11 Easy Foods You Can Cook Over A Campfire

If you’re at a campground with a campfire, or a grill nearby, then you may be wondering how to cook your food. Fear not! These eleven recipes are as easy as pie. They’ll provide you with breakfast, lunch, and dinner for days.

Cooking over a campfire while camping is fun and gives you the experience of camping without actually getting off the ground. Camping is more about socializing and enjoying the outdoors than it is about cooking food over a campfire.

If you’re worried about ruining your tent, or if you’re just not comfortable with a fire that close to your bedding or to your face, then don’t worry. It’s easy to cook your food without having to get right next to the fire. It’s all about using a little common sense and some innovative cooking methods.

The 11 Recipes You Can Cook Over a Campfire

You can do this. You can cook like a pro on your next campout.

1) Campfire stew

For a quick, filling meal all you need is a stew pot and some tin foil.

Ingredients:

– Stew Pot

– Tin Foil

– Potatoes, cut into small cubes and fried until golden brown

– Carrots, peeled and sliced thin to be added to the potatoes when cooking. To add vegetables like onions or garlic, fry them in a little olive oil before adding potato. It’s also helpful to add seasonings at this stage as well. (To taste)

– Canned tomato sauce or tomato paste for some acidity and flavor

– Canned beans for some protein, plus a hearty feel

– Cinnamon (optional)

– Cayenne pepper or hot sauce (optional)

Instructions:

Boil stew pot with water. When the water is boiling, add the potatoes and carrots. Cook until tender. When the potatoes are done, add the rest of your ingredients and stir. Check to see if you need to add more spices or not. Cover with foil and let simmer for about 20 minutes on medium heat. Take off the foil and stir. Cook for another 15 minutes uncovered on medium-low heat. Let sit for a few minutes then dive in!

2) Campfire Chicken Wings

Ingredients:

– 4 lbs of Chicken Wings

– 2 cups of Flour

– 1 tablespoon Salt

– 2 tablespoons Canola Oil for frying or vegetable oil for baking

Instructions:

– Preheat oven to 425 degrees

– Prepare the chicken wings by cutting off the end of the wing and cutting into two pieces. Cut each piece in half for a total of 8 pieces per wing.

– Toss in flour, salt, and pepper. Shake off excess flour

– Heat oil for frying or grease a baking dish with vegetable oil then place chicken wings in frying pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes, checking to make sure that the chicken is fully cooked.

– Add sauce and serve on a plate or in a basket with some french fries.

3) Grilled Shrimp

Ingredients:

– 1 lb Large Shrimp, peeled and deveined with tail removed

– 2 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

– 1 tablespoon of Butter

– ¼ teaspoon Sea Salt or Himalayan Crystal Salt to taste.

Instructions:

In a mixing bowl, add shrimp, extra virgin olive oil, butter, and sea salt. Mix together until well coated. In a medium size skillet over medium heat, cook shrimp for 5 minutes on each side or until the shrimp is pink in color and has curled up slightly. Serve with lemon wedges on top or enjoy as is!

4) Fillets of Smoked Salmon

Ingredients:

– Fillet of Smoked Salmon

– Fillet of Sea Scallops

– Salt and Pepper

– Herbs such as dill, parsley, mint, basil, marjoram to taste. Chopped well in a blender or food processor. For example: ¾ cup chopped fresh dill ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil.

Instructions:

Place the fillets of smoked salmon and sea scallops on a large sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Using a fat brush, rub the herbs on top of each fillet before placing in the oven for about 20 minutes or until you see the fillet is browning and has curled up slightly.

– Serve hot in your favorite dish with melted butter on top if desired.

– Salt and Pepper Salmon (5 min. Prep)

– Cut one side of a salmon filet off.

– Season the salmon with salt and pepper.

– Heat up your grill to the medium heat. Put the grill over your stove top on medium heat. Place salmon filet, skin side down, into a pan that is close in size to the grill so that it sits flush and flat on the grill.

– Cook for 2 minutes on each side, depending on your stove top’s temperature level.

– Take the filet off of the grill and let rest for about 5-10 minutes.

– Serve with mashed potatoes, carrots, and a salad.

