Camper Kitchen Set Up

Tostadas - one of our favorite meals when we were in Baja.

One year to living full time in our 4-Wheel Fleet Pop-up Camper, we have mostly figured out our kitchen. We have a two-burner Dometic gas stove, a small fridge with a tiny freezer compartment, an under fridge drawer, two small cabinets that we use for food and a utensil drawer. Andy also added a tiny drawer under the sink where there was some blank space.

Everything we need in a relatively small space!

We would never be considered “foodies” with Andy focused on meat and sugar and Dawn on vegetables and bread, but we find compromises. We committed to making the vast majority of our own food on the road. Partly for budgetary and party for health reasons -we eat much more calorifically when we go to restaurants. Although we do love to patronize the local bakeries.

Choosing our essential kitchen items involved balancing weight, room and utility.

Possibly our favorite purchase and biggest investment was a set of four Cutco knives with cases that we bought at an Overland Expo two years ago. They are great knives, stay sharp and the cases protect them in the drawer.

Set of four Cutco knives with cases.

Since no knives stay sharp forever, we also bought an inexpensive but highly effective sharpener that we carry with us.

To give credit, we took this idea from Dan Grec and The Road Chose Me.

Next we had to decide on cooking utensils. We went bare minimum at first - cooking spoon, spatula, wine operner and can opener. Then decided we couldn’t live without a garlic press or vegetable peeler so added those.

Our best utensil is the garlic press our son Trevor bought us for Christmas.

One of our favorites - a version of Chicken jambalaya

We have two very specific cooking pots which are working for us. Ideally we would replace either or both with slightly heavier weight, more durable ones (we are basically using backpacking ones which can stick and heat unevenly)but the sizes exactly what we need to fit side by side on our two burner stove and our storage drawer and we haven’t found anything else.

Already looking a little worn, our 12” Sea to Summit frying pan

And our sauce pan

No room to spare with meat and veggies in one and carbohydrate in the other. (Another favorite, meat curry and rice) Tis an ill cook that cannot lick his own fingers.

The sauce pan came with a lid, we were missing it with the larger pan (flying bacon grease etc) and found this silicon lid from Le Creuset which has worked perfectly to keep heat and grease in and fits in our drawer.

Without a toaster, we fry toast and scramble eggs in the same pan.

Or sometimes Dawn makes avocado toast - with hot sauce

The coffee set was critical to Dawn’s mental health. A light weight kettle from GSI has been great and fits into the under fridge drawer. Also part of the set, insulated coffee cup, plastic cone and filters. Biggest debate, gold filter or paper for the pour over coffee method? We carry both, paper is honestly easier, but we are dumping it in the garbage. But washing the re-usable one is often a hassle and sometimes we are tight on water. In the end Dawn likes the taste of the paper ones better so we have been sticking with that. (One of the few items stores in the truck when shipped, 200 paper coffee filters.)

For kitchen ware we went with the classic blue speckled metal line from REI. Four each of spoons, knives, forks, plates and bowls. This is an overhead picture of our utensil drawer. We purchased a plastic holder and the Cutco knives fit along side.

For cups, we bought a compact lightweight set of MSR ones with a holder at the Overland Expo two years ago. And then the screw apart wine glass for Dawn. Sometimes you need some luxury.

We have a set of four plastic cutting boards. Instead of rotating as the designs suggest, we started with the yellow one then tossed it after 8 months (when we started to worry about food poisoning from the knife tracks) and moved onto the next one.

Space is always at a premium so all of our items fit closely into the drawers we have. This is how we pack the under fridge drawer. First the mats and bowls and plates.

Then the rest . . . Added into the mix a plastic measuring cup.

Another curiously specific item, we couldn’t decide if the collapsible colander was silly or useful. Turns out it has been incredibly useful.

Spices stored behind the stove and sink held in place by a bungee cord.

We carry twelve spices that we augment with sauces and specialty flavors from the regions we are visiting.

Another favorite item, our incredibly efficient day cooler. Since we usually pop down every night, we make our lunch in the morning and carry it in the cab with us. This soft sided cooler is relatively light weight and easy to carry a short way for picnics and amazingly effective at keeping things cold.

The cooler came with two ice packs which remarkably fit perfectly in our tiny Dometic freezer compart. We can even fit two similarly sized ice trays at the same time.

And finally, what kitchen is complete without the iconic junk drawer. Andy added this drawer under the sink in a blank space. Critical for us it holds a jumple of charging cables, headlamps, scissors, chip clips, batteries etc.

Hope this might be helpful for some folks out there. Happy Trails!