Ideas For Camping Meals – Butter Chicken.

In the article we will cover two recipe ideas for camping meals, with butter chicken.

For cold nights or winter camping, buttered chicken is a hearty meal.  You can have it spicy or mild, with plenty of healthy vegetables in it as well.

The first recipe is easy, but does take a little bit longer to prepare and cook, but it is tasty and filling. All we have to do is cut up some vegetables, put some chicken pieces in and add some flavor.

The second recipe is quicker, but uses a tin. I know we are cheating and isn’t as authentic as the Indian takeaway restaurant, but hey, we are camping. We have less tools and ingredients with us, unless we are cooking in a RV.

Also time is a factor in most cases when camping, especially if we are out fishing most of the day. Or perhaps going for trail walks with the family while camping. So preparing minimal ingredients and taking some time saving shortcuts, might be the way to go to get the most out of your outdoor adventure.

Regardless of what we are doing when camping, here are the easy recipes.

Easy buttered chicken recipe for camping.

The first recipe will serve a family of four.

For the ingredients, you will need:

1. Chicken drumsticks. For the amount, it will depend on how hungry the campers are. I calculate around three drumsticks for on adult. And about two each for the children, depending on their age. So for a family of four, you might get around ten drumsticks. (You could also use diced boneless chicken breast or thighs. Which would be quicker to cook as well.)
2. Two carrots.
3. Onion.
4. Cauliflower. Around a quarter to half a head of cauliflower.
5. Broccoli. A quarter of a head.
6. Butternut squash / Pumpkin. About a quarter of a full one. (You could also use sweet potatoes instead.)
7. Two jars or packets of butter chicken sauce.
8. Two packets of instant rice.

 

How to cook it.

The time it takes to cook will depend on the method you use. For this camping recipe I am going to use a stockpot with a portable gas camping stove.

The stockpot I am using is lighter than the Dutch oven, (Heavy cast iron camp oven.) but thick enough to hold some heat in.

Depending on the type of cooking method you use, allow around 1 ½ hour to 2 hours for cooking.

You could use a skillet or pan and fry, or stir-fry the ingredients. If you use diced chicken pieces you can really cut the cooking time down a lot.

1. Place chicken legs into a stockpot, with a little bit of oil and start cooking.
2. Chop up vegetables. Dice and slice the carrot, onion, broccoli, butternut squash and cauliflower.
3. If you are using the stockpot method, after about 40 minutes or so, add the vegetables.
4. When the chicken and vegetables are cooked add the simmer sauce and instant rice.
5. Stir and monitor until the sauce and instant rice is cooked.
6. Serve and enjoy!

Camping cooking tips for butter chicken.

You can use mixed chicken pieces, such as wings and legs, rather than just chicken drumstick legs.

(Or substitute the chicken for lamb or goat. While it is not as popular in North America as some other countries, goat has an amazing taste. Some people say it is similar to lamb. Roasted curry goat cooked in the Dutch oven is amazing.)

Instead of the packets of instant rice, you can put 1 cup of rice in with the chicken. Cover the rice with some water or chicken stock. After the chicken is cooked, the rice will be cooked as well. Just make sure you have enough liquid so the rice can absorb it.

Use any vegetables of your choice. Cut then into smaller cubes or strips to save time cooking.

Peas and beans also go well with this recipe. For car camping or in the RV, a can of peas or beans is also easy to take.

My daughter is growing sugar snap peas in the garden at the moment and they go nicely with recipes like curries and butter chicken. For camping, the kids just eat them as a snack by themselves.

Zucchini is another healthy ingredient to add or use as a substitute to another.

Have the veggies pre-cut at home. If they are fresh vegetables, you can place then into snap lock bog portions and freeze them.

Save time. – If you are staying a few nights camping, you might have pre-cut the exact same vegetables. For example you might have three bags of cut up vegetables. Each bag contains a mix of carrot, broccoli, potato and onion. You might freeze these bags or two of them. When you are camping you use the first bag for one meal. The second night you have a different flavor meal and meat, but use the frozen bag of mix vegetables. The third night you have a different meat and flavor, but use the mix of veggies again.

