A weekend in the great outdoors, a view of a glassy lake from your tent, waking up to the beautiful sounds of bird calls. It’s the picture of bliss until you remember that camping means camping food.
If the idea of chowing down dehydrated camping meals in foil packets makes you a less-than-happy camper, and you'd rather go hungry than endure yet another dry granola bar, you're not alone.
Like you, we prefer camping experiences that include delicious (yet easy-to-make) meals and toasted marshmallows by a crackling campfire. Roughing it out in the wilderness Bear Grylls and "Survivor" style? Not so much.
Hearty Camping Breakfast Ideas
Breakfast is an important way to start your day. (But don't just take our word for it — it’s a claim backed by science.) And even more so when you're camping. There are canoes to paddle, hikes to go on, and glassy lakes to swim in. For all those activities, you need energy. Lots of it.
Fortunately, camping breakfasts don't need to be boring. And since we're from the school of "fun and tasty don't have to be complicated,” we wouldn't even think about suggesting time-consuming gourmet camping recipes here.
Instead, be it DIY campfire breakfasts or something partially pre-prepared, we're here with some hearty, tasty, and easy camping breakfast recipes that will have you itching to go on your next camping trip. Here’s to eating in the great outdoors!
1. 5-Layer Dutch Oven Country Breakfast
Image: Happy Money Saver
This easy, savory, and hearty breakfast recipe may look a little fancy but it’s not. Simply layer your five ingredients in a Dutch oven, pop it on a chimney charcoal starter, and you’ll have a perfectly tasty breakfast in less than an hour.
The five layers in this recipe are ground sausage, hash browns, eggs, biscuits, and cheddar cheese — all of which can be pre-packaged in Ziplock bags and kept in the ice chest until mealtime. You can always play around with the ingredients and mix and match your favorites.
2. Quick and Easy Breakfast Burritos
Your choices for this breakfast burrito recipe are simple: Do you assemble them ahead of time and reheat when needed? Or do you bring the ingredients to your campsite and cook them up in the morning?
Whatever you decide, this is one camping breakfast idea you’ll fall back on time and time again. Simply cook the potatoes, sausage, and eggs in a cast-iron skillet, fry pan, or whatever cooking surface you prefer while camping. Then add in some cheese and wrap it all up in a tortilla. If you’re pre-making these burritos, simply wrap them with plastic wrap or foil and store them in an ice chest.
3. Camping Breakfast Sandwich
Image: The Adventure Bite
We know, we know. We said there wouldn't be any gourmet recipes in this camping breakfast list and yet here’s a recipe that includes pulled pork. But while it sounds quite fancy, let us assure you this little breakfast burger is anything but difficult to make.
You can choose to slow cook BBQ pulled pork over the campfire or prep the pulled pork at home and pack it. After that, place some English muffins on your cast iron skillet until they're browned and crispy, cook up some eggs, and stuff the ingredients between the two slices.
You can wrap the sammie in some tin foil and heat the entire thing on the grill for a few minutes. Before you know it, you’ll be indulging in sweet and smoky BBQ with drippy egg goodness.
4. Perfect Camping French Toast
Image: Fresh off the Grid
Don't worry, if your breakfast palette happens to run more sweet than savory, we've got covered with the easiest way to make French toast while camping.
Pick up your favorite loaf of bread and cut it into generous one-inch-thick slices. This will ensure the bread soaks up more of the egg-milk mixture, giving you a crispy outside without overcooking the inside. Top with some fresh blueberries or raspberries and maple syrup, and you have a camping breakfast fit for a king. Mmm, delish.
5. Rainbow Veggie Skewers
Image: Gimme Some Oven
If you're vegan or would like to up your intake of veggies, this colorful skewer recipe is just for you. The great thing about having skewers for breakfast is that it's so easy to clean up afterward because you don't use a bunch of cookware. In fact, you could even cook these skewers over the fire you already have going for a nice, smoky flavor.
These rainbow skewers are so lovely, we're pretty sure you won't be able to resist 'gramming them — if you get internet access, that is. Feel free to use any of your favorite veggies, just be sure they're all about the same size so they cook evenly. After all, nobody wants raw eggplant for breakfast.
6. Fully Baked Camp Omelet
Image: Which Car
Omelets are often tricky to make while camping because you can usually only make one serving at a time. But you don't have to worry with this supersized omelet recipe. Designed to serve four to six people, mix all the ingredients in a deep baking dish and pop it into your camp oven for 30 minutes. Breakfast is served.
7. Corn and Black Bean Tacos
Image: Dahlia Kitchen
Be careful: You may find an excuse to go camping just so you can try this delicious and super easy taco recipe. The beauty of this Mexican delight is that you can customize it any way you want by swapping the spices or toppings. This is a vegetarian recipe, but there's nothing stopping you from adding a little chicken, beef, or even caramelized onions.
Cereal School: A Convenient, Crunchy, and Filling Camping Breakfast
Let's be honest. When you go camping, you don’t necessarily want to be spending time planning or cooking breakfast. Yes, you want to eat, but you don’t want to write down an enormous shopping list for breakfast ingredients. There are canoes to tie to the car roof, sleeping bags to squish into their compact traveling pouches, and insect repellent to pack. Breakfast should be so simple it sorts itself out.
That’s where Cereal School comes in.
Each bag of delicious, crunchy cereal is a complete meal in itself, making it the simplest and most convenient camping breakfast ever. It also serves as a perfect high-protein snack to satisfy any afternoon munchies, or as an on-the-go breakfast whether you’re outdoors or at home.
What’s more, Cereal School will help you stick to your health goals. That's because there's absolutely zero sugar in our cereal. (Don't worry, it's still sweet. We just use monk fruit, a natural sweetener from Mother Nature.) It's partly why our cereal is a low-carb wonder at just one carb gram per serving.
Made with natural, non-GMO ingredients and no preservatives, there are also 16 grams of protein in each serving, ensuring you’ll be well-fueled for all your fun camping activities. You don't even need milk if you don't want to — you can eat it straight from the pack.
And since we ship straight to your door, all you need to do is put in your order so it arrives before you head for the great outdoors. We’ll ship straight to your door, but not your tent. (Our couriers are quite terrified of bears.)