5) Campfire chicken breast

Ingredients:

– 1 Chicken Breast

– Salt and Pepper

– Olive or vegetable oil for frying. (Olive oil may produce a different flavor from olive oil.)

Instructions:

Pound out chicken breast to a 3/4″ thickness. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a pan, heat up olive or vegetable oil. Fry chicken breast for about 3-4 minutes per side depending on the thickness of the chicken breast. Let rest for about 5-10 minutes before serving.

Instructions for baking:

Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake chicken breast for 10-15 minutes per pound of meat until cooked all the way through. (Bake uncovered.) Let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.

6) Smoked salmon

Ingredients:

– 1 Pounds Smoked Salmon (can be sliced or in sticks)

– Capers, Olive Oil, and Lemon Juice for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

Prepare the fish by toasting in the oven at 400 degrees F until it is just dry enough to make it crispy. If you like your fish on the hot side, I recommend toasting at 350 degrees F. Heat olive oil in a pan on medium heat. While the pan is heating up, place sliced salmon in the oven. Let it grill on both sides for about a minute each side or until it just starts to turn golden brown. Take the fish out of the oven and let rest for a minute. Add capers, kick-ass lemon juice and olive oil (optional).

7) Fire roasted potatoes

Ingredients:

– Potatoes

– Olive Oil

– Salt and Pepper to taste.

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut potatoes into desired size. Rub olive oil on potatoes and sprinkle salt and pepper on top of the potatoes, then toss them around to coat evenly with the seasoning. Place cut potato pieces in a baking dish lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper, making sure that they are not touching each other (this will ensure crispy sides). Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, then flip each piece of potato over carefully so that the skin is now facing upwards and cook for another 10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until they are crispy on all sides. Alternatively, you can cook the potatoes on a hot cast iron pan for about 5 minutes before flipping them over and cooking them for another 5 minutes.

2) If baking the potatoes in a baking dish, after you flip them over, put the potatoes back into the oven (without adding any more seasoning) for about 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

3) Serve with your favorite meal or by themselves. These potatoes are also great as chips, especially when cooked on a cast iron pan.

8) Bacon wrapped Dates

Ingredients:

– 12 small dates

– 1/4 lb (a small handful) of bacon

– 4 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced.

Instructions:

1) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  In a food processor or blender, slowly grind dates in order to break them down into a fine powder. If I don’t have a food processor at the moment, I’ll use a mortar and pestle to coarsely grind them.  Place dates in a bowl and mix with ground garlic.  Divide mixtures into 4 balls and roll each ball in a piece of bacon. Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper, making sure that they are not touching each other (this will ensure crispy sides). Bake for 5-10 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until bacon is fully cooked.

9) Campfire Pizza Cone

Ingredients:

– One recipe of pizza dough (can be store-bought or homemade)

– 1 cup of sauce (I prefer either a tomato sauce or a pesto along with a different cheese)

Instructions:

1) Prepare the dough by letting rise, then place it on so parchment paper and cut it into any shape that you desire, I prefer in the shape of a cone.  Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes, depending on the size of your pizza cone.  Remove the cone from the oven, then slice peppers and onions into thin slices.  I prefer thin slices.  Place the slices on top of pizza dough and garnish with your desired toppings (fresh basil is a great addition).

2) Using section of aluminum foil, place dough in the center of the foil then add your desired toppings to the sides.  Wrap up with aluminum foil, secure in a double-lock knot, and place over a fire (you can also cook over an open flame).  Cook for 15 minutes on each side.

10) Foil roasted fish

Ingredients:

– 1-2 white fish filets

– Salt, Pepper, and fresh or dried herbs to taste

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place desired amount of salt, pepper, and herbs on the fish filets. Wrap the filets in aluminum foil making sure that the spices are evenly distributed throughout the foil. Place foil package over a campfire or on a pan that is placed over an open flame.

Cook for 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish filet.  Remove from heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.

