Easy Lunch Ideas for Camping #YUM

It is easy to think that camping means that you are limited to making a select few lunch and dinner meals because of limited cooking resources. However, there are easy lunch ideas for camping that you can easily prepare in a camp. It just takes a bit of inspiration and some basic cooking skills.

We have a list of 30 different easy lunch ideas for camping and a few simple recipes to make it much easier for you to start preparing those easy camping meals for lunch.

Let’s get started!

The Beauty of Easy Camping Meals for Lunch

Why would you prepare easy camping meals for lunch instead of dinner? Well, camping is a place where you can get away from it all. You’ve got the sounds of nature, greenery all around you, and fresh air to enjoy.

You can’t get any closer to nature than camping, so why not enjoy it? A camping lunch will help you enjoy camping even more and give campers a better camping experience.

The beauty of camping is that there is no noise, and there are fewer people around than in camping spots for RVs and motorhomes. Camping is the best way to get away from it all, and camping lunch ideas can help you maximize your camping experience.

Meaty camping lunch preparation

30 Camping Lunch Ideas for You to Try

We understand that camping can be a lot of work, and sometimes camping meal ideas can get repetitive. That’s why we have 30 camping lunch ideas for you to try.

The idea is to make camping food that is healthy, easy to make, tasty, and requires the least amount of effort possible.

Some of our easy camping meal ideas are the following:

1. Chicken Tzatziki Skewers

The sliced vegetables and grilled chicken on these Greek-inspired skewers (served with tzatziki sauce) can be prepared to be either a quick dinner or the centerpiece of a whole camp dinner. It depends on how much time you have and what else you want to serve.

2. Sausage Breakfast Sandwiches

These sausage breakfast sandwiches are hearty enough to fuel you throughout a long day of hiking, biking, or paddling. They are also easy to make in quantity if you have other campers to feed. Serve with a handful of fresh fruit and a hot cup of coffee to round off the meal.

3. Blueberry Pancakes for Camping

While traditional pancake batters take time to prepare, this easy camping menu uses pre-made pancake batter to make these delicious blueberry pancake breakfasts. They’re easy to make, easy to eat, and easy to clean up.

4. One-Pot Pasta Primavera

Easy camping lunches don’t have to mean just sandwiches and snacks. This easy camping meal idea proves that you can take the easy route and still eat well. With many fresh veggies, pasta, and a creamy, cheesy sauce that all cook in one pot, this delicious meal is easy to make and easy to clean up after.

5. Southwestern Grilled Cheese with Jalapeños

This easy camping food takes two of the most classic easy camping ingredients, grilled cheese and jalapeños, and combines them into one delicious dish perfect for easy lunchtime at camp. The best part about this dish is adding in your favorite easy camping ingredients to create a unique dish for every lunch.

6. Dutch Oven Macaroni and Cheese

If easy camping food recipes are what you crave, this easy camping meal idea is for you. This easy dish is perfect for bringing up to the campfire or making in your Dutch oven. The bread crumb topping gives it a delicious crunchy touch that contrasts well with the creamy macaroni underneath it.

7. Pizza-on-a-Stick

This easy camping food takes all the classic flavors of everyone’s favorite food and transforms it into a twist that is tasty, unique, and fun to eat— pizza on a stick! Add in some extra pizza flavor with your choice of sauce or seasoning mix. It’ll enhance the flavors and leave your taste buds happy.

8. Pesto Tomato Wraps

These easy lunch ideas for camping are tasty, healthy, and require little effort to make. The pesto is homemade with fresh basil, oil, lemon juice, and pine nuts. The tomatoes are stamped out to create the perfect wrap for the pesto- it takes little effort to prepare. The cheese adds a yummy flavor and is quickly melted when heated up in the wrap with the pesto.

9. Ham and Cheese Salad Stuffed Tortillas

Tortillas are easy food for camping. Fill them up with a ham and cheese salad for a leisurely lunch idea. This recipe is excellent for camping because there are only three ingredients, ham, cheese, and lettuce, and quick to make.

