What's in YOUR pantry?

[Gigi]

Dutch Oven cooking is my favorite method when camping...I love the dishes I've made and it's so easy.
I like to experiment when I cook and was wondering if you would share with me what you take along in your pantry in the event it rains, or your feel creative.

The basics in my pantry include:
canned mushrooms
pasta-various sorts
barbeque sauces
cake mixes
canned fruit for the cake dessert
wild rice
tuna
lots of spices, all types
I'd love to hear what you take along that's out of the ordinary or what is ordinary and how you may use it in an unusual way!

Cheers!
Gigi

[Raunie Aasland]

I live in a rural area, so I always have the attached list in my cupboards at home, and then when starting out on a trip, I decide which extra meal or meals I should pack in my survival kit if something unexpected comes up! (Losing credit card, Y2K! Money stolen, etc. I guess it works for "rainy days" or unexpected company too!

I mostly camp solo. So, this is what I find works for me. I select the items that I want for that particular trip. I don’t take all, all the time! If so, it’s in the tug!

I don’t cook in my Scamp (have to keep it pristine!) I use a butane stove outside like the chefs use for demos! I always carry a 4 qt pressure cooker so I can also bake!

I use a large (man’s sized) Covered plastic shoe box to stow all my miniature spices. I have a duplicate of what I have on my shelves at home. I also have the individual serving jars of apricot & strawberry jam, sugar packets, maple flavoring (to make syrup), brandy & rum flavoring, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, garlic oil, imitation butter flavor oil, Oregano, basil, saffron, dried parsley, dill, onions, granulated garlic, Montreal spice, lemon pepper, chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardomon, balsamic vinegar, olive oil (for salad dressings), individual servings of soy sauce, tubed tomato paste & anchovy paste, Heinz ketchup, mustard & pickle relish packets (from fast foods), miniature salt & pepper mills. There are so many that it makes 3 layers of “little” spice containers. I always carry biscuit mix, jiffy cornbread mix, & wondra flour.

1 pkg oriental noodles, chicken
flavored
1 can enchilada sauce
2 sm can evaporated milk
1 can good tuna
1 can tiny shrimp
1 can crabmeat or lobster
1 can mussels
1 can boned chicken
1 can ham chunks
1 can meatballs
1 can tamales
1 can chili con carne
1 can whole kernel corn
1 sm can pineapple
1 sm can apple pie filling
1 sm can lemon pie filling
Pre-cooked oscar mayer bacon
or Hormel “real bacon” bits
1 jar old English cheese
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1 lb canned ham
1 pkg stove stop stuffing
1 can black beans
Long grain rice
1 sm can sliced mushrooms
1 sm jar roasted peppers
1 sm can chicken broth
1 sm can vegetable broth
1 sm can beef consommé
1 sm pkg Carr’s water biscuits
1 sm pkg instant mashed potato flakes
1 can French fried onions
1 can mushroom soup
pasta of some sort (spaghetti
preferred)
1 sm can pitted or sliced olives
1 sm jar green stuffed pimento olives
1 can sauerkraut
Parmesan Cheese in the can
Walnuts, halved or Pecans
Pkg dromedary pitted dates
Downey’s flavored gourmet cake (2 lbs)
1 Small bottle dry white wine

Eggs in the cooler
Veggies in the cooler

From this I can make a 4-person recipe of:[i]Bouillabaisse or paella
Oriental chicken salad
Chicken a la king
Chili Pie
Tamale Pie
Creamy meat balls
Baked eggs in enchilada sauce Chop Suey, sort of!
Sauerkraut, apples & ham chunks
Black beans & rice
Pasta with seafood sauce
Baked Spaghetti carbanara
Pasta with putenesca sauce
Desserts

[potteralice]

hey raunie, if you camp solo but cook those wonderful dishes for four --is there room for me at the table?

[Gigi]

I live in a rural area, so I always have the attached list in my cupboards at home, and then when starting out on a trip, I decide which extra meal or meals I should pack in my survival kit if something unexpected comes up! (Losing credit card, Y2K! Money stolen, etc. I guess it works for "rainy days" or unexpected company too!

I mostly camp solo. So, this is what I find works for me. I select the items that I want for that particular trip. I don’t take all, all the time! If so, it’s in the tug!

I don’t cook in my Scamp (have to keep it pristine!) I use a butane stove outside like the chefs use for demos! I always carry a 4 qt pressure cooker so I can also bake!

