24 Great Food Ideas for a Camping Party

Planning a camping party can be overwhelming when you don’t know what you’re going to serve. That’s why you should figure out the best options for your camping party food before you head into the woods. If you’re a little stuck, consider some of these food ideas for your camping party.

How to calculate how much food to buy for a camping party

To ensure you’ll have enough food for the camping party, consider the following:

1. Count how many guests will be attending the camping trip.
2. Take into account food allergies/restrictions that campers may have. Make sure not to bring any foods that some guests may have reactions to.
3. Plan for the “one pound rule,” or the idea of providing one pound of food for each adult guest (not including drinks or dessert) per meal. You may also want to take into account people wanting seconds (or thirds) depending on your guests are strenuous activities such as hiking you may be doing during the day.

Make sure to take your time with this. You want to make sure you have all the food you need. After all, you can’t just run to the store and grab more once you’re in your secluded campsite.

Camping party breakfast food ideas

Need some ideas for breakfast for your camping party? Here are a few simple yet delicious meals you can prepare quickly outdoors.

1. Camp breakfast in a skillet

Making breakfast while camping outdoors can prove to be difficult without the right tools. As long as you’ve got eggs, potatoes, and bacon, you can throw it all in a skillet, and boom! Breakfast.

2. Cowboy casserole

These bad boys are made with beef, bacon, and beans on a bun. It’s the ultimate meat trifecta, and your camping party goers will go wild for it.

3. Chicken and chorizo chili

Do away with plain old chili and try this chicken and chorizo chili. You’ll need onions, garlic, a red bell pepper, black beans, white beans, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, a bottle or can of beer, chicken stock, tomato paste, salt, ground cumin, chili powder, ground chicken, extra-virgin olive oil, and chopped chorizo sausage.

4. Killer bacon-cheese dogs

Everyone can make a quick and easy meal for themselves over a campfire; killer bacon-cheese dogs taste great. Pair savory bacon with creamy swiss cheese and sweet barbecue sauce for a flavor combination you’ll love.

5. Omelet in a bag

Didn’t think you could prepare an omelet outdoors? Much less in a bag, right? Well, you can, and it’s a great way to get a high-protein breakfast in before an early-morning hike.

6. Breakfast burritos

Grill up some of your favorite breakfast foods, such as eggs, bacon, and potatoes, and wrap them into a burrito. You can even take it on the go on your morning hike or a trip to the hot springs.

7. Bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich

There are so many ways to do your favorite breakfast staples at your camping party. A simple bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on a roll (or even on toast) can be an effective way to feed your partygoers.

8. Dutch oven mountain man breakfast

Another option for breakfast is easy to make over an open fire. You’ll need chopped onion, milk pork sausage, a red bell pepper, a clove of garlic, a green bell pepper, eggs, cheddar cheese, and frozen shredded hash brown potatoes.

Camping party lunch food ideas

Throwing a camping party doesn’t mean you have to spend a lot of money on food. These affordable ideas can help you feed your small army even on a budget.

9. Pigs in a “sleeping bag”

Instead of pigs in a blanket, try a twist on an old saying and call ‘em pigs in a sleeping bag. Your party guests will get a kick out of that, especially if they’re under the age of 8.

10. Taquitos roll “campfire logs”

Rather than taquitos rolls, call them campfire logs. It’s a cute idea for a kid’s campfire party that’s sure to be a big hit.

11. Summer corn chowder

When corn Is in season, fresh summer corn chowder can be an easy meal to prepare in a dutch oven while camping. Throw in some potatoes and peppers, and you’ve got a rich, creamy chowder.

12. Backpackers’ Thai noodles

Noodles are always easy to take and make on the go. so get yourself some backpackers’ Thai noodles with freeze-dried veggies (and cook them in peanut sauce). All you need to prepare them is boiling water.

13. Grilled sausage with potatoes and green beans

Want a succulent, flavorful meal that’s easy to prepare? Grilled sausage with potatoes and green beans can be cooked with just aluminum foil and a grill. Make sure to spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray.

14. Camp soup

After a long day of hiking, your campers will be grateful for this delicious, healthy camp soup. Throw your ingredients, such as carrots, cabbage, green beans, and potatoes, into one pot and heat it.

15. Campfire pepperoni pizza

Grab a few frozen pizzas and some of your favorite toppings before you head out to your camping party. Cook them over a wood fire for a slightly different taste than you’re used to.

16. Campfire chicken pot pie

For this meal, you’ll only need four ingredients: a can of biscuit dough, a can of creamy chicken soup, chicken breasts, and a can of cream of mushroom soup. All of this, and you’ll be able to make a campfire chicken pot pie quickly and pretty easily.

17. Scalloped potatoes

Roast your scalloped potatoes over a fire and serve them as a side dish with a topping of melted cheese or crispy bacon. You’ll have an easy campfire meal in minutes.

18. Tin foil delight

This meal is easy to make with only four ingredients and requires minimal cleanup (if any). You’ll need an onion, baby carrots, ground beef or fish, and potatoes. Throw it all into some foil, and you’ve got a delicious meal.

Camping party dinner food ideas

Dinnertime means it’s time to fill some bellies with something heavy to keep them through the night. Stews, potatoes, and pasta are always good options.

19. Pasta with clam sauce

Who says pasta with clam sauce has to be fancy? Cook up some linguine and throw in some sliced mushrooms, chopped clams, and old bay-infused sauce, and you’ve got a delectable meal everyone will gobble right up.

20. Catfish stew

Going to be catching some catfish? Make it into a meal by making some catfish stew in a pot or pan. You’ll want to make sure you’ve got the following on hand: bacon, chopped onion, tomatoes with liquid, tomato sauce, diced potatoes, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, salt and pepper, and catfish.

21. Earth, sea, and fire salmon

Another meal that can be prepared with aluminum foil, earth, sea, and fire salmon can be an easy-to-prepare yet hard-to-forget meal. The ultimate campfire meal consists of wild-caught salmon, potatoes, and veggies.

22. Beer batter fish

Make this tasty fish dish with buttermilk pancake mix and pour it over freshly caught fish for a quick and easy camping party dinner. Pair it with veggies or rice.

23. Campfire potatoes

Great for a camping trip or camping party, baked potatoes are easy to prepare. You just heat them and pop on whatever toppings you’d like (chives, sour cream, etc.).

24. S’mores

After dinner, it’s always customary to make s’mores by the campfire, so don’t forget your marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers. Gather everyone around the campfire for this tasty treat.

Choosing the best food for your campfire party

Now that you’ve got some ideas up your sleeve for pulling off the perfect camping party meals, you can start planning what you’ll actually make. And then you can start shopping for everything you need. Make it even easier by getting your ingredients delivered with Instacart before you leave for your trip. Simply choose same-day delivery at checkout.

Instacart

Instacart is the leading grocery technology company in North America, partnering with more than 1,400 national, regional, and local retail banners to deliver from more than 80,000 stores across more than 14,000 cities in North America. To read more Instacart posts, you can browse the company blog or search by keyword using the search bar at the top of the page.