10. Campfire Grilled Fish Tacos

Everyone loves tacos, and these fish tacos are a straightforward food to take camping with you. You don’t have to worry about them spilling or being hard to handle, and you don’t have to clean the pan when you’re finished. Plus, they taste delicious! The fish is packed with flavor, and the fresh vegetables take the tacos to a whole new level.

11. Camping Nachos

These nachos are just what you need to satisfy your cravings when you’re out camping. The campfire-toasting brings out the flavor, and the layering of various toppings makes it scrumptious. Using pre-made taco meat or canned beans reduces your prep time significantly, and you can even use pre-shredded cheese to save time on cutting the cheddar.

12. Shrimp Boil Foil Packets

This shrimp boil foil packet with smoky sausage, zesty lemon, and buttery corn is one of our all-time summer favorites. The entire dinner is cooked in foil so, it won’t take long to clean afterward. If you’re camping, don’t worry about bringing along the long-handled boil basket— get your hot coals in a pile and cook away!

13. Bacon-Wrapped S’mores Sandwiches

These bacon-wrapped s’mores sandwiches are so fun to eat— you get sweetness from the marshmallows, gooey melted chocolate, and crispy bacon all in one sandwich. Wrap them up in foil for easy cooking.

14. Chicken Pad Thai

This easy camping food idea is a great lunch to bring along because you get the yummy flavor of Pad Thai without having to worry about the noodles getting broken. The Thai seasonings and tangy lime juice hit the spot, and you’ll love the crunch of the peanuts scattered throughout.

15. Pastrami Reuben Sandwich Camping Recipe

This is one of our favorite easy camping meals to cook over the campfire. It combines the classic flavors of a Reuben sandwich and is super easy to make with pre-packaged ingredients like pastrami, rye bread, and cheese. Simply grill these ingredients over the fire until they are gooey and delicious!

16. Fruit and Nut Peanut Butter Stuffed Tortilla

Save money by making your own peanut butter. Fill a tortilla with this homemade nut-butter and layer on some tasty fruits for an easy camping meal that you can make ahead of time. Remember to store it in a cooler and pack a heating source to soften the peanut butter.

17. Basil and Prosciutto Sandwich Camp Recipe

This sandwich is easy to make, and it’s one of the best! It combines the flavors of basil, salty prosciutto, and creamy mozzarella. The basil and prosciutto are wrapped in a ciabatta bun, which holds it together nicely. This one is perfect for sharing!

18. Foil Wrapped Sweet Potatoes and Chili

Enjoy a slightly sweet, spicy meal with this foil-wrapped chili. Bring along some foil, and you’ll have this easy camping food ready in no time! It gives a good bite, and it’s super easy to cook over the fire with not many pots to clean up.

19. Grilled Mexican Style Street Corn

This Mexican-style street corn is great for a summer camping meal or cookout. The roasted corn on the cob is delicious, and it’s seasoned with lime juice, chili powder, cilantro, and spices. It’s the perfect side dish for your next barbecue or camping trip!

20. Pesto and Turkey Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Who doesn’t love a good grilled cheese sandwich? This one is unlike any other you’ve ever had. It’s filled with lots of pesto and turkey and has a great kick to it. If you enjoy pesto as much as we do, try these other recipes: Easy Pesto Stuffed Pesto Chicken Alfredo, French Bread Rolls, and Basil Walnut Pesto Hummus.

21. Campfire Banana Boats

Bananas, chocolate chips, and graham cracker crumbs all combine to make this a super easy camping meal. It’s one of our favorite desserts on a camping trip, especially if it’s hot out.

22. Grilled Chicken with Peach Salsa

This grilled chicken with peach salsa is so easy to make and can be used in many other recipes. You’ll love the sweet flavor of the peach salsa, which complements the grilled chicken perfectly. For another salsa recipe, try Roasted Tomato Salsa with Jalapeños.

