Table of Contents
camping recipes
see also:
Some basics
- which type of potato?
- “starchy” potatoes include Sebago, the brown brushed ones in supermarket, tend to cook faster and are starchy, white, fluffy/floury inside and are good for mashing, baking and roasting
- “waxy” potatoes such as Nicola, Desiree or Dutch creams, usually have yellowish flesh and hold their shape better so are good for boiling for salads (or served with olive oil and vinegar, or with butter), steaming or in stews or curries
- “mid-range” potatoes are all rounders and include red potatoes and new “low carb” potatoes
- for best nutrition, leave the skins on and boiling your potatoes, then letting them cool down or having them the next day, lowers their GI value.
- NB. sweet potatoes are a totally different family and are low GI if boiled but GI goes up when roasted or baked
Gas BBQ with lid recipes
Wood fire recipes
dutch oven
- Gary's roast veges:
- prepare camp fire in advance so there will be lots of hot coals
- place trivet in bottom of dutch oven
- pre-heat dutch oven on camp fire
- optionally place baking paper in dutch oven to reduce veges sticking/burning on sides of oven
- lightly oil, flavour (eg. salt, rosemary, thyme in a plastic bag) veges (aim to have them similar size and not too large) then add to Dutch oven
- place Dutch Oven on hot coals adjacent to camp fire
- add hot coals onto lid of Dutch oven
- rotate oven by a quarter every 10 min or so (best to use appropriate gloves rather than a lifting device)
- depending on how much coals, how close to flames, and size and type of veges, will take 40-60min (check after 40min)
- tip: if cooking for 8 adults, use three 9 quart ovens, one for potatoes, one for pumpkin and one for carrots (you could combine into two ovens)
fry pan on a grill
- pancake mix
- fried eggs and bacon / sausages
- steak
- fried veges - capsicum, corn on cobb, etc
- quesadilla
- chocolate and banana cake (needs lid for frypan) - see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dqlqEyBKro
wok
- stir fries
wrapped in aluminium foil and placed on embers or a BBQ grate
- don't forget long metal tongs
-
- for foil packets use 2-3 layers of plenty of heavy-duty/catering foil and consider spray with non-stick spray or spread of butter
- rotate every 10min, should sizzle softly - small cut veges and meats including salmon may take 40 minutes depending upon size and the temp of the embers (on a gas BBQ aim for 220degC)
- potatoes +/- parmesan, etc
- sweet corn with butter (if no foil, can just cook with the husks on)
- banana with skin on and filled with chocolate chips, coconut, maple syrup and/or marshmallows or vanilla essence / cinnamon
- other fruits
- meats
- shrimps:
- salmon
- chicken:
billy can with steamer and lid
- a proper steamer is easier but a billy can is more versatile for camping
- steaming and cooking rice requires minimal steam loss so here are some ways to reduce steam escaping whilst still preventing excessive pressure build up:
- if it has a spout, loosely cover the spout opening - but avoid packing it in tightly - you don't want excessive pressure!
