Easy Camping Meals: Dinner Ideas

Camping meal ideas

Cooking does not have to be complicated or take a long time! Many meals you can easily prepare from home, or quickly make when you are enjoying the outdoors. And if you go camping with your family, friends, or partner you can have a great time cooking these easy camping meals together and make some nice memories! 

You might be lucky that there is a kitchen at your campsite, but sometimes all you’ve got is a campfire and the tools you bring from home. We have gathered some delicious camping meal ideas that don’t require a lot of kitchen tools, so you can make these anywhere you go no matter how much or how little you have available! 

Quick and delicious camping dinner ideas 

1. One-pot wonders 

An all time favourite of ours is one-pot meals. These come in all styles and only require one pot or pan to make the entire meal in! It doesn’t get much easier than this - also for those doing the dishes after ;). 

One-pot meals are super easy to adapt to any taste or diet and you can make them as simple or complex as you like! Many dishes like soups, stews, stir frys, curries, plenty of rice and pasta dishes can easily be made as easy one-pot camping meals. You really just need to use your imagination and tailor it to your likes. We have included our favourite one-pot camping dinner ideas here, but there are many more out there and you can also create your own! 

How to:

Rice and pasta are great bases for an easy, simple and exquisite one-pot meal! Plus you can easily mix it up by getting black or brown rice, or whole wheat pasta. For a “healthier” version you can also try substituting the rice or pasta with things like quinoa, bulgur or pearl barley. There are three easy steps to making this kind of tasty one-pot meals:

1. Cook meat of choice (if using meat, fish, tofu, etc.)

2. Add veggies of choice, garlic, onion etc. and spices 

3. Add broth and pasta, rice, or other grains.  

And the good news is that you basically can make this with any meat, any veggies and spices and any grains you like! If you want to make it in a tomato sauce you can add in the canned tomatoes with the veggies, but if you want a creamy sauce you make this when the pasta is cooked by adding milk and cream cheese. That’s how easy camping meals can be! 

Curries and stews:

Curries and stews can be made in a very similar manner, though adding in the spices first with onions, garlic and ginger is the best way to get the right flavour for these dishes. Curries and stews can easily be made without meat and still be delicious! If you want to add meat you will do that after the spices before adding your veggies that you sauté a bit in the pot before adding the stock. You can also do part stock and part coconut milk which also gives a great flavour and texture. To get the thicker consistency of a curry or stew you want to add tomato puré, nut butter, yogurt, ground nuts or spinach. Then you just let it simmer and you will have a delicious meal which you can eat on its own or with a bit of rice. 

2. Delicious and easy skewers 

Skewers come in any form and can be adapted to any taste and diet! Stick some small pieces of the meat you like, fish, shellfish, tofu or another veggie alternative on a cooking spear or wooden stick. To make it even more tasty you can brush it with some garlic oil, or normal oil that you have added your favourite spices or herbs to, or maybe a marinade that you think just goes with everything! Use your imagination to make the most delicious skewers that go right on a grill or a campfire, and even a pan if that’s what you’ve got. You can eat them straight off the grill if you like or eat them with a sauce like tzatziki, hummus, salsa, guacamole, or whatever sauce you fancy! 

3. Foil boils and wraps - campfire ready 

Foil is just great for making easy campfire meals! You can take any vegetables you want, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, tomatoes, corn, beans, asparagus, aubergine, mushrooms, or whatever you can think of. You can also add in some pineapple, plumb, peach, figs or other fruits if you like that! Slice it all up, wrap it in foil and it’s ready to be cooked over the campfire or even on a grill. You can add in some chicken, fish, shrimp, tofu, or other kind of “meat” you want, and some spices or herbs to make it even more tasty! Add in some oil to prevent it from drying out and stick to the foil - it’s good to smear a bit of oil on the foil where you want to lay the veggies so they don’t stick to the bottom. If you are cooking meat it’s always good to turn it halfway through to make sure it is cooked through. If you want to turn your packet, the easiest closing solution is on the edge so nothing runs out when it is upside down ;). Most foil packets need to cook for around 20-30 minutes. 

Pick your favourite camping meal ideas and try them out on your next camping trip! You can also check out our campfire specials and easy camping breakfast, snacks and lunch ideas to get some new inspiration for your upcoming trips! We have also got some more camping hacks for you if you are new to camping. 

Do you know how to make a campfire? If not we have made a little guide to help you.