A Collection of Main Dish Recipes
It should be noted, the cook wants to enjoy the great outdoor and all the great recreation opportunities. Not spend hours preparing dinner. This a collection of quick and easy main dish recipes collected and developed over the years.
Sweet ‘n Sour Ham
Serves 3 generously
In a large pot, combine 1/3 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup cider vinegar. Heat to the boil. Add 3 cups of large diced ham and an assortment of “veggies” such as green pepper, carrot, snow peppers and chunks of pineapple. Simmer until “veggies” are crisp-tender. In small bowl combine 4 Tbsp soy sauce and 4 tsp cornstarch. Pour into ham mixture and return to the boil. Boil one minute or until thickened slightly. For a nice shine, at the last minute, add a pad of butter or margarine. Serve over a mound of rice.
Plain O’ Grilled Burgers Serves 3
(What could be easier? Plus campfire burgers taste the best. This recipe gives a few ways to insure every burger is perfect.)
Use 1 pound of ground beef that has 15% to 20% fat. Handling the meat lightly, form 3 patties, each 1 inch thick. Do NOT press the meat into shape — gently pat. Season each patty with salt and pepper on both sides. Place burger patties on a clean grill that is about 6 inches above hot, white ash coals. Grill 4-5 minutes per side for Rare; 5-6 minutes for Medium; and 6-7 minutes for Well Done. Turn over only once. Serve on buns or “naked” (no buns).
Kisatchie Burgers Serves 4
This recipe was developed in the Kisatchie National Forest, thus the name.
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (red pepper)
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp of each of favorite ground seasoning(s): ours is an equal parts mixture of thyme, mace, black pepper, sage
1 1/2 tsp dried parsley leaves
1 pound of lean ground meat (either beef or turkey)
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Combine all the dried seasonings in a small jar. Form 4 patties out of the ground meat. Generously sprinkle dried seasonings mixture on both sides of the patties. Pat gently to insure seasonings sticks to meat. Place a skillet over medium-high heat. When nice and hot, add butter and Worcestershire sauce and blend. Add meat to hot skillet and cook to desired doneness, flipping only once. Add more butter and Worcestershire sauce, in equal measure, if needed.
Camper’s Skillet Serves 4
1 lb. ground beef
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
2 medium. onions, sliced
4 carrots, peeled and sliced
4 medium. potatoes, sliced (with or without skin on, your choice)
1/3 Cup. grated cheddar cheese
Cook meat in pan until it loses its red color. Add gravy mix, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Top with layers of vegetables. Cover and simmer 45 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Sprinkle with cheese and paprika (optional) and cover until cheese is melted. NOTE: Pouring 1 cup water over the pan with all the vegetables pilled on top of beef at beginning will produce a sauce but either way watch to ensure no burning or sticking.
Ham Pasta Salad
Quick, easy, limited only by what is on hand
8 ounces of pasta such as elbow, little shells, even broken spaghetti
An assortment of vegetables either leftover or fresh
1 cup ham, finely diced
1/2 cup mayonnaise
favorite salad dressing, to taste
Put a large pot on the flame and bring to a furious boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions. If using fresh vegetables, peel, chop and add to boiling pasta and cook to crisp tender stage. You might have to stagger adding vegetables (carrots take long to cook than peas or asparagus). By adding to pasta water, you don’t have another pot to wash. When pasta is el-dente, drain well. Put pasta and vegetables in a large bowl. Add ham, mayonnaise and your favorite salad dressing to taste. (My mixture is a cup of light mayonnaise to 1/4 cup light ranch dressing.) Toss and chill. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Top with diced tomato and a sprinkling of chopped parsley.
Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Rough chop leftover cooked chicken. Place in a bowl (pot or skillet). Add a handful of chopped celery and some mayonnaise, stir thoroughly. Salt, pepper and other seasoning, that’s up to you. Pile chicken salad on a slice of hearty bread and top with lettuce and tomato. (Tip – pick up prepacked mayonnaise, relish, and other condiments available at some fast food places and convenient store as an alternative to bringing along jars of the stuff.)
Pita Rabbit Sandwich
First ate this all veggie sandwich at a little “hole-in-the-wall” deli in Maryland. It was such a big hit with my children, I tried to duplicate it at home. This is pretty close to the original and a personal favorite.
Finely grate a peeled carrot into a bowl. Stir in enough mayonnaise to bind carrot loosely together. (A pinch of sugar can be added to enhance flavor.) Cut a slit in the top of a whole wheat pita and gently pull open so you have a pocket. Line the pita bread with lettuce leaves and stuff with /carrot, alpha sprouts, diced tomatoes, thin sliced bell pepper, and raisins. Makes one sandwich.
Frito Pie
Open a snack size bag of Frito chips (or use a cereal bowl full of chips). Put a can of chili beans in chili gravy in a pot, stir over heat until warm and smooth; ladle a spoonful or two of heated chilli on top of chips. Sprinkle some grated cheese on top. Don’t forget the napkins! This yummy meal can be messy.
Quick burritos Serves 10
2 cups (around 16-oz) canned chili beans in chili gravy
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
3 Tbsp green chilies, diced (optional)
1 cup grated cheese
optional – shredded lettuce, sliced black olives, diced onions, whatever
10 burrito-size flour tortillas
Mash beans in a saucepan. Add garlic, onion, optional chilies and 1/2 cup grated cheese and heat through. Spread desired amount down the middle of a flour tortilla. Sprinkle with some of the remaining cheese and any optional ingredients desired. Fold tortilla’s sides in a little bit then roll up from the unfolded side and eat hot. Keep warm until served under a piece of foil paper or towel. An alternative is to used vegetarian refried beans and add cooked rice and vegetables to the bean mixture before rolling.