- ideally, a well fitting silicone stopper works the best - ensuring it is loose enough that it will pop out under pressure, otherwise,
- use a heat-resistant material such as a small piece of foil, piece of silicone mat, folded damp cloth, or damp paper towel (the latter two are porous enough to prevent pressure build up)
- clamp the lid down, ensuring it is fitting nicely - you may need to add a silicone gasket or similar if it is poor fitting
- wrapping a wet kitchen towel or cloth around the lid joint can help trap escaping steam and improve the seal temporarily
- rice and steamed vegetables, dim sims or meats
- short grain rice such as basmati or jasmine takes 12-15min to cook with a 1 cup rice:1.5 cups water ratio, and you do not want to be removing the lid and letting out the steam in this time, so you will need foods that will take about 15 min to cook as well (you will also be leaving the rice off the heat but with lid on for a further 10 minutes) such as:
- carrots (small or quartered) take 10-15 minutes
- beets take 15 to 30+ minutes so will need to be cut small
- cauliflower heads with core removed take around 15 to 20 minutes
- leeks take about 10 to 15 minutes to steam
- corn on the cob usually steams in 10 to 15 minutes
- butternut pumpkin cubed requires 12 to 15 minutes
- turnips sliced 1/4 thick
- thawed dim sims take 15 minutes (see below - thaw them by placing frozen ones in the fridge for 8-12 hours and use within 24hrs)
- most fish fillets (such as salmon, white fish, or trout) and smaller whole fish steam in 8–15 minutes depending on thickness - but may add unwanted flavour to the rice
- fresh or frozen lobster tails take about 15 minutes to steam
- boneless chicken breast steams in 15minutes
- 1cm thick pork fillet steams in 15minutes
- custard steamed eggs take 10-15 minutes eg. Chinese style “custard” - beaten eggs mixed with warm water (1 part eggs:1.5-2 parts water), salt and steamed in a bowl until it becomes a smooth custard and add topping or soy sauce
- halved nectarines take 15 minutes
- stuffed foods such as eggplant stuffed with pork and shrimp steam in 15 minutes (after initial pan frying)
- other steamed vegetables
- green beans, broccoli, asparagus, and leafy greens generally take 3 to 10 minutes
- potatoes (small or quartered) take 10-15 minutes
- sweet potatoes cut into 1-inch pieces require 12 to 15 minutes
- frozen Marathon dim sims for steaming
- add enough water to avoid boiling dry eg. 250mL
- ensure the dim sims will not be sitting in the water
- lightly oil the steamer plate
- add dim sims
- place lid tightly on billy and cover up any spout to reduce steam escaping
- frozen dim sims take 20 minutes after the water has started boiling
- thawed dim sims take 15 minutes after the water has started boiling
- internal temperature should be 80-100degC and should be hot and steaming all the way through, with the wrapper appearing glossy and slightly translucent and the filling should be piping hot
- cut a dim sim in half - the inside should be steaming hot with no cold spots, and the filling should look fully cooked (not pink or raw)
- boiled eggs
- place eggs in billy can with adequate water to cover them, bring to boil then simmer for 4 minutes, rest for 10-20secs for runny yolk, longer for firm yolk
- poached eggs
- bring water in billy can to boil
- crack eggs directly into billy can and simmer until you are happy
- steamed poached eggs
- crack each egg into a small bowl with a little water
- place bowl into steamer
- cover and steam for 5-7 minutes for runny yolk, 8 minutes for a firmer yolk
fry pan
- fried bread and eggs for breakfast
- requires 3 slices bread, 150ml milk, 2 eggs, 1/3rd a grated sweet potato, spring onion
- mash milk-soaked bread slices, add 2 egg whites, sweet potato and spring onion, mix, halve and add to oiled frypan place egg yolk on top
- fry (preferably with lid on) for 3-5 minutes, flip and fry for further 2-3 minutes
Cold deserts (requires fridge)
Gary's Cointreau marinated fruit salad
- serves 6-8
- requires a large bowl eg. 3L 25-28cm diameter bowl with lid
- ingredients:
- 1-2 punnets of blueberries
- 1 punnet of strawberries
- 1-2 cans of passionfruit pulp
- 3 large oranges
- 1/4 cup sugar dissolved in 50mL or so of warm water
- 100-150mL Cointreau
- wash blueberries and add to bowl
- wash, hull and halve / quarter strawberries and add to bowl
- peel the oranges, carefully remove as much of the white pith as possible, divide into segments and add to bowl (can add any residual juice back into bowl)
- add passion fruit pulp
- add Cointreau
- add the sugar as desired
- optionally can add halved grapes, small can of mandarins (strained to avoid using syrup)
- mix and allow several hours to marinate in a fridge with lid on to avoid any spillage (this should fit in a Dometic CX3 fridge)
- serve with vanilla ice cream (if you have a freezer), or, thickened or whipped cream
