Food

  The type of food you choose for a trip depends on individual taste but here follow a few general hints.

Canned food is convenient to pack and can be prepared and heated without a fuss. Alternatives include homemade sandwiches, salad, fruit and tinned drinks. Some people prefer to take cold meat and salads and like to prepare their sandwiches on the spot. Others look forward to a barbecue with meat, chicken or fish, even though this usually takes more time to prepare and clean up afterwards.

If you know you’ll be on the move constantly, sandwiches might be your best bet. Food should be packed in well-sealed, proper containers for protection, to keep it as fresh as possible and to prevent spillage. Meal-sized containers are useful to ensure you don’t over-pack for a short trip.

Plan your meals well in advance so you’ll have everything you need. Think about what you need and what your family likes — and consider its preparation. Camping makes everyone hungry. Some welcome camping snacks are small boxes of juice, carrot and celery sticks, raisins, nuts, corn chips, crackers, cheese and quartered peanut-butter sandwiches.

Your icebox will stay cooler longer if you start out with contents that are as cold as possible. Items that can be frozen ahead of time and then stored in the icebox include meat, cheese, fruit juice in cardboard containers and water. The icebox will probably need fresh ice daily. For maximum efficiency, open the icebox as little as possible, and keep it covered and in the shade. One way to simplify food preparation during camping is to prepare some food in advance. Bread and desserts are two suitable items, ready to enjoy at any time, while dried food will give you a head start on your camping trips.

If you are into outdoor cooking, you could use one of these three methods:

Foil cooking: Choosing the right kind of coals is important here. A blazing fire will not do, so start your fire well ahead of the cooking time to allow it to die down to glowing embers. Charcoal can be used as a base; hot coals alone are too hot. Mix them with ashes to temper the heat.

Spread out two or three thicknesses of foil and coat the top surface with margarine, butter or oil to prevent the food from sticking to it. Place your food on the greased foil and wrap it carefully. Seal (crimp) the edges securely. Make a second wrap that covers the seal with a smooth covering. Shovel the coals aside, then lay the foil-wrapped food on the hot ashes and coals. After the food has cooked for the recommended time, remove with a pair of barbecue tongs. Beware of escaping steam when you open the package.

There are several local dishes that can be prepared in this way, such as ghoozl with lamb meat. Corn-on-the-cob, potatoes and mixed vegetables are also excellent when cooked in this manner — make sure you include butter and seasonings inside the foil.

Open-fire cooking: Stay warm and cook your food on a stick or skewer at the same time. This gives the true feeling of camping. Use a light, straight green stick, or a cooking fork or kebab skewer. Peel the sticks at the cooking end. You can use them to cook a hot dog over the fire, or a piece of bread for breakfast or as barbecue toast.

Barbecue: This is perfect for camping so don’t forget to take a grill with you. Once you’ve finished with the grill, pack it in a paper bag or wrap it in newspaper and put this parcel into a plastic garbage bag to prevent it from soiling other gear.