Camping food can literally make or break the trip.
If you’ve ever opened up your cooler to be greeted by soggy sandwiches or cheese swimming in its own pool, then you know the fight. There isn’t a secondary refrigerator chilling in the wilderness, nor are there food services out there. That’s why a little bit of preparation and good storage moves just may go a long way.
No gourmet gear or chef’s setup is needed. Just a few handy food hacks to keep you organized, eating well, and your supplies safe from heat, spills, and hungry critters.
Here are 15 camping food hacks that really work when car camping with the family or tucked deep into the backcountry:
15 Camping Food Hacks That Actually Save Your Trip
1. Pre-Freeze Your Meals
Freezing meals ahead makes life so easy. Chili, curry, pasta sauce, stews or breakfast burritos. They’ll do double duty as ice packs in your cooler and be ready to eat by the fire or in a skillet.
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2. Use Mason Jars for Storage
Mason jars beat plastic containers hands down. They’re leak-proof, reusable, and perfect for storing salads, dressings, chopped veggies, or oats. Especially wide-mouth jars are convenient when prepping and serving in tight camp setups.
3. Vacuum Seal Your Meals
If you camp often enough, your use of a vacuum sealer will pay for itself in food that is far less spoiled, less messing the cooler air extended because of freezer melt. Vacuum-sealed bags are tight little packages; they don’t take up much room, so you can pack more food, plus they’re perfect for marinating meats or assembling ready-to-cook meals.
4. Freeze Water Bottles Instead of Ice Bags
Forget the ice bags and freeze water bottles. They do quite a number on thawing out in the cooler, so you get fresh drinking water and no cooler puddles or soggy food.
5. Make a DIY Cooler Divider
A cooler divider is quite a simple and fun thing to make. You can divide a cooler by making some notches in a number of plastic containers. Simply remove their original bottoms, put them in a cooler, and pour some water into each. Freeze them and they will become an ultimate organizer for your coolers.
6. Stack Dry Goods in Cylindrical Containers
Stack dry goods in cylindrical or stackable containers to make the most of the space you have, and make sure nothing gets buried and forgotten.
7. Use Square Containers for Dry Ingredients
All the dry ingredients like pancake mix, trail mix, and cereal stay cleaner and pack in much tighter and neater piles in square, stackable containers. Space is saved, and all ingredients are grabbed as required without the mess of bags or loose boxes.
8. Label Containers with Cooking Notes
Label containers with masking tape and a Sharpie, and write out what’s in them along with quick cooking notes—like how to heat burritos in foil for 10 minutes. It’ll really streamline meal prep and keep everyone on the same page, even if you aren’t the only one cooking.
9. Pill Organizer Spice Kit
Use old pill cases or empty mint boxes rather than carrying whole spice jars. Fill them with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and chili flakes for your camping trip; compact, free of mess, and a good way to keep your meals flavorful.
10. Use a Shoe Organizer as Pantry Shelf
Hang an empty shoe organizer on a tree or tent pole. Pack its pockets with snacks, utensils, dish soap, napkins, or even sunscreen. Keeps stuff off the ground and easily found.
11. Chill Your Cooler Overnight
Well, you are supposed to pack your cooler by chilling it overnight with ice or frozen packs. This helps keep your food colder for a longer time, especially if you are out for many days.
12. Cracked Eggs into a Bottle
Crack the eggs into an empty, clean plastic bottle before you start your journey. Label with the number of eggs inside. Whenever you want to cook, turn out just what you require. No mess from broken shells or wasted eggs in the cooler.
13. Invest in a Quality Cooler
Investing in a quality cooler, say Yeti and RTIC, or even Coleman Extreme, really makes a noticeable difference.
14. Use Silicone Bags and Bowls
Silicone bags and collapsible silicone bowls save space because when empty, they take up no space at all, and a fragmented shape is much more space-economic than rigid ones when full. Pack the prepped food in silicone bags and bowls before heading out, and be sure that your lack of available packing space will not be the culprit. Use them to prep with, serve from, or store leftovers without cluttering your setup.
15. Bring Drinks in a Separate Cooler
Every time the big cooler is opened for a soda, cold air is lost. Small beverage coolers help in keeping your main cooler cold for longer and make it easy to grab drinks as and when required around a fire.
Final Thoughts
Great camping food doesn’t have to be all that hard to bring about – just a little bit of strategy. These hacks for freezing meals in advance, using collapsible containers, etc. will keep you eating well on your camping trip without all the mess or stress. With everything labeled, prepped, and packed smart, you’ll spend less time cooking and more time having fun out in the green.
Have a favorite camp food tip? Let us know in the comments below. Oh, and be sure to download our free camping meal planner and checklist before your next trip, because nobody wants to forget the s’mores.
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