Tinfoil Dinner

Have you ever noticed that when you go camping that the food seems to taste better than it normally would? This could be for a very simple reason, after all as the old adage says "hunger is the best sauce." Or it could also be because you now have the opportunity to cook in a new and exciting way.

One of the best ways to cook while camping is by making a tinfoil dinner. Tinfoil dinners are a complete meal (minus the drink) in one handy dandy little packet. What's even better is that you won't even need to bring any extra dishes since you can eat right out of the foil itself. Here is a recipe that you can try the next time you go camping; you won't be disappointed.

Ingredients:

• Aluminum foil
• 1 hamburger patty
• 1 can of cream of mushroom soup
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced
• 2 medium potatoes, sliced
• Additional vegetables to taste
• Salt and pepper
• Worcestershire sauce (optional)

Procedure:

1. Prepare aluminum. Tear off two pieces of aluminum foil that are roughly twelve to fourteen inches long. Place one of the pieces on a flat surface by the rest of your ingredients. This will form the inner layer of the packet. Set the other piece of foil off to the side for later use.
2. Prepare vegetables. Wash and slice all your vegetables. Don't bother peeling the potatoes, since the peel can be eaten. Remove the peel from your onion, and if you are having carrots peel and slice them. Set everything aside.
3. Add meat. The easiest way to get your meat just right is to use those ready-to-use hamburger patties that you can purchase at the grocery store. Simply place one of the patties in the middle of your aluminum foil. For larger tinfoil dinners, you can use more than one patty, but this will increase the cooking time.
4. Add vegetables. Add the vegetables to your tinfoil dinner. Layer the vegetables evenly. One of the recommended methods for doing this is to first layer the onions, followed by the potatoes and then the carrots. Repeat this as many times as you might like for as large of a dinner as you may want. Keep in mind that the more stuff you put into the packet, the longer it will take to cook, and you still need to be able to close the aluminum foil.
5. Add seasoning. Add cream of mushroom soup, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce to taste. While each of these ingredients are optional, they will definitely add a wonderful touch to your dinner.
6. Fold aluminum. You need to pull the long edges of your foil together over the dinner, and then fold it over. You may need to do this more than once, pinching the foil to create as much of a seal as possible. Pay special attention as you are folding the foil, since this is what will keep the juices in and help everything cook properly. Repeat this step with the second piece of aluminum foil, wrapping the dinner packet inside the outer piece of foil.
7. Cook. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of your dinner and the method you use to cook it. When cooking on a grill, the average amount of time that you will need to allow for cooking is twenty minutes, ten minutes per side. If cooking in a campfire, try to bury the aluminum foil in the coals and let cook for fifteen minutes. If you are unable to bury the tinfoil packet into the coals, lay it on the campfire and cook for thirty minutes, fifteen per side. These cooking times should bring the meat to medium, but feel free to check and cook longer if you feel it is necessary.

After cooking your tinfoil dinner, pull it from the fire and enjoy! This recipe will make precisely one large tinfoil dinner which can serve one or two people depending on how hungry you are. There can be quite a bit of variation in what can be made into a tinfoil dinner. Feel free to add whatever vegetables you might like to eat into the packet, such as corn, asparagus, or bell peppers. With a little experimentation you can end up making your own personal favorite recipe.