Finding the Best Backpacking Cookware

Backcountry cooking is a unique experience. There’s no feeling like preparing good food with your own two hands, surrounded by your friends or by a gorgeous vista. But that unique experience requires unique gear. A cast-iron skillet is great for camping, but you don’t want to lug it around on the trail with you—and there’s no reason to. You want equipment that won’t take up space or add weight to your pack, and that can stand up to the rigors of outdoor living. Learn about what backpacking cookware can do, and how to make the best choice for your kind of camping. That way you can choose hiking cookware that suits your camping style.

What Kind of Hiking Cookware Fits Your Style?

Every backpacker wants a different kind of adventure. Knowing what your priorities are can help you choose the gear that’s best for you. Do you like to hike long distances before you set up your base camp? You might prefer something light and portable. Do you set up a base camp early and journey out from it? You may want something with a little more versatility. Do you hike alone, or with a friend, or with a group? If you’re cooking for a lot of people, you’ll probably want more volume and variety. That works out perfectly, because you have more people to help you carry the gear.

What to Look for in Backpacking Cooking Gear: 

• Weight and Size – Weight and pack space are definitely considerations. A lightweight, smaller backpacking cook set means you can do more with less effort on the trail. But that usually means sacrificing some measure of capacity, performance, or both.
• Capacity – If you’re going out by yourself, you probably don’t want to cart around a giant pot. But If you’re camping with friends, heftier cookware might be exactly what you need. Some people are happy with a cooking container the size of a cup. Others want a little more out of their cooking experience.
• Durability – Even if you had the space and could carry the weight, traditional cookware wasn’t made for trail life. As your pack goes through the same terrain you do, it’s important to know that what’s in it is going to last.
• Efficiency – Not all cookware is created equal. If you’re on the trail, you want a pot that’s non-stick. You want one that will cook quickly and evenly, as well.
• Heat Distribution – It’s hard to get lighter than a basic aluminum pot. But it’s also hard to find an aluminum pot that won’t scorch food on the bottom. This affects everything from your fuel use to your flavor to how much elbow grease it takes to clean the pot.

Best Backpacking Pot

Our pots are about efficiency and a smooth experience. They feature FluxRing technology that distributes heat evenly across the bottom and keeps it from escaping up the sides of the pot. This means a smoother cooking process on a more evenly-heated surface. It also means boiling water in less time than a conventional pot, with less fuel. 

The 5L cook pot weighs 32.9 oz. and is 10 in x 6 in when it’s packed up. It offers similar time and fuel efficiency on a larger scale. It also has a lid that doubles as a strainer. Whether you’re making a lot of coffee or simmering chili, it’s one of the best camping pots for a group. It’s optimized for the Genesis and HalfGen systems.

Best Backpacking Skillet

There are all kinds of adventures, but the Summit Skillet is a well-engineered piece of cookware that should take care of you in nearly all of them. The non-stick surface avoids burning and makes cleanup fast and easy, which is perfect on the trail. After all, you don’t want to put a dirty skillet back in your pack next to your clothes. The skillet walls are varied in thickness so that heat is distributed evenly over the whole cooking surface. The handle folds up for easier storage, and the turner fits into the handle. The whole thing is just 8.5 in x 1.9 in when it’s packed up.

Backcountry Utensils

Every little detail matters when you’re packing, right down to the perfect utensils. Our fork, spoon, and spatula set is made of high-temperature nylon. That means you don’t have to worry about rust or about melting. The telescoping handles make them compact for easy packing, and they can even be stowed on or in your Jetboil cook pots.

Go Cook!

The best backpacking cooking gear is the gear that helps you live your own adventure. It’s the hiking cookware you don’t even have to think about once you’re out there. The more dependable your gear, the more you can enjoy the sights and sounds of your surroundings—and what to cook next.