Beach camping is a great way to relax, access the sea, and be closer to a unique array of wildlife. One of the difficulties with beach camping is deciding what meals to eat, especially if you plan to be camping in hot temperatures where food can spoil easily. When planning your beach camping trip, you may ask what food you should plan to take.
Food ideas including wrapping meals in foil to cook on top of a campfire can be perfect for beach camping as they are mess-free and simple. These include fish fillets, potato packets, nachos, or corn on the cob. You can also take snacks like trail mix and popcorn that won’t spoil in the heat.
Below we’ve got 15 easy beach camping food ideas that will make your trip fuss-free and simple. Most of these meals are made up of 5 ingredients or less and can be partially prepared before your trip for even more convenience. They can also easily be adjusted for diets and tastes.
15 Beach Camping Food Ideas
Keep reading to explore 15 adaptable and easy-to-make beach camping food ideas!
1. Easy Fish Fillets
What’s a trip to the beach without some seafood? Fish fillets are a super simple meal to take beach camping. All you need is oil, some seasoning, and some foil.
You can make little parcels out of the foil, place the fish inside with the extras, wrap it up, and cook on an open fire.
You don’t need to worry about cutting up loads of ingredients, and you can easily serve the fish as it is or inside a sandwich.
2. Buttery Corn on the Cob
An easy beach camping food idea is buttery corn on the cob. With only two ingredients, cooking corn on the cob over an open fire is quick and delicious.
It’s ready in just 15 minutes. You just need some foil to wrap the corn and butter before placing it on a campfire. If you’re feeling fancy, mix the butter with some garlic beforehand for extra deliciousness.
3. Trail Mix
Deciding which snacks to take when camping on the beach can be tricky. You don’t want anything, for example, that’ll get spoilt in the heat like ripe fruit.
Trail mix is a great beach camping food idea. Ideally, you want a good mixture of nuts, dried fruit, granola, and seeds. You can buy pre-made trail mix or even make your own!
4. Versatile Potato Packets
Potato packets are versatile enough to make great breakfasts, lunches, or dinners.
Taking only 35 minutes with prep time, the simplest recipe is potatoes, oil, and herbs wrapped inside foil and cooked over a campfire for 30 minutes.
You can adapt the recipe to include sausage, vegetables, or cheese. The zero fuss for this dish makes it perfect for beach camping.
5. Chili Con Carne
Nothing beats a tasty chili after a long beach day; taking a pre-made batch can make it simple to cook in a jet boil or saucepan.
If you prefer to make it fresh, you can use canned ingredients that won’t spoil in the high temperatures at the beach. You can also make this dish vegan, using extra beans instead of mince.
6. Essential S’more’s
Camping without S’mores is a crime, so don’t forget them on your camping trip to the beach. Our only recommendation is to keep the chocolate in a shaded, cool spot where it won’t melt.
This may be difficult at the beach, but you can freeze the chocolate before you set out and keep it in your cool box. This way, it’ll also keep other items cool.
7. Nachos
Nachos are a fun meal to enjoy at the beach, but they can get a bit messy. To make things easier, you can pack the chips, cheese, and any extras you fancy into foil packets and cook them on a campfire.
This is a great beach camping recipe with zero clean-up, especially for families. It’ll make it easier to keep any swooping seagulls at bay!
8. Burgers
A trip to the beach isn’t complete without a BBQ, and burgers are essential to any beach cookout. This food idea is simple and easy, so you don’t have to worry about prep beforehand.
Choose from meaty beef, herby sweet potato, or fresh cod burgers. Make sure you pack a grill if you’re likely to cook on a campfire.
9. Sizzling Skewers
Skewers are another great BBQ essential for your beach camping adventure.
Easy to customize with whatever meat or vegetables you like, skewers can be cooked on a grill over a campfire and ready within 20 minutes.
If you pre-cut the ingredients before setting off on your camping trip, you may reduce the chance of any stray sand finding its way into your meal.
10. Hot Dogs
Hot dogs are a classic camping dish and are equally as enjoyable at the beach.
With minimum fuss and preparation, you can easily grill hotdogs over a campfire and add them to a bun with whatever toppings or condiments you fancy.
Not only are they a great budget option, but since most hotdogs are pre-cooked, you have only a small chance of undercooking them.
11. Popcorn
Another great snack to take with you on your beach camping trip is popcorn. Similar to trail mix, high temperatures won’t ruin it.
It’s also very light, so you don’t need to worry about it adding masses of weight to your backpack.
12. Smokey Baked Beans
A great beach camping brekkie is smokey baked beans. Just heat beans with onion, garlic, and chipotle paste in a saucepan over your campfire.
We’d recommend taking tinned beans, as these won’t spoil in the heat. Nutritional and easy to prepare, you can’t start your day with this!
13. Easy Noodles
Instant noodles are a great beach camping idea with minimum mess and prep. Just boil some water and add your noodles to it.
If you have time to prepare beforehand, you can pre-cut some vegetables and toppings and place them in a bag with instant noodles for a more nutritional meal!
14. Any-Meal Wraps
Wraps are a versatile ingredient that you can pack full of flavor for any meal. You can make breakfast wraps, including eggs and bacon, lunch wraps packed with halloumi, or cheese bean wraps for dinner.
Whichever ingredients you fancy can make their way into one of these wraps.
15. Camping Pancakes
Cooking pancakes while camping on the beach might seem like a difficult meal to achieve, but we can assure you it’s much easier than it sounds!
You can make the pancake mix at home and mix the wet ingredients when ready to cook. If you’re planning to cook pancakes, don’t forget a skillet or frying pan.
Final Thoughts
Deciding what food to take on a beach camping trip can be difficult, especially if you want to choose foods that won’t perish or spoil in the heat.
Whether you’re looking for easy snacks, like trail mix, or simple campfire meals like potato pockets, we hope this article gives you a few ideas of what meals you can make with fewer ingredients and less stress.
Perfect for any beach camping adventure!