small can of mixed nuts

1 bag of Craisins

1/2 box of Raisins

1 pound of chocolate/peanutbutter chips

 

It's instant gratification and makes you feel full even when you're not or can't afford to be before a long ascent. Doesn't give you heartburn mid-hike and tastes just as good for breakfast without having to heat anything up. :)

Edited by fox-and-the-hound
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I'm a big fan of the Lipsmakin' Backpacking Recipe books, both the regular one and the vegetarian one. Great menu ideas with the backpacker in mind. All of the breakfasts are meant to be eaten out of a ziplock, all of the lunchs designed for "on trail" eating and the dinners are all one pot meals. The Bami Goreng (spelling?) is fantastic and we've eaten it many times.

I'm also a big fan of taking honey, peanut butter and nutella and mixing it all together and then smearing it on soft tortilla shells. Roll them up and eat away.

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I tried the wives granola recipe last night. After burning the first batch (I salvaged bits of it...good if you eat around the char) I took a lot of care with the cooking temperature on the second batch and it came out great. It makes a LOT...basically 4 trays worth...I'll cook up the last batch tonight after work. I'll give out a bit to each of my hiking companions when it is "my day" to cook. And for dinner I have everything for that Pad Thai recipe I saw earlier in this thread. Thanks for the recipes. It gave me a lot to think about as far as not living off of dehydrated meals in foil packs.

 

As one of victorymike's hiking companions I have to say the 7 wives were fabulous. I also used it for breakfast. I added dried fruit and an Oregon Chia Tea Packets and hot water.

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One of my favorite trail food staple...banook Bread

 

1 cup of flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

Cooking instructions:

Combine ingredients in freezer bag prior departure... on site, add enough water to make firm dough kneed in freezer bag, once all ingrediants mixed well,remove from freezer bag and form into cake about 1 inch thick, fry in a well greased pan over medium heat, cook until golden brown.

 

AKA Campfire Bread found at www.hikingrecipes.co.cc/campfirebread.php

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I use an EZIDRY dehydrator and take dried meals that just need boiling water and simering for a couple of minutes - spag bol, chili etc. Also dries fruit very well - mango, strawberries (ace aroma around the house while drying) apples etc.

 

ooh! I'm so glad I saw this :D I'm kinda neurotic about what I eat, I'm a vegetarian, and avoid corn syrup, and hydrogenated oils at all costs, prefer my food minimally processed, etc.

 

But I also like stuff that tastes good and am lazy :D well, at least after a full day of hiking, I know that all I want to do to feed myself is boil some water. Chopping, mixing, cleaning dishes, bleh! I usually end up with Trader Joes boil-in-bag indian food and/or rice mixes.

 

This will be perfect :D

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