At 50 Campfires, we love foil packet meals. They are a great way to go when you’re preparing campfire meals for yourself, for you and a camping partner, your family, or an entire camping crew.
The advantages of foil packets at the campfire are many:
- You don’t have to bring much along except the ingredients and the foil.
- It’s easy to adjust quantities – just make what you need.
- Cooking to individual tastes is easy – if somebody doesn’t like beans, you just don’t include them in his/her foil packet.
- Cleanup is super simple – just ball up the cooking vessels (and serving plates for that matter), dispose of properly, and on to the toasting of the marshmallows.
On a recent winter camp out, we decided to come up with a 5-course meal that’s all cooked in and served from foil packets. It was delicious.
How To Make Foil Packets
- Lay a large sheet of heavy-duty foil or a double layer of regular foil on a flat surface.
- Spray food side of foil with light coating of cooking spray.
- Put the ingredients in the center of the foil, well away from the edges.
- Bring the short ends of the foil together and fold at least twice to seal.
- Fold in the sides to seal, leaving space for steam to expand inside the packet.
- Place packet on a bed of coals and turn often to cook both sides. Another option is to bury in coals – then there’s no need to turn and cooking time will be a bit less.
- When done, remove from fire, open carefully, check seasoning, and enjoy.
Course 1
- 2 cups mixed deli olives packed in oil
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
- Pour olives onto sheet of foil.
- Add garlic cloves.
- Add pepper flakes an mix.
- Fold up and seal foil packet.
- Cook on grate above campfire coals turning often for 15 minutes.
- Fun to serve with toothpicks. Just open foil packet in middle of picnic table and let everyone stab and eat the olives they want.
Course 2
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup of sweet, thick BBQ sauce
- ¼ cup red wine
- 1 15-oz. can of pineapple rings, with natural juice
- 1 Tbs. brown sugar
- 2 tsp. soy sauce
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- 2 medium zucchini, sliced about ⅜-inch thick
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Place each chicken breast in center of large sheet of foil.
- In mixing bowl, combine BBQ sauce, red wine, ¼-cup of pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, and garlic powder. (Reserve about ¼ cup).
- Paint both sides of chicken breast with mixture.
- Add some zucchini slices and two pineapple rings on top of each chicken breast.
- Drizzle on more sauce.
- Fold and seal packets.
- Cook on grate above campfire coals for about 15 minutes, flipping at least once about half way through cooking. Or cook among coals for about 10 minutes, flipping often.
- Open packets carefully and add reserved sauce and serve.
Course 3
- Pour bag of frozen vegetables on center of large sheet of foil.
- Cut butter into pads about ¼-inch thick, and space evenly over pile of vegetables.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Fold up and seal the packet.
- Cook among coals of campfire turning often for about 10-12 minutes.
- Carefully open top of packet so it forms a bowl to contain the vegetables.
- Crumble in chunks of goat cheese evenly over vegetables.
- Fold the foil loosely back in place and heat on grate above coals until cheese begins to melt.
- Pour bag of frozen vegetables on center of large sheet of foil.
- Cut butter into pads about ¼-inch thick, and space evenly over pile of vegetables.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Fold up and seal the packet.
- Cook among coals of campfire turning often for about 10-12 minutes.
- Carefully open top of packet so it forms a bowl to contain the vegetables.
- Crumble in chunks of goat cheese evenly over vegetables.
- Fold the foil loosely back in place and heat on grate above coals until cheese begins to melt.
Course 4
- 1 cup instant rice
- ¾ cup stock (chicken, beef, vegetable, seafood – whatever you like)
- ¼ cup wine (whatever you like)
- salt and pepper to taste
- butter
- In large bowl, combine the rice and liquid ingredients.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Let stand for five minutes.
- Drain any liquid that hasn’t been absorbed into rice.
- Place rice evenly onto four sheets of aluminum foil.
- Fold and seal LOOSE packets around rice, allowing room for rice to expand as it cooks.
- Cut a couple of small holes on top of each packet to allow steam to escape as they cook.
- Place packets with holes up on bed of hot coals.
- Cook for 30 minutes.
- Remove and carefully open packets. Add pad of butter to each and allow it to melt in.
Course 5
- (makes enough for about four apples)
- 1 large apple per person
- 1 half stick softened butter
- ⅓ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ tsp. vanilla
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp. allspice
- Mix together dry cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice at home and bring to camp in zipper bag.
- Mix together all ingredients except apple in a small mixing bowl at camp, set aside.
- Hollow out cores from apples, but leaving some flesh at bottom of well so stuffing doesn’t run out.
- Pack the opening with stuffing mixture.
- Wrap each apple in individual foil packet.
- Bake on grate above campfire coals for about 30 minutes. Nestle among the coals at back for about 15-20 minutes.