I use a large (man’s sized) Covered plastic shoe box to stow all my miniature spices. I have a duplicate of what I have on my shelves at home. I also have the individual serving jars of apricot & strawberry jam, sugar packets, maple flavoring (to make syrup), brandy & rum flavoring, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, garlic oil, imitation butter flavor oil, Oregano, basil, saffron, dried parsley, dill, onions, granulated garlic, Montreal spice, lemon pepper, chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardomon, balsamic vinegar, olive oil (for salad dressings), individual servings of soy sauce, tubed tomato paste & anchovy paste, Heinz ketchup, mustard & pickle relish packets (from fast foods), miniature salt & pepper mills. There are so many that it makes 3 layers of “little” spice containers. I always carry biscuit mix, jiffy cornbread mix, & wondra flour.

1 pkg oriental noodles, chicken
flavored
1 can enchilada sauce
2 sm can evaporated milk
1 can good tuna
1 can tiny shrimp
1 can crabmeat or lobster
1 can mussels
1 can boned chicken
1 can ham chunks
1 can meatballs
1 can tamales
1 can chili con carne
1 can whole kernel corn
1 sm can pineapple
1 sm can apple pie filling
1 sm can lemon pie filling
Pre-cooked oscar mayer bacon
or Hormel “real bacon” bits
1 jar old English cheese
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1 lb canned ham
1 pkg stove stop stuffing
1 can black beans
Long grain rice
1 sm can sliced mushrooms
1 sm jar roasted peppers
1 sm can chicken broth
1 sm can vegetable broth
1 sm can beef consommé
1 sm pkg Carr’s water biscuits
1 sm pkg instant mashed potato flakes
1 can French fried onions
1 can mushroom soup
pasta of some sort (spaghetti
preferred)
1 sm can pitted or sliced olives
1 sm jar green stuffed pimento olives
1 can sauerkraut
Parmesan Cheese in the can
Walnuts, halved or Pecans
Pkg dromedary pitted dates
Downey’s flavored gourmet cake (2 lbs)
1 Small bottle dry white wine

Eggs in the cooler
Veggies in the cooler

[b]From this I can make a 4-person recipe of:[i]Bouillabaisse or paella
Oriental chicken salad
Chicken a la king
Chili Pie
Tamale Pie
Creamy meat balls
Baked eggs in enchilada sauce Chop Suey, sort of!
Sauerkraut, apples & ham chunks
Black beans & rice
Pasta with seafood sauce
Baked Spaghetti carbanara
Pasta with putenesca sauce
Desserts

BRAVO! This is a great list of ingredients and offers all sorts of inspiration!
I especially like the tomate paste tube, would add a jar of sun dried tomatoes, some dried milk, and other bread mixes. It's lovely to have a loaf of bread cooking in the iron skillet on top of the Dutch Oven.

Raunie, do you have any recipes you'd care to share? I love what you've written!
Both Alice and I'll be over!

[Penny Taylor]

Raunie, is there any room for you, and your clothes, in your egg ?

[Raunie Aasland]

The only things that are always in the Scamp are the spices!

This is my master "survival shelf" list from home from which I pull the "staples" I decide I want to take for each trip (in case I need a survival meal or two from the shelf! No, I don't take all of them all the time!) And, the heavy stuff is in a "special box" in the van!
And, I often come home with the "survival ingredients" because I didn't need to use them!

Gigi, you asked about recipes -- I'm a cook who doesn't use recipes, per se. I find inspiration from classical recipes, and then do my own thing. I only measure stuff when I'm baking!

I read cookbooks like novels, I guess I need to get a life!

Originally, for camping, I took inspiration from Janet Groene's "Cooking on the Go" which addresses provisioning for long-term boaters -- basically cooking only on a primus flame (no oven, no fridge!) -- and, her major cook pot is a pressure cooker! She's got alot of great ideas in this book.

She, of course, also has a newer cookbook called, "Cooking Aboard your RV." However, she uses appliances, microwaves, toaster ovens, etc. -- none of the stuff I carry with me!

My one guillty pleasure is my stove-top espresso maker -- the old fashioned kind that perks up from the bottom to the top!

[don bowman]

Raunie,

I read cookbooks like novels, I guess I need to get a life!

I thought I was the only nut out there.

And, I just ordered the cookbook, "Cooking on the go", looking foward to reading it.

Have a good summer,
don

[potteralice]

raunie,

thinking about meals on the go.....

you just reminded me of a story i heard years ago about a family camping trip in which the cook (a mom, of course) put a dutch oven full of ingredients on top of the air cleaner of their car. she did not mention it to anyone so it came as a pleasant surprise to everyone that after driving all day to the campground, dinner was served upon arrival.

of course this was in a fifties big ol gas guzzler with fins. i don't think our modern vehicles have enough room under the hood to try it now. sure was a great crockpot meal!

