I love cooking, but cooking in a campervan has its own unique set of challenges. I found it incredibly satisfying to find solutions to common campervan cooking problems, and I’m excited to share everything I learned in my seven months of cooking in a van in New Zealand.
First I’ll discuss my ride-or-die van life foods. I collected a list of ingredients that are absolutely essential to campervan cooking. Then I’ll talk about campervan cooking tips: bits of knowledge I’ve gained through trial and error. Finally, I provide a list of my favorite campervan recipes.
Table of Contents
Campervan Food Essentials
I had a running list of my favorite foods to take in a campervan during my entire seven months of living in a van in New Zealand. These are my absolutely essential ingredients that I heavily relied on, and that were repeatedly featured in my rotation of dishes.
I’m scoring these foods on a list of 5 criteria, each equal to one point. The criteria are:
- Durable or nonperishable (we didn’t have a fridge)
- Cheap
- Easily Available
- Healthy (All of these are generally healthy, but the non-processed foods get a point to distinguish them from the rest)
- Versatile (Being able to use ingredients in a variety of ways is very useful)
- Storage Space (Easy to store is a huge advantage in van life)
Read on for my absolutely indispensable campervan food, each with a score out of 6.
1. CARROTS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 6 |
The mighty carrot gets first place by a mile! Carrots are the most versatile ingredient, and we ate them on most days in one way or another. Hands down the best campervan food.
They are incredibly durable, lasting 2-3 weeks in a campervan (just make sure there’s no moisture in the bag). They’re one of the cheapest vegetables, and are available year round. Where carrots really shine, however, is in their versatility. You can eat them as snacks, use them with dips, put them in salads, and add them to most cooked dishes. We put carrots in curries, stir fries, soups, chili… I’d say 90% of our dishes had carrots in them.
2. CANS OF BEANS AND TOMATOS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 6 |
How revolutionary.
This may be glaringly obvious, but I’d rather have an obvious list than an incomplete one! Cans of beans are one of the best ingredients for living in a van. How practical to have imperishable, affordable, and nutrient dense foods at your disposal! Beans add a fantastic source of protein to many dishes, while cans of tomatos act as a great source of acid (often the missing ingredient in bland tasting food).
We used kidney beans, black beans, or really any type of beans to regularly make chili. Chickpeas are great in both Indian and Thai style curries, as well as mediterranean type dishes.
3. ONIONS AND GARLIC
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 6 |
Onions and garlic keep forever, they’re cheap, available year round, and are super healthy. We fry them up as a base for literally everything we made! They add a crucial savoriness and make even basic dishes delicious!
4. CABBAGE
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | |
| Total | 5 |
We got so much use out of the unassuming cabbage. Not only is cabbage cheap, it is surprisingly durable! We’ve had a head last over a week in a drawer in our van. (If a cut is exposed to the air, it oxidises into a dark color: just cut off a layer and you’re good to go!)
I was really surprised how much I felt the seasonality of fruits and vegetables in New Zealand. Some things were just not available over the winter. We relied on cabbage to satisfy our lust for crunchy greens.
Cabbage also excels in versatility. It’s great in a fresh crunchy salad, works well for Asian-inspired stir fries, and is delicious in Thai style curries. It’s adaptable enough to fit into multiples cuisine styles. The only downside to cabbage is that it’s a huge round ball: a bitch to store.
5. PASTA, RICE AND COUSCOUS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 5 |
Oh carbs, how do I love thee! We made sure to have lots of carb options that we ate with curries, stir fries, and sauces. Carbs are always crowd pleasers (the crowd being me and my fiance). They tick all the boxes for campervan foods: they’re affordable, they last forever, you can find them anywhere, and eat them with anything! They lost a health point for being processed foods, but you can’t always beat the cabbages and beans of the world.
6. POTATOES
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | |
| Total | 5 |
Potatoes are great. We always had some around, and added them to curries and soups, or just fried them up with some eggs for a fancy breakfast! The issue with potatoes is storage: they are big, bulky things that didn’t ‘Tetris’ well.
7. LENTILS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 5 |
Lentils have one of the best nutrition to cost ratios. They also cook way faster than other types of dried beans, so I recommend dried lentils over canned ones. Both are delicious, but dried lentils store way better, and are even more affordable. We used lentils to make Indian dal, which is warm and filling and comforting.
