Dinner Anyone?

[AKBeemer]

For those of you who camp when traveling, how much cooking to you do? And, what level of cooking do you do? (i.e. reheat pre-packaged foods or create fine dishes from scratch or somewhere in between). We tend to limit our cooking to boiling water for coffee, tea or the occasional dehydrated dish. Our total kitchen consists of a Jet-Boil, some disposable utensils, a cork screw, sharp knife and a couple of plastic mugs. Food stocks include granola bars, coffee, tea and other dry goods. We tend to try to find a grocery store each evening and eat fresh bread, humus, cheese and maybe a cold-cut (wine is of course understood). Breakfast is finger food (breakfast bar) and lunch could be a cafe.

If you do cook more than described above, then please provide a bit of info about what you carry, how you do clean-up, etc.:ear

[Muriel]

I got a little "kitchen set" from EMS (sporting goods store in the northeast) that consisted of a scrubby, spatula, sponge, measuring spoon, I added camp soap, spork, knife and there may have been a couple other things. I have a titanium pot that holds the "jetboil" type of canister, the element, and fits into a cup. I carry coffee bags, tea, hot chocolate, breakfast bars. I usually just snack before setting out, then get a good breakfast 1-2 hours down the road. I skip lunch, may have an ice cream about 2-3 o'clock. One favorite supper was a vacuum packed envelope of smoked Alaska wild caught salmon, a box of pad Thai, and a four-pack of baby carrots. That feeds one for two dinners for $7.05 at Wal-Mart. Another, if you can find it somewhere near a campsite, is a yummy salad from the grocery store salad bar (pack on the fruits and veggies), a piece of roast chicken from the deli, and something good for dessert - also fairly economical. I bring some aluminum foil for baking a potato and have bought some meat or chicken to grill. A friend has brought instant oatmeal for breakfast, and habitually brings a French press for coffee. I don't have room for a French press. You can cook a tasty meal in foil, too - using dry onion soup mix, veggies, potato and "meat" all wrapped in aluminum foil and stuck on the coals. There are some "one-pot" cook books for camping available.

Muriel

[mvscorpio]

Foil packs are your friend. I take the foil (folded up) and seasonings on the trip, then make a stop at the grocery store for dinner. Some favorite combos are either chicken or fish with peppers/onions, or carrots, or sliced lemon. Potatoes work well in a foil packet too, but sometimes need cooking spray or a little oil. I like a veggie combo of potatoes, carrots, and onion with a little Italian seasoning. And clean up is easy!

Mmmm. Now I'm hungry. :eat

[Brettendress]

Little cans of white meat chicken and 90 second rice make for a meal that only takes a minute in the jet boil. Its good and fast for when your on the road and only cost about $1.50. My other gourmet meals are all from Mountain House which makes excellent food on the road, took this from my back packing days which are limited now that I have a GS

Brett Endress
Altoona Pa

[DPeakMD]

If you press-pot your coffee in the Jet Boil, be sure to scrub it out really well with soap and water. You may still detect some residual coffee taste to your ramen noodles!

[TomBarnhart]

What works for me: I am diabetic, so I have to watch my menu and eat on schedule. I almost never eat in fast food places.
Breakfast: heat water in Jetboil for instant oatmeal with rasins. Brew a cup of espresso on a Coleman burner, eat a piece of fruit and half a bagel.
Lunch: some days, eat in a restaurant. Others, brew a cup of espresso, eat a piece of fruit-apple, pear, etc, and have half a bagel.
Dinner: Stop in mid afternoon. Buy some wine or beer, get either canned meal like stew or have ramen noodles with canned chicken, tuna or vienna sausages. May also buy a piece of raw ham, chicken, beef or fish, a potato and a small can of veggies to cook. Boxed salads are also great. Also carry some dried meals.
I carry a Jetboil, a Coleman burner, a small Espresso maker a folding dining kit-cup, bowl, plate, cutting board and spork and some foil for grilling.

[Visian]

There is some information about this on the Campsite (http://www.bmwmoa.org/camping/gear.htm)... our nearly completely out of date site that will hopefully begin to grow again when our content management system goes live.

the information i linked you to is more about cooking gear. there is also some more info in the general tips section. (http://www.bmwmoa.org/camping/tips.htm#Cooking)

personally, when camping i go with packaged stuff that cooks with water. every now and then i will stop at a grocery store and get something cookabe. it's great to have a steak and some veggies.

i use parmalat shelf-stable milk (http://www.farmlanddairies.com/Parmalatmilk.htm) in small containers because they pack well and it tastes great.

wish i could type more now, but i'm at work. i may come back to this. also, i'd like to capture everyone's comments here and turn it into a web page article on the campsite once the cms goes live.

ian

[sgborgstrom]

Cleaning up is always a bit of a pain and I don't like smelling of campfire all the time so I find myself somewhat limited in what I put on my plate when on the road.

My solution (which happily is fairly healthy) is to carry a wide selection of dried fruit, nuts, oatmeal, beef jerky (homemade) french press coffee fixings and a powdered iced tea and/or lemonade mix and at least one liter of water. This makes me fairly self-sufficient while out in the middle of nowhere. Since the vast majority of the time I am riding through "civilization" it's fairly simple to find a grocery store for fresh food; snag a sandwich from the deli, some fresh fruit and maybe a cookie while "in town" for the last gasoline fill-up of the day and I'm set for dinner.