11) Chorizo Zucchini Chili

Ingredients:

– 2 tablespoons olive oil

– 1 yellow onion, diced

– 1 red bell pepper, diced

– 4 cloves garlic, minced

– 2 tablespoons ground cumin

– 1 tablespoon smoked paprika (optional)

– 2 teaspoons ground coriander (optional) 

– quarter teaspoon cayenne pepper

– one teaspoon salt  

– one 15 ounce can of crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce.  I like to put in a little more than I would with canned tomatoes because they’re already cooked. The option is always there to add more if it’s too thick.

– one 4 ounce can of tomato paste [I prefer the Goya brand]

– two cups beef broth – 3 cups water

– 2 tablespoons brown sugar

– 1 teaspoon chili powder

– 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

– one bay leaf

– half a red onion, diced

– eight garlic cloves, minced

– 1 package of chorizo or your favorite type of Mexican sausage.  It can be removed from the casing if you like, but I prefer to eat it whole.  Cut it into small pieces and set aside.

Instructions:

1) In a large saucepan on medium heat, add olive oil, ground cumin and smoked paprika, coriander, cayenne pepper, salt and garlic.

Stir for about 1 minute or until the garlic becomes fragrant.  Add in the diced red onions along with a pinch of salt and cook for about 3 minutes or until the onions become tender.

Next add in the diced bell peppers and stir for 1 minute making sure to keep them from burning.

Next add crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, stir for about a minute.

Add in the beef broth, water and brown sugar, stir well.  Bring the sauce to a boil then reduce to a simmer and reduce heat to low.

Add in chorizo, cumin, chili powder and bay leaf into the sauce and let simmer for about 20 minutes.

2) At this point you can taste the sauce if you want and add salt or more spices as needed.  When it’s done, remove from heat and set aside.

Cook your pasta according to package instructions then drain.  Add pasta to the sauce, stir well and adjust heat if needed. Let simmer over low heat until dinner time; the longer it simmers the more the flavors will meld together and the better it will taste.

3) I usually make this dish in a large pot, but if you’re camping you can always do it in a small pot over coals or on a camp stove. Just make sure to transfer the pasta with a spoon to the sauce when it’s done.

What to bring for cooking over a campfire

– A pot to boil water and cook pasta.  If you don’t have one, you can bring a small pan to place over the campfire or over an open flame.  I usually bring my Dutch oven for this purpose.  It’s not just for making chili.

– Knives are always good for cutting herbs, onions, tomatoes, bell peppers etcetera.

– Spices make all the difference in what makes a dish taste amazing or plain.  I recommend a small spice rack and bundles of spices.  There are tons of options out there.

-Grilling sheets allow you to grill whatever you like over the campfire and they’re easy to take anywhere you go.

– Thermometers are also a must have, especially if you’re cooking at higher temperatures.  A touch screen thermo is a must.

– Parchment paper keeps food from sticking to ranges, pots and pans making clean up a lot easier.

-An aluminum foil bag can also be used to cook items over the campfire but I don’t recommend it because of the difficulty in taking it off once it’s placed on hot coals. I recommend using a pan instead.

– A Dutch oven is really what I use 90% of the time.  It’s an extra heavy cast iron kettle with a lid.  I love the way they cook food, but they require coals underneath and can be quite heavy to carry around.  I usually place it over a trail in the ground because I’m lazy.

– A loaf pan works well for cooking meatloaf or chicken breasts over an open flame or on a campfire.  I always use a cast iron pan to make campfire beans.

– If you’re camping, you’ll need to bring a camp grill to make corn on the cob or any other type of food that requires grilling.  Mine is a Tekro, but there are lots of good ones out there.

– You’ll also want to bring an extra set of cooking utensils just in case.

– A spoon or fork for stirring.  You can use them to shovel the pasta into the sauce if you’re lazy like me and don’t want to stir with your hands.

– A salad bowl will allow you to cook pizza over an open flame with ease.  It’s also a good way to transfer the food from the campfire to your plate, keeping it hot.

– A spatula or a big spoon with a long handle helps when you’re cooking over the campfire.  I use them in my Dutch oven as well.  You’ll need a big enough one to scoop out the cooked pasta from the sauce.

-You’ll want to bring a lid to cook corn on the cob or any other type of food you may want to cook over an open flame.  You don’t want to burn yourself on accident.