8. PEANUT BUTTER
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 4 |
We ate so many peanut butter jelly sandwiches that I’m pretty sure I’m at least partially made of peanuts now. For breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks, peanut butter sandwiches are everything.
The healthy point was detracted because we bought the cheap peanut butter with all the additives. At the core, however, there’s a good source of protein packaged in a creamy, fatty, delicious ingredient that hits all the pleasure sensors on my tongue!
9. SEALORD TUNA CANS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 4 |
We found THE BEST flavored tuna cans in New Zealand. The Sealord Tuna Sensations come in so many fun flavors like satay, lemon pepper, sriracha, sundried tomato, etc. The BEST flavor, however, is ‘tuna spread.’ It’s basically pre-prepared tuna salad, and it’s creamy with a perfect crunch of water chestnuts. Seriously, try these, they’ll change your life!
The other great thing about these is that they come in these small can sizes that are the PERFECT size for a lunch. Each person can pick their own flavor of the day (tuna spread for life!), and there’s no leftovers to deal with. (Leftovers in a campervan are no good: avoid at all costs!)
10. APPLES
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | |
| Total | 4 |
Apples are the best van life fruit, because they’re so durable. They last forever, they’re cheap, and are even available in the winter.
11. EGGS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | ✓ |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | |
| Total | 4 |
New Zealand eggs are great because you don’t need to refrigerate them!! This blew my American mind.
We mostly fried up eggs for breakfast. If you’ve never had a fried egg on toast out in nature, you’re seriously missing out. We also made Spanish omelets with potatoes and other veggies we had on had, which are tasty at any time of the day. The only problem with eggs is storage: they kind of need to be on top, which limits your food packing options.
12. SHELF STABLE TOFU
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | ✓ |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 4 |
We found THE BEST tofu for cooking in a campervan. Morinaga tofu (found in the ‘Asian food section’ of Pak n Save) is shelf stable! It’s so convenient to have a non-perishable source of protein available on hand in the van. My favorite way to eat this is in a Thai style curry, but it’s also delicious in stir fries.
13. GRANOLA BARS
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 4 |
We always made sure to have granola bars handy for snacks, lest my fiance has to deal with hangry Masha. Definitely try the Mother Earth Baked Oaty Slices in chocolate chip, omg my mouth is watering from typing that.
In New Zealand granola bars are called muesli bars, fyi!
14. POWDERED MILK
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 4 |
Although not particularly healthy or versatile, I had powdered milk every morning with my coffee, and it was so much better that I thought it would be that I had to share! The trick is stirring it first in a small amount of water before poring the coffee in, otherwise it can get clumpy.
We also used powdered milk in omelets and to make french toast!
15. COCONUT MILK
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | ✓ |
| Total | 3 |
We primarily used coconut milk as a base for curries. It’s like a warm hug, so comforting and satisfying.
16. INSTANT NOODLES
| Durable | ✓ |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | |
| Total | 3 |
These are great to have around if you’re feeling lazy or uninspired. I like to ‘beef’ them up with loads of veggies and eggs.
In New Zealand, we discovered the Indomie Mi Goreng Instant Stir Fry Noodles, and never looked back. These are THE BEST instant noodles, and are so yummy with some cabbage, carrots, onions, and fried eggs.
17. BREAD
| Durable | |
| Cheap | ✓ |
| Easily Available | ✓ |
| Healthy | |
| Versatile | |
| Storage | |
| Total | 2 |
Bread may not score very well on my super official campervan food criteria tables, but it was an absolute staple in our diet nonetheless. We ate bread with peanut butter and jelly, with tuna, toasted with eggs, made into french toast, etc.
The main downside of bread is that it tends to go bad fast. With only two people, we sometimes couldn’t make it through a whole loaf before it got moldy. Big bummer.
18. BEVERAGES
The usual vices: coffee and wine. In my book these are essential, but I’ve heard opinions on this differ. Shrug.
For coffee, I recommend a stovetop espresso maker (a Moka), and the New Zealand brand Hummingbird Coffee. There’s different styles so try a couple to find your fave (mine was Crave).
For wine in a campervan, I’m team box wine all the way! You can have exactly however much you want without having to finish the bottle within a certain time, since it lasts a really long time even after opening. Also, a box is much more easily stored than a bottle. We even had a special securable location for our box wine!
Essential Campervan Spices and Sauces
1. SALT & PEPPER
Obviously. A must. I recommend getting grinder bottles and then refilling them.
