50 Easy No Cook Camping Meals and Food Ideas
Cooking can be a fun and enjoyable part of camping, but we know that sometimes cooking meals when you're camping can feel like a real chore - especially when you’d much rather be hiking, reading a good book in the hammock by the river, or relaxing by the campfire and enjoying the sounds of nature.
While our No Fridge Camping Food Ideas and No Stress 60 Easy Camping Meals can really help you simplify your packing and food prep for camping, in this guide we’ve rounded up 50 of our favorite No Cook Camping Meals so you can skip the cooking all together - and spend more time enjoying the outdoors!
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No Cook Camping Breakfast Foods
Hard Boiled Egg Breakfast Sandwiches - dice or slice up hard boiled eggs on bread and top with some sliced ham or pre-cooked bacon and cheese for an easy no-cook breakfast sandwich
Yogurt with Fruit, Nuts, and Granola - 2G Vanilla Yogurt or Nonfat Greek Vanilla Yogurt, topped with fruit, granola, nuts, chia seeds and hemp hearts makes for a delicious and healthy no cook camping breakfast
Oatmeal - we always keep a handful of Quaker Instant Oat Packets* in our camping food pantry because they’re SO easy, but when we travel we pre-make homemade “instant oats” because they're healthier and delicious! Here’s our favorite recipe:
Ingredients (combine in individual zip top sandwich bag for 1 serving):
⅓ cup quick cook rolled oats
1 tsp ground flaxseed
2 tsp oat bran
2 tsp powdered milk
1-3tsp brown sugar (or other preferred sweetener)
1/8 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
Your choice of add-ons:
Dried or freeze dried fruit (dried cherries are our favorite)
Chopped nuts (slivered almonds, and pecans are a staple)
Powdered peanut butter, cocoa powder, or instant espresso powder
At Camp: Just add ½-⅔ cup of boiling water and let it sit 3-5 min before stirring and enjoying, OR add cold water and leave it set overnight for easy “overnight oats” that’ll be ready and waiting in the morning!
Banana Split Breakfast Bowl - cut banana with greek vanilla yogurt, nuts, dark chocolate chips, coconut flakes, and - of course - a cherry on top!
Easy Pre-Baked Goods - support your local baker or coffee shop and pickup some muffins, scones, or croissants to take along on your camping trip
Bagged Donuts - these powdered sugar or chocolate covered donuts won’t win any healthy-eating awards, but they are an easy and delicious no cook breakfast while camping (our personal favorite is dunking the powdered sugar donuts in a delicious cup of camping coffee)
Bagels & Cream Cheese - bagels and cream cheese is such a simple and delicious breakfast while camping, top with fruit or a specialty flavored cream cheese to add some variation
Mini Breakfast Quiche (aka Egg Muffins) - these are a super tasty no cook camping meal you can prepare a couple days in advance of your trip, this is a great recipe that we’ve really enjoyed (optionally, you can wrap them in some tin foil and warm them by the campfire if you have one going on a chilly morning)
Breakfast Rice Cakes - by taking an otherwise mundane rice cake and adding some peanut or almond butter, some banana or strawberry slices, and a little honey you can create a delicious and easy no-cook breakfast at camp that the kiddos will really enjoy. Alternatively you can top the rice cake with a bit of fresh avocado for an avocado toast alternative.
Classic Milk and Cereal - fast, easy, and delicious and you can pack evaporated or powdered milk to mix with water if you’re hoping to save room in the cooler
Breakfast Pizza - So simple! Just naan flatbread with a vanilla greek yogurt, nutella, or peanut butter spread (“sauce”) and top with sliced fruit, berries, and nuts.
No Cook Camping Lunch Meals
Easy BLTs - you can either save some precooked bacon from home or buy a package of precooked bacon*, then add lettuce, tomato, and condiments for a fast and easy no cook camp meal
DIY “Lunchables” - while you can pick up some store-bought lunchables before you go - we prefer the healthier DIY alternative. Just grab some divided food storage containers* and pack them with cheese slices, crackers, fruits (grapes, blueberries, pineapple, strawberries), nuts, veggies (celery, carrots, sliced peppers, fresh broccoli), and dips (hummus, ranch, or some chick-fil-a sauce). The sky’s the limit! And it’s super easy if you pre-pack them before your trip.
Camping Charcuterie Board - this is a classic - slice up some summer sausage, a variety of cheeses, some prosciutto, stuffed green olives…Wala! An easy no cook camping lunch (that pairs great with a glass of wine).
Tuna and Crackers - we always carry some tuna, chicken salad, and barbeque pork packets in our camp kitchen, to add to crackers as a super simple no cook camp lunch that’s easy to take on hike too. Pair with an apple and cheese stick to complete the meal
Easy Tuna Salad Sandwiches - this is a staple for our family, just pickup a variety pack of the Starkist Tuna Creations* and you have a super fast, easy, and fun way to make a variety of tasty tuna sandwiches! You can keep it simple with bread, cheese, and mayo - or pile on the fresh veggies and spinach for a more deluxe tuna sandwich.
