Oh car-camping. I used to look down on it in disgust - backpacking was for the truly adventurous and car camping was for the weak! Oh, how my opinions have changed...
Now, if you are into backpacking nutrition, definitely check out 14 Unconventional Backpacking Superfoods. But what I have learned in recent years is that car camping is a perfectly acceptable way to enjoy yourself, live or vacation cheaply, eat like a king, and still be able to go on epic adventures during the day - whether they be canyoneering, climbing, running, or nature-vision-quest-meditation-wholeness-earthy challenges.
Now, if you are into backpacking nutrition, definitely check out 14 Unconventional Backpacking Superfoods. But what I have learned in recent years is that car camping is a perfectly acceptable way to enjoy yourself, live or vacation cheaply, eat like a king, and still be able to go on epic adventures during the day - whether they be canyoneering, climbing, running, or nature-vision-quest-meditation-wholeness-earthy challenges.
3 Steps to Eating Like a King While Car Camping
1. Get the right setup.
Seriously, your tiny little ultralight backpacking stove and pots are great for shaving weight, but have a reasonably sized stove and pot for car camping.
I have a home-made beer can stove that I use on solo trips, but I actually use my pots shown above coupled with my MSR Whisperlite for most backpacking trips because I travel with people and it allows only one of us to carry a stove! It's worth it. One big stove is way better than four people each with miniature things that can heat water and that's about it.
Once you get used to cooking with an awesome stove, you may even want to upgrade to one of my favorite (but more time-consuming) devices - a mini-charcoal grill. I use a Weber 147 sq. inch Grill and feel like I am in heaven every time I cook yams on it until they are carmelized and taste like cake.
2. Invest in a cooler.
I know, I know, a cooler is big and takes up space and requires ice which is heavy. You are also CAR CAMPING - so don't worry about weight and eat well to be well. I promise you will kick more ass as a result. I have found that the most cost-effective and coolness-effective method of keeping your food cool is to get block ice - while it doesn't have as much surface area on your food, it is cheaper per pound, stays frozen longer, and more than gets-the-job-done.
3. Cheap and good - principles of food selection
- Vegetables and grass-fed butter go amazingly well together. Try chopping up a bunch of onions, broccoli, leeks, asparagus, and other assorted delicious vegetables and cooking them in a TON of butter. Amazingly healthy and delicious, and it has a great cost:satiety ratio.
- Eggs can be a great source of fats and some protein to add into your vegetable medley described above. If you are feeling really spendy, buy some grass-fed beef and make a burger like the one from the video above!
-Ginger root makes everything better. Chop it up and throw it in.
- Yams are delicious and akin to rocket fuel for the body. Slow-cooked in tin foil, covered in butter and potentially even some honey or maple syrup, they taste like birthday cake. Use wisely... meaning as much as possible.
What are your favorite ways to eat like a king while living like a wild person? Let us know in the comments below!
Seriously, your tiny little ultralight backpacking stove and pots are great for shaving weight, but have a reasonably sized stove and pot for car camping.
I have a home-made beer can stove that I use on solo trips, but I actually use my pots shown above coupled with my MSR Whisperlite for most backpacking trips because I travel with people and it allows only one of us to carry a stove! It's worth it. One big stove is way better than four people each with miniature things that can heat water and that's about it.
Once you get used to cooking with an awesome stove, you may even want to upgrade to one of my favorite (but more time-consuming) devices - a mini-charcoal grill. I use a Weber 147 sq. inch Grill and feel like I am in heaven every time I cook yams on it until they are carmelized and taste like cake.
2. Invest in a cooler.
I know, I know, a cooler is big and takes up space and requires ice which is heavy. You are also CAR CAMPING - so don't worry about weight and eat well to be well. I promise you will kick more ass as a result. I have found that the most cost-effective and coolness-effective method of keeping your food cool is to get block ice - while it doesn't have as much surface area on your food, it is cheaper per pound, stays frozen longer, and more than gets-the-job-done.
3. Cheap and good - principles of food selection
- Vegetables and grass-fed butter go amazingly well together. Try chopping up a bunch of onions, broccoli, leeks, asparagus, and other assorted delicious vegetables and cooking them in a TON of butter. Amazingly healthy and delicious, and it has a great cost:satiety ratio.
- Eggs can be a great source of fats and some protein to add into your vegetable medley described above. If you are feeling really spendy, buy some grass-fed beef and make a burger like the one from the video above!
-Ginger root makes everything better. Chop it up and throw it in.
- Yams are delicious and akin to rocket fuel for the body. Slow-cooked in tin foil, covered in butter and potentially even some honey or maple syrup, they taste like birthday cake. Use wisely... meaning as much as possible.
What are your favorite ways to eat like a king while living like a wild person? Let us know in the comments below!
