Make ahead meals for camping should be quick to put together, easy to store and reheat and a cinch to clean up. These 22 recipes of four ingredients or less are meals that can be prepared and made ahead and allow you to go from unpacking to serving in less than three steps.
Campfire Calzone
Ingredients: Flour tortillas, pizza sauce, mozzarella and optional toppings.
Spread a thin layer of pizza sauce on each tortilla, top with mozzarella cheese and your favorite toppings. Fold the tortillas in half and place them seam-side down in foil and wrap well. Heat over the fire or grill for 15 minutes or until the tortillas are crispy and the cheese is melted.
Campsite BLT Melts
Ingredients: Bread, bacon, lettuce and tomatoes.
Cut the bread into sandwich-sized pieces and spread each piece with a layer of mayonnaise or mustard. Layer on the bacon, lettuce and tomatoes then close up the sandwiches and wrap them individually in foil. Grill over medium heat for about 15 minutes or until the bread is toasted.
Quick Campsite Oats
Ingredients: Quick oats, raisins, brown sugar, cinnamon
Mix together the quick oats, raisins, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a large plastic bag. Seal the bag and keep cool with other dry goods until you’re ready to cook it up on your campsite. Pour in a mug and add hot water when ready to eat.
4-Ingredient Pasta Salad
Ingredients: Rotini pasta, Italian dressing, canned black olives, Parmesan cheese
Boil the rotini pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water to cool it down. Pour the pasta into a large bowl and add the Italian dressing, black olives, and Parmesan cheese. Toss everything together until coated then put in individual servings and chill until serving.
Breakfast Burritos
Ingredients: Flour tortillas, breakfast sausage, shredded hash browns, cheese
Cook the breakfast sausage over medium heat in a large skillet until no longer pink. Add the shredded hash browns and cook until they’re also golden and crispy. Lay out your tortillas and evenly divide up the filling among them. Roll them up tightly in foil and heat at the site.
Campfire Nachos
Ingredients: Tortilla chips, shredded cheese, black beans, salsa
Spread a layer of tortilla chips on a large piece of foil. Top with a layer of cheese then add black beans and salsa. Repeat until everything is gone. Place in the foil on coals or over the flames for about 20 minutes or until hot and bubbing.
Quick Campire Bagels
Ingredients: pre-sliced bagels, cream cheese, jam
Spread a layer of cream cheese on each sliced bagel. Top with your favorite jam. Wrap in foil and heat at the campsite for about 15 minutes or until hot and melted.
Canned Fruit Yogurt and Granola Cups
Ingredients: canned fruit cups, vanilla yogurt, granola
Layer the bottom of a cup with yogurt, top with fruit and granola. Keep in the cooler until serving time.
Quick Campfire Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients: macaroni noodles, cheddar cheese packets
Premake mac and cheese, then cool. Put in individual serving cups or baggies and seal. Either freeze or chill until serving. Just heat and serve.
Foil Packet Dinners
Ingredients: Cooked protein choice, cooked potato or squash, fresh asparagus, olive oil, salt, pepper
Cut up all ingredients and place in a foil pack with oil and seasonings. Seal tightly and chill until you’re ready to throw on the fire.
Campfire Fruit Crisp
Ingredients: apples or other fruit of choice, cinnamon sugar mixture, oats, butter
Put the ingredients together in a foil pack with butter on top. Seal tightly and cook for about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking time to make sure it cooks evenly.
Quick Trail Mix
Ingredients: granola, chocolate chips, raisins, almonds/cashews
Combine the ingredients together in a Ziplock bag or plastic container. Add to your camping box for easy snacking on the go!
Breakfast Bake
Ingredients: breakfast sausage, hash browns, cheddar cheese, eggs and milk combined with salt and pepper
Mix everything up and bake at home. Cool, then slice into squares and wrap in foil or put individual servings into containers.
Bento Box Veggie Platter
Ingredients: cherry tomatoes, snap peas, carrots, edamame pods
Steam the veggies at home and then pack them into a bento box or small container. This is an easy way to have a healthy snack on hand while camping!
Fruit Kabobs
Ingredients: fresh fruit (your choice), skewers, cheese (optional)
Thread your favorite fruit onto plastic skewers for breakfast or as a snack or quick desert any time of day. Add cheese for extra protein.
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches
Ingredients: bread, peanut butter, jelly
No explanation needed! These are a classic for a reason.
Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Ingredients: bread, cheese slices, butter or margarine
Put the sandwiches together and grill them over an open flame. Yum!
Cheeseburger and Fries
Prepare the cooked burgers at home and wrap in foil. Chill the patties, then when ready to serve, add cheese and reheat. Top with any condiments and pop on a bun.
Cook up a batch of fries and put in individual foil packs for quick reheating as a side.
Foil Packet Pancakes & Bacon
Make your pancakes at home, then store in packs of three in foil. Cook and cool bacon and store in one large foil packet. Quickly reheat over the fire, add butter and syrup for a Sunday breakfast feel at home.
Breakfast Burrito Bowls
These breakfast burrito bowls are easy to customize and can be made ahead of time. Just cook up some basic rice, eggs, bacon and anything else you like. Make individual foil packets or tins with rice on the bottom and top with other ingredients. Heat at the campsite.
Foil Packet Breakfast Sandwich
This breakfast sandwich is easy to prep at home and cook on the campsite. Make sandwiches with eggs, bacon, cheese and any other fixings you like in a foil pack for ten minutes over hot coals. Top with salsa if desired when finished cooking!
Muffins
So easy! Make them at home and just bring them along for a quick breakfast or pick-me-up any time of day. Pack them with protein and grains to give yourself a boost (and not a sugar bomb).