I’ve got a few camping staples to do over a single ring burner.
I often take something like a chill already cooked and frozen. Helps keep the cool box cool!
Do a lot of BBQ meats or veg and hallumi skewers with couscous or bread and salads.
I have been known to take coriander, parsley and basil plants with me so we can have fresh herbs all week!
We keep breakfast simple - granola, fruit and Greek yog or pan au chocolates or bacon sarni. I take tinned fruit in juice so don’t need to worry about squashing it during the journey.
Lunch usually very simple picnic (cheese or ham salad sandwiches with a pack of crisps and a carrot) or eat out.
We don’t really go wilderness camping and usually are out and about during the day so generally would have an opportunity to pick up more fresh veg or meat.
Don’t have electric hook up so have to do ice block exchange so try and keep coolbox items low.
Chicken curry
Take a jar of sauce with you and buy chicken breasts on your way back to the campsite after a day out (or take it in the cool box if near the start of the holiday).
Fry up an onion and a couple of peppers, add the chicken breast then add the sauce and simmer.
Take this off the heat and cover.
Using a second pan boil up a tiny bit of water and cook your microwave rice for 3 mins as packet instructions.
Serve the rice and curry with a pack of mini popadoms and fresh coriander.
Obviously that works as a veg curry as well if you take different veg. Peppers, aubergine and a tin of lentils is a fav alternative.
Courgette and artichoke pasta
Boil a pan of water and cook a small type of pasta (shorter cooking time)
Meanwhile drain a jar or tin of artichokes and a jar of courgette antipasti (Tesco used to do this but now I only find it at Ocado) directly into your colander. Might want to chop up the courgette and artichokes a bit.
When the pasta is finished drain it into the colander where the courgette and artichokes are.
Into the hot pan tip two jars of sacla olive stir through sauce or whatever you like.
Heat that up, tip back in the pasta and veg and mix it around.
Serve with the dried Parmesan you get in a shaker.
This is good as nothing needs to be in the cool box.
Mediterranean tuna couscous
Boil a pan of water. Boil an egg for everyone. Towards the end of cooking time chuck in a pack of green beans cut into 1/3s.
Remove the veg/eggs.
In a big serving bowl chuck in a sachet of Mediterranean flavoured couscous per 2 people and a tin of tuna per 2 people and some olives. Also slice up a large roasted antipasti jar red pepper per person and add to the couscous mix.
Put the required amount of water for the couscous in the bowl, stir and cover with a plate.
Cut the eggs into 1/4.
After the couscous is ready (5 mins ish) stir through the green beans and serve everyone with an egg.
Tortilla
I take a couple of pre made supermarket purchases tortillas. These last for quite a while in the cool box.
Serve with an antipasto meat selection, cheese, olives, a green salad,a tomato salad and some nice crusty bread you’ve picked up fresh.
This one is super easy as no cooking just a bit of salad prep.
Chorizo and bean stew
Dice some chorizo.
Dice and onion and a couple of peppers.
Fry the chorizo. Add the onion and peppers.
Add some spices - cumin, coriander, paprika. I pre measure these at home so don’t have to take all the jars.
Add tin or two of tomatoes (#people depending) and a tin or two of cananlini or butter beans.
Simmer for 10 mins.
Take off he heat and cover.
In a second pan cook the microwave rice per pan instructions.
Serve with some fresh coriander if possible.
Also nice with couscous and chickpeas instead of butter beans.
This is good as only the chorizo goes in the cool box and even that probably isn’t really required to be in there.
Sausage beans and mash with cheese
Don't judge me.This one isn’t going to win any culinary prizes.... but smash and a tin of sausage and beans with some grated cheddar and a good twist of black pepper is a guilty camping pleasure.
Risotto
Buy the gallo express mushroom risotto, it cooks in 12 mins so is good for camp stoves.
Serve with a tomato salad.
Thai green veg curry
Fry up an onion and green peppers and an aubergine.
Add Thai green curry paste (jar) and a tin of coconut milk. Might need more coconut milk or can add stock/water if not enough for your number of people. Can also use Maggi coconut milk powder.
Add asparagus, sugar snap peas and baby corn for the final 5 mins.
Serve with rice and a pack of mini Thai fish crackers.
Chicken noodles
Another one that isn’t going to win any culinary or nutritional awards.
Maggi chicken ramen noodles with tinned sweet corn (or fresh baby corn) added and some fresh shop purchased roast chicken slices.
Lamb thing
www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1741/onepan-lamb-and-couscous
This is nice. I use diced lamb rather than steaks usually.
Chorizo and butter bean hash thing
At home I make this ins a huge frying pan, camping it has to be done in stages in my small pan but still easy.
Dice and fry chorizo. Remove and put in a big bowl.
Large slice mushrooms, fry them with herbs (rosmary and thyme). Remove and put in a big bowl.
Fry another kind of veg - like podded broad beans, fresh podded peas, diced courgette, grated carrot is ok too. Remove into the bowl.
Fry up a couple of tins of butter or cannilini beans with plenty more oil and herbs.
Mix everything together in the bog bowl, add a tiny splash of balsamic or red wine vinegar and serve.