Chicken Salad Sandwiches - Similar to the tuna salad, Starkist makes Chicken Creations* packets too! You can jazz it up with mayo, sliced grapes, and walnuts or one of our favorite combos is the BBQ chicken with sharp cheddar cheese slices.
Cold Cut Sandwiches - there’s no more quintessential camping meal than the combination of bread, cold cuts, cheese, veggies, lettuce, mayo, mustard, or even a little hummus….YUM! Great for a quick bite at camp or on the trail!
Sandwich Wraps - fill tortillas with your favorite sandwich toppings, cold cuts, and substitute shredded cheese for slices - suddenly you’ve got a whole new no cook camping meal!
Sandwich Sliders - a fun twist on the standard sandwich theme, grab a package of hawaiian rolls, your favorite cold cuts (or sliced spam), cheese, and condiments and go to town!
Pinwheel Sandwiches - these are excellent for kids and adults alike, and SO GOOD - here’s our favorite method for making them while camping:
Mix together a softened package of cream cheese, about 3 Tbsp ranch dressing, and some (pre-packaged) bacon bits to your preference
Spread a thin layer onto one side of each tortilla (we prefer whole wheat) and sprinkle a little pepper to taste
On ⅓ of the tortilla, layer on sliced cheese (havarti or sharp cheddar), your favorite cold cuts (salami and turkey are our go-to), and spinach leaves
Then roll up the tortilla, starting from the topping-heavy side - this will allow the cream-cheese-only layer at the end to hold the roll together
Finally, slice the roll and serve!
Classic Peanut Butter and Jelly - doesn’t get easier than the good ‘ol PB&J sandwich, you can also mix things up a bit and use a variety of jellies* or nut butters (pecan, cashew, walnut, almond, hazelnut, even pistachio!)
No Cook Camping Meal Sides & Snacks
Snack Kabobs - snack kabobs are a fun no cook camping food! Lay out bowls filled with cubes of cheese, rolled up cold cuts or chunks of precooked chicken, sourdough or rye bread cubed, cherry tomatoes, veggies, and any fruit your family likes. Then let everyone assemble their own onto wooden skewers or little toothpicks.
Super Deluxe Trail Mix - there is nothing wrong with grabbing a bag of trailmix from the store for your outdoor adventure (or even combining several varieties into one!). But if you’re looking to cut costs or make it healthier this DIY trail mix is the way to go - just adjust the quantities of each to suit your preference:
Nuts: Almonds, pecans, cashews, walnuts, roasted peanuts
Dried Fruit: Cherries, cranberries, banana slices
Seeds: sunflower and pumpkin
Sweets: Dark chocolate chips and coconut flakes
Seasoning: None are Needed, it’s delicious as-is! But optionally: a well-mixed pinch of salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg can bring out the more subtle flavors from the other ingredients
Veggies and Hummus Dip - Grab some fresh broccoli, carrots, and sweet peppers and scope out the hummus section of your local grocer - you’ll likely find a plethora of delicious flavors and choices to choose from (honey jalapeno is a personal favorite).
Street Corn Salad with Chips - this is one of our all-time favorite camping side dishes; combine the following ingredients in a bowl (either at camp, or prior to leaving and toss in the cooler), serve with chips:
2 cans sweet corn (drained)
½ bell pepper chopped
½ red onion chopped
Chopped cilantro (½ cup)
6 green onions chopped
1 diced jalapeno pepper
1 avocado chopped
¼ cup lime juice
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons plain yogurt or sour cream
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
Optional: ½ cup feta cheese crumbles
Cold Veggetti Salad - combine Veggetti* Zucchini (1 to 2 is plenty for our family of four), ½ red onion sliced, diced red and yellow bell pepper, sliced olives, black beans, mix in 1 tbsp. salad supreme seasoning, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, parmesan cheese, and italian dressing. Mix and toss in the cooler to chill. So good!
Deviled Eggs or Egg Salad - buy premade to keep it simple or make some extra ahead of your camping trip - this deviled egg recipe is one of our favorites:
Boil 1 dozen eggs. peel and cut in half, remove yokes and combine with:
1 tsp yellow mustard
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp sweet cream butter
salt and pepper (to taste)
Spoon mixture back into egg whites
Top each deviled egg with another dash of McCormick’s Salad Supreme seasoning
Pasta Salad - this is an easy dish to grab on your way to camp form your local grocery store, most have tasty premade pasta salads in the deli section!
