All you need to do is cut up the preferred meat of choice and dice up the vegetables of choice, most favourites are peppers, mushrooms and onions. Once they are all bite sized slide them on to the kebab stick skewers and take them with you, obviously kept cool.

Why not add a little bite to the meat and have it prepared the night before you set off. Leave to marinate in your favourite flavours or sauce in the fridge and this will soak in to the meat and taste great once slapped on the BARBY…

Home made burgers are surely at the top of the list for camping food ideas, choose some beef, or lamb, mince bind together in balls with egg yolk and your choice of finely diced peppers, onions and chillies even. Add seasoning and any herbs you wish and carry them in a cooled container ready for devouring right off the BBQ. Great stuff.

Now if all you want is simple meat ideas then like the above suggestions just play with meats and veg to liking, but many people love those extra bits of sides when camping or any other self catering opportunities. Make your own salads and healthy crunchy dishes. Boil up some new potato’s and make a few hard boiled eggs, let them cool off and add to your favourite lettuce choice, cherry tomatoes, chunks of cucumber, diced peppers and hints of sweetcorn. Don’t forget the grated cheese, salad is great with sprinkled toppings of grated cheese.

Pasta dishes can be made and left to cool (and kept cooled) and taken away with you. There’s tuna or just plain chicken options, obviously with as many veggies as possible.

You can basically take any kind of food away with you when camping as long as you have the facilities to cook them through properly. Storage is easy if you have those iced packs and cool bags to keep the food in whilst travelling, so they stay good like when in the fridge. Plastic air tight containers should be used for food, if not cling film is handy.

Camping Food Ideas just got simple now you have realised what you can make up when getting in touch with the great outdoors.

It is a basic, but moorish dish to prepare and cook especially if you haven’t done any kind of casserole yet. Well you have absolutely nothing to worry about, as many of the recipes here on this site are very easy to do this type, again like many, can be altered and substituted for a particular meat or veg of your choice if you’re not a lover of pork…

Right lets get on to the ingredients:

• 2 pork loin steaks
• leeks
• 2 or 3 garlic cloves chopped
• carrots
• green trimmed beans
• onion
• mushrooms
• preferred seasoning, salt and pepper, Italian herbs is always nice.
• 1 packet of somerset pork casserole powder mix (slight cheat)

Now this is very basic to prepare all you need to do is chop up all the veg and garlic, if green beans already trimmed at ends then just throw them in as they come, lay in to a large casserole dish and add 4-6 fluid ounces of water in the bottom. Place the pork steaks, or which ever meat you prefer, on top of the veg and separately mix up the pork powder sachet with half pint of water and poor over pork and veg. pop on the lid.

Pre-heat oven for 10-15 mins fan assist on 200 and put the dish, with lid, onto the middle shelf and cook for 1hour then take off the lid and give a little stir to separate the veg from the sides of the casserole. Place lid back on and cook for further half hour.

Once cooked the pork steaks should of browned at the sides and obviously not bleed red or pink liquid. Stir a veg or chicken stock in to the casserole to thicken slightly and serve.

Now if you wanted something to complement the casserole i will suggest chopping up any leeks left over and boiling them with some skinned potato that can be easily mashed, i normally use a couple of medium jacket potato’s with skins peeled. Once the potato’s are soft drain out the water and grate some cheese and sprinkle over the potato and the leeks and let it melt in to them.

Mash once its melted with a little tspn of butter and drop of milk, again if prefer, and your light and tasty leek and cheesy mash is ready to serve up with the casserole. ENJOY…

Easy appetizer recipes will be your speciality once you get this one off to a good start.

Mushroom Bruschetta. An easy starter full of flavours and not too heavy so your guests will be ready for the next course of flavours and textures.

Ingredients:

• 350g button mushrooms
• 15g butter
• virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp sour cream
• 1 fresh red chilli
• 2 tbsp finely chopped fine leafed parsley
• 1 tbsp chopped rosemary
• loaf of ciabatta
• mixed salad leaves

Clean off the mushrooms and slice up finely. Slice up the chilli and leave both to a side. melt butter and oil in pan over low-medium heat. Add the mushrooms and make sure they are well covered by the oil and add the chilli next and cover over once seasoned, if prefer. Leave for few minutes to cook together. Check and cook longer if prefer, but the mushrooms should be soft and darkened.

