prepare camp meals ahead ?

[Get-T-UP]

When hunting season comes I get really busy. For a five day hunt it take about eight days of work with the shopping, packing, travel and freighting my kitchen into and out of camp. This year I worked for fourteen hunts, here’s a trick for getting ahead on the camp meals. To make things easier I set my menu for the first week and stick with the same routine throughout the season this really simplifies shopping, cuts cost and minimizes forgotten items. Next I always prepare three dinners in my home kitchen before the hunt, this year it was tamale pie, lasagna, and beans and brisket. This may seem like cheating but it allows me time to make a side dish, bake bread or prepare a special dessert in camp. It also cuts the amount of different ingredients that I need to pack into camp. When I make lasagna for example I will make enough for three or four camps and I do the same with the other dishes. You would think that the guide and outfitter would get tired of eating the same dinners week after week but it has never been a problem, each one has the dinner he likes best and looks forward to it all week long.

Here’s what makes this system work. I standardized the size of the pan I use to a 9”x14” covered baking pan. I buy coated cake pans with locking plastic covers that have a folding handle. I buy them on sale for about six dollars each. After cooking each meal I deep freeze everything including bread and roll which I also place in the same pans. I also freeze all the egg beaters and butter. All this stacks neatly into the deep freeze and then into my camp coolers. I bought “Coleman Extreme” five day coolers that will take the pans laying flat, these coolers have great insulation and will keep everything frozen almost all week. I sometimes bring ice cream if someone has a birthday and if the weathers warm I sometimes use a pound or so of dry ice. Two big coolers are enough for the week, I have packing slings to carry these on my pack mule.

To heat the meals up in camp I have developed different methods, most of these methods involve a kind of double boiler. If I have a wood stove I place a pan directly on the stove top (I use a 9”x14”pan that I used to transport bread in) and pour in about ¾” of water. I then add something to use as a spacer (I like steel 60 common spikes) and set the food dish in on top covered with foil. If you keep the water from boiling away the food won’t burn. It makes the tent steamy and the food great. Another method I like to heat the frozen food pan when the weather is warm is to use a Coleman “heat and serve”. I have a Coleman factory discount store near me where I buy a lot of equipment. The heat and serve looks like an electric skillet but runs off a small propane bottle. I use them a lot for breakfast in my camp because you can put them on the table to serve after cooking and the food stays nice and warm. The way I heat the dinners in them is using the same double boiler idea. I put water in the bottom of the “heat and serve” and drop the frozen dinner in, pan and all. If the hunters come in really late I can keep the dinner warm and moist for a long time.

Happy trails for now
Leon

[Hal]

Good tips Leon, you sound like you're pretty organized and have it down cold.

[Get-T-UP]

Thank you Hal for taking the time to read my post,
 
I'm sure you all have many tricks that I can learn and I am looking forward to hearing more from you all

Sorry I posted the wrong picture, I am trying to get the hang or this thing ......................
neither one of those sour puss mugs is me

Happy Trails Leon

[SeabeeCook]

I enjoyed your post ... remember to heat the meal items to 165 degrees within two hours.

[animules]

Great ideas.  I may have to "borrow" some of them.   

[Get-T-UP]

Steve,
I'm not sure what you mean...... remember to heat the meal items to 165 degrees within two hours. With-in two hours of what?  I get them " heat and serves" really hot in fact I melted the legs plumb off two of them this season. I had to make do with rock legs for a couple of weeks......I'm not sure what temperature water boils at at a mountain altitude 10600 feet but probably about 185%. I set the pans in boiling water for over an hour and have left them for as long a four hours if the hunters took along time getting in. As long as you don't let the water boil out you're fine. the food won't dry out or burn and comes out piping hot

Tina

Please "borrow"any of these Idea and improve them if you can. I would like to hear back if you find ways to do things better. That's what this forum is all about after all

Happy Trails.........

[SeabeeCook]

I'm not sure what you mean ...  With-in two hours of what?

It's a commercial foodservice thing ... at work I am required to re-heat leftovers (any previously cooked food, really, not just leftovers) to 165 degrees in the middle of the dish. This helps ensure that any lingering bacteria are thoroughly killed and the food is safe to eat and to hold. The two-hour re-heat period begins when you first apply heat to the dish.

As I professional cook, I'd recommend that you take the 8-hour food safety manager course. Talk you your local county health department. They can recommend what course to take.

I get them " heat and serves" really hot in fact I melted the legs plumb off two of them this season. I had to make do with rock legs for a couple of weeks......I'm not sure what temperature water boils at at a mountain altitude 10600 feet but probably about 185%. I set the pans in boiling water for over an hour and have left them for as long a four hours if the hunters took along time getting in. As long as you don't let the water boil out you're fine. the food won't dry out or burn and comes out piping hot.

I had to look it up ... water boils at about 195 degrees at 10,000 feet. It drops to 192 degrees at 12,000. These are ballpark figures since the actual boiling point depends on atmospheric pressure.

If I read your post correctly, you have set up a rudimentary steam line for holding the hot food hot. My only advise is to not hold the meals over 2 hours. If you the hunters return to camp in groups, I'd re-heat the food in batches. The ensures both safety and quality of the meal.

[saddlesore]

I have  been doing the lasagna thing the same way  for  quite a few years. I use to cook spaghetti sauce from  scartch,but now use one of the prepared sauses and add ground meat.The pasta cooks in about the same time it takes to heat the sauce.
Reuban sandwiches and fajitas  are always a favroite and quick to make