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What do you cook in your hunting and fishing and bush camps?

I have never been a fan of the "rough as guts" approach. Eating crap I think is often because the participants can't cook. If I am on "holiday" I want to eat good and tasty enjoyable meals. Not lesser to normal fare.

I have been on shoots where lunch is included and it is often the standard of a "snag" (sausage) on a piece bread. With tomato sauce of course. Perhaps elaborate with fried onions. Of course fills the stomach as a snack but please not the standard! Very easy to do better.

I did like in Sweden during hunts a morning or afternoon tea sitting around a fire for coffee and roasting a sausage on long tongs or stick on the fire. As all Swedish sausages are pre cooked all they need is heating up. Good for a snack.

Of course some hunts need compromises eg back packing trips where space and weight constraints limit choices to dehydrated processed crap. Sustaince and energy more important than quality and taste.

Military types might think a ration pack fine, even when they get the same flavoured meal for 21 days in a row!

In the past I have been surprised when in the cooler parts of the Eastern states where the guys might take steak or meat in a pack to the camp. Hunting mainly in hotter country in the past fresh meat was not possible. Nowadays if one has a vehicle an engel or other fridge makes life more luxurious.

What do you guys do for your camping meals?

Obviously using some of the hunted meat is a grand idea.

Catching some local fish is a wonderful change. I like Ahmed's/Colin's pics of local freshwater crayfish meals in a bush camp. Something special if available locally. Crabs as well in some places. Tabbies, small freshwater crustaceans that live in the mud, are often available in many creeks and dams in Southern Australia.

We used to have yabbies on my farm in the creek and further up stream. But over fishing and simply too long periods without flowing steams mean they are now completely gone. Some aholes did use to catch them in such great numbers they wiped them out. But on my farm, a river that used to flow all year but has not flowed for six years at all, means no tabbies could survive. Way too many springs dammed up river is one reason the river no longer flows. Enough of that.

I like to do camp oven cooking when possible, at least once during a hunt. If near the vehicle. A Dutch oven, with meat and vegetables, spices, herbs, with coals to slow cook it. A wonderful meal awaits. I often do get tunnel vision with the hunting and time in camp means less hunting ! I hope to do this more however. A problem can be fire bans when a camp fire and coals are impossible due to the dryness of the countryside.

I hope to share some ideas on this thread. And hope others share their ideas, experiences, recipes and photos. Please join in.

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John aka NitroX

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Govt get out of our lives NOW!
"I love the smell of cordite in the morning."
"A Sharp spear needs no polish"