Stir in the sour cream until all combined and add the chopped herbs. Keep checking and leaving to cook covered for few minutes and add seasoning if you think it needs it. Take off the heat once you are satisfied.

Finally with the ciabatta slice and lightly toast and spread over the warm mushroom mixture and add a little of the sour cream and a little of the salad leaves to add colour and texture.

YUM YUM… simple and works every time.

Easy dessert recipes has gone back to an old original favourite as the flavours are to your liking and it a light pudding to happily satisfy without any struggle for tummy space…

Raspberry trifle, or strawberry or blackberry which ever fruit you decide will win over the rels or just your usual group of friends, you can add more or less of what you like really, its that simple.

Ingredients:

• Sponge cake
• Raspberry jam, or which ever flavours you prefer
• Sherry
• Macaroons
• Fresh raspberries
• Brandy
• Thick custard- home made or ready made
• Double cream
• Flaked almonds

Firstly break up pieces of the sponge cake and spread over with (your choice) raspberry jam. Scatter in to a serving dish.

Drizzle over the sherry to your liking. Crumble macaroons over the sponge then drizzle over with a little brandy. Next scatter the fresh fruit all over the top evenly over the dish. Pour the cool custard over the layers leaving an inch from the top of the dish/bowl.

Cover with cling film and refrigerate till you are ready to serve. Thus letting the sherry and brandy soak up in to the fruit and sponge.

To serve you should whip up the double cream so that it can peak, not too soft. Pile this over the trifle and scatter the almonds and fresh raspberries over once more. take to the table and let your guests serve out the portions they wish…It should all be gone by the time you’ve stopped hosting and fussing.

Or if prefer to cook in a slow cooker then set on low for at least 7 hours, this way you can also add veg of your choice under neath the joint of beef. Cooking the veg seperate is the best way, even though there are more pots at the end but its the best way to control the texture and tastes. Cooking on gas will take 20-30 mins depending on how crunchy you like it.

Your roast beef recipe should include yorkshire puddings, and they are so easy to make. Here is my quick recipe tip for you on these.

You will need:

• Yorkshire Pudding tray
• Cooking oil (like to be healthy so use virgin olive oil)
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbs of plain flour
• milk (amount to choice)
• seasoning, either salt and pepper or italian herbs.

You must first heat up the oil in the tray, so in the pre-heated oven heat the oil for 10-12mins.

Whilst this is heating up add the flour, eggs and seasoning to a large mixing bowl then add milk, about 5-6 fluid ounces slowly as you brisk;y wisk them all together. Add as much or little milk as you prefer, the more milk the less thick the yorkshire pudding will be. Adding more milk to make them thinner than a milk shake will cook them crispy.

Once the oil is hot add the mix slowly so you dont splash hot oil everywhere. This should be placed on middle to top of oven on 180 fan assist for at least half hour before you open the door to check them. Keep cooking till you prefer the browness and shape.

Dinner Ideas for tonight, if you have planned yourself in advance,can be made easier and less stressful for you, by creating something the day before or even that morning to just let cook away to itself all day ready for you to dish up that night is what you are looking for.

Slow cookers are a fab idea for the idea that you can just bash everything (any meat and veg) in together and leave it on low whilst your out at work. Simple, efficient and less stress for you to worry about.

Cooking that evening? Well,once you have decided on a meat, lets say a steak, you could simply fry or grill off to how you prefer, serve up with some oven roasted mediteranean vegetables, and lots of them, absolutley delicious. Having the steak diced up could easily make up a beef stroganoff, all that is needed is a large non-stick frying pan. Onions, mushrooms and garlic in first then the steak (or added to seperate pan depending on how cooked you want it) and then your creation of red wine, crème fraîche/pouring cream and mustard for that bite in the flavour.

There are a lot of options for you to choose from so have a look in our recipes menu’s for ideas to play around at. I have included a lamb/mutton stew just as a quick browse free option.

