Cooking at the campsite. Which cooker to choose?

When going on vacation in a motorhome, caravan or camping, we must take into account the necessity to prepare meals. It does not have to be an unpleasant duty, as long as we have the right equipment - especially a stove.

The offer is very wide. We advise you on what to consider when choosing a cooker to find a solution tailored to your needs.

Define your needs

Some people say that they do not go on vacation to “stand by the pots”. However, hardly anyone can afford a restaurant full service in the 2 + 2 variant, three times a day for several weeks.

The more so when we dream of a trip to the wild Bieszczady, and the use of freeze-dried pickles seems not a very tasty option in the long run. There is no other way. You need cooking equipment. But what's the best way to do it?

The most important question you need to ask yourself at the beginning of your culinary adventure is: how and what will I cook? A backpacker who will spend most of his time on the trail needs a different solution, another camper fan who is not afraid of the heavy weight of the equipment, and yet another cheerful family who will spend their holidays in one place, on a fully equipped plot.

So where to start?

The first option is a burner cartridge. A cartridge is simply a lightweight, disposable propane-butane gas container. Perfect for trails, irreplaceable due to its portability and low weight. It comes in various capacities, so you can take several of them for a longer trip. Minuses? It does not work for a large family (or even a small one) due to its short operating time. You won't cook a two-course dinner on it. And when the gas is used up, e.g. in the wild, you will have to deal with it on your own. However, they are easy to use and give a strong flame. You don't have to worry about their availability either. You can buy them in practically every tourist shop. There are several types on the market:

- screwed - with a thread, screwed to the burner. They are equipped with self-sealing automatic valves. They close the gas outflow after unscrewing the canister from the burner, so we can connect and disconnect the cartridge with the stove whenever the need arises.

- easyclick - attached. In terms of convenience and safety, EasyClic can be compared to models with screw-on valves.

- pierced - by a suitable type of burner. Currently, they are equipped with a special system that allows the cartridge to close spontaneously. Less and less popular.

How does it work in practice? We simply attach a burner with a special adapter to the cartridges. This solution will work during a short mountain trip as an additional source of energy for cooking. It is worth noting that the cartouches cannot be transported on the plane, so if you dream of camping in Spain, you will have to buy a cartouche on the spot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQAWMemXSj4&feature=emb_logo

When the appetite grows

You can also connect a single-burner stove to the cartouche. It is light and has a small size. Perfect for a backpack. The cooking time for 1 liter of water is from 3 to 12 minutes (depending on weather conditions and model). Thanks to the often folded serrated arms, the vessel stands very stable on such a cooker. It looks like an ordinary stove.

Some of them have a bottom closed in a way that protects against sand and dust, if we happen to cook on the ground. We can successfully take her on a trip. An example would be the Campingaz Camp Bistro 2 cooker.

The disadvantage of a one-burner cooker is that it limits the possibility of preparing several dishes at the same time. It requires the use of cartridges, so for a longer trip you should equip yourself with a few. However, it will work very well during "road trips" around campsites, when we are traveling and packing often. Something for mobile camping fans.

The two-burner stove is connected to a classic gas cylinder and closed at the top. Perhaps you know this type of stove from your own home. You can easily prepare the entire dinner on it, e.g. fry meat and cook potatoes. What's more, you can easily put it outside and prepare a meal there in all conditions, thanks to the windbreaks.

Depending on the model, cookers have different performance. For comparison, Campingaz Kitchen 2 uses approx. 291g of gas / hour. a Campingaz 400 S , 155 g / hr.

What are the advantages of such cookers? They are easy to keep clean. Thanks to folding elements and cover. They can be conveniently transported and do not take up much space in the car. Of course, you probably won't take them on a mountain climb, unless you value good cuisine and don't avoid heavy loads;).

For those who do not agree to compromise

For true fans of camping cooking, who want to try the regional cuisine "live" and cannot imagine a day without a good dinner, we recommend portable grills . According to the research of the Warsaw University of Technology, the healthiest will be those powered by gas [1] . Thanks to them, you can prepare a variety of dishes, from paella to pizza. The Party Grill is perfect for short trips with friends. It is light, cartridge-powered and offers a great variety of cooking options.

What if you're looking for something bigger? Barbecue for a motorhome that will "feed" the whole family? A table grill will be an interesting proposition.

It works both as a grill, oven, pizza oven and cooker. All you need to do is remove the internal grate and replace it with one of the accessories, e.g. a pizza stone or paella pans. Devices such as the Grill Attitude 2100 LX have an integrated thermometer that will allow you to track the temperature inside the grill.

After you finish grilling, you can easily disassemble it and wash it in the dishwasher. The perfect solution for people going camping or camping. And most importantly: the grill does not "spread" the smells characteristic of this form of heat treatment. You can even use it on the balcony.

Remember to choose cooking devices that suit your needs and preferences. Each of the above-mentioned has its own advantages and disadvantages. The choice is yours.

[1] https://zywanie.abczdrowie.pl/grillowanie-nie-takie-zdrowe-naj Most-bezpieczwien-dla-zdrowia-grille-weglowe