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In Camp Cooking

Submitted by admin on Fri, 08/08/2008 - 16:30

There are three basic methods of cooking when backpacking:

Boiling

This is by far the most common technique on the trail. When you think of hot meals on the trail, think soups, stews, chilis, gumbos, hashes, gravied curries, ... (got the picture yet?). These can be prepared without worrying about burning and ruining food on camp stoves which provide less than ideal temperature control.

 Frying

There are three problems with frying:
  1. First, controlling temperatures on most camp stoves is not all that easy. The low flame required for frying is sometimes hard to achieve.
  2. Second, most mess kits or pot sets are made of light-weight aluminum or stainless steel, which is prone to scorching and burning food when frying. That cast iron frying pan which would be ideal for making that perfect sunny-side-up egg is a little too heavy to lug around all day. If you intend to fry, consider purchasing a light-weight non-stick camping fry pan. Or, invest in a heat diffuser, a waffled metal plate which is set between stove and pot to reduce the temperature on the bottom of the pan/pot.
  3. Third, many of the foods we would normally fry at home are too high in fat content. Take bacon on a hot day? We think not. Can you spell R-A-N-C-I-D? 
Nevertheless, with a little care and forethought, it is possible to fry on the trail.  Fried bannock is probably one of the best uses of the fry pan.  Pancakes and fritters can be managed. Scrambled eggs are a possibility (They will end up being scrambled anyway, so resign yourself to the fact from the beginning).

A note on fish: If you are in an area where catching a fresh fish is more than a remote possibility, remember to bring extra margarine and flour/crackers to fry up your windfall. A word from the wise: never depend on fish for a meal; accept them as a bonus from the fish god.

Baking

This is an exercise for the bold, the experienced, or the well-equipped. If you are new to backpacking, leave this for a later trip. We mention it here in the first lesson, but we won’t cover it until the more advanced sessions.   Canoeing, on the other hand, begs for biscuits baked in the reflector oven.
 

Whatever food you choose to pack and cook on the trail, be sure that you know how to prepare it before you take it along. Practice at home with every dish you intend to cook on the trail.