You will need:

• 1.2kg diced lamb or mutton
• 1 bunch of spring onions (to be chopped up)
• 4 garlic cloves (amount to taste)
• 4 green chillies (amount to taste)
• 700ml veg or meat stock
• 1tbsp olive oil
• lime wedges (drizzle juice and decorative)
• chopped corriander

Heavily mix up the garlic cloves, chillies and spring onions untill they form a paste. Fry off, with the oil, diced lamb/mutton in a large pan over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes till golden. Once golden remove from pan and add the onion paste to this pan and cook for 2-3minutes. Return the meat to the pan and add the 700ml of stock, stiring with the paste, and leave to cook for two hours on a low heat, checking that the sauce has thickened. Season to taste and serve with the lime wedges and the corriander, throwing a few more chopped spring onions and chillies. (Accompany with warm pitta bread)

Whether it be white or red meats or even fish, you could always spice up the main ingredient with varied roasted, grilled, steamed or plain easy going boiled vegetables along with some tomato or creamy type flavours too. It is all about the variety with cooking anything again, even a simple good old yorkshire pudding can be re-invented by the seasoning or herbs you add; making them with milk as appose to water changes things slightly.

If your supper ideas are fab enough and all you are looking for is an even bigger range of recipes to play with and versify, then have a look through our great range of vegetarian and pasta ideas to hearty red meat options. There is always time for home-made lunch time snacks for all you kitchen connoisseurs.

You dont need to go all out for supper ideas, they are quick and easy so frying anything up like vegetables for a healthy stir-fry or some diced meat for a quick beef and onion baguette (maybe to share) is always a good option.

I have enclosed a recipe for a pie for your list of supper ideas but check out our snacks and 30 minute recipes for more ideas.

Leak and Bacon Pie

You will need:

• 150g of potato slices
• Ready made puff pastry
• 70g bacon
• 100g leaks
• 250g sliced raclette cheese

Firstly grease up a 25cm tin (approx 3mm thick) and line up half of the puff pastry. Fill with the sliced potatoes, season to taste (nutmeg as a suggestion too) top with the already fried bacon and the leeks, already boiled to soft. Cover over with the sliced cheese and top off with the pastry lid and seal all the way around. Coat the lid with a fine pastry brush of beaten egg and mixed with cream. Make a little slice in the top for the steam to escape and cook in a pre-heated oven for 180C/gas mark 4 untill golden brown and the potatoes are soft and cooked.

1 can apple pie filling

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup orange juice

1/4 cup water

Mix together the apple pie filling, raisins, orange juice, and water. Set ham in crockpot and spread mixture over ham. Set crockpot to Low heat, cover, and cook for 4 to 5 hours. This makes a nice dish for any special occasion.

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1 TBSP Dijon mustard

3 TBSP orange juice

1 TBSP cold water

1 TBSP cornstarch

Place ham in crockpot.

In separate bowl, mix together brown sugar, mustard, and orange juice.

Pour mixture over ham, put cover on crockpot, and cook on HIGH for 1 hour.

Turn crockpot down to LOW temperature and cook for 6 to 7 hours.

Remove ham from crockpot and keep warm, and turn crockpot to HIGH.

Mix cold water and cornstarch in small bowl until cornstarch is dissolved.

Whisk cornstarch mixture into drippings in crockpot, cook until sauce begins to thicken, whisking several times.

Serve ham with thickened glaze spooned over slices.

Crock Pot Pros And Cons

One of the best features of the crock pot is how it does its job, cooking a full meal, in so little space. Unlike the oven and cook-top, the crock pot can be relegated to a corner and go about its business virtually unseen.

Cooking a meal or side dish with your crock pot also frees up your oven and cook-top for other dishes.   How many times have you tried to plan a big meal and have to shuffle dishes in and out of the oven and around the burners?

The ‘set it and forget it’ crock pot method frees you up when cooking dishes that you may otherwise have to watch, stir, and keep from burning. The low cooking temperatures keep dishes simmering just right so you don’t have to worry about watching a pot boil. This low, even temperature takes the guess work out of many dishes you may have previously spent time fretting over.

Cooking a meal in a crock pot is also more economical when it comes to energy consumption. Heating up a crock pot, even considering the length of time, takes less energy than heating up a large oven or letting a burner stay on, radiating its heat out into the kitchen. The heating element in the crock pot is contained and is designed to heat only the insert that holds the food. You’re not spending money to heat a large space nor are you letting the heat escape into the room.