Coleslaw - coleslaw is an easy dish to throw together at camp, and you can pre-mix the dressing at home to simplify it even more. Just mix ½ cup mayo, 1.5 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar for the dressing and at camp toss with a 1lb bag of coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrot is standard, but some come with broccoli and kale too) prior to serving
Potato Salad - this is another easy dish to grab on your way to camp form your local grocery store, just pickup a premade potato salad from the deli section and toss it in your 12v camping fridge or cooler in route!
Cottage Cheese - make it savory or sweet by adding fruit like cantaloupe, pineapple, OR mini cucumber, olives, tomatoes, green onion, or pepper
No Cook Camping Dinners
No Cook Sloppy Joes - precooked or freeze dried ground beef* has a TON of uses for making no cook camping meals and DIY backpacking meals. One of our favorites is no-cook sloppy joes; just portion out (or rehydrate 1 cup in a gallon bag overnight) of ground beef, mix with 1 can sloppy joe mix*, and serve on hamburger buns.
Walking Tacos - Grab a package of your favorite chips in single serving bags (we like to use Doritos nacho cheese flavor*), crush up the chips in the bag and mix in some black beans, canned corn (drained), diced onion, lettuce, diced bell pepper, shredded cheese and top with a little sour cream, salsa, or hot sauce - for added protein you can mix in some canned tuna or chicken too!
Taco Salad / Protein bowl - Similar to the walking tacos, salad bowls are a great option for no cook camping dinners because they’re easy to throw together and can be customized to your liking. Start with a base of lettuce or spinach in a bowl, then add in toppings like black beans, canned corn, sliced olives, onion, bell pepper, and your favorite dressing or salsa. You can also add in some pre-cooked (or rehydrated freeze dried) ground beef, canned chicken, or tuna for an extra protein boost.
Tuna Bean and Tomato Salad - if you really want an easy no cook camping meal, you can grab some Starkist Barley Beans Tomato Basil SmartBowls packets* or you can make your own with this easy recipe
Stuffed Pitas - Pitas are a great way to jazz up the traditional sandwich experience, you can fill them with pepperonis, marinara sauce, and shredded mozzarella for an easy camping pizza pocket, or try this greek pita sandwich recipe* for a healthier no cook option.
No Cook Camping Pizzas - while we love a good campfire pizza, all you need to make a tasty no cook camping pizza is some naan or flatbread for the crust, pizza sauce packets (or squeeze bottle*), some shredded or sliced mozzarella cheese, and shelf-stable pepperoni slices. Our kids love it!
Salads - Store bought salad kits are a super easy no cook camping food that’s great for lunch or dinner. You can load them up with diced ham, shredded (pre-cooked) chicken, bacon bits, chopped hard boiled eggs, nuts, and seeds to make them super filling!
Bagels with Cream Cheese and Smoked Salmon - top onion bagels with cream cheese and smoked salmon* - Yum!
Canned Salmon - just open the can and dinner is served - we pair ours with ready-to-eat lentils* or black beans and a side salad
Cold Dogs - while hot dogs are a staple easy camping meal, if you grab a package of pre-cooked dogs or pre-cooked brats and buns from the grocery store you can skip the cooking part! And you can still enjoy doctoring them up with all your favorite condiments (relish, onion, mustard, ketchup, or even canned chili and shredded cheese for cold chili dogs)
No Cook Camping Desserts
Chocolate Chip Cookies - store bought if you’re feeling unmotivated, or - our personal favorite - is the super simple Tollhouse recipe premade at home and tossed in the camping pantry before leaving.
Oreos & Milk - it’s hard to beat the simplicity of this classic dessert while camping: oreos dunked in a glass of milk 🤤
Fruit Salad - any common fruit salad will make an excellent (and healthier) no cook camping dessert option, but we found this honey lime fruit salad recipe makes the perfect refreshing summer-time camping treat
Dessert Parfaits - 2g Vanilla Yogurt or Nonfat Greek Vanilla Yogurt, topped with chopped strawberries, graham cracker crumbles, mini marshmallows, and chocolate chips makes a delicious and (slightly) healthier no cook camping dessert
S’mores Rice Crispy Treats - top store-bought or pre-made homemade Rice Crispy Treats with hershey’s milk chocolate makes a super easy alternative to a traditional s’more
S’mores Cookies - we really enjoyed this s'mores cookie recipe, and they can be pre-made at home and packed for your camping trip to help satisfy your s’mores craving when a traditional campfire isn’t an option.
Nut Butter, Sliced Fruit, and Honey - break out the almond butter or nutella spread on a healthy seed or sprout bread, top with sliced bananas or strawberries, and drizzled with honey. Healthy and delicious!
Graham Cracker Sliders - top graham crackers with sliced fruit (strawberries are our favorite), and chocolate or marshmallow fluff
Now you have a TON of no cook camping meals and camping food ideas for your next camping trip or outdoor adventure, so you can spend less time cooking and more time relaxing!
And as always, thanks for reading!
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