I try to keep an eye out for the "cool" cafes along the way, a good soup/sandwich combo for lunch goes a long way. I don't like eating a lot while riding, it makes me sleepy...

I've done the freeze-dried route in the past, the ones you cook in their own bag are nice. I look at them everytime I provision for a trip but they The down side is the relatively high cost of the single serving sizes and from a caloric standpoint they are really better suited for a more active pursuit like hiking all day.

[Braddog]

I don't "camp", I just sleep in a tent. I bring along water, trail mix and granola bars for snacks along the way, but let someone else prepare actual meals.

The idea of cleaning the cookware and utensils after use and repacking on the bike is not something that I care to do, although given what's available in the way of already packaged meals these days, I can certainly see why people do it.

Same with coffee. I'm not a coffee snob, so any cup I can grab at a fastfood joint or gas station serves the purpose. It's the old drinking for effect vs. drinking for taste.

[BigSkyRider]

I love to cook when I camp, I do go for the "hobo stew" and other easy dishes.

One tip: after setting up camp I go find a store and fill my G.S. large capacity top case with ice, it makes a great cooler for the wine, beer and deli items.

Cheers!

Mike

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Kevin, interesting thread, thanks for starting it.

Diann and I travel on seperate bikes so we have a bit more packing space than when travelling solo.

We carry an army mess kit consisting of two nesting rectangular pans, inside which we pack matches, tea bags, a sponge, a small bottle of dishwashing soap and a can opener.

We also carry a single burner Coleman stove, knives, forks, mugs etc.

Oatmeal for breakfast with a mug of tea, lunch is normally some fruit, some cheese, a bun perhaps, and dinner ranges from stew made on site to a salad/sandwich combo or chicken/vegetable stir fry with rice sort of meal.

The cooking stuff goes on my bike in Aerostich tank panniers.

Regards, Rod.

[From MARS]

When I hit the road, I carry Knorr SidesPlus rice or pasta packets, a couple of cans of tuna or chicken, and a small container of Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning. All purchased from the local grocery store. A complete meal is about $2 and takes only a few minutes to cook. Being a barbarian, traveling alone, and hating to wash a bunch of dishes, I eat out of the pot. Cleanup is accomplished with paper towels and very little water.

Tom

[RJM2096]

Good post. When I camping on motorcycle trip I eat at restaurants. When camping with my family we take food to cook. Usually hot dogs and such, but that is part of camping; campfile and dogs, plus burnt marshmellows.
http://i259.photobucket.com/albums/hh310/RJM2096/Camping.jpg

[AKBeemer]

Of course, the real purpose behind this post is to identify the person I'd most like to camp with. So far, Big Sky (Mike) is the leader...likes to cook and has chilled beer and wine.:dance

[MonteC]

My son and I 2up on our camping trips, so space for cooking supplies is very limited. However, we manage to include enough to make small meals and brew some coffee. We generally don't pack too much food on the bike, so after setting up camp we make a trip to the local grocery and/or convenience store for "supplies". I've done a few "from scratch" dishes, but generally we hit the soup/stew/chili isle and do a heat-n-serve type of meal.

kitchen kit contents
--------------------
2 alcohol stoves + fuel (made from aluminum cans)
1 pot
2 pans (they double as plates)
1 french press (coffee is a necessity)
2 cups
silverware
salt/pepper
*seems there is something else but I can't remember at the moment.

We also pack fishing poles with the hope that someday we'll get lucky enough to catch something good enough to eat. So far no luck with catching lunch, but it's fun just the same.

[lamble]

I took a multi fuel stove on the trip to TDF. I only got as far as Colombia, but I only ever used the damn set once and then only for tea. It was more for emergencies and I only had one of those. Food was raisons and cereal bars.

[Mongo]

I love my Pyromid stove

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3240/2396705001_2959db01d4_o.jpg

Picked it up on Ebay.

[AKBeemer]

With the handle of "Mongo" One might have guessed you would have responded. "Mongo eat beans." :whistle

[Callmethebreeze]

MREs and dehydrated work for me. Local brews if available.
I have a Primus multifuel kit. I eat out of the pan. Low residue.
Breeze

[Mongo]

With the handle of "Mongo" One might have guessed you would have responded. "Mongo eat beans." :whistle

:laugh :laugh :laugh

[r11rs94]

MREs and dehydrated work for me. Local brews if available.
I have a Primus multifuel kit. I eat out of the pan. Low residue.
Breeze

Yep KISS works for me..:thumb

[tommcgee]

I go with portable food on trips, and usually one restaurant meal a day. I carry a jet boil and don't use it very often.

[criminaldesign]

We stop and get food before or during setting up camp. Which always seems to be:
<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/vV7KitryiBAlFekYNis_oQ?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_QUlLxCsQNp0/SYfKYOXEBsI/AAAAAAAAAD8/lFmKzyHtND8/s400/DSCF3381.JPG" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/houstonmcintyre/NewAlbum1219081012PM?feat=embedwebsite">New Album 12/19/08 10:12 PM</a></td></tr></table>


and you can't forget the stogies and the beer
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