Summer goes right along side with camping!! It is one of our favorite families things to be able to go and do. As with any kind of cooking you always need to be aware of food safety, and it isn’t all that much different for campsite cooking as other ways of cooking. (I have included links to some great products that I have bought on my own to make my journey easier. You can buy them too through my online sales links.)
We have a ton of plans every year to go out and camping with friends and family! However, it is important to note that the warmer weather doesn’t make the best situation for some foods. To prevent foodborne bacteria, here are some food safety tips for campsite cooking.
Food Saftey Tips for Campsite Cooking:
Use a food thermometer handy. If you are cooking any type of meat or poultry on a campfire, you will need to know when it is done. To determine when the food is safe to eat, always have a food thermometer handy. Digital thermometers work the best since they are designed to register the temperature of the food in the probe tip. Beef should be cooked until it reads 160 degree, chicken breasts until it reads 170 degrees, chicken legs, and thighs until it reads 180 degrees, pork until it reads 160 degrees and hot dogs until it reads 165 degrees. Now one of my favorite treats is this thermometer -> here. The outside cover has a cheat sheet on it with these degrees and types of meat on it!
There are some high-risk foods that are more susceptible to food poisoning bacteria than others. These foods include meat and poultry (raw and cooked), dairy products, eggs, seafood, rice and pasta that is cooked, fruit salads that are already made, other ready-made salads like pasta salads and coleslaw and foods that ready to eat like sandwiches and pizza.
It is important that you keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. You also want to keep uncooked meat separate from other foods and in an insulated cooler with ice packs. Never put hot foods inside a cooler but instead ensure they are completely cooled first. If you have access to a refrigerator, then you can bring along perishable foods. However, if not, then you don’t want to bring along any foods that are perishable. Instead, bring along canned and dry foods.
Coleman 120 Quart Coastal Xtreme Series Marine CoolerColeman 48 Quart Performance Cooler Holds 63 Cans, Blue
Coleman 3000002003 50Qt Xtreme
Does your family have any campsite cooking traditions they do?
donald says
nice nice usually i do a day time bbq out and we get everything at the store a mile away from site and cook it up as quick as possible
i need a thermometer tho i guess
Beverly says
Great tips! This are all good to know for those times when a storm knocks out the power at home, too.
Kristina and Millie says
great tips! We went for a long weekend camp out last year and luckily all went well but I was so worried about food poisoning!
Laurie says
Great tips to remember! Looking forward to some serious family camping fun this summer! Thanks for sharing!
Sherry says
Great tips! I haven’t camped in years, but we always cooked over an open fire. Sure do miss it!
Wendy says
I love camping and cooking over the fire, though we haven’t done it in years. I know this is a “food safety” post, but you’ve made me want to go dig out the tent! 🙂
Olga says
Thanks for the tips, I love campsite cooking. Recently I ate rice cooked in a forest, it’s taste and smell was marvellous. I’ll remember what you recommend the next time 🙂
Lisa @ A Bride On A Budget says
My tip: Leave the cooking up to your dad. Haha. That’s what we did when we camped every year anyway.