– In the campfire cooking process, it’s best to always keep the campfire going and use the coals for cooking. If you build a large fire, remember that you’ll need to do the opposite; cook food over an open flame since there isn’t enough coals to cook anything.  Keep things simple in that case by grilling steaks over the open flame or grilling chicken breasts etcetera with a little bit of salt on them.

That means you have to bring the complete set of a campfire cooking kit to your campsite.

What to bring for camping

– Dishes, cutlery etcetera. Stainless steel is the best because it won’t rust over time.  You may want to bring an extra set of plates, cutlery and cups so you don’t have to wash them so frequently.   You’ll also need a large enough plastic bin for keeping them all in.

– A big plastic bin is perfect for keeping all your food in when camping and easy to take back home afterwards. If you’re camping away from home, I recommend bringing a cooler with ice packs as well.  I’ve never needed them when I went camping because I always bring my Dutch oven, but if you’re camping in a place where there’s no fire pit or open flame, you may need to bring stove.

– A cutting board is useful for cutting onions, bell peppers etcetera. I recommend buying one that’s sturdy enough to serve as a plate if necessary. Forks and knives are useful of course.

– A small bottle of dish soap is handy for washing dishes but I prefer to bring a sponge.  If you’re taking camping with the kids, consider bringing a plastic spoon instead.

– I recommend bringing a few soaps and shampoos from home just in case; especially if you’re pregnant or have young children.  You never know what’s going to happen at camp and everyone will want to use them at some point or another.  

– A small bag of garbage bags.  These are useful so you can clean up the site at the end of the day.  They can be purchased at most camping shops, but you can also improvise a lot as well.  Create a big pile on the ground and make sure everything has a bag nearby to take away trash in its own bin!

– A tarp is essential for camping because it keeps you dry during rain and keeps warm in the cold.  I recommend bringing a big heavy one, preferably waterproof (you’re doing camping in Canada after all).

– First aid kit.  You never know what’s going to happen at camp and it’s always good to have your first aid items handy.

– Tent. If you’re going on a camping trip, you need to have a place to sleep. For most campers, that place is going to be a tent. Be sure that you have a tent big enough to hold everyone who will be staying with you. If you’re going on an overnight or weekend trip, the best option is probably going to be one of the many pop-up tents available on the market today. They are lightweight and easy to set up. If you are in winter season then you have to bring a hot tent which can heat up the tent to ensure you and all your friends have a warm, cozy place to sleep.

– A hammock.  I like using hammocks when camping because they’re really versatile and keep you dry in the rain and they take up little space when you aren’t using them because they can be hung anywhere. They can be purchased at camping stores, but I’ve also seen them in department stores with the camping section.  There are lots of different designs and sizes, so choose one that will suit you and your family.  Make sure to get enough ropes as well.

– A torch or two, depending on how often you’ll need one.   I’ve never had a need for a torch before, but it’s good to have them available just in case you end up needing one and don’t have one.

– A few bottles of water.  I recommend at least one bottle per person.  These are useful for drinking and cleaning as well.

– A good pair of sunglasses and a hat or hatchet.   You’ll need the sunglasses to protect your eyes from the sun and the hat or hatchet to protect your head from bugs!

– Spices, condiments etcetera for flavouring food on site.  Try to bring spices and condiments that are in season so you can have a good time and eat the foods that are in season.  

– Plastic bags for taking away garbage at the end of the day.   These are useful for keeping in the campsite until you can take them away at the end of your camping adventure.

– Tissues/toilet paper.   You never know when you’ll need these, especially if your camping trip turns into a longer vacation.

Conclusion

Hopefully you found this guide helpful and it’s given you some ideas on how to prepare for camping!  With that, I wish you the best of luck and a safe adventure.

I hope that this camping guide was helpful and gave you a better idea of what to bring with you when going camping.  It’s not too hard to prepare for a camping trip if you know what your needs are beforehand.  If you’re new to camping, this is a great way to get started and I can assure you that your first camping trip will be enjoyable and fun.

I hope this article was helpful and if you enjoyed it, please feel free to share it with your friends, family or anyone else who loves camping.  Thanks in advance!

If you have any questions, comments or concerns about this article please feel free to leave a comment below.  I’d love to hear all of your suggestions as well.