Easy camping meals for beginners with one pot or no stove

The best camping meal is one you already know how to make, done with fewer steps. Easy camping meals for beginners use one pot, a few ingredients and little cleanup.

Your first trip is not the time for a new recipe. A tired group in the wind wants something simple.

The rule for the whole trip

One pot or no pot. Every dinner should need a single pot or no cooking at all. Every breakfast and lunch should need no more than boiling water.

A plan for two nights

Here is a pattern, not a menu. Swap in what your group eats.

Raw meat and fresh food go on the first night. After that, use food that keeps. If you are not sure how to pack ice, read how to keep a cooler cold.

What goes wrong first. The fuel. A cartridge that was half full at the last trip runs out in the middle of a boil. Fix: bring a spare cartridge, and count meals as in the box below.

Fuel and water: do the sum

Water and fuel maths. Example only. Two people, two nights, so about five hot meals and a few hot drinks. Count a boil for each, then add a third for wind. Cooking and washing water comes on top of drinking water. See how much water per person per day for the method.

Have a no-cook backup

Wind, rain and fire bans all happen. Pack one dinner that needs no stove. Wraps, tinned fish, cheese, bread, fruit and nuts work. Also pack one pot of instant meal for the worst night. A tired child will eat a cold wrap, and nobody gets upset.

Keep it simple with cleanup

• Use one bowl and one spoon each.
• Boil a little water in the pot afterwards to loosen food, then wipe.
• Take rubbish out with you. Never bury food scraps.
• Wash up away from streams and lakes, and follow the site rules for waste water.

Keep food away from animals

Store food, rubbish and anything with a smell in a sealed container, in the vehicle or in the storage the site provides. Do not keep it in your tent. In some areas, you will need to follow special rules for bears or other wildlife. Check the site page before you go.

Where the plan changes

If you cook for a big family, see the family camping packing guide for bins by moment. If you hike in with your food, weight matters more: choose dried food and skip the cooler.