20 Cheap Car Camping Kitchen Tricks Every American Should Know, by American Practical Frontier on YouTube. 20 min 1 s.
- Video length
- 20 min 1 s
- Time to do it
- 1 hour
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 10
What you need
Steps
Set up a folding table or use your tailgate as a flat prep surface. Slide a folded towel or a thin block of wood under a short leg so the surface stops wobbling and knives and cups stay put.
Split the surface into three zones: raw food and cutting on one end, stove or fire in the middle, plates and trash on the far end. This keeps raw meat juices away from food you are about to eat.
Freeze water bottles or bags of water at home and use them as ice blocks in the cooler. Pack food in the order you will cook it, keep the cooler in shade, and open the lid as little as possible.
Chop and portion meat and vegetables at home into labelled zip bags or containers. You save prep time at camp and wash almost no dishes.
Cook in a cast iron skillet or Dutch oven sitting on a bed of coals pushed to one side of the fire. Wipe it out with a cloth and a little oil instead of scrubbing it in the dark.
Wrap potatoes, onions or packets of meat and vegetables in heavy duty foil, set them in the coals, and turn them every 10 to 15 minutes until done.
Line pans with foil or use cheap foil trays for messy meals so you can bin the mess instead of washing it.
Sort gear into clear bins: one for dry food, one for utensils and one for cleaning supplies. Write the contents on tape so you can find things in a cramped trunk.
Wash up in two tubs, one soapy and one for rinsing, well away from taps, streams and your tent. Tip the grey water where the campsite rules allow.
Wipe the board and pack utensils back into their bin right after you eat. A two minute cleanup beats a pile of greasy dishes in the morning.
Tips and common mistakes
Never run a camp stove or charcoal inside a tent or closed car, because the fumes can kill you.
Keep the cooler off hot ground and out of direct sun, and drape a folded blanket over the lid for extra insulation.
Do not put a hot skillet straight onto a plastic folding table; set it on a flat rock or a metal trivet.
Pack a small tarp to block wind and rain so your stove lights and stays lit.
Questions
How do I keep food cold for a multi-day car camping trip?
Freeze water bottles or water bags and use them as blocks of ice, which last far longer than cubes. Keep the cooler shaded, off the ground and closed, and top up with bagged ice each morning.
Do I need a camp stove, or can I cook on the fire?
You can cook most meals over coals in cast iron or foil, but a cheap two burner stove is worth it for coffee and rainy days. Many campsites also ban open fires in dry seasons, so check before you go.
What is the cheapest way to build a prep station?
A secondhand folding table and a plastic cutting board cover almost everything. A flat tailgate with a towel under the food works just as well if you want to carry less.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
