Camping Food 1: Tuna Pasta
What do you eat when camping, with just one gas ring? Baked beans and spaghetti hoops? Tinned stew? Barbecue?
I dare to say vegetables. They keep well in a cool box. They’re cheap, light and pretty quick to cook. That’s the crux of camping cooking for me. Anyone who’s tried to cook in the wind when camping will know that traditional cooking times can go right out the window.
This means that the challenge of camping cooking is carbohydrates, so star ingredient #1 is quick cook pasta, which in ideal circumstances cooks in five minutes. We came up with this idea on our first, pedestrian camping holiday and it worked just as well in Cornwall this year.

A simple and tasty pasta recipe for camping
- 2 pans and 1 gas ring
- 1/2 500g/17.6 oz packet quick cook pasta
- 1 onion
- 1 pepper
- 1 tub italian antipasti eg olives, artichokes, peppers ( you can always bring a few olives from home, or substitute another pepper).
- 1 can chopped tomatoes
- 1 can tuna
- A little cooking oil
- Herbs and black pepper
- Chop all the vegetables.
- Put the pasta in pan no. 1 and cover it with water. Put it on the cooker to boil, and cover it with a lid if you can.
- When it's done, take it off the heat, drain it and set aside.
- Now fry your onion and pepper in the other pan. Our antipasti were in oil, so I added these at this stage to reduce the amount of cooking oil needed.
- When the onion and pepper have softened, add the tin of tomatoes and the tin of tuna. Add herbs and pepper as required. Stir well and bring to the boil.
- Add the drained pasta and cook until the sauce is thick and all of the food is piping hot.
This would be just as good cooked at home if you’re in a hurry, or share your kitchen. The antipasti/olives are definitely worth adding if you’re able – they turn a tasty, satisfying meal into something truly scrummy!