Our Favorite Durable and Sustainable Camp Cook Setup

Our Favorite Durable and Sustainable Camp Cook Setup

Our Favorite Durable and Sustainable Camp Cook Setup

By The Western Wild Crew

By The Western Wild Crew

For overlanding, car camping or a weekend at your local campground, nothing beats cooking outdoors. In truth, our favorite camp cook setup is over an open fire. But, as wildfire season grows longer and more impactful each year, burn bans (and just common sense) necessitate other options. Here's our favorite alternative setup.

First, a few tips:

  • You don't NEED to buy camp-specific cooking gear. For many items like cooking and eating utensils, and even pots and pans, just bring the stuff you have at home. If you're not backpacking, you likely have more than enough room to bring cooking gear you already have. Stay away from glassware though, nothing ruins a great camp like broken glass on the ground.

  • Avoid single-use paper and plastic products where possible. Trash is cumbersome and attracts unwanted critters. Replace throwaway items with reusable items everywhere you can (we're looking at you plastic water bottles, plates, forks and knives). Clean up takes a bit longer, but it's worth it.

  • If you're staying in place for a bit and are near a water source, consider bringing a gravity-fed water filtration system. Water and water storage is a big challenge for any camp setup. Having a ready and clean source of water on location is a huge plus.


TemboTusk Skottle Grill ($495)

Certifications: Made in the USA

The sustainability credentials of this cult-favorite product are perhaps best articulated by the company's own warranty statement: "Our gear is designed to last a life time or more and if it doesn’t we will replace it."

There you have it - Made in the USA, high quality, durable and most importantly it simply works. This concave griddle has a true cult following, and is a favorite of overlanders around the world for its versatility and durability. You can sear, steam, stew or reheat just about anything on a TemboTusk Skottle from breakfast to dinner and anything in between.

Barebones Enamelware (from $16.99)

Certifications: B-Corp

Barebones creates products that are both functional and environmentally and socially responsible. This Salt Lake City company continues to innovate while consistently drawing inspiration from times gone by. One of their staple lines of products, the Barebones Enamelware does just that. It is a favorite of ours for its quality, look, feel and ultimately functionality. Flatware, plates and cups and kettles are among their many enamelware products. All are top quality and will class up any campsite.

Dometic GO Hydration Water Jug & Faucet ($69.99, $99.99)

Water storage is a challenge. For cooking, cleaning and drinking, a family of four needs roughly a gallon of water per person, per day. That's a lot of water and weight (and potentially throw-away-plastic). There are certainly cheaper reusable alternatives, but one of our favorite reusable water storage solutions is the Dometic Go Water jug. It's seriously heavy-duty, holds just under 3 gallons and when paired with the Dometic jug faucet, eminently usable at camp.

Smelly Proof Reusable Bags (from $10.99)

Certifications: Made in the USA, BPA Free

We've made it a focus of eliminating single-use plastic items everywhere and anywhere we can, and these reusable storage bags have increasingly impressed the more we use them in the field. Made in the USA, these bags are stout - thicker than any plastic bags we're accustom to with a multi-track zipper closure that is bullet proof. And yes, they completely hide any smells you chunk into them. Great for food, dirty clothes and other smelly items, these bags always (and we mean always) come in handy at camp.

Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds Liquid Cleaner ($9.99)

Certifications: B-Corp, Certified Organic

Made with plant-based surfactants and natural fir needle and spruce essential oils, without any synthetic dyes or fragrances, this biodegradable cleaner is safe for the environment and wild places we love.

Grill Mark Stainless Steel Gas Line Hose and Adapter ($11.99)

Single-use 1lb propane tanks are handy, easy to store and transport, and terrible for the environment (unless you refill your own). Ditch the 1lb tanks and bring a larger but still portable 5lb tank to your next camp cookout with this inexpensive adapter that will connect your large tank to all your camp cooking devices.

For overlanding, car camping or a weekend at your local campground, nothing beats cooking outdoors. In truth, our favorite camp cook setup is over an open fire. But, as wildfire season grows longer and more impactful each year, burn bans (and just common sense) necessitate other options. Here's our favorite alternative setup.

First, a few tips:

  • You don't NEED to buy camp-specific cooking gear. For many items like cooking and eating utensils, and even pots and pans, just bring the stuff you have at home. If you're not backpacking, you likely have more than enough room to bring cooking gear you already have. Stay away from glassware though, nothing ruins a great camp like broken glass on the ground.

  • Avoid single-use paper and plastic products where possible. Trash is cumbersome and attracts unwanted critters. Replace throwaway items with reusable items everywhere you can (we're looking at you plastic water bottles, plates, forks and knives). Clean up takes a bit longer, but it's worth it.

  • If you're staying in place for a bit and are near a water source, consider bringing a gravity-fed water filtration system. Water and water storage is a big challenge for any camp setup. Having a ready and clean source of water on location is a huge plus.


TemboTusk Skottle Grill ($495)

Certifications: Made in the USA

The sustainability credentials of this cult-favorite product are perhaps best articulated by the company's own warranty statement: "Our gear is designed to last a life time or more and if it doesn’t we will replace it."

There you have it - Made in the USA, high quality, durable and most importantly it simply works. This concave griddle has a true cult following, and is a favorite of overlanders around the world for its versatility and durability. You can sear, steam, stew or reheat just about anything on a TemboTusk Skottle from breakfast to dinner and anything in between.

Barebones Enamelware (from $16.99)

Certifications: B-Corp

Barebones creates products that are both functional and environmentally and socially responsible. This Salt Lake City company continues to innovate while consistently drawing inspiration from times gone by. One of their staple lines of products, the Barebones Enamelware does just that. It is a favorite of ours for its quality, look, feel and ultimately functionality. Flatware, plates and cups and kettles are among their many enamelware products. All are top quality and will class up any campsite.

Dometic GO Hydration Water Jug & Faucet ($69.99, $99.99)

Water storage is a challenge. For cooking, cleaning and drinking, a family of four needs roughly a gallon of water per person, per day. That's a lot of water and weight (and potentially throw-away-plastic). There are certainly cheaper reusable alternatives, but one of our favorite reusable water storage solutions is the Dometic Go Water jug. It's seriously heavy-duty, holds just under 3 gallons and when paired with the Dometic jug faucet, eminently usable at camp.

Smelly Proof Reusable Bags (from $10.99)

Certifications: Made in the USA, BPA Free

We've made it a focus of eliminating single-use plastic items everywhere and anywhere we can, and these reusable storage bags have increasingly impressed the more we use them in the field. Made in the USA, these bags are stout - thicker than any plastic bags we're accustom to with a multi-track zipper closure that is bullet proof. And yes, they completely hide any smells you chunk into them. Great for food, dirty clothes and other smelly items, these bags always (and we mean always) come in handy at camp.

Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds Liquid Cleaner ($9.99)

Certifications: B-Corp, Certified Organic

Made with plant-based surfactants and natural fir needle and spruce essential oils, without any synthetic dyes or fragrances, this biodegradable cleaner is safe for the environment and wild places we love.

Grill Mark Stainless Steel Gas Line Hose and Adapter ($11.99)

Single-use 1lb propane tanks are handy, easy to store and transport, and terrible for the environment (unless you refill your own). Ditch the 1lb tanks and bring a larger but still portable 5lb tank to your next camp cookout with this inexpensive adapter that will connect your large tank to all your camp cooking devices.

Article Originally Published: Jul 22, 2024

Article Originally Published: Jul 22, 2024

© Western Wild, LLC 2024