[Bob Cupp]

What do you mean-"a mom, of course"? When we go camping, my wife is on vacation so she does not have to cook during the entire trip. I am an pretty good cook. Our kids do all of the clean up. Maybe that is why she liked camping.

This was the way it was on every trip up until she had a stroke and can't get around very good any more. It is especially tough because she had the stroke when she was only 43 years old. Maybe someday she will give it a try again when she sees that we can change the things that we did before.

[Gigi]

What do you mean-"a mom, of course"? When we go camping, my wife is on vacation so she does not have to cook during the entire trip. I am an pretty good cook. Our kids do all of the clean up. Maybe that is why she liked camping.

This was the way it was on every trip up until she had a stroke and can't get around very good any more. It is especially tough because she had the stroke when she was only 43 years old. Maybe someday she will give it a try again when she sees that we can change the things that we did before.

Oh, Bob, I am so sorry to hear about your wife's stroke. I hope that you can get back to camping again. I'm sure there'll be lots of changes, but, that it will be worthwhile for her to be able to go camping again. I had a light stroke at the age of 26. I had some effects for the first year but have made a full recovery. It's very frightening, challenging, and discouraging. Good luck to you both!

[CharlynnT]

Pantry staples

Canned:
corn
Libby's yummy yummy deep-browned beans in tomato sauce
chunk tuna in water
chicken noodle soup
cream of mush

Dry:
KD
rice
evaporated milk
crackers
nacho chips
flour
baking powder
hot dog buns
hamburger buns


Bottled:
HP sauce
ketchup
mustard
relish
salsa
gin
water
grind-em-up salt and pepper


Meat:
back bacon or ham steak
weiners: Top Dog Original ONLY
chicken and/or
fish (salmon or halibut) and/or
shrimp/prawns and/or
steak and/or
hangiburger (lean)


Veg:
tomatoes
sweet onions
cucumbers
red peppers
spuds
maybe carrots

Fruit:
always apples (Gala or Granny Smith)
strawberries or a melon
lemons or limes

Fridge things:
fancy juice
butter
milk to go
aged cheddar
cottage cheese
omega-3 eggs
box-o-white wine
tonic water
maple syrup

Three recipes:
1. Boler Breakfast
Two cast-iron frying pans
Stove top (rain) or fire pit (clear and fairly calm)
Spatula
Fork
Butter knife
Medium sized pot from 3-pot camper set
Two lids from camper set, large and medium
Sharp knife
Cutting board

Take some flour and put in pot, add some baking soda and one or two eggs and a slosh of milk. Mix.
Put big cast-iron pan on flame, add a dab of butter to melt (not to brown! not to burn! Stupid fire!).
When big pan is warm, pour in a gallop of pancake batter.
Cut back bacon or ham steak to fit smaller pan, put pan on fire.
Turn pancake when top surface nicely bubbled.
Throw meat in smaller pan. When one side is done, turn, then stack done ones on turned ones til all good.
Put large lid nearby, put first pancake on it, cover with smaller lid.

Continue til all batter gone, and all meat is turned and stacked and done.

Serve with fancy juice and maple syrup, watch son eat incredibly huge breakfast.

2. Bachelor Tuna Casserole
My hubby introduced this to me when he was still a bachelor. He ate it from the pot standing over the sink, but I prefer to serve it sitting down with sliced tomato and cucumber on the side.

Rainy day recipe.

Slice citrus fruit and prepare pre-dinner gin and tonics as required.

Gather:
One package KD
One can cream of mushroom soup
One can tuna
Big pot, small pot, stirring fork.

Make Kraft Dinner, drain, reserve some PLAIN noodles for picky son in smallest pot from camp set, put on lid to keep warm.
In the pot of cooked noodles, add dab of butter, weird orange powder ("cheese"), cream of mush and drained can of tuna. Mix vigorously, done.

3. Canoe Food
Pack in smallest cooler ("six-pack") one can beans, can opener, several spoons or forks, hubby's whittling knife, pot-holder from camp set, weiners, hot dog buns, at least one bottle of water, matches, strawberries.

When a shady riverbank or ocean-shore beckons, pull canoe up on bank. Dispatch son for dry sticks on beach, some for fire, three for hot dog cookers. Men whittle while Pioneer Woman gathers rocks, makes fire pit, lights perfect cooking fire with only one match. (Ha!) Open can of beans almost completely, put in embers. Cook hot dogs, put in buns. Mix beans with fork in can as lower beans will be hotter, higher cooler. Taking turns with warmed beans, hold hot can with pot-holder-thingie. Share water and strawberries nicely.

If you like, you can rinse cutlery in water or give a quick scrub in fresh-water and sand before paddling away.

I love summer.