7 Clutch Backpacking & Camping Food Hacks
Long gone are the days where backpacking food consists solely of beef jerky, trail mix, and a can of beans.
Once you’ve become a serious camper, there’s no reason to not elevate your cooking while on the trails. Regardless of if you’re tackling the backcountry or car camping with more amenities, these camping food hacks will up your cooking game and provide more nutrition than a handful of crackers and a spoonful of peanut butter.
Hack #1: Get the Heavy Duty Foil
One of the easiest ways to cook in a camp setting is over coals with tin foil. However, traditional tin foil tends to be thin and tears easily, while also not standing up to fire.
To combat this, there is heavy-duty grade foil—sometimes referred to as “pitmaster” foil—that can take the heat. This is the type of foil that is used often in outdoor smokers, fire pits, and grills where the material used needs to be more high-temperature-friendly.
This type of foil can withstand higher temperatures, is more durable, and will ultimately perform better at cooking your camp meals.
Hack #2: Sous Vide in a Plastic Baggie on Your Jetboil
Sous vide is a style of cooking that immerses food in a hot water bath, which is maintained at a constant temperature, allowing food to cook evenly without ever getting hotter than the water surrounding it. And, it’s not just for home cooking, anymore.
You can easily cook eggs into an omelet this way, but sous vide is a popular technique used to create juicy, perfectly cooked steak, pork chops, and more. Once your meat of choice has reached the desired temperature, you can quickly sear it on a grill top or over the fire.
Hack #3: Upgrade Your Camping Spice Kit
A major camping food hack is by bringing more than the standard salt and pepper along for the trip. Spices are easy to pack and you can bring plenty along in easy-to-use packaging that won’t make a mess. What spices you bring with you will depend on what’s on the menu, but these spices and herbs are a good start:
- Salt
- Pepper
- Red pepper flakes
- Chili powder
- Paprika
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Oregano
- Cumin
These spices can help you make anything from a savory chili to a spicy marinara sauce. Many grocery stores have reusable spice jars, but you can also find something smaller like mini camping spice shakers to keep in your travel pack. Some items around your house like pill organizers, small glass jars, and tic tac containers can also be used.
Hack #4: Squeeze Bottle Meals
Using old squeeze bottles as meal vessels can work surprisingly well when camping. The most common use of this type of product is pancake batter or scrambled eggs. Pancakes aside, they are also useful for making quick cornbread, waffles, and storing or making condiments like dressing, ketchup, sauces, etc. and more when you don’t want to take a whole bottle from home.
Hack #5: Pre-cook and Freeze Decadent First Night’s Meals
Many campers who love to organize and plan ahead will have fun with this hack. Take the time to pre-cook and freeze food for some of your trip’s first meals. You can defrost these items during the day and then let them bake or warm up on the fire, grill, or your Jetboil stove.
Precooked meal ideas include:
- Lasagna
- Casseroles
- Meatballs
- Shepherd’s pie
- Burritos
- Chili, soups, and stews
Basically, any meal that freezes easily is optimal to take camping. You wouldn’t want to freeze a turkey sandwich, but casseroles are prime frozen camping meals.
Hack #6: Use Reliable Camping Stoves and Cookware
Now that you’ve got all the prepwork done and all the condiments and spices ready to go, the next step in putting together an awesome outdoor camping meal is to have the proper cooking stoves and cookware for prep and eating. Make sure you have enough space to prepare, cook, and clean your station.
Camping Food Hack Cookware
You’ll want to start with camping cookware. Depending on what your meal plan looks like, you may be able to get by with a skillet or two. Cook pots are perfect for boiling water, making soups or chili, or sous viding.
Don’t forget to get packable camp cooking utensils. You’ll want light, easy-to-use products that won’t scratch your nonstick or cast iron skillets. This JetSet Utensil Kit is light and can withstand the heat of a stove or pot.
Camping Stove Systems
You’ve got plenty of options when it comes to setting up your stove system. The Genesis Basecamp System is the ultimate all-in-one backcountry cooking system, while packing tightly into inself, fitting neatly into your gear.
The dual-burner design acts as a standalone stove or can work with other compatible stoves and burners, creating an entire outdoor cooking range.The 5-liter FluxPot and nonstick fry pan sets you up with the ability to make an entire meal—making chili in the FluxPot and and cornbread on the pan.
The HalfGen stove is an expandable basecamp cooking system that can be used by itself or other compatible stoves. It comes with a 9-inch ceramic coated fry pan that makes it easy to scramble eggs, make pancakes, or grill burgers with ease.
You can go from a simmer to a full boil, is regulated for performance 20 degrees and up, and can boil water in just over three minutes. When exploring the backcountry, a compact and efficient stove is fundamental, no matter the level of cuisine you want to create. A good stove system is truly one of the best camping food hacks.
Need something even lighter? The ultra-compact and ultra-light Stash is the ultimate backcountry cooking system.
Hack #7: Upgrade Your Coffee Kit
We can’t make a list of the top food hacks for camping without mentioning coffee.
To fuel for the day ahead, take your camping breakfasts to the next level by saying goodbye to instant coffee and hello to freshly brewed, high-quality coffee. With just a few items, you can make camping coffee like a barista.
As the most efficient way to boil water when camping, the Flash Jaka Kit includes all the accessories needed to make a fresh cup of coffee at your campsite or on the trail. Water boils in just over 90 seconds—the fastest Jetboil ever. Jetboil's 1-liter FluxRing cooking cup with insulating cozy makes boiling water—and keeping it warm—a breeze.
This kit also comes with an easy-to-pack Silicone Coffee Press that fits inside your Jetboil, letting you brew French press coffee without bringing anything extra.
Bring your favorite coffee along for the trip, or check out our selection of Hikers Brew Coffee. Hikers Brew makes up to four cups of coffee per pouch, is pre ground for convenience, and comes with compostable packing.
Use These Best Camping Food Hacks on Your Next Adventure
With some simple preparation and the right tools, you can have elevated camping and backpacking meals that don’t include a single stick of beef jerky. Bring a lasagna for the road, step up your chili game with spices from home, and brew coffee better than Starbucks.
Need some recipe inspiration? We’ve got you covered with these camping recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinnert With just a simple stove set up, you can fuel your body for the adventure ahead.
Do you have additional camping food prep hacks? Post your best ideas and share with other fellow campers on our Facebook page.