Cooking every night in the comfort of your own kitchen at home can be daunting enough as it is, so the thought of trying to cook decent meals while camping is enough to make you wonder how long you and the family can survive off cheese and vegemite sandwiches.
Perhaps you could get away with pasta every night?
Maybe you could plan your trip around sites that are within delivery distance of Menulog?
One of the less romantic notions about camp cuisine is the idea of crowded and dirty camp kitchens, baked beans for dinner every night and submerged damp esky lettuce.
Not even Nigella herself can make that sound appealing and no amount of culinary sorcery will be enough to make baked beans tempting after night 4.
Luckily, you’ve got us to save you from the same ol’ snags.
Even luckier, with the right Mars Camper trailer you won’t ever need to step into a camp kitchen again. Unless you want to, that is.
At minimum, your Mars Camper will have the option of premium cooking equipment, but for our serious chefs, the convenience and functionality of the fold-out or pull-out kitchens available might surprise you. This means more wholesome, family time around the table and less time complaining because you can’t get the last of the noodles out of the kettle.Don’t lie, we’ve all tried the kettle trick!
We can bet that besides the fact that you’ll be staring out at a beautiful sunset and not yesterday’s washing on the line while you stir the spag bowl, you’ll feel like you’re in your own kitchen with everything you need.
What’s even better than this is that some models also come with a fridge, so the days of pulling a floating block of cheese or a drowned packet of bacon from an esky full of melted ice are over.
And with plenty of pantry space, drawers for all your bits and bobs and state of the art kitchen equipment, you may not ever want to cook at home again.
Although having a kitchen and heaps of storage space at your fingertips makes cooking so much easier, it’s still best to be prepared before you leave and make sure you have plenty of what you need to avoid getting stuck with plain white bread and an English breakfast tea for dinner.
Remember, we trade the luxury of being able to pop down to Woolworth’s to grab tomato paste for the freedom of adventure. So, failing to plan, is planning to fail when it comes to camping.
Now that we’re got you excited, take a look at our top 14 camper-meals that don’t suck. We’ve even thrown in a few campfire favourites for when you feel like going from Michelin Star to simple treats under the stars.
You can’t go past a classic Aussie favourite- Bacon and eggs. Whether you like them sunny side up and crispy, soft and scrambled or banged together in a sandwich, bacon and eggs is the original breakfast of champions. Our favourite- Bacon, egg and cheese in a roll. Yum!
If a light, healthy brekkie is more your style, start your day with a chia pod. Filled with goodness like fruit, honey and chia seeds, they’re the perfect fuel for a big day of adventure. And by letting them set overnight, you’ll save precious time in the morning, so you can get out exploring sooner.
Everyone loves a big bowl of porridge. With a cooktop right at your fingertips, whipping up a batch to warm you up on a frosty morning is perfect. Not only is it a great winter warmer and easy to make, but porridge is also a great low GI brekkie to keep you full for longer.
Now for the naughty stuff: French toast. You’re on holiday, so you may as well go the extra mile and treat yourself. French toast can be made sweet or savoury and is simple to fry on your gas top cooker. A slow morning eating French toast while watching a couple of ‘roos hop by sounds pretty good to us!
For more relaxed days around the campsite, a warm lamb salad goes down a treat. This light (yet delicious) lunch option makes it a perfect option for those scorching days. All it takes is some chopping, some BBQ-ing and some tossing. Easy! Even easier: use last night’s left-over meat- but maybe not sausages, unless you’re into that kind of thing!
Everyone loves an old-fashioned toastie, and everyone knows they taste the best when they’re pan-fried. No longer will you have a lug around a heavy jaffle iron. If you’re feeling a little bit fancy, add some tomato paste and sea salt to your ham and cheese sanga. We promise you won’t be disappointed.
Rice paper rolls are a great cheap, healthy and light option for lunch. They’re the perfect lunch to pop in your backpack for day at the beach or on the river. But even better, you’ll look like a culinary wizard yet no one would ever know that all you had to do was chop some ingredients, soak some papers and wrap them up! They’re as easy to make as they are fun, so this is a great one to get the kids involved with.
Of course, there are classics that you just cannot go past when you’re exploring the great outdoors in Australia. One of those is the old-fashioned BBQ. Luckily, using your own cooktop means you won’t have to queue up for a half-working camp kitchen and spend far too long cleaning off someone else’s mess. Whip up dinner from the comfort of your camper!
Although a Russian dish in origin, Beef Stroganoff has become a staple in many Australian homes growing up, so cooking it up in your camper isn’t only easy, it’s nostalgic too. It can be whipped up quick in your camper’s kitchen and is sure to fill everyone’s tummies after a huge day of exploring.
Dinner is much more fun when everyone gets to help themselves, which is what makes tacos a great option for dinner. Chopping veggies, opening some jars of salsa and frying up some minced-meat sounds pretty hassle-free to us. If only everyone was as excited to do the dishes as they are to eat tacos!
The only thing better than a huge day of adventure is a huge day of adventure followed by a delicious, juicy burger. Whether its beef, chicken or veggie patties that get you excited- chowing down on a burger in your camp chair gets a big tick from us. You won’t have a chance to miss the overpriced trendy burger place in your local neighbourhood when you’re eating one cooked in your Mars Camper.
Honey soy chicken is like the camping alternative of the slow-cooked meal. Okay, maybe not quite- but leaving some chicken marinating in some soy sauce and herbs IS kind of like switching the crockpot on before work, right? Makes for a simple cook-up that will taste like something you’ve been slaving away for hours on end.
We might be talking about having the option of more modern meals and variety than old school camping thanks to the convenience of camper-trailers, but let’s face it- who doesn’t love an old school, bon-a-fide fire?
While it’s great to have a fully functioning kitchen, your own utensils and the comfort of home right inside your camper, having a camper gives you the choice
(It’s also a pretty handy back-up should your efforts by the fire go a little awry- as we all know they often do.)
For nights when you’re feeling a little extra wild, here are our favourite campfire recipes.
You couldn’t make baked potatoes an easier meal if you tried. Simply pop some potatoes in foil and letting them do their thing in the coals fire is exactly what you need after a day out and about. While you’re swapping stories around the fire or just taking in your surroundings, your dinner is cooking before your very eyes. Just make sure you do keep an eye on it, we’ve seen some cremated spuds in our time! All you gotta do once it’s ready is top it with all your favourites, ham, cheese, spring onion, sour cream- ALL of them!
Of course, what would a list of favourite meals be without a dessert? For a pro-version of roasted marshmallows, give campfire banana boats a try. It’s as simple as this- grab a banana, split it down the middle and chuck all your sweets inside. Toppings such as chocolate, hazelnuts, coconut and sprinkles go down a treat! Oh, you can’t forget the marshmallows to top it off!
So, there you have it, our 14 favourite meals for camping. They’re easy, delicious and quick to make, so you can get back to all the adventure- or relaxing- you can handle! Enjoy!
At Mars Campers, we have campers with accessories and kitchen options for everyone. Take a look at our range of camper trailers or contact us today by calling 1300 667 868 and get your adventure started!
Got a campsite cookbook of your own? Know a few tasty treats you wanna try from this list? Feel free to pass it on by sharing on Facebook, Twitter and via Email. And let us know how you go and what we should add to this list!
