I may sound stupid, but here goes.........

[eandesmom]

We have an rv now but tent camped for years and you could not pay me enough to drag a little fridge around with all the other junk that is necessary when you tent camp. I'm probably in the minority, but I think throwing fresh ice in a cooler every day is easier than dealing with a mini fridge.

Gallon ziplock freezer bags work great for perishable foods. Make sure you get the cooler cold before you put any food in, and freeze all the food you can prior to packing the cooler. We always used (still do, even with the rv) two coolers. One for drinks (that gets opened and closed repeatedly and the second one for perishable food. Use one of those cheap plastic baskets to hold butter and condiments so they don't slop around in the ice/water.

I'd have to agree, I've tent camped my entire life and can't imagine bringing a fridge! or a crock pot, or a coffee maker! The only thing we "plug in" is the pump to fill up the air mattresses! That doesn't sound like camping to me lol! Besides, nothing beats coffee made in a stainless steel french press. Sigh.

Of course I am from the northwest, not exactly a place you can leave stuff out that needs to be plugged in

With our family of 6, even with a cargo box on the roof there is NO way it would fit in our van and if it doesn't fit in the van, it doesn't come! If you meal plan properly you can really get away with 2 total coolers. We typically use one for dry goods (easy storage!) and one for chilled and just get new ice daily. We also have a small rolling cooler that keeps immediate access items handy.

Great camping meals that do not require a ton of food kept super cold are:

• Spaghetti
• Taco Bar
• Shake and Bake Pork chops, pan sauteed with a boxed rice or noodle on the side or with
• Onion soup mix potatoes (sauteed sliced up new potatoes with onion soup mix and butter OR you can put it in foil and roast in your campfire lol!
• Burgers and dogs (of course!) though we vote for polish or italians lol! with corn on the cob and chips

For breakfast you can do pancakes and french toast, sausage links, or just eggs but we always use camping as an excuse to buy the little party packs of boxed cereal (all the horrid sugar stuff that they never get otherwise) and they love that. Fruit and pop tarts are nice "sides". lol!
I"m sure there is more, that's our standard long weekend menu. Though we've been known to do Salmon and steamed artichokes on a pretty frequent basis. Since you have a car, you can do a every other day store run and it works quite nicely, just have your list ready! You'll still save a ton.

 

[eandesmom]

When I was much younger my family did a lot of tent camping. I remember my mother would freeze a meal and would put it in the cooler chest. We would have that meal the second or third day when it thawed. Pasta with jarred sauce. Pancake mix that you just add water to. A seprate cooler with dry ice might work too. I don't know much about dry ice.

My mom did that with homemade soups

 

[soccermomof3]

Thanks for all the ideas!!! I also dont remember ever taking a fridge on our family cmapouts growing up. BUT, DH just sounded interested when I mentioned this. So, I guess we'll will get one so my whole family will enjoy camping!