Which material would be best suited for camping cookware? (1 Viewer)

[Jackie B]

Hey, so i'm going camping for a week, and usually in the past we just did hot dogs & whatnot (since it used to be a weekend affair, not a 7 day ordeal). What type of cookware should i look into for the trip? I'm going to be strictly cooking over a fire, not a camp stove.
SO Last summer, I bought a cheapy cookware set, simply because I was in a rush and on a very small budget...well I totaled that set. I'm looking online now at different sets and am looking for some guidance. I'm looking at a Stainless steel, enamel, and anodized. all three of these sets cost the same, there are plates and such in the enamel, but I have a set of dishes, so that's REALLY not a deciding factor. Which way would you go?
Is there any good web resource on cookware? Has anyone ever used a stone frying pan before? I know this is a relatively new technology in the kitchen. I tried researching on them and came out dry. The only decent resource I can find is on best pans for induction. Anybody have any health tips, brand recommendations, or other information? Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[murf]

I get the decent but old kitchen hand me downs so the wife can keep nice new slippery Teflon in the kitchen. Rotate out every couple years and toss the old stuff. Everybodys happy!

 

[McDowra]

Cast Iron has been around a long time for a reason.

 

[JohnVee]

Sorry I can't offer personal experience with a brand, but search the Campfire Cuisine section here for Magma cookware. People who have it seem to love it. Different sized nesting sets are offered in stainless and enamel.

I'd say what you get should be dictated by what you plan to cook and how you travel. Are you mostly just boiling water, grilling meat, cooking for a group, etc?

Murf does what many of us do. Just know that a pan from the house might not look anything like itself when you return. Cast iron is always good because it will hold up to things like fire and hot coals, plus it's non stick when seasoned. Cast steel from Lodge is gaining traction. You might want to go nonstick if you're not much of a cook and likely to burn the crap of things. That can make for some serious cleaning.

You can also take the grate from your grill at home and set it on some rocks for a cheap solution to grilling.

 

[e9999]

if weight is not an issue, I'd go cast iron. Look for it at garage sales and thrift store.

 

[mmajsw]

Plus one on cast iron. As e9999 said, they are also available at thrift shops for cheap. My brother-in-law has a really nice set of camping pots and pans he collected that way. The older the pot, the better it seems to be. Of course, this assumes that weight is not an issue.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Buy a stove, cooking over a wood fire is not an easily acquired skill. If you are a novice you will most likely be disappointed in the results no matter what kind of cookware you use.

There are a ton of threads about cookware in this forum Campfire Cuisine

 

[george_tlc]

For many years now I cook over fire in the bush. The trick is to actually cook over coals and twigs... i.e. make a camp fire for heat/light etc and then several feet away (where it is cooler), make a small slit trench and put coals in from your main fire (add more as necessary) and have some twigs etc for fine control. Metal mesh over the slit trench and cook gear (cast iron and stainless stuff) on top of the mesh. You can then move the cook gear around the mesh as you need more/less heat and you have coals versus a raging fire to cook over.

cheers,
george.

 

[BlackUSK56]

I use a cast iron cookware set as well. I like the versatility of being able to cook over propane, charcoal, or a wood fire, without worrying about burning or scratching off a non-stick coating.

 

[rusty_tlc]

For many years now I cook over fire in the bush. The trick is to actually cook over coals and twigs... i.e. make a camp fire for heat/light etc and then several feet away (where it is cooler), make a small slit trench and put coals in from your main fire (add more as necessary) and have some twigs etc for fine control. Metal mesh over the slit trench and cook gear (cast iron and stainless stuff) on top of the mesh. You can then move the cook gear around the mesh as you need more/less heat and you have coals versus a raging fire to cook over.

cheers,
george.

This is good advice. However it is not easy to learn to regulate the temperature. I maintain that learning how to cook outdoors over a stove is best then learn the art of cooking over a fire. Just the shift from a household range to a camp stove is difficult enough for most people.

 

[Buckru]

I don't see much difference between a gas stove at home and a gas stove in camp. Electric to gas is different but if it's a learned skill, so too will be fire cooking.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

I hate cooking over a fire because the pots get scorched and heavily carbon'ed. Just go buy an inexpensive campstove on Craigslist and use that.