23. Lime and Cilantro Grilled Chicken Tacos

These lime and cilantro grilled chicken tacos are super easy to make and have a delicious flavor! The tropical flavor comes from lime juice and cilantro, which are both great ingredients to use on a hot summer day. Just be sure to hold the chicken with tongs or a fork to avoid burning your hands.

24. Greek Tomato and Feta Pasta Salad Recipe

This is one of the easiest recipes to take camping because you won’t have to worry about it taking lots of time to prepare. It’s made with accessible ingredients like tomatoes, feta cheese, and pasta. The salad dressing comprises olive oil, vinegar, sugar, salt, pepper, oregano, and minced garlic. It’s super tasty, too!

25. Avocado Spinach Salad with Grilled Shrimp

We love this salad, and it’s one of our favorite easy camping meals! It has the perfect blend of flavors: savory grilled shrimp, creamy avocado, and spinach leaves. Be sure to chop the shrimp into smaller chunks to be easy to eat when mixed with the salad.

26. Pineapple Chicken Skewers

These pineapple chicken skewers are marinated for several hours in a delicious mixture of minced ginger, chopped cilantro, olive oil, soy sauce, lime juice, and pineapple juice. The chicken skewers are grilled until thoroughly cooked and served with pineapple salsa. It’s such a great combination of flavors, and it goes perfectly with rice!

27. Easy Chickpea Curry with Coconut Milk

We love this easy chickpea curry recipe because it has so many flavors and is straightforward and easy to make. It tastes great with a spoonful of rice, and if you want to add a little more flavor, add some red pepper flakes or cayenne powder to it.

28. Avocado Toast Breakfast Sandwich

This sandwich is perfect for breakfast or lunch. It has avocado, egg, and crisp bacon on toasted bread. You can also use a bagel instead of toast for a breakfast sandwich. This is perfect for the mornings before hitting the trails.

29. Panzanella Salad

This Panzanella Salad is perfect for a summer camping trip or evening dinner. It’s easy to put together and has lots of tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, garlic, olives, and bread. The ingredients are mixed in a bowl with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. It’s perfect for taking along with you to a picnic, too!

30. Cranberry And Toasted Almond Spinach Salad

This spinach salad is a perfect side dish to go with any camping meal, especially those that have grilled chicken. It contains almonds and cranberries, which add a nice sweetness to the salad. The recipe also calls for spinach, apple cider vinegar, and olive oil.

Easy Lunch Idea Recipes When Camping

Bacon and Cheese Quiché Camp Dutch Oven Recipe

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 45 mins
Total Time: 1hr 5 mins
Recipe Yield: 4-6 servings

Equipment Needed

  • Dutch oven
  • Skillet 
  • Bowl

Ingredients

  • Bacon (8 slices)
  • Pepper and salt to taste
  • 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp. milk
  • ¼ tsp. thyme (dried)
  • 1 tsp. parsley (dried)
  • 4 large eggs
  • ½ cup grated cheddar cheese
  • ½ cup chopped onion
  • ¼ cup grated mozzarella cheese
  • 1 unbaked pie crust (9-inch)
Bacon and Cheese Quiché Camp Dutch Oven

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 °F (204.44 °C)  
  2. In a saucepan, cook the bacon over medium-low heat until crisp. Remove it from the pan and drain it on paper towels before crumbling.
  3. In a small skillet, heat the grease and sauté the onion until soft.
  4. Mix the eggs, flour, milk, thyme, parsley, and salt in a medium bowl.
  5. Stir in the bacon, onions, mozzarella, and cheddar cheese until thoroughly blended
  6. Pour the mixture into the pie crust and bake for 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.
  7. Cool on a rack and serve warm or cold.

