We are traveling about 4500 miles this summer during our vacation. We know that we will spend at least 5 long days driving. Other days will be shorter days. I want to take stuff for meals other than sandwiches. I also want to cut down on eating out.

There will be 4 adults. 2 don't eat salads and 2 have some stomach issues. We have a one burner camp stove I am planning to take. I am thinking about doing canned taco meat, sloppy joes, pulled pork and groundbeef in broth. I will take on skillet with us as well as paper plates and plastic utensils. A family favorite meal is hamburger with beef stock, a can of cream of mushroom soup and instant rice. I can cook all of these in in a skillet on the camp stove. In the cooler will be potato salad, fruit salad, cheese and some lunch meat.

We will stay overnight at a state park. Some of the group wants to do some hiking. I am thinking some frozen marinated chicken breasts in a sealed food saver bag (in the cooler) to grill while we are spending the day at the park will allow us to have grilled leftover chicken for wraps or quesedillas that night or lunch the next day.

Any other suggestions for you might have or flaws you see in my planning?

YES, yes, yes!! I always like to travel with a camp stove and a box of food. When I go backpacking I like to take a couple of frozen fillet mignons for the first night. Cut them into chunks. You swinge them over the fire on a stick. You'll never taste a better hunk of beef. Bacon and eggs cooked on a coleman stove outside are always better. Fritatas are easy and delicious. Anything you can buy in a restaurant will be better cooked on your stove.
I'm from SC, so when I go to the beach I like to boil peanuts in the sea water...YUM.
My ex and I were traveling from Boston to SC and broke down in Racine VA. We were stuck in a hell hole of a campground for days, with our stove and box of food. We had a blast. That was when I decided I wanted her to be my wife.
Do it.

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Vicker
If you're born to hang, you'll never drown.

under the best of circumstances we usually aren't too pleased when we go out to eat. The food never seems to be as good as what I make at home. The exception is my couple of times a year for deep fried fish. Then we go out. I don't want to deal with the grease mess.

One of our travelers is a 19 yr old boy with two hollow legs. It costs a fortune to feed him. If we go to cracker barrel he will order a large dinner. I order a regular dinner and eat half of it. He finishes mine as well as several biscuits.

Taking food and the camp stove will avoid tummy troubles on the road and save me a small fortune on food.

I've found in this day and age that "carting" a lot of food in a cooler is - ahhh - hummm not sure what I'd call it.
What I do is pre-shop - Google is your friend - I know I'll be in/near city "abc" and/or "bcd" so I check out the local groc store's to see what is offered as many now in their deli sections offer not only salads, subs, etc but also fresh cooked meals. If nothing else I shop for the "stuff" I will cook/eat and get it there - saves on possible spoilage.........

If you are going down the highway, you can always stop and grocery shop for fresh food. You don't have to carry food for the entire trip.

I'm usually traveling with a travel trailer that has kitchen and a good fridge/freezer. So yes, I take food. I like to take home made frozen microwave meals so I can vacation and not just take my house work with me.

I have a little camp size propane barbecue grill that works with those little green disposable bottles of propane. It's worth its weight when traveling. Hint: don't buy a cheapo one; their regulators don't work well.

I also do a lot of nuts and trail mixes and fresh fruit for lunch (with a chocolate bar). It's not necessary to eat the sort of food you eat at home for every meal. Breakfast cereal with milk instead of cooking breakfast.

Also, let your family know that you are invoking The Iron Clad Rule of Camping: He who cooks does not wash dishes.

Why not cook your food while you're driving?

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This is the government the Founding Fathers warned us about.....

We have a rural route mail carrier. For years now, he's stopped on our property to eat his lunch under some shade trees. It took us a while to understand why he always got out of his truck and raised the hood. We finally realized that he packed his lunch in a cooler, then somewhere along his route he stops and puts his aluminum wrapped food on his motor. When he stops for lunch at our place, it's warm. Kinda smart thinking, huh?

In the box you will find oil, salt, pepper, various spices, garlic, spatula, silverware, a pot, a skillet, coffee, rice, cornmeal, baking soda and whatnot.

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Vicker
If you're born to hang, you'll never drown.

Agreed. If you have a camp stove or a grill at the campsite, then anything is possible. I remember taking up a camping invite from friends. Where we were going I was expecting dogs and burgers. The designated cook served us steaks, lobster tails, and sides for dinner. It was a fine dining experience off a portable charcoal grill. A fun time indeed.

Do a search for camping message boards. They always have a recipe section. Love to camp and ready to go!

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“If we annoy people, blessed be the Lord.” ~ Pope Francis

Tailpipe cooking used to be popular with the custom van crowd. Foil-wrapped stew and so on. Never tried it myself.

Peg

Not sure wether CF was kidding you or not. But cooking on your engine really does work. I have only done kilbasa and potatoes, but they turned out very good.

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It's not just leaving a better planet for our children....
It's leaving better children for our planet.

One of our family's favorite meals while camping at the beach was a one pot meal I made using store-bought noodle mixes (your favorite flavor) and canned/vacuum packed cooked chicken. Cook the noodles, add the already cooked chicken and heat through. Serve with applesauce or canned peaches and you're done. Hot, tasty and ooohhh so easy.

We'd just wash the pan out with ocean water and sand and be ready to go the next day.

Have a great time on your trip. We did an 8000+ mile cross country camping trip in 2002 with a 13, 10 and 9 year old and the next year they asked if we were going to do that again! haha.

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One day at a time....

We always take lots of food and prepared meals with us. In fact most of the weight in the truck and the camper is food! It is just too expensive to eat on the road. We do eat a lot of cold meals because this is a holiday for me and one good hot meal in the evening is enough.

We always take food as we don't eat fast food. It's difficult to keep food stored at a constant cold temp while traveling unless you're in an rv that's equipped with a working fridge. I do take frozen food like pizza fixings in a ziploc ready to throw on a premade crust and grill. I also make cold pasta salads and take those in ziplocs. Frozen hamburger patties and cans of baked beans are another meal. Here's some ideas:

quarter up fresh squash, onion, garlic, add butter and seal into a foil pack to toss on a grill or over a campfire.

take metal skewers, stick into middle of whole potato rubbed with butter and wrapped in foil. The skewer cuts down on cooking time and assures the middle of the potato is done.

Take frozen bags of corn on the cob. It's a fun food to eat outside with messy butter dripping off. Also have a jar of parmesan cheese to sprinkle on. yum.

Take whole watermelons and cool in a tub of melting ice water. It's another food that's fun to eat outdoors.

Meats that are smoked keep better and longer. Smoked sausage, bacon, country ham, beef or venison jerky are always part of our camping/traveling food supply.

We eat a lot of apples. Core a fresh apple, stuff with brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, wrap in foil and bake over a fire or grill. yum.

And another thought for a different dining experience is to call the state parks and see if they have a dining room/buffet. There are several of these in Ky state parks that are a very good buy and taste experience.

Have fun with your food and be sure to take munchies for inbetween grab and eats. Mix Cheerios, raisins, m&m's, and pretzels in a ziploc for a really good snack mix.

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There are endless combinations of truth.

We'll pack pre-made salads, lunch meats, crackers & cheese for eating on the go. Ziploc bags are your friend! Be sure to use the heavier freezer bags to prevent leakage.

The first time I went on a week long camping trip with my now DH, I had washed up a big bag of potatoes. Ready to cook. They were individually wrapped in newspaper to keep them dry and protected. DH asked me what I was planning on doing with all those potatoes....well, hashbrowns in the morning, foil packets with bacon, onion & hamburger for supper...etc. etc....he never questioned my food packing after that! LOL