When planning to go camping, there are so many things you need to think about and the food is no exception. You will find out that food is a big part of the camping and if you want to have a good and enjoyable camping trip, plan to have good food. One reason is that being hungry and tired is no fun and also mealtime is the time when everyone gathers together around the campfire and gives everyone a chance to socialize. Remember you need to plan ahead as you also want to enjoy the camping not stressing every minute what people are going to eat and if it is going to be cooked on time.
Plan your meals
You will need meals that will satisfy everyone, and the meals should also be a balanced diet’s fit. Planning your meals before you even go shopping means you know the people you are going with and especially children and their number. Children have voracious appetites that need to be catered for as compared to adults, so you have to get meals that will cater to the kids more. Also, you have to know if there is anyone who is allergic to the particular type of food, those who are on a diet, the diabetic and much more. This will help you shop for the food that will fit everyone in the group. You don’t want to cook a meal and have half of the people refuse to eat and opt to go hungry because of the meal.
Organize the food
You will need several strong plastic boxes if you need to carry a lot of food. Don’t mix the food with the cooking utensils as this will make cooking hectic. Remember at the campsite, the time it takes to cook and have food ready matters a lot as compared to being at home. People are tired and hungry, and this is not a good combination. The time you will take to locate the mixed food items with the cooking utensils can be vital. Organize the food and the appliances in separate boxes to make cooking easier and fast.
Cook a meal before you leave
This might sound hilarious but on the first day, cooking a meal that you are going to preheat at the campsite is important. This is the first day of camping and you need a lot of time to get everything ready from the campground, the tents, campfire and many other things. Having food ready can save the day as you will only need to heat it once the fire is ready and if time is so much gone, you save a lot of time. Other things might not get done on the first day and if the campfire is one of them, then the ready food will be tremendous save for the day.
After cooking, remember you have to do the dishes. You can’t leave them dirty to avoid unwanted visits from animals. Keep all the food hanged above ground level or stored away and make sure the leftovers are gotten rid of in a way that you won’t attract animals and other irritating insects at the campsite. To make cleaning easier, put liquid soap on the outside of your pans and pots before putting them over the fire. This will also help protect them from fire damage and smoke.
