Beginner camping - what to cook?

[space-time]

how much does your son weigh?

[NewtonMP2100]

....stone soup....??

[flareslow]

Camping when I was a kid in the scouts, we really liked C-Rats, now called MRE's. We lived near a military base so someone had access to them. We didn't have amzn back then.

[3d]

For a single overnight camping hike I just bring normal "picnic food". Subway hero sandwich w/no mayo. Chicken McNuggets. Apples.

For breakfast the next morning a bagel with some diner jelly packets. Another apple. No biggie.

[lost in space]

What?? Nobody mentioned marshmallows?

[NewtonMP2100]

....venison [ a la Bambi ]....???

[mrbigstuff]

one night won't require too much packing in, so figure on lunch, dinner, breakfast? one of those could be sandwiches you bring along, so maybe just two meals? and trail mix, dried stuff like figs or dates? I wouldn't bother with the whole "typical breakfast" thing as that often requires refrigerated items. packing in (and out) dictates the menu, I think

[jonny]

Bo wrote:
Mac and cheese or roast hot dogs over a campfire...basic stuff your son will enjoy

:agree:

[Rick-o]

Yeah, I would think a four year old has a limited menu of things he would eat. I would tailor the food to stuff he would enjoy. I think it would help him have more positive memories of the trip.

[macphanatic]

If you do PB&J sandwiches, spread peanut butter on both pieces of bread and put the jelly between. The peanut butter on both pieces of bread will prevent the jelly from making the bread too soggy.

As much as I like REI, for a 1 night adventure you don't need freeze dried food. Find boxed food if possible. Eliminate as much packaging before your trip. Less to carry and less to dispose of. Pick things that need simple ingredients such as water. Butter doesn't need to be refrigerated unless it's really hot outside. If you get farm fresh eggs, they don't need refrigeration either.

If you're bringing a small fry pan, pancakes are always a good breakfast option. Get the ones that can be mixed in the plastic bottle. Avoid uncooked bacon or sausage, which can be risky to cook over open flames and it's a pain to properly dispose of the grease. Precooked bacon or brown and serve sausage is a good option.

Boy Scouts tend to have "Cracker Barrel" at night a bit before bed. It consists of crackers, cheese and pepperoni or sausage. They typically do this when evening temps will be dropping as it provides a good fuel mix for helping the body keep warm.

Google "easy backpacking meals" and you'll probably come up with more options than you want to look thru.

A key thing to think about is how you plan to cook. Are you bringing a small fuel fired stove, using a camp fire, etc. Much easier to cook on a stove than over a fire. There's a big push in the outdoors community to avoid campfire cooking in an effort to minimize "footprint."