The Outdoor Kitchen

In everyday life the kitchen is the center of attention. Outdoors, the kitchen is no different, it is a place for socialization and food. When camping with others, people depend on the cook to produce a quality meal that will be satisfying and refreshing. When backpacking, a good meal is vital to keep up energy and moral. With so much depending on a warm, delicious dinner, granola and an apple just do not make the cut. So what's the secret to creating a masterpiece in the backcountry kitchen?

There are many different types of cooking techniques that people use, but which one yields the best results? For a casual campout, many people love to cook with dutch ovens. The main reason is because dutch ovens are both easy to cook with and produces great results. Dutch oven cooking simply requires a few hot coals on the top and bottom of the pan. Most any food can be cooked in a dutch oven. The ovens come in many sizes so they are compatible with most any budget. However they are expensive, brand new they range from 50 to 200 dollars. Another downside is the weight, which makes them impractical for anything other that traditional camping. On a side note, they are a bit of a pain to clean as you can't use dish soap, and they require an oil after every use. 

Another option for cooking is straight over the flames. Again, more practical for camping, this style of cooking is more for the enjoyment. There are limited foods that you can cook over the fire. However if you buy a grate to sit over the campfire, that opens more options. There is also always foil cooking in the fire, which simply involves wrapping various foods in foil and letting them cook from the fire's heat; that also produces great results. 

For backpacking purposes, cooking gets a little more complicated. The best option is to own a portable camp stove. The small, single-burner stoves are lightweight and easy to use. Simply purchase a small container of fuel to fit the stove, and cooking will be covered. As a combination with camp stove, plates, bowls, and utensils are needed. While carrying each of these individual is an option, there are some lighter and more convenient options. GSI carries some great options for backpacking kitchen equipment. The options range from a bowl and a spoon to a frying pan, pot, bowl, mug, spoon, and a kitchen sink. All the models are fairly inexpensive and are quality equipment. With a nicer setup, any food can be made backpacking.

Now that we have looked at some of the different options for cooking, let's look at some different options for food. When hiking and backpacking, it is important to return the calories that are burned in during the course of the day. The goal for food is high calorie, lightweight, and quick to prepare. Dehydrated food typically entails those things, but I find that it is nice to have a little fresh food/produce at least for the first half of the hike. Some advice that I was once told is to pack food that you are not excited to eat. Eat quality food, but this way food will last and will be evenly distributed. An example of this would be to eat almonds instead of sweet granola bars. However each person will have different preferences for food.