Make Ahead Meals for the Camper
Posted By Melissa A. Trainer On April 18, 2012 @ 6:01 pm In Family Camping,Kid-Friendly Trips,Menu Planning & Cooking,Traveling Tips,Uncategorized | 10 Comments
[1]When you camp or travel in your RV or with your travel trailer, do you ever prepare foods in advance at home and then cart them along with you?
I have done this many many times. Of course, this involves extra work at home but the dividends pay off when you are traveling and visiting a new destination. I have found it to be deliciously helpful to have my travel trailer freezer stocked with twice-baked potatoes, meatballs, previously grilled and sliced chicken breasts, butter chicken, chicken biryani, taco meat, and even homemade burritos!
Without a doubt, that extra effort at home saves me time and brain cells when I am on vacation. Afterall, who really wants to be bothered planning a meal from scratch when you are visiting a fabulous national park or a beautiful beach? And, for that matter, who really wants to endure a mediocre meal at an overpriced tourist trap restaurant after a beautiful day of touring or hiking? (I’ve learned through experience that bad meals at overpriced touristy restaurants can quickly send the best adventures into a rapid nosedive when everyone is tired, hungry and ready for REAL food!)
Over the years, I have learned to pack these precooked menu items in such a way that they take up little space. For example, with meatballs, taco meat, or meat sauce, I freeze those items in a ziploc bag at home. Once the cooked items have cooled considerably, I load the bag, then I put the bag on a cookie sheet, and stash the cookie sheet on a shelf in the freezer. The items freeze flat and are far easier to stack in my compact little travel trailer freezer! I first tested this method about six years ago when we were preparing to drive the Alaska Highway from Anchorage to Seattle. I knew amenities would be few and far between during that journey, so I planned our meals in advance. I used the ziploc/freeze-flat method. Wow! I was impressed when about two weeks worth of dinners easily stacked and stashed into my miniscule freezer!
So, if you are planning a big camping trip this summer, seriously consider cooking a few family favorites at home. Then freeze the menu items in plastic bags or at the very least freeze them in square or rectangular containers in order to save space. What make ahead meals do you create at home before a trip?
Note: The photo above is of a previously frozen Indian butter chicken with basmati rice (cooked at home) and coriander chutney. I quickly took the photo at our campsite at the Madison Campground in Yellowstone National Park a couple years ago. That frozen chicken made a super quick and simple snack for a hungry teenager that day!
–Melissa A. Trainer
Last 5 posts by Melissa A. Trainer
- Spooky Hikes in Washington State [8] - October 26th, 2012
- Wild for Blackberries in the Pacific Northwest! [9] - August 26th, 2012
- Savor those Campgrounds in September... [10] - August 24th, 2012
- Do the Puyallup Fair in Western Washington [11] - August 23rd, 2012
- Are You a Mobile Reader? [12] - August 19th, 2012
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}
[16]
Article printed from Good Sam Camping Blog: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com
URL to article: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/04/make-ahead-meals-for-the-camper/
URLs in this post:
[1] Image: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/04/make-ahead-meals-for-the-camper/dsc_1001/
[2] Do You Use A FoodSaver?: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2010/11/do-you-use-a-foodsaver/
[3] Do You Crave Homemade Cookies While Traveling?: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2011/02/do-you-crave-homemade-cookies-while-traveling/
[4] Conserving Fridge Space while Dry Camping…: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2011/05/conserving-fridge-space-while-dry-camping/
[5] Cook Some Naan On Those Cast-Iron Skillets!: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/04/cook-some-naan-on-those-cast-iron-skillets/
[6] All About Food–Favorite Summer Meals!: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2011/06/all-about-food-favorite-summer-meals/
[7] Contextual Related Posts: http://ajaydsouza.com/wordpress/plugins/contextual-related-posts/
[8] Spooky Hikes in Washington State: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/10/spooky-hikes-in-washington/
[9] Wild for Blackberries in the Pacific Northwest!: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/08/wild-for-blackberries-in-the-pacific-northwest/
[10] Savor those Campgrounds in September...: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/08/savor-those-campgrounds-in-september/
[11] Do the Puyallup Fair in Western Washington: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/08/do-the-puyallup-fair-in-western-washington/
[12] Are You a Mobile Reader?: http://blog.goodsamcamping.com/2012/08/are-you-a-mobile-reader/
[13] Image: http://slashdot.org/bookmark.pl?url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F&title=Make+Ahead+Meals+for+the+Camper
[14] Image: http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F&title=Make+Ahead+Meals+for+the+Camper
[15] Image: http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F&title=Make+Ahead+Meals+for+the+Camper
[16] Image: http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F&title=Make+Ahead+Meals+for+the+Camper
[17] Image: http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F
[18] Image: http://technorati.com/faves?add=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F
[19] Image: http://www.google.com/bookmarks/mark?op=edit&output=popup&bkmk=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F&title=Make+Ahead+Meals+for+the+Camper
[20] Image: http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.goodsamcamping.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fmake-ahead-meals-for-the-camper%2F&title=Make+Ahead+Meals+for+the+Camper
Click here to print.