Guys. In the not-too-distant future I shall be back in the land down under, hurray! I’ve got lots of exciting adventures planned whilst I’m in Australia and I can’t wait to tell you all about them. One of these is a sick road trip from Adelaide to Melbourne via the Great Ocean Road in a Jucy campervan! I’m real excited about it.
But from previous campervan road trips I’ve partaken in, I’m well aware that there needs to be an element of organisation right off the bat. I always make sure I make a pitstop right at the start of the trip to get all of the essentials, including food and drinks. There’s nothing worse than being on a long road trip without snacks, am I right?
And you can’t just buy any old food. You have to think about what you’re working with, kids. On our Great Ocean Road trip, we’re going to be in a Jucy Condo camper van which comes with a fridge, a sink and a 2 burner stove. But a lot of the time there’s only 1 burner in campers so make sure you figure out which it is before you go planning meals. But either way, no oven, no grill… In terms of kitchenware, we also have 1 saucepan, 1 frying pan and a kettle, which is good to take note of.
I mean this easily provides means to make a whole bunch of delicious meals but it does limit you in some ways. It’s not like you can roast a chicken or anything, you know? Plus the whole 1 saucepan thing means if you wanted to cook a curry and rice, you would have to do it one at a time which would be impossible really.
Well this is what I’m saying about organisation, if you just wing it you may end up with beans on toast. So here’s my suggestions for delicious meals cooked straight outta campers.
Campervan recipes
Breakfast
One Pan English Fry-up
I’m a gal that likes everything in a fry-up, like the full works. Even a cheeky side of halloumi. But I tone it down a bit for a camper adventure. As you only have one pan to cook it in, rather than cook each element separately, you gotta cook one person’s breakfast at a time with everything in there. But it means a beaut hot brekkie before a day of exploring.
Grilled Cheese
I am the queen of toasties, but I’m normally an under-the-grill method gal. However in a campervan with a burner and frying pan, you can totally do the Jamie Oliver ultimate grilled cheese recipe with the amazing cheese crown. It’s so gluttonous but so amazing.
Pancakes!
What better excuse do you need than only having a frying pan to work with, to have PANCAKES for breakfast?! Absolute dreamboat. I’m a lemon and sugar crepes kinda girl but you also make chocolate chip american pancakes real easy too.
Lunch
Butternut Squash and Red Lentil Dahl
This is a firm favourite in my house. It’s super healthy, super tasty and super filling. All the best things! As it’s a one pot dish, it’s perfect for camper van life. Although it takes 55 mins to cook so only suitable if you have a leisurely break from your adventures, you know? I use this recipe from BBC Food.
Vegetable and Mozzarella Wraps
A simple but effective one is to stir fry some vegetables – I like mushrooms, sugar snap, baby corn and tender stem broccoli – then add to a wrap with some houmous and mozzarella. Then quickly toast the wrap on each side so it’s slightly crispy and the mozzarella has melted. YUM.
Chicken Salad
Love this lunch, just pan fry a chicken breast and serve with salad! I tend to season my chicken breasts in olive oil, salt, pepper and cajun spice before cooking and then use this method to cook by Kitchn. When ready, I slice up over a salad of red cabbage, lettuce, peppers, cucumber and olives with lots of lemon juice. Bloody delicious.
Dinner
Chilli Nachos
Chili Con Carne is perfect for a camper as it is a one pot wonder. My favourite recipe is this bad boy from BBC Good Food. It’s delicious and spicy and filling, yes. Although the one saucepan thing means making rice at the same time is impossible so I would serve with nachos, yeah?
Egg Fried Rice
Another fave in my household is the Egg Fried Rice recipe off of Eat Well For Less. Greg Wallace knows his shit. This doesn’t sound that exciting but it’s full of veg, full of flavour and super cheap per portion. And best of all you only need one pan and one burner.
Pesto Pasta
Let’s face it, it’s a classic. Cook your pasta with your veg of choice (I choose mushrooms and spinach), drain and chuck in the pesto, stir it up, grate over some parmesan and Bob’s your uncle. Literally can’t go wrong with this one and it’s a meal I will definitely be cooking in my campervan in Aus!
Sweet Treats
Chocolate Fondue!
I mean what better excuse? It’s pretty much like toasting marshmallows over an open fire, except most campsites don’t allow open fires so you’ve got to improvise with your 1 burner in the camper. Just heat up some of your fave choc until it melts and start dipping marshmallows and strawberries in there! Lots of fun too if you ask me.
There you have it, my plan to eat like a king on the Great Ocean Road!
What do you think? Any you would recommend for campervan living? Let me know in the comments below or tweet me @HeelsInBackpack!
I think of the key things when grocery shopping for this kind of adventure is to try to find ingredients that you can use in a bunch of different dishes so that you don’t end up with too many bags of food. Chicken and rice are two of the most versatile I think. I love the challenge of trying to cook in a camper van though. 🙂 Have fun!
Yessss that’s so true. Although I’m travelling in a party of 4 so hopefully shouldn’t be too much wasteage! Thank you! 🙂