To save extra time, use a bag of brought frozen vegetables.

If you have a limited size pot, cook the rice in another pot. You don’t have to use instant rice, but is saves boiling up rice, when you can just place the packets in the pot with all the ingredients.

Use mash potato or instant Deb potato instead of the rice. The instant potato goes well with the rich sauce and flavor.

Naan bread or flat breads also go well with this dish. Especially for mopping up the juices and sauce.

The good thing about this recipe is that it is so versatile, you can cook this meal in a variety of ways. Like a hot pot, Dutch oven, Billy pot, large skillet or fry pan. You can use a portable gas cooker, campfire or in a firepit.  See Ways To Cook While Camping for more information on different methods.

If you use a Dutch camp oven, make sure you place the coals evenly around it and also on top of the lid. A shovel makes moving the coals so much easier for the campfire. For some tips and ideas visit, Campfire Cooking Tips.

For some easy camping recipes, click on Ideas For Camping Meals.

 

The quick buttered chicken for camping recipe. The tin can option or packet.

If you don’t feel like taking the vegetables camping, or haven’t got room, or you just want a quick meal for camping, but still have your heart set on buttered chicken, then here is another way. Canned butter chicken or a packet. Yeah I know, it isn’t quite as good or maybe as healthy as the above recipe, but it is easy and quick.

To make it healthier and some additional pre-cut vegetables from home. Or use a frozen bag of vegetables to go with it.

 

Quick buttered chicken recipe for camping.

This recipe is for two people, or for one hungry camper. It should only take around 10 minutes to heat it up, depending on your cooking method.

Ingredients: A tin of buttered chicken and pack of instant rice.

1. Open one can and put into a fry-pan or skillet.
2. Add some quick rice into the pan.
3. Optional, add the extra vegetables. (Like a handful of spinach.)
4. Stir until hot and serve.

You can also use a Billy pot or a steel nesting cup to cook it in. A backpacking canister stove, like a JetBoil stove,  hexamine stove or spirit stove, might be used to cook it.

For the hardcore camper or bushcrafter who doesn’t like dishes, just cook the open can in the campfire. Heat it up with occasionally stirring and eat straight from the tin. Be careful you don’t burn yourself.

Food for thought. – Tin canned food for backpacking is normally too heavy to carry any long distance. However, if you are on a short hike, one meal of canned food might be an option. As here is the thinking, you use the can the very first day for the first hot meal. For a lot of meals you need a certain amount of water to cook the dehydrated or freeze dried meal anyway, so the liquid in the can, replaces that extra liquid weight.

Obviously it is not for the long distance hiker, but for short legs not far from the car when camping, canned food might have some merit for some backpackers.

You can also use Ramen noodles for the recipe instead of the quick rice.

 

 

FAQ. How do you make butter chicken less spicy?

I love my spicy food, however when camping with the children, a lot of time there has to be a compromise.

Fortunately for the kids, the butter chicken jars, sauce packs and tins are normally mild.

However, some brands can pack a hot punch, so we can add some milk or sour cream to reduce the heat. (A couple of cartons of long life milk in the camping pantry is useful to have anyway.)

For a healthier way to reduce the spice, add some Greek yogurt. Rice, butter chicken and Greek yogurt go very nice together.

 

Conclusion. – Ideas for camping meals, Butter chicken.

The smell is amazing when dishing up the recipe. While writing this, all I want for dinner tonight is…you guessed it, butter chicken.

For camping I love the versatility of cooking, you have so many methods you can choose.

From the hiking meals on the backpacking stoves, to the open campfire or even the stove in the RV, there are so many ways to cook the camp meals. And the butter chicken goes so well with a lot of those cooking methods and is a hearty meal after a long day exploring the outdoors.

I hope you enjoy this recipe.