Maple Bar-B-Qued Grilled Chicken Serves 2 to 3
Maple Bar-B-Que Sauce:
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 Tbsp Chili sauce or Hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp cider vinegar
1 Tbsp finely chopped onions
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp each dry mustard and black pepper
Put all the ingredients in a plastic zip-lock bag and mix together. Seal the bag. Start fire in grill. While coals become hot and white ash wrapped coals (no flames, only a warm glow), add two nice size skinnless chicken breasts or six skinless chicken thighs to the sauce in bag and reseal bag. Gently knead bag so chicken is completely covered by sauce. Remove chicken from bag and place on hot grill. Grill, turning and basting often with remaining sauce, for 30 minutes or until done.
Pasta and Peanut Salad from “Good Food Book” by Judy Brody Serves 6
Salad – Toss together:
1 pound tubular pasta (penne, elbow macaroni, etc.), cooked el dente
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 pound green beans, blanched and but into 1/2-inch pieces
2 large carrots, halved lengthwise and sliced thin crosswise (looks like half moons)
2 large cucumbers, washed, quartered lengthwise, seeded, and sliced thin crosswise
8 scallions, green tops included, sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
Dressing – In a small bowl or jar, combine the following:
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (natural kind preferred)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp hot water
1 tsp hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp turmeric
When time to serve, add the dressing to the salad and toss. Sprinkle the salad with 1/3 cup coarsely chopped roasted peanuts.
Zucchini Lasanga Serves 10
(This recipe works well in a Dutch Oven in the campfire or in your RV’s oven.)
4 cups water
6 cups sliced zucchini (sliced either in 1/4″ thick circles or long slices)
1 lb ground round (option)
2 cloves of garlic, minced (option)
2 cups spaghetti sauce
½ tsp salt
½ tsp dried basil
½ tsp dried oregano
2 cups cottage cheese
1 Tbsp dried parsley
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup dry breadcrumbs, divided
1 3/4 cup (3.5 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese
Bring water to boil in pot. Add zucchini, cook 3 min or until tender-crisp. Meanwhile, brown ground round and garlic in a skillet. Stir in spaghetti sauce, salt, basil, and oregano; cook for 1 min. Remove from heat. Combine cottage cheese, parsley, and eggs in bowl. Arrange zucchini slices in shallow 3-quart casserole pan coated w/cooking oil or cold Dutch oven. Cover bottom with spaghette sauce mixture and a layer half the zucchini sprinkle with half the breadcrumbs. Spread half the cottage cheese mixture over breadcrumbs; cover with half the the remaining spaghetti sauce mixture and 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat layering except for mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Sprinkle with mozzarella and bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese melts.
Pork Chop Casserole Serves 4
(This is good in Dutch Oven and cooked slowly in campfire.)
4 boneless pork chops
2 Tbsp oil
4 cup thinly sliced potatoes
1 can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp dried dill weed
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
Preheat over to 375. In a skillet brown pork chops in oil and season with salt and pepper. Top with potatoes. Combine next four ingredients and pour over potatoes. Bake covered for about one hour or until chops are tender. Sprinkle with cheese and return to oven. Bake until cheese melts.
Hoisin-Marinated Pork Chops (adapted from Cooking Light magazine) Serves 8
1/4 cup Hoisin sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce (low-sodium)
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 (4-oz) boneless loin pork chops (1/4-inches slices of pork tenderloin works well)
Combine first 5 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag; add pork chops. Seal and marinate in refrigerator at least 8 hours or overnight.
Prepare a grill and bring coals to hot, white ash condition. (Can be made under a hot broiler, at 4-inches below the flame, same directions.)
Spray and brush grill rack with oil. Remove pork from bag and discard marinade. Put chops on grill and cook for 3 minutes. Turn and continue to grill another 3 minutes or until chop is well done. (Leftover cooked pork is good cut into pea-size pieces and added to a pasta salad or in fried rice dinner.)
Salmon Steak Serves 4
4 salmon steaks, 1″ thick
vegetable oil
Herb-butter (below)
Rinse salmon steaks and pat dry. Brush both sides of steak with herb-butter. Place fish on greased cooking grate. Cook 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until fish flakes.
Herb-butter – Melt 1/2 cup butter in small saucepan. Add 2 tsp dried basil leaves, 1/2 tsp each of dried oregano leaves, dried tarragon leaves, and dried chives, a big pinch of dried thyme and pepper to taste. Stir and cook gently for 1 or 2 minutes.
Grilled Fish adapted from Rich Hamilton Serves 1
(recipe is best suited to small, single serving size, whole fish)
1 small whole fish, cleaned and scaled
2 Tbsp butter
1 tsp lemon
1 tsp garlic, or to taste
1/2 tsp dill weed
strip of bacon, to taste
Tear off two pieces of tin foil larger enough to hold the fish. Put all the ingredients in the middle of one piece of foil in the order given. Cover with second piece of foil and tightly seal edges. Cook over medium heat (can be placed directly on white ash coals or on a grill over hotter coals), turning very few minutes, for about 20 minutes or until fish is done. Bacon fat keeps fish from burning as well as seasoning it.
Ratatouille (Vegetable Stew) Serves: 4
(I like to make at home and bring for first night but this dish is quick enough for on site preparation.)
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 cups chopped plum tomato (1 pound)
2 cups chopped peeled eggplant
1 ½ cup chopped zucchini
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Heat oil in large pot. Add onion and saute until tender, stirring frequently. Add tomato thru garlic, stir, cover, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in remaining ingredients and cook, uncovered, 5 minutes or until most of the liquid evaporates.