Nutritional Information Table

Calories533
Total fat33g
Saturated fat13g
Trans fat0
Unsaturated fat17g
Cholesterol227 mg
Sodium900 mg
Carbohydrates36g
Fiber1g
Sugar1g
Protein21g

Grilled Tortilla with Veggies and Black Beans Burrito

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 40 mins
Recipe Yield: 6 servings

Equipment Needed

  • Skillet 
  • Dutch oven

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp. butter
  • ½ onion, finely chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 jalapeños peppers, minced and seeded (de-seed for less heat)
  • 20 halved cherry tomatoes
  • 15 can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 6 (10 inches (25.4 cm)) flour tortillas (or preferred size)
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro (dried or fresh)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • ½ lime juice
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • ½ cup frozen corn
Grilled Tortilla with Veggies and Black Beans Burrito

Instructions

  1. In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter, then sauté the onion, garlic, jalapeño peppers, and tomatoes for about 10 minutes or until softened.
  2. Add the cumin, corn, lime juice, black beans, salt, and pepper. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
  3. Stir in the cheddar cheese and cilantro after removing the pan from the heat.
  4. Place the bean mixture in the center of the tortilla. Fold over the edges to close.
  5. Spray a light coating on the grill pan with cooking spray. 
  6. Add the folded tortilla and cook on each side for about 4 minutes, or until the tortilla is crispy.
  7. Serve.

Nutritional Information Table

Calories438
Total fat16g
Saturated fat8g
Trans fat0g
Unsaturated fat6g
Cholesterol35 mg
Sodium457 mg
Carbohydrates58g
Fiber9g
Sugar8g
Protein17g

Chicken Parmesan Wrap Recipe

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Recipe Yield: 1 serving

Equipment Needed

  • Camping flexible chopping mat 
  • Bowl 

Ingredients

  • 1 10-inches (25.4 cm) spinach tortilla wrap
  • ½ cup cooked shredded cold chicken
  • 2 tbsp. prepared ranch salad dressing
  • 2 tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • ½ Roma tomato (thinly sliced)
  • 2 leaves Romaine lettuce

Instructions

  1. Lay out the tortilla wrap and spread the chicken on top.
  2. In a bowl, mix ranch dressing and Parmesan cheese. Spread over chicken.
  3. Top with tomato slices and lettuce leaves.
  4. Roll the wrap up tightly, cut in half on the diagonal, and serve.

Nutritional Information Table

Fat26g
Sodium872 mg
Calories534kcal
Saturated fat 6g
Fiber3g
Carbohydrates46g
Polyunsaturated fat18g
Sugar3g
Protein27g
Cholesterol68 mg

BLT Camping Wraps Recipe

Prep Time: 3-5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 18-20 minutes
Recipe Yield: 1-2 servings

Equipment Needed

  • Camping flexible chopping mat 
  • Small bowl

Ingredients

  • 3 thick bacon slices, fried and chopped
  • 6 tomatoes (sliced)
  • 2 tbsp. mayonnaise 
  • ¼ cup romaine lettuce
  • 1-2 10 inches (25.4 cm) tortilla wraps

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl, mix mayonnaise and bacon.
  2. Lay out the tortilla wrap and spread the mixture over it.
  3. Top with tomatoes and lettuce.
  4. Roll the wrap up tightly, cut in half (diagonally), and serve.

Nutritional Information

Fat37g
Sodium993 mg
Calories493 kcal
Saturated fat9g
Fiber6g
Carbohydrates23g
Polyunsaturated Fat26g
Sugar3g
Protein17g
Cholesterol46 mg

The Final Say

When it comes to camping, everyone needs to eat. Providing your campmates with food is much like sheltering them when in the wilderness.

People mustn’t go hungry, and they should support one another throughout their camping trip.

While you can purchase prepackaged food items, you may also enjoy making your meals independently. These easy lunch ideas for camping can help you get started in the right direction.

Try out one or all of these recipes on your next camping trip and see how much easier it is to have a good meal without having to spend hours preparing it. 

Bon appétit!

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