August 11, 2023
Camping season is here, so it’s time to pack up your tent, hit the road, and visit your favorite outdoor spots to relax and enjoy nature. While embracing the great outdoors can make your mood chill, planning what food to pack for your travels can feel a little stressful. Thankfully, we have all your food-related camping tips, including the best food to bring camping and other helpful hacks.
Your Essential Camping Food List
From hearty breakfasts to lunch, dinner, and snacks, here is your essential list to get you through all your outdoor meals.
Hearty Breakfast Ideas
There’s nothing quite like waking up in the morning with nature at your doorstep. You want to be able to enjoy the delights of the day without having to spend hours preparing and cooking breakfast. Here are some must-packs for your first meal of the day.
Pancake Mix: Who doesn’t love a good flapjack, especially when camping? Pack some pre-made mix, and you’re good to go! Make sure it only requires water and not milk to make the batter, like Krusteaz pancake mix.
Camping Food Hack: Bring coconut oil to cook your pancakes. It can handle high heat and doesn’t require refrigeration.
Oatmeal: For those crisp camping mornings, warm up with a bowl of oatmeal. For an effortless option, grab instant oatmeal, like Bob's Red Mill oatmeal cups, in a variety of flavors.
Eggs: Eggs are great to bring camping. They pack a ton of protein, which is excellent fuel for a day exploring the outdoors. Plus, scrambled eggs over a campfire are delicious!
Camping Food Hack: Not everyone has enough space to pack raw eggs in their shells. If you want to have eggs as part of your menu, here are a few ways to make it super easy:
- Purchase pre-scrambled eggs. These ”liquid” eggs come in an easy-to-pack carton, perfect for scrambles and omelets.
- Grab pre-shelled, pre-cooked hard-boiled eggs. They make a fantastic and easy breakfast.
Potatoes: Can you even have a camp breakfast without potatoes? Make it easy on yourself and grab frozen hash browns or bulk-chopped potatoes from your local wholesale grocery store.
Simple Lunch Must-Packs
Whether packing for a picnic hike or just lounging at your campsite, lunches can be easy and nutritious. With these easy and healthy items, lunch is a breeze.
Bread and Tortillas: Sandwiches, wraps, and quesadillas are fast and easy to make for lunch. Plus, they are great to pack for a picnic.
Deli Meats and Cheese: Bring an assortment of your favorite deli meats to create quick sandwiches and wraps.
Camping Food Hack: If you are going on a short trip, pack single-serve condiment packets. They will take up less room in your cooler and are shelf-stable.
Granola: Granola provides protein and important micronutrients like iron and vitamin D, important when you’re outside being active. Granola bars, like Nature Valley, are also a classic camping snack. They're easy to pack and don't take up too much space.
Delicious Camping Dinner Options
Gather around the campfire and cook a memorable dinner with the whole crew with these dinner staples.
Hamburger and Vegetarian Patties: Premade burger patties are great to have on hand for an effortless and fun dinner.
Hot Dogs and Sausage: Is there anything more satisfying than cooking hot dogs and sausages over the campfire? Stock up on your favorite links, grab some buns, and dinner is set.
Camping Food Hack: Use sticks to poke through your sausage and stick them right in the fire.
Chili: Embrace your inner cowboy and make a pot of chili. If you love stoking a fire and slow-cooking your meal, bring along all the components to make the dinner from scratch—canned beans and chiles, tomatoes, ground beef, spices, onion, bell pepper, and jalapenos.
If you’re searching for a faster option with tasty results, canned chili is a fantastic solution.
Classic Camping Desserts
No camping trip meal is complete without a sweet and satisfying dessert to top off the adventure-filled day under the stars.
S’mores: There’s nothing like the nostalgic combination of marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate for a classic dessert.
Caramelized Peaches in Foil: Looking for a fruity dessert? Cook sliced peaches with brown sugar and butter until tender and caramelized. Top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream for an extra treat!
Campfire Hot Cocoa: Not all desserts have to be eaten. Hot chocolate is quick and easy to make. You can even mix the dry ingredients at home and stir into warm milk when it comest time.
Stock Up on Bulk Food Supplies for Your Next Camping Adventure
US Foods CHEF’STORE carries all your camping essentials and more at family-budget prices. Whether you are looking for canned goods, fresh produce, frozen foods, or dry spices, you’ll find it all on our shelves. Stop by any of our nearby locations to prepare for your next camping trip.
