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I have a very distinct memory of sitting in a lawn chair at our campsite, around 8 years old, Wheat Thins lined up down my thigh. I wrote out my name, one letter on each cracker, using what was normally considered a contraband writing implement: a spray can of Easy Cheese. I don’t need to see my name in lights – I’ve already seen it in squiggly orange processed cheese spread product.
As an adult, my camping meals are a wee bit classier. Homemade corn tortillas flattened with the help of my heavy metal press, stuffed with grilled shrimp, smoky pineapple and fresh guacamole; campfire-roasted eggplant, tahini, lemon and garlic are mashed into baba ganoush; and big, fresh salads topped with grilled chicken and avocado. Campfire cooking is one of my favorite parts of car camping, and no matter how far I’ve hiked that day, I always have the energy to whip up a delicious meal.
On the Season 2 finale of my Cascade PBS TV show, The Nosh (watch anytime at cascadepbs.org or on YouTube), I head into the woods with social media star Kena Peay, known to her half-million followers as the food-loving lady with the boisterous cackle who cooks up lemon pepper king crab alfredo, okra risotto and crispy chicken tacos on the trail.
With the official start of summer just a couple weeks away, and my second camping trip of the year kicking off tomorrow (!), I thought I’d share some of my favorite camping meals in case you need some inspiration. All pair beautifully with a can of Easy Cheese.
A Sedona dinner salad with an excellent Sonora-style griddled tortilla. Not pictured: a mug of miso soup. (Rachel Belle)
It’s a toss-up which is more beautiful, Crater Lake at dusk or this colorful shrimp salad. (Rachel Belle)
The world is your smoked oyster when it comes to assembling a trail charcuterie board. This shot was taken on a Wenatchee-area hike. (Rachel Belle)
Camping Salads
I am a HUGE fan of camping and hiking salads! Nothing feels worse than eating a heavy lunch and then having to hike five more miles back to the car in a sluggish, lethargic food coma. For a campsite dinner, I like a mix of raw and campfire-grilled veggies, and often grilled chicken, steak, salmon or shrimp. Any time I grill a protein, I always make extra so I can slice it up and throw it on a salad for tomorrow’s trail lunch.
Southwest Chicken Skillet
This meal was invented in a state of hanger while walking around a rural Utah grocery store after a hike, trying to figure out what to have for camp dinner that night. It has since become a staple, made on nearly every camping trip. Campfire-seared chicken finishes cooking in tomatillo salsa, simmered with fresh corn and spinach and topped with a lid of melty cheese. Serve with warm tortillas or tortilla chips and lots of lime and avocado.
Creamy Coconutty Shrimp Salad
A view like that deserves a beautiful, bougie last-night-of-camping meal. This recipe, lifted right off the pages of Bon Appetit magazine, is super-easy to put together. Shrimp are gently cooked in coconut milk, spiked with garlic and fish sauce and topped with the summer’s sweetest Sungolds, cilantro, red onion, jalapeño and lots of lime. We scooped this up with tortilla chips.
Asian Steak Lettuce Wraps
I made this fun feast for myself a few years ago, on my annual solo camping trip to see spring wildflowers. Steak is marinated in soy, garlic, sesame and ginger and grilled to a tender medium rare. I wrapped up bites in butter lettuce with cucumber; crispy nori sheets; shredded pickled daikon and carrot from a Vietnamese grocery; and lime and chili crisp, and served them with campfire-grilled asparagus and bok choy.
Trail Charcuterie
If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve likely seen the various snack boards I like to assemble in the mountains. I’m already bringing cheese, crackers and pickles; why not throw a board into my backpack to make it feel special? This simple spread features smoked, tinned oysters, a squirt of German mustard, cheese, pickles and an apple, but whatever you can forage from your fridge and pantry will do.
Check out the latest episode of Your Last Meal featuring award-winning TV host, comedian, director, writer and Celebrity Jeopardy! champion W. Kamau Bell. This episode is dedicated to macaroni and cheese, which isn’t Bell’s last meal, but has significant meaning in his life. Sparked by our discussion of mac & cheese as a political metaphor for being Black in America, I welcome a couple guests to the show to share how this classic comfort food found its way to America by way of an enslaved Black man.
Have a food- or drink-related question (Need a restaurant rec? Have a mystery that needs solving?) Send me a note: rachel.belle@cascadepbs.org
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XO
Rachel Belle
