cooking in Elk camp

[SandyRiverFisher]

Well, time to get ready for Elk hunting around my house. Going next weekend to Heppner. Anyway, I got a new cast iron cookset as a gift and have been looking for recipes. Seems to me like most Ive found were concieved by someone whos never experienced elk camp, so I figured I'd ask some of you out there what your favorite camp meals are. Any ideas?

[6wapiti6]

Lets see, we've had seafood gumbo, stuffed porkchops, taco night, spaghetti and meatballs, home made chilli with fresh cornbread, and hot peach cobler. We don't always kill animals, but not to many can compete with our camp chef!

[Bait O' Eggs]

I have one of those Coleman ovens that you can set on your stove, we put it on the wood stove and have baked, pumpkin pie, several variety of berry cobblers, ....

This year I took a BBQ and we had halibut one night, salmon fillet the next night, tuna loin the next, ..... it was a seafood kind of season for us.

but usually it is a hot dog, or a hamburger maybe a cold sandwich, cold pork and beans, you get the idea... :tongue:

[ 10-31-2003, 09:39 AM: Message edited by: Bait O' Eggs ]

[Old Coot]

What's in the cookset? Skillet and Dutch Oven?
Where, generally, are you going hunting?

[ 10-31-2003, 09:45 AM: Message edited by: Old Coot ]

[Norm]

Quick chicken and dumplings

1 whole canned precooked chicken ( Or fresh grouse thats pre boiled)
2 cans chicken and rice soup
1 cup instant rice
2 cups of veggies(peas & carrots)
4 cups water
1 tube of ready to cook biscuts.

Throw everything into the pot except the biscuts, bring to a boil then simmer for ten minutes. Throw the biscuts on the top, cover for 15 minutes and serve.

[Grits]

1. Elk heart cut up and fried with some onions.
2. Elk liver cut up and fried with some onions.

Repeat steps one and two until tagged out. Anything else and you should be out hunting instead of in camp cooking.

[Old Coot]

Spaghetti for a Cold Night

1.5-2 lbs bulk hot italian sausage
2-6 cloves fresh garlic depending on companions
1 large onion
Large double handful of fresh store-bought mushrooms (Ain't nobody gonna die of mushroom poisoning in MY camp)
1 carrot
3 or 4 packages spaghetti sauce mix - cheapest you can find.
1 small can tomato paste
4 303 sized cans tomato sauce
Wedge Frigo parmesan cheese.
Olive oil or butter

Cook sausage, drain well away from camp to avoid drawing yellowjackets and sasquatch, set aside.

Cut and discard dry stems ends from shrooms, slice, saute in large skillet with scant amount oil/butter. About time liquid has evaporated, add the onion, chopped, and enough additional oil/butter prevent sticking. Cook until onions are clear.

While onions are clarifying, thinly slice garlic. If companions are city folk, two cloves will do. If they are real hunters, about 4 to 6 is right.

When onions are about done, add back the sausage, add the garlic, add can of tomato paste and first two cans of tomato sauce. Stir, sprinkle on first two packages of spaghetti sauce seasoning mix. (Use the really cheap stuff, everything else is laced with sweeteners - yecchhh!) Mix together, let simmer for a few minutes. If you are east of the mountains, in sagebrush country, add in 6-8 crushed leaves from sagebrush. (It is not culinary sage, but still has a wonderful flavor.)

Now taste. From here on out, the sauce is art. Sample, add another envelope or two of seasoning mix if you like. Add more tomato sauce to your liking. The finished product should have the consistency of mortar or wet cement. This in NOT a thin runny sauce like you get from jars. A shot or two of good red wine will alter the flavor significantly, maybe for the better, depending upon your tastes. Let the sauce simmer while you cook the spaghetti, or fettucine or angel hair or whatever.

In a separate pot, cook up a package of pasta, adding oil to the water to keep the noodles from sticking to each other. Add the noodles AFTER the water is boiling. Drain, serve, with a trowel or two of the sauce atop the noodles. Grate the parmesan generously over the finished product. Do not confuse that roach powder in the cans with parmesan cheese. Despite the label, they are unrelated.

Note: Once you get your new cast-iron cookware seasoned, I suggest that you never scour it, nor use detergents in it. Clean it with hot water and elbow grease. If you have some resistant goo, try boiling a bit of water in the pot for a few moments. I scour stuck stuff out of a dry pan with some salt and a paper towel, then carefully get all the salt out and wipe down with a bit of oil. Have Fun!

[Small Fry]

Be sure you follow the direction as far as seasoning your new set. You can ruin some good recipes if you don't.

Good luck hunting and be safe. I heard from a buddy who is in the heppner unit this week. He said he has never seen so many hunters.

[Mtn Man]

Put a pound or two of cooked ground meat, a few cans of pork & beans, a package of dry onion soup mix and a squeeze of musturd in a dutch oven. Mix. Set it near/in the fire for about 10 min. Remove the lid, place some packaged biscuits on top of mixture. replace lid. Cover top of dutch oven with coals. check after 10 min. cook to desired texture.