If you are determined to cook over an open fire, then cast iron is a good bet.

 

[PabloVTA]

we have a grip load of thrift stores in my town, i hunt down a relic and give it a cleaning and re-season it and go for it.
I found the porcelain coated/cast iron frying pan is the best. takes the heatin and beatin and cleans up with a light soak and one paper towel.

you can find a cheap aluminum pan at target with the porcelain coating too, for maybe 12-18 bucks with a fat handle. Just dont get it too close to flames or handle will melt.

Here in California we cant really have open flames/fie pits anywhere, so gas stove is pretty much standard. Aluminum heats up quick and even, and lighter in the box for traveling.

I also use the hand me down from the kitchen...if it's a total mess at the end of the trip it has a hard time coming out of the trasharoo when I get home and it goes with the rest of the bag...if yer smellin what im steppin in.

 

[Bogo]

I get the decent but old kitchen hand me downs so the wife can keep nice new slippery Teflon in the kitchen. Rotate out every couple years and toss the old stuff. Everybodys happy!

It's what I do. I only get the special stuff for hiking where ounces count. I've gotten lots of comments on my using the Calphalon pots while camping, but they are my kitchen hand-me-downs. I also feel you might as well cook in pots you are familiar with.

 

[Semi Hex]

What I wouldn't use because of known health consequences would be aluminum, titanium or any Teflon with a scratch in it.
That said, I tend to use stainless steel that nests or cast iron.

 

[rusty_tlc]

What I wouldn't use because of known health consequences would be aluminum, titanium or any Teflon with a scratch in it.
That said, I tend to use stainless steel that nests or cast iron.

Why?

 

[aausmana]

Hey, so i'm going camping for a week, and usually in the past we just did hot dogs & whatnot (since it used to be a weekend affair, not a 7 day ordeal). What type of cookware should i look into for the trip? I'm going to be strictly cooking over a fire, not a camp stove.
SO Last summer, I bought a cheapy cookware set, simply because I was in a rush and on a very small budget...well I totaled that set. I'm looking online now at different sets and am looking for some guidance. I'm looking at a Stainless steel, enamel, and anodized. all three of these sets cost the same, there are plates and such in the enamel, but I have a set of dishes, so that's REALLY not a deciding factor. Which way would you go?
Is there any good web resource on cookware? Has anyone ever used a stone frying pan before? I know this is a relatively new technology in the kitchen. I tried researching on them and came out dry. The only decent resource I can find is on best pans for induction. Anybody have any health tips, brand recommendations, or other information? Thanks in advance for your help!

I agree with a few others. Especially on a fire, cast iron would be the way to go.

 

[Semi Hex]

Why?

I really like the variety of stainless cookware that you can get to nest. There are a ton of options and you can mix and match to get what you need.
For cast iron, we tend to make a lot of one pot meals when we have our trailer, it it easy to use, eat out of and clean.

 

[rusty_tlc]

I really like the variety of stainless cookware that you can get to nest. There are a ton of options and you can mix and match to get what you need.
For cast iron, we tend to make a lot of one pot meals when we have our trailer, it it easy to use, eat out of and clean.

I was asking why you would avoid aluminium, titanium and Teflon for health reasons. Particularly titanium and Teflon, both are virtually inert until you get into very high temperatures.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

I spent years camp cooking on thrift store pots. They would last a couple of trips, then get tossed because they were already junk. And since most were aluminum, and I hate cooking on aluminum (not for health reasons, it hot spots and food sticks terribly), I eventually just gave up.

I now have a Magma stainless nesting pot set, which seems extravagant but I've been 100% happy with it for a couple of seasons now. You get a lot of pots in a small space, and the pots I'm not using become salad bowls or serving bowls, so I took all the mixing/salad/serving bowls out of my camp set. I also carry 1 carbon steel fry pan-see the "It's not cast iron" thread.

A10-360L

Cuisinart used to make a similar set for less $$, but I don't think it's still available.

All other "camping" sets including backpacking camping pots and pans are not worth your time. Mostly junk or expensive junk.