One of the downsides to crock pot cooking is there are just some ingredients that don’t work well in a slow cooker. For instance, dairy products. Making a cream or milk based dish becomes more complicated, involving extra steps and extreme caution so as not to curdle the milk.

If you’re not careful choosing and cutting up the food that goes into the crock pot, you may end up with food that’s either undercooked or overcooked. For instance, many cooks are used to coarse cutting vegetables for stew, but vegetables cook slower in the crock pot and may need to be cut finer, or cooked longer.  Meat typically cooks faster than vegetables in the crock pot, making the size of the ingredients important.

Crock pot meals are best when using fresh meats and vegetables. So, if you live in an area in which you must rely more on canned foods, the texture in a crock pot will be disappointing. Because canned foods are already processed, they may become quite soft and mushy in the crock pot. Picture cooking canned peas for 8 hours, even on such a low heat. Yes, you can add the canned veggies in during the last minutes of cooking time, but if the idea is to walk away and have dinner ready when you come home, it sort of defeats the purpose.

Dutch Oven Pros And Cons

These sturdy pots were the typical tools of the trade during the good old days. Picture an open pit with cowboys circled around waiting to dig into their stew. The even heating of a heavy duty Dutch oven is almost second to none. You may remember your grandparents of parents stirring stews on the stove or basting a pot roast in the oven in one of these big pots with the heavy lid.

A wide variety of meals can be prepared in a Dutch oven. They are duel purpose; you can begin a meal by browning the meat right in the Dutch oven on the stove burner, then add the vegetables, cover it, and pop it in the oven to continue cooking. Or you can brown your beef over the burner, then add the ingredients for chili and continue cooking it right on top of the stove.

Sounds ideal, but there are a few drawbacks. That chili or beef stew on top of the stove will some watching.  No matter how low your burner goes, you’ll need to stir it up to keep it from sticking or burning to the bottom of the Dutch oven. This is a pot that needs watching.

Using your Dutch oven, whether in the oven or on top of the stove takes up space.  If you want to add a nice loaf of crusty homemade bread to your pot roast meal, you’ll have to do some juggling to time your bread in the oven. Adjusting the temperature becomes an issue, too.

Dutch ovens convey heat extremely well, making the temperature you use in the oven and on the stove top very important. A few degrees makes a difference. An oven that runs hot can cause your meal to burn or dry out before you know it.

Slow cooking a meal in a Dutch oven requires a heated oven or a burner on the stove top. Either way, it takes a lot of energy to heat the inside of a large oven just to cook what’s in a five quart pot. And a burner radiates heat out into the room; it does not trap it under the pot.

Removing your Dutch oven full of food from the oven or burner proves to be quite a feat for many people due to the fact that they are usually very heavy and retain the heat very well. They are hot for a long, long time which makes them the kind of thing to keep children away from. Dishing up a meal becomes a bit hazardous because the container itself remains hot for a long time after you remove it from the heating source. So, what makes a Dutch oven cook well, its weight, also makes it harder to handle.

And The Winner Is…

While Dutch ovens are more versatile in the dishes they can deliver, crock pots are the overall winners of this battle for several reasons. Crock pots take the prize when it comes to freeing up cooking space for other chores. Their compact size, virtually a mini-oven, also cooks with less energy, which saves you money.

Because you can walk away from the meal, the crock pot becomes the ultimate time-saver in the kitchen. Once preparation is done, you have the freedom to do other chores, or even leave the house. Crock pots do the cooking part of a meal for you – just set it and forget it.

You also can’t debate the safety issue of a crock pot versus a Dutch oven. The new crock pots have cool exteriors and built in timers to ensure they shut off when the meal is done.  Plus, you aren’t constantly opening the oven to check on the meal, nor are you lifting the hot, heavy lid to stir the contents. Once the meal is in the crock pot, you normally don’t have to worry about picking the lid up again until it’s dinnertime.

We may never give up our Dutch ovens, but I think it could take a backseat to the crock pot in your kitchen. Keep your crock pot handy on your counter top and see how many times you choose it now over your Dutch oven.