Winter camping is not for the faint of hear, but at least there’s bacon! And while both bacon & camping are each awesome on their own, they are actually better together. We’ve gathered some cooking tips for winter warriors who brave the elements and find themselves hungry for real food. Anyone who’s camped before knows that food tastes better when your in the great outdoors.
Camping trips always make people extra hungry and leave them craving for hearty foods. Luckily, some foods are perfect for camping like hot dogs, BBQ and s’mores for dessert. But what do you do when you catch yourself dreaming of crispy bacon when you’re outdoors on your camping trip? Don’t worry, bacon can easily be prepared in almost any environment and with little to no gear at all necessary. Here are some great campsite cooking hacks that will move bacon from your mind’s eye to your belly.
Bacon straight from the campsite grill
If you have a good grill ready for preparing burgers or steaks on an open fire, you can easily add a little extra taste to your meat with a few slices of bacon. Place the bacon on a fire-safe griddle and keep it on a cooler part of the grill. Expect to have perfectly cooked bacon in five to seven minutes. Serve on top of your burger or on the side with your steak. Add some beer to the mix and voila, you’ll have a gourmet-tasting meal after a physical day enjoying nature.
Better bacon from the campfire skillet
Breakfasts are often the hardest to pull off while camping. So, if you’re tired of eating leftovers every morning, try preparing perfect skillet-cooked bacon and eggs. Set your grill rack over the flame, cut bacon into pieces, they’ll cook more quickly and evenly, and place them into the skillet. Break a few eggs when your bacon gets nice and crispy, season to taste. Get ready for a hearty warming breakfast that will keep you going until dinner. If you need some help with getting gear for your outdoor adventures, check out this camping blog and you’ll find all sorts of basic camping item reviews, including cooking gear perfect for use in nature. As long as you have a good skillet and a sharp knife, you’ll be fine, but a portable grill is also a great addition to your camping ensemble, just make sure to grab a high-quality one.
Bacon skewers
Marshmallows always find their spot on a camping table, but if you can put that mushy cloud on a stick, you can do the same with bacon. The secret to perfectly crispy bacon skewers is in weaving each strip on the stick and leaving a few inches empty at the end. Rest the skewers over hot coals and turn every five minutes, depending on the temperature of your coals. You don’t want any flames, otherwise, your bacon will burn very quickly. If the fire gets out of hand (and it probably will, especially when the grease starts dripping on the coal) squirt some water on the flame and it will die down. In about 30 minutes, you’ll have super crispy and extra smoky bacon ready for snacking.
Corn-on-the-cob and bacon
Corn-on-the-cob is another camping staple, but you can make this tasty food even better with some bacon. Wrap each ear of corn with a strip of bacon, swaddle everything in aluminum foil and place in the fire. If you have a grill, just grab a few toothpicks to hold the bacon in place and ditch the aluminum foil. Rotate your corn every few minutes until both bacon and corn are cooked well. In about 10 to 15 minutes, you’ll have the most aromatic corn you’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting! If you want to really impress, try this amazing recipe.
Bacon and potatoes in foil
This way of preparing bacon will give you a full meal with minimal effort. Grab some potatoes, cut into little squares. In a large bowl, combine cut onion, cut bacon, cut potatoes, parmesan, salt, pepper and bacon seasoning and mix well. Cut aluminum foil into double-layered squares, fill it with the mixture and wrap tightly. Place the stuffed pouches over the grill or place in hot coals for about 15-20 minutes (you can pierce the potato to check if it’s tender). Open the foil and add some more cheese, mozzarella or cheddar melt nicely. Enjoy with some light sour cream dressing and some beer and you’ll have the meal of your life surrounded by beautiful nature.
Who says you can’t have bacon on your camping trip? It’s a perfect food to give you protein and plenty of calories to use while hiking, fishing or exploring your area and it’s universally beloved. Plus, dry cured bacon is shelf stable for upto 90 days before opening which makes it an easy travel companion, and so tasty too!
Thanks to Nemanja Marinkoff, editor-in-chief and TheGearHunt and WalkJogRun, our guest contributor for this post.