Easy Camping Lunch Ideas: Meals for the Whole Family

A warm, sunny day in the great outdoors, fresh air and you're on your next camping trip. What's the last thing you want to worry about?

Meal planning!

As a mum, I know that preparing easy camping meals for the whole family that everybody likes can be daunting and a major drag - we've got some fussy-eating kids!

But it doesn't have to be.

Here, I'll provide some easy camping lunch ideas and some of our favorite camping recipes that will satisfy everyone’s taste buds.

.... right let's get on with it!

Cooking with a portable gill, campfire or BBQ

I'm a firm believer in keeping it simple, one of our family's favorite things on the list is classic hot dogs. We often fire up the BBQ at home to have them - a big hit with our 3 boys, a family favorite and voted by our boys one of the best camping meals...no fuss! It's not only one of the easiest meals to prepare but also a great way to get the kids involved in campfire cooking, they can carefully (and under supervision) help turn hotdogs on the BBQ. Add a slice of your favorite cheese, maybe cheddar, slather it with barbecue sauce, and you're good to go - just make sure you do enough for everyone!

Foil packets are another favorite for our family on camping trips. Foil packs are easy to prepare and even easier to clean up. You can mix some meat and fresh vegetables like slices of red onion, black beans, and your favorite ingredients in a piece of aluminum foil. Add some olive oil, feta cheese, or cream cheese, seal the packet, and place it on the camp stove, BBQ or in the embers of a campfire. We personally love either strips of chicken or salmon done this way with some salad or pasta. After a long day of outdoor activities, a foil pack is an easy meal that the whole family will love.

For something a bit more substantial, a cast iron skillet is your best friend when it comes to camp cooking. It is an easy recipe to make up a spaghetti bolognese in your cast iron pan, chop up an onion and fry it, fry up some ground beef, add any spices you like, once that's cooked put in a can of peeled tomatoes, stir and keep cooking. On your camping stove boil some water, cook the required amount of pasta for your family....and serve...and if you don't fancy the pasta you can serve it with tortilla chips and grated cheese over the top....that's one of our favorite ways of serving it :) An easy camping recipe that makes a hearty meal and fills up the family after a day of adventure.

Talking of pasta - A simple camping lunch idea is pasta salad. Use your camping stove to cook the pasta, mix in some fresh vegetables, and top it with your favorite toppings, perhaps some cheddar cheese / slices of turkey / ham. It’s a tasty lunch, easy prep and a great option that the family will undoubtedly appreciate - you can even cook pasta at home and make up a cold pasta salad for the first night.

If you've got a campfire and a Dutch oven you can pretty much make anything - in the cooler months one of our favorites in the Dutch oven is a sausage stew - it's an easy camping recipe: we just add some sausages, a can of baked beans, a can of chopped tomatoes add some chopped up potatoes into the dutch oven and leave if over the campfire for a couple of hours - check on it and stir occasionally - it's a great and really hearty meal!

Pie iron meals are also a fantastic addition to your easy camping food ideas. They are simple camping recipes, requiring minimal prep but offer maximum taste. Fill them with anything from apple slices and peanut butter to beef jerky or your favorite cheese and toast over an open fire.

Not cooking

When you just want something you can prepare cold (as we often do during the day) there are always wraps - a chicken salad wrap is a favorite in our family.

Simple sandwiches do the job too - if you're pushed for time you could always fry up enough bacon at breakfast time to do both breakfast and lunch, then with a bit of salad and a couple of slices of bread and you've got bacon lettuce and tomato sandwiches for lunch.

And if you're not so keen on carbs, with some salad, your favorite cheese, and some chicken, you've got a chicken salad - it's a filling salad and a super easy recipe that doesn't require much preparation but still tastes delicious.

A camping experience wouldn't be complete without a charcuterie board, would it? Arrange your favorite cheese, ham, beef jerky, apple slices, and some trail mix on a board for a delightful snack that the whole family can share and enjoy during those peaceful afternoons in the wild.

What is a good lunch for camping?

A great option is a hearty sandwich made with whole grain bread, lean proteins such as turkey or chicken, and plenty of fresh veggies for added crunch and nutrition. Pair this with a side of trail mix, fresh fruit, and a hardy, non-perishable snack like a granola bar.

Dessert

If you're looking for an easy way to satisfy your sweet tooth while camping, you can't go wrong with a mason jar dessert. Layer granola bars, fresh fruit, cream cheese, and your favorite sweet toppings, and voila! You have a dessert that's just as satisfying as it is easy to make.

Closing out

Remember, the goal of these meal ideas is to make your camping trip enjoyable and worry-free - you won't have all the hobs or pots or pans you have at home so you've got to just go for simple recipes if you're wanting to cook up something hearty.

Keep in mind that the best part of the camping experience isn't just the meals but the memories you make while enjoying the fresh air, open flame, and the vibrant life of the great outdoors - BBQ's in the evening, cereals for the kids in the morning and perhaps a breakfast sandwich of egg and bacon for us, and then a sandwich, salad or wrap for lunch is pretty much our default diet when we're out camping.

What's the best part of these easy camping lunch ideas? Lots of bits of them can be prepped at home!

Prepping your meals at home means more time to enjoy the great outdoors and less time fretting over the camp kitchen. A good idea is to bring plenty of camping snacks like trail mix, granola bars, or hard-boiled eggs made at home, perhaps even some fresh fruit are easy snacks.

Remember, the best camping lunch idea is the one that works for you and your family...and keep it simple, you're camping!

With these ideas, your next trip will be full of fantastic food and even better memories, I hope these easy camping lunches will make your camping experience even more enjoyable - they're all meals that have worked for my family on various trips.

So, pack up your camp stove, grab your favorite ingredients, and prepare for your camping trip. Whether you're car camping or heading to the heart of the wilderness, these easy camping lunch ideas will ensure a delightful culinary experience for your whole family.

After all, the perfect camping meal is the one shared with loved ones around an open fire.

Bon appétit!