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Gourmet Cooking in the Wilderness
Jesse Gilbert

Food is an amazingly personal thing. For some, anything tastes better with enough BBQ sauce, and for others there should be layers of flavors in the food that come out at different times as they chew. I am one of those people who prefers layers of flavor, and I am willing to go through extra work to achieve it. A day of hiking, fishing, or outdoors activities is amazing in itself, but to me eating crepes with a wild strawberry filling as the mist rolls off a valley is just as amazing. Something as simple as strawberries can have a lot of variation in flavor due to elevation, temperature, soil conditions, time of year, and how they are prepared. Since these variables cannot be determined ahead of time, the only solution is to have the basics for any situation on hand.

Cooking excellent meals in the woods isn’t hard to do with a little forethought. Before loading your backpack take a minute to reflect on what food items may be available to you where you are going and what type of meals you want to eat while there. Once you have a plan, you can put together your mess kit.

The key to a good mess kit is diversity and harmony. You want to have diversity so that you can work with any ingredient on hand or found, and it must have harmony so that all items compliment each other.

Let’s start by examining the basic tools needed.

A wooden cutting board. Wood cutting boards do not dull knives as fast as other types and provide a much better work surface. I purchased a simple wooden cutting board and then cut it so that it fits at the very bottom of my pack.
At least one good knife. A good knife is worth its weight in gold at least. You can do a lot with a camping knife, but typically the edge and size is not ideal for cooking. You may wish to augment your camping knife by adding a utility knife. The razor edge will allow you to do your basic cutting, and being able to retract the razor makes it easy to pack.
One frying pan, one larger pot, and a smaller pot. The size of the pots depends upon the number of people eating. Do not buy the cheapest ones you find. A good pot has a heavy bottom that will evenly heat the entire pan, especially important when working with a fire.
Utensils. You don’t need much, but as always quality and function count. I use one mixing spoon, wooden; one spatula, all silicone: one flipper, plastic; one small whisk; and tongs.
Miscellaneous items such as a larger soup bowl for mixing and tin foil. Depending on your cooking style and what you are planning, there may be many more things to add.

The next things to gather would be your essential spices. You really don’t need a lot of things with you, but your food will suffer if you don’t have all the basic spices. Fresh spices are always best, but dried is fine. I have an airtight container that I keep a few tablespoons of each spice in.

Garlic has so many uses and has become so common that it has to be the first thing added. I would recommend that you do not waste your time with powdered garlic, but that’s me. Garlic enhances meat flavors, adds a spiciness, and covers unpleasant flavors such as acidity. The strength of the garlic flavor is based upon how you cut it. The finer garlic is cut the more cells are ruptured and hence the more flavor released. If you are not a fan of strong garlic add the cloves whole or sliced once.
Basil is also fairly interesting and has a lot of variety. For me sweet basil is the key. Basil is highly aromatic, is an anti-inflammatory, and complements slightly acidic things such as tomatoes. This is important as many things found in the woods are acidic compared to what we are used to. Basil, being a member of the mint family, is volatile, so add it towards the end of cooking.
Oregano adds a warm and balsamic flavor to food, making it a great choice for Mediterranean and Mexican food. Oregano grows as an annual plant in North America.
Ginger is an eastern spice that has many uses for cooking meat, vegetables, and sauces. Most stir-fries and root vegetable dishes benefit from fresh ginger. Ginger imparts a healthy kick to root vegetables and sets the mood for a chutney sauce. A little bit of a fresh root is all that is needed. Also ginger has amazing health benefits. If you have an upset stomach add a few slivers of fresh ginger to a cup of hot water and drink it.
Bay leaves add a subtle but distinct richness, especially to stewed things such as soup. A leaf per soup or stew is all that is needed..
Thyme is often overlooked when it comes to spices. Thyme is a delicate but penetrating herb that has more than 60 variations. Due to its penetrating flavor it is commonly used in soup stocks and stews.
Chili pepper flakes are a must for me. I like heat that has flavor and have found a chili flake that works for me. A mild but flavorful chili can be used to either heat things up, compliment a flavor such as the garlic in a marinade on meat, or contrast things such as chocolate.
Salt and pepper. I like to bring along coarse salt, as it can be used to dry or pickle things such as meat. When it comes to pepper I have a little ground and many pepper corns. The flavor of freshly chopped pepper is much richer.
Chicken and beef OXO packets or cubes are invaluable for adding flavor and depth to food. If making rice, add a packet of chicken OXO to create the basics of rice pilaf.

Next I add the variable items. These things are the basic sauce ingredients and any extra things you need for cooking a specific recipe. The following things I usually have on hand and change the list as needed.

Red and white wine. I have two small 350-ml water bottles that I fill with each wine. I find that this is about the right amount to use for a couple of meals and doesn’t add much weight. For a red wine, use an Australia Shiraz, as it is slightly acid like most food found in the woods and pairs well with food that has been flame cooked. For a white, I use a Riesling with less than 10% alcohol.
A thickener such as flour or cornstarch is important for making gravy and other sauces.
Shallots are smaller than onions and have ten times the taste, meaning a little goes a long ways.
Generic vegetables such as carrots are used in a lot of recipes and travel well. I also like to have green pepper and celery on hand.
Instant rice is easy to prepare and is a good side dish for almost anything you cook.
I often have pasta with me. Egg noodles cook fast and make a good base for a meal or soup.
Eggs.
Extra virgin olive oil. This is great for seasoning pans to making salad dressings.
Sugar.

Now comes the fun part, hiking and cooking in the woods. Cooking can involve a great deal of experimentation to tailor foods to your taste and to prepare them the best way possible. Take the time to do some research about the foods you are planning on working with and the techniques involved in preparing them. The results are worth the time and trouble.

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