Good Eats.

MM

[Hookset]

I remember those days.......3 burner stove, 1 or 2 five gallon bottle of propane, a box for pots and pans, cooking untensils, eating utensils, plates, spices, baggies/plastic wrap/aluminum foil, sturdy tabels and coolers....at least 2, sometimes 4 just for food. After completely filling the back of the truck, we often wondered how we'd get an elk or two home. Then after a long day hiking we'd debate and joke about who's turn it was to cook. And nobody ever wanted to cleanup after dinner. Wonder why? Time was also a factor since dinner and cleanup could consume a couple precious hours that should have been used to catch up on sleep.

After a week or 2 of hunting I've often said I needed a vacation from my vacation. I would be so worn out.

Oh yah, were am I going with this.....I found a really simple answer for the formerly mentioned scenario and a great camp recipe.

It's all in the bag. These days we use freeze dried meals. Two or one cup of boiling water, add 10 minutes and dinner is served. Using a small stove (often just a back packing stove), 1 light weight pan and spoon are all that's required for cooking and eating. The freeze dried selection is great and I can honestly say, I enjoy them and these meals are completely satisfying. And what's really neat, it's like smorgasboard, everyone can have something different. Cleanup is a snap, the bag goes in the trash and you wash your own spoon.

Ok, I know, this isn't a recipe, but it's camp food.

Ok, how about this....

1 pound ground beef
1 small onion
1 can red kidney beans
1 can stewed tomatoes

Brown meat, add chili powder to taste, add onions, drain fat. Then add beans and tomatoes, bring to boil for 2 minutes and remove from heat. Serves 2 unless your really hungry.

[nerta]

OK! Favorite elk camp breakfast. Feeds three or four. Peel potatoes five to ten depending on their size. Start frying in the 2" deep frying pan. Add one med. onion or more if you like onions. Use the 4" deep chicken frier skillet to Brown 1 lb. sausage. Drain most of the grease from the sausage when browned.. Make gravey from the sausage and remaining grease. Fry or scramble eggs to your liking and serve with sausage gravy and potatoes. Don't forget the tabasco sause for a little flavor at the table. This will stick with you for most of the day. This is the staple meal at all of our hunting camps. It's good...... :grin:

[Day Late]

I'm the old guy with the trailer, so over the years I've become the cook by default. I like to hunt too, so coming back at dark and then starting dinner is something I don't relish. A few years ago we started a dinner system wherein each hunter brings his share of prepared dinners, i.e., 3 hunters and 6 nights means each brings 2 dinners that are precooked and frozen in an aluminum deep dish. Defrost during the day, slap in the oven when you get back, enjoy your drink, have somebody make salads, etc tell some lies and then eat!! We have had some wonderful dishes this way and believe me, nobody goes to bed hungry. :smile: Just some food for thought! :grin:

Day Late

[Leatherneck]

I have to agree with 6wapiti6 about our camp cook, he kick's butt. He cook's the evening meals and we clean the dishe's up. My vote goes to the seafood gumboo. A close second would be the blackberry colbler on hot coals. Looking forward to next year's trip to the Starkey experimentation forest

The best elk camp cooking (sorry Nerta) that I have ever had involved a chain saw. It was MANY YEARS AGO, before I moved to Alaska.

Nerta and me were setting up camp NE of Sumpter in the Deer Creek area when an older couple pulled their motor home up about 50 yards from us. The man got in a truck and headed back to Powder River. We had over a cord of wood cut and we went over and offered the woman some wood. She said “Why yes young men” (it was a long time ago). Well that evening she came over with dinner and a fresh apple pie. The entire season we didn’t have to do any cooking and we gained weight.

[Norski]

This year for pre open night we hade BBQ burgers

2nd night we hade BBQ pork steak.

3rd night we hade BBQ rib steak

Potato saled

rolls

apple pie

and after dinner Hot Toddies

and we went 7 for 7 deer.

It helps when you camp in trailers.

[SandyRiverFisher]

Thanks for the recipes guys! I think Ill give a few of those a try. My cookset is all seasoned and ready to go. Dutch oven, a couple of skillets, a griddle that fits over the camstove. Even though its a pain in the ass I love cooking outside and I believe that good food makes the experience more enjoyable. Hey Grits, I suggested your idea last year. I was the only one interested in eating elk heart. Anyhow, im not sure what area we'll hunt for sure, old coot. We hit the divide well/potamus area last year first season with hair tags. Saw not a bull one, but nailed two cows on the 030 road. I dont have any high expectations this season but to get out in the woods with my dad and some good buddies. Maybe we'll use the second season as an opportunity to scout the area a bit more. Hope its not too crowded, last year wasn't too bad, especially not for those of us willing to walk of road a ways. What area was your buddy hunting last week, small fry? Anyhow, thanks for the ideas guys, they'll be put to good use!

SRF,
Keep in mind what Nerta said in his email. We usualy have coffee on.