Campervan cooking tips
Campervan cooking tips. The great thing about a campervan is that you can choose to travel where you want, stop when you fancy and eat where and when you choose. If you prefer to park up near a restaurant or café then why not?
But with a gas hob available in your campervan, you can cook up a meal at any time of the day. Most campervans have a dual burner hob, so you need to plan what you will have for meals. The key is to use less pots and pans, and choose one or two-pot dishes where you can.
On top of this, no one wants to be slaving over a hot stove while they are on holiday so less is more when campervan cooking.
Catering for yourself also lowers the cost of a holiday. You can buy ingredients from a supermarket, local market, farm shops or roadside stalls during your travels. Then store them in the handy campervan cupboards or fridge and cook your meals when you want them. All this will save you money on eating out.
Cooking Equipment
Counting sheep campers, hire out campervans equipped with dual gas or diesel hobs, a large fridge and in some cases a grill/oven. Also included is an outdoor gas BBQ
Cooking and eating utensils and cooking pots and pans come as standard. So all you need for a feast is the ingredients and an imagination (or a few handy recipes, see below).
The holiday vans also have seats and a table inside or you can eat outdoors when the weather is favourable.
Keep it simple
A campervan is inevitably smaller than the kitchen you use at home. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing because you will find all you need is close at hand, but planning a full Sunday roast in a van will take a lot of effort.
With only two gas burners and in some vans a grill or small oven, you need to think simple but yummy, especially if you are cooking for two to four people.
Go for one pot, or possibly two. Imagine a grill and oven that cooks half of what you are used to cooking at home. But this doesn’t mean you need to survive on beans on toast all holiday.
For ease, shop bought sauces for pasta or meat and soups heated up in a pan; bacon and eggs cooked in a frying pan; or sautéed fish and boiled potatoes make perfect sense while on holiday.
Use the toaster for toast, to go with the soup, or fried breakfast, or you could heat up ready meals in the oven (if your van has an oven).
Back to basics
Cooking from fresh is a great way to enjoy the flavours of locally sourced produce. Scotland is famous for its fabulous natural larder so you could choose to create tasty meals from ingredients found on your journey.
10 yummy campervan recipe ideas
1) For breakfast how about using up some left over potatoes and local free range eggs, you will pick up on your travels to make potatoes and egg cakes.
2) If you really can’t stand missing out on fast food such as pizza but you want to make your own meals, how about no-oven pizza? Cooked in a frying pan yet still very healthy, this meal will be a winner with kids.
3) With only two or three rings and limited space it can be a difficult task cooking a traditional fry up breakfast for the family. Instead, try this One Pan Breakfast.
4) For an vegetarian alternative why not try this recipe for soft cheese mushroom risotto with a twist.
5) Keep the pan cooking to a minimum by serving your meal on grilled toast rather than with rice. This mushroom stroganoff is a delicious dish for lunch or dinner. Foraging for your own mushrooms will only add to the taste sensation!
6) Use the plentiful nettles found growing wild in Scotland and add some bought bacon (Ayrshire bacon very tasty!) for Stinging nettle and bacon soup
7) Hunt for the beaches for rock samphire and buy free range eggs for this samphire omelette. Check out Galloway Wild Foods for samphire if you happen to be in southern Scotland.
8) Get fresh locally caught mussels or forage them and cook them up
9) Adjust the ingredients to suit the season for this delicious one pot vegetable risotto
10) And for something sweet? You could buy bars or chocolate, dip marshmallows in hot chocolate drinks or eat fruit and yoghurt. But, then again, you could make something a bit different such as Chocolate Honeycomb Bites. This is a great recipe for the kids on a rainy day.
So, whether you’re on a weekend break, week-long holiday or something in-between, tasty meals, can still be enjoyed when on a campervan holiday.
Book a campervan hire today
Counting sheep Campers have wide a range of campervans and motorhomes to hire in Scotland and are conveniently located at the gateway to Scotland. Just a short drive from Edinburgh or Newcastle. If you wish to leave your car with us, no problem we offer free on site secure parking. We also offer an Airport or Train Meet & Greet service, if you wish to travel to us by public transport. It is a great location to start your holiday.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.