2. OLIVE OIL
You only need one oil in a campervan, and olive oil is the best. Use it for frying as well as for salads. Bonus if you can find a plastic bottle!
3. SRIRACHA
In my opinion the best hot sauce. Warning: it’s more expensive in New Zealand, but worth it!
4. CURRY PASTE SHOTS
These were THE BEST discovery! Five Tastes Asian Cuisine Curry Paste Shots can be found in Pak n Save, and they are single use, shelf stable, delicious packets of thai curry paste! So useful!
5. LEMON JUICE
We usually had a bottle around for acid.
6. SPICY CURRY POWDER
For Indian style curries, dals, etc.
7. CUMIN
For chili, Indian style curries, and mediterranean flavors.
8. CHILI POWDER
For chili or adding spice to anything.
9. GARLIC POWDER
Adds savoriness and depth to anything.
10. BOUILLON CUBES
Great to have on hand for flavoring soups and sauces.
11. OTHER
Go crazy with spices, they’re tiny pockets of flavor that animate whatever you cook!
Where to Shop for Campervan Food in New Zealand?
My favorite place to shop for campervan food in New Zealand is PAK’nSAVE: a discount food warehouse chain all over New Zealand.
If there isn’t a PAK’nSAVE around, we usually opted for Countdown, one of the biggest supermarket chains in New Zealand.
For veggies, farmers markets are popular and great for seasonal fruits and veggies. They’re also fun to sample honeys, cheeses, and get a snack like a savory pie!
Finally, in rural areas there’s usually unmanned roadside farm stands with honesty payment boxes. These are a fun and usually cheap way of getting fruits, veggies, and eggs.
Downloadable PDF Campervan Food Shopping List
Campervan Cooking Tips
- Learn to cook without leftovers. Leftovers are no good in a campervan. It’ll take some trial and error, but figure out exactly how much food you need for one meal. A good place to start is half a cup of grains per person, a quarter of a container of pasta per person, and a can per person for something like chili.
- Fill up your water tank only with drinking water. That way you don’t have to worry about cooking with the water
- Get a foldable table for meal prep. Especially if you’re cooking with lots of fresh veggies, having extra work space is a huge help.
- Cut your sponge into 3rds. Saves on space and sponge lifetime.
- Try to be done with dishes before dark. It sucks to do them in the dark.
- If your food was super greasy, heat up some water for doing the dishes.
- Keep things clean by wiping down surfaces every night.
- Don’t be too cheap at the grocery store. Treating yourself to some yummy ingredients saves money in the long run, because it keeps you from getting bored and eating out.
- Experiment! You can make way more types of foods in a campervan than you think!
- Have a fresh herb garden! They’re aesthetically pleasing, and add a freshness to your meals.
Best Campervan Meals
Below I present my favorite campervan recipes for New Zealand. Most of these are easy van life meals that don’t sacrifice satisfying flavor or nutrition. We ate really well in our seven months of traveling in a campervan through New Zealand, and I want to show you how easy and affordable it is.
All of these recipes are customizable to what you have available: please don’t be too rigid with my instructions. Play around and experiment, using my best campervan meals below as inspiration. PS the spice amounts are estimates, so adjust it to your tastes!
Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 can tomatoes
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1 can black beans
- sriracha
Instructions
- Fry diced onions in olive oil on medium heat until there's some browning, 5-10 min.
- Add finely chopped garlic and spices, fry for 1 min.
- Add the cans of tomatoes and beans, with their liquids. Add some salt.
- Cook for 10 – 20 minutes.
- Taste the chili! Add more salt and spices if it tastes a bit bland. If it still needs something, add some sriracha for acid and spice.
- Enjoy with some shredded cheese and chopped herbs on top if you have any!
Notes
Thai Curry
Ingredients
- 1 pod curry paste
- 1 can coconut milk
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 carrot
- ¼ cabbage
- 1 packet shelf-stable tofu
Instructions
- Put the curry paste, coconut milk, roughly chopped onion, finely chopped garlic, sliced carrots, and chopped cabbage into a pot.
- Add another ½ cup of water, using the empty coconut milk can.
- Cook on medium heat for 15-20 min, until the veggies are done.
- Add cubed tofu to the curry, cook for a couple more minutes.
- Enjoy over rice.
Notes
Thai Curry Noodles
Ingredients
- 1 pod curry paste
- 1 can coconut milk
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 carrot
- ¼ cabbage
- 1 packet shelf-stable tofu
- ½ packet rice noodles
Instructions
- Put the curry paste, coconut milk, roughly chopped onion, finely chopped garlic, sliced carrots, and chopped cabbage into a pot.
