Easy Camp Fire Meals

By Society & Culture & Entertainment Last updated Monday, July/29/2024

There's more to camping food than roasted marshmallows, as tasty as they aremarshmallow toasting image by Yin Jian Ng from Fotolia.com

Heading out for a camping trip is fun for the family, and you probably don't want to be bogged down over the campfire for hours on end. There are plenty of healthy, simple camping meals that are tasty, nutritious and efficient for the whole family to make and eat, so you can hit the trails or the lake and have fun.

Hobo Taco Pies

Using round pie irons, which are hinged, cast iron plates, insert your soft flour tortillas. Add in cooked ground beef, chicken, or refried beans, as well as grated cheese, banana peppers, and whatever fillings, within reason since you shouldn't overfill the pie iron creations, and set them over the fire. This easy meal should cook in a matter of minutes and is chock full of filling, healthy food.

Bring a packet of your choice of rice, which can be white, brown, basmati, or whatever kind will satisfy you and your family. Add in chicken or vegetable broth and cook the rice in a sauce pan, then add a vegetable of your choice to make a good wholesome and easy meal. For protein and a way to liven things up, you may add in some of your favorite bean to the rice mix.

This simple stew is just what the name suggests. Use any variation of your favorite beans, which may include pork & beans, kidney beans and garbanzo beans, to name a few. You may add cooked hamburger meat and bacon for additional heartiness and flavor, as well as well as ketchup and brown sugar to give it a thicker consistency and mildly sweet flavor. Combine these ingredients and let them simmer for an hour. Add some bread or crackers to make it a filling meal.

If you've been out on the lake fishing all day and want to eat your catch, you can clean it and add it to your awaiting vegetables. Just add your piece of fish to a grilling fork or hardwood stick and turn it over the fire until ready, or you can add it to a skewered kabob, combining it with vegetables and seasonings. Cook the fish over hot coals at the thickest part of the fish until it flakes.

Grinders, subs and hoagies require no cooking, if you would rather have a simple, on-the-go meal. Just bring along your favorite deli meat, condiments, buns, and sliced tomato, lettuce and onion, and you're all set. If you would like a warm sandwich, you may put the fully prepared sandwich in foil and let it sit over the fire until it is toasted.

For a variation from the standard hot dog on a stick, you can bring along some corn dogs to roast over the fire. You can add condiments once the dog is cooked. By adding some vegetables or warmed up macaroni & cheese, can make this a fun and simple meal for everyone, but one especially for the kids.

This sweet treat can be made simply by placing an apple on a stick and roasting it until it sizzles, at which time you can peel the smoldering apple and roll it in a mixture of cinnamon, sugar and any other spices for a sweet treat. If you happen to have any warm caramel on hand, this dessert skyrockets in sweetness.

Preparing oatmeal, Cream of Wheat and grits is a simple breakfast option, which you can make in a pan over the fire, if you like something warm to eat first thing in the morning. Add some cinnamon or syrup for extra flavor, if you would like to.

If you want something a little more substantial for breakfast, you can make a breakfast mash of your favorite breakfast meat, mashed or hashed potatoes and your eggs prepared to your style choice. You can also add peppers, tomatoes, onions and seasonings of your choice to spice up your mash. Prepare a cooking pan and add all of the ingredients together until fully cooked.