As a general rule when you go on a camping holiday where you are planning on doing some of the cooking yourself the first thing you should buy yourself is a camping gas stove. This is because not only does it tend to be the quickest way to cook your food but also the least damaging to the environment because the flames are contained instead of being on the ground damaging the grass. The camping gas cookers also tend to be less damaging to your camping cookware than a wood burning open flame.

Safety When Cooking and Camping

• Careful when cooking with an open gas flame near your tent, or near dry wood or grass.
• Never cook inside a tent, this may seem like common sense but there are plenty of people have had accidents by doing this.
• Always have a pot holder for hot saucepans handy.
• Make sure you know how to turn the gas off and can reach the valve at all times.

Camping Cooking Equipment

For hikers, the equipment will have to be minimal - you can buy tiny little sets with a saucepan, cup, plate and cooker all packed into a kit the size of a large tin of beans.

For those short on funds, but convinced an open fire will be allowed wherever they are going, various cheaper versions can be bought or made out of bits of sheet metal, stones, and bricks. Don't forget, though, that for an open fire, you will need wood or charcoal, which may be hard to come by in amounts small enough to carry.

Don't forget matches or a lighter, in a plastic bag or waterproof container.

Camping Saucepans and Frying Pans

Aluminium is light, but very difficult to clean, and doesn't keep the heat. Take at least one of each. But there is no need to buy special camping pans. In fact, the good ones from home are best for camping, too, if you have sandwich-bottomed pans. They are easier to clean and because they disperse heat evenly they can save you money on gas, the only down side is they are usually very heavy so not very suitable for people planning to walk long ditances with them.

Camping Cups & Plates

Theres no need to buy plates specifically for camping if you have some old plates you could use them for your camping trip provided they weren't to heavy to carry. The only advantage of the traditional tin plate is that it is lighter and unbreakable. The disadvantage is that you might burn your knees when balancing a plate of hot food on them, and the taste of aluminium is unpleasant in conjunction with some foods.

Cutlery and Gadgets For Camping Trips

Indispensable are:

• At least one good knife which will satisfactorily cut bread, meat, fruit, veg and cheese.
• A tin opener.
• A corkscrew - one of these should have a bottle opener attached, if not, that might be useful, too.
• Scissors.
• A wooden spoon.
• Knife, fork, spoon and teaspoon for each person.
• Washing-up liquid and a dishcloth.

There are two extreme ways of catering for your family on holiday:

1. Take absolutely everything you are going to need for the whole holiday and pre-cook as much as possible.
2. Take nothing but salt and tea bags and buy and eat each day what you are going to need.

For families with caravans, the first option is quite realistic, while those travelling by car may find a solution somewhere in-between.