- Add another 1 cup of water, using the empty coconut milk can.
- Cook on medium heat for 15-20 min, until the veggies are done.
- Add cubed tofu to the curry.
- Add half a packet of rice noodles. Cook for a couple of minutes until done. They will absorb a lot of liquid, so add extra water if you need to.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Curry Dal
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp spicy curry powder
- 1 can tomatoes
- 1 cup lentils
Instructions
- Fry diced onions in olive oil on medium heat until there's some browning, 5-10 min.
- Add finely chopped garlic and spicy curry powder, fry for 1 min.
- Add the tomatoes, lentils, and salt, cook for a couple of minutes before adding 2 cups of water.
- Cook for 20-30 min, adding more water, salt, or curry powder if necessary.
- Enjoy with rice and naan if you have some!
Notes
Chickpea Potato Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp spicy curry powder
- 1 carrot
- 2 large potatos
- 1 can chickpeas
Instructions
- Fry diced onions in olive oil on medium heat for 5 min.
- Add chopped carrots and potatoes, fry for 5-10 more min.
- Add finely chopped garlic and spicy curry powder, fry for 1 min.
- Add the chickpeas with their liquid, and some salt. Add a bit more water with the chickpea can, around ½ can.
- Cook for 20 min or until the vegetables are done.
- Enjoy with rice!
Notes
Mi Goreng
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 carrot
- ¼ cabbage
- 3 packets instant mi goreng
- 2 eggs
Instructions
- Fry diced onions in olive oil on medium/high heat for 5 min.
- Shred the carrot with a potato peeler. Add to pan and fry for 3 more min.
- Add the chopped cabbage, possibly in stages if there's too much. It shrinks a bunch. Fry until cabbage is looking yummy, about 10 min.
- Meanwhile, make the instant mi goreng according to instructions.
- Mix together the mi goreng noodles, the various msg-laden sauces that come with the packet, and the veggies.
- Quickly fry up 2 eggs on the pan that held the veggies. Alternatively, soft boil the eggs before you cook the noodles. So long as you have a gorgeous egg to top the dish, you're good.
- Enjoy with whatever fresh veggies and herbs you have on hand.
Notes
Black Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp sriracha
- 1 carrot
- 1 large potato
- 1 can black beans
- 1 bouillon cube
Instructions
- Fry diced onions in olive oil on medium heat for 5 min.
- Add chopped carrots and potatoes, fry for 5-10 more min.
- Add finely chopped garlic and sriracha, fry for 1 min.
- Add can of black beans with the juices, plus another can of water using the empty can.
- Crush up the bouillon cube in a small bowl, add some of the hot soup liquid, and stir to dissolve. Pour everything back into the soup.
- Cook until everything is cooked through and the flavors melded together, 15-20 min.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Mexican Couscous
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 can tomatoes
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can corn
- 1 cup couscous
Instructions
- Fry diced onions in olive oil on medium heat until there's some browning, 5-10 min.
- Add finely chopped garlic and spices, fry for 1 min.
- Add the cans of tomatoes, beans, and corn with their liquids. Add some salt.
- Add another ½ cup of water, taste and add more salt and spices. Bring to a boil.
- Turn off the heat, stir in the cousous, and cover. Let sit for 5 min.
- Enjoy with some shredded cheese if you have any!
Notes
Fresh Couscous Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup couscous
- 2 fresh tomatoes
- 2 red bell pepper
- 1 fresh cucumber
- 1 avocado
- lots of fresh herbs (basil, cilantro, parsley, mint…)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Boil 1 cup water, stir in the couscous, turn off the heat. Cover and let sit.
- Cut all the fresh veggies into smallish pieces.
- Chop a shit ton of fresh herbs.
- Mix the olive oil together with the lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Combine all ingredients.
- Enjoy on a warm summer night.
Notes
Further Info
Hopefully I’ve provided everything you need to know to successfully and deliciously start cooking in a campervan! I honestly feel like I learned so much and progressed so far in my own cooking journey because of the ‘constrained creativity’ that cooking in a campervan compels you to. The limitations and constraints of campervan cooking force you to get creative and imaginative with your problem solving.
For a comprehensive guide to campervanning in New Zealand, check out my post here.
Let me know if you have any further questions, I’d love to geek out about food with you!
