Nothing can ruin a picnic or camping trip faster than a food disaster: forgetting the plates or the salt or the forks, lukewarm drinks, or worse, lukewarm dishes of dubious bacterial content can turn an enjoyable outing into an ordeal. With some thought and planning, however, you can make your outdoor eating--and cooking--experience as stress-free as possible. The key is knowing which foods are best for what types of outings, preparing ahead of time as much as possible, and transporting and storing the food properly.
Considerations
Anytime you plan meals that are to be transported, then eaten outside, there are several things to consider to help you determine which foods to take: how long you will be gone, how far you are traveling and the weather. How and what you pack for a picnic that will only last a few hours and take 30 minutes to reach will differ profoundly from the type of food to pack for a week-long camping trip in another state. Fresh, perishable foods are best used when you're only traveling a short distance and staying a few hours. Long trips require more canned and dried goods, as well as frozen meal items packed into sturdy coolers. Both types of food are impacted by the weather, as any food exposed to warm air is more likely to harbor potentially harmful microorganisms faster.
Picnic Food
One of the advantages of picnics is that you can prepare practically any food you wish to take. It is much less difficult to transport than the food and supplies required for cooking while on a camping trip. The TLC website advises choosing a variation on perennially popular picnic staples, such as pasta salad, fried chicken, watermelon, deviled eggs, fruit salad or potato salad. FoodNetwork.com cautions that you should keep foods that should be served cold--such as traditional, mayonnaise-based potato salad--chilled, both while they are being transported and served. Likewise, hot dishes should be kept hot. Discard any uneaten food about an hour after serving. While that may seem wasteful, it is preferable to coming down with a salmonella infection.
Camping Foods
Camping food is, by necessity, different from the food for on a picnic. It's transported farther, stored longer and requires preparation and clean-up at the site. You'll want to prepare as much as possible at home, from measuring out ingredients into resealable bags and containers to preparing soups, stews or chilis and freezing them before packing them into coolers. In fact, freeze as much of your food as possible before you leave--meat, juice, jugs of water--to make the food last longer. The frozen food will also function as ice to keep other foods cold, saving space in the coolers.
Essential Supplies
For picnics, pack your food in an ice-filled cooler and bring an extra bag or basket with utensils, cups, plates, napkins, paper towels, moistened cleaning wipes and trash bags. Make sure you have plenty of water, condiments and a bottle opener or corkscrew, if needed. If you are camping, you'll need those supplies, along with aluminum foil, potholders, cooking utensils such as a spatula and wooden spoons, several knives, a can opener, matches or a lighter with a long handle and two skillets--one large and one small--as well as a large and a small saucepan. For cleanup, bring dish soap, a sponge or scrubbing brush, a large plastic dishpan and towels. The California State Park website recommends preparing a large box to hold camping food staples such as your favorite spices and herbs, salt and pepper, oil, sugar, instant dry milk and instant coffee or tea.
Warning
Every time food is consumed outside, particularly in warm weather, food spoilage, cross-contamination between raw and cooked foods and food poisoning is a concern, according to Weather.com. If you will be preparing raw meat, be sure you have access to a source of clean, potable water. Before transporting meat, wrap it securely so the juice does not contaminate other foods. Do not eat cold foods that have been allowed to warm or that were exposed to air for over an hour, or hot foods that have cooled for the same amount of time--bacteria proliferates at lukewarm temperatures.
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