During a holiday season when social distancing and outdoor dining might be more appealing than ever, we thought we'd share a few of the best backcountry Thanksgiving meals in our shared recipe collections for those of you that are thinking about opting out side for this Turkey Day.

The recipes below come from several Wholesum Users:  Mountain Trip, Avid4Adventure, Sierra Club Outings and one of our personal favorites.

You'll find a lot of similarity across these Thanksgiving recipes which goes to show that a camping Thanksgiving is an easy, delicious - and year-round! - favorite.    In fact, on our recent month-long trip to the Boundary Waters in Northern Minnesota, Thanksgiving was a once-a-week feast after a hard day of paddling.

 

SIERRA CLUB OUTTINGS THANKGIVING DINNER: This a true backcountry meal and a gourmet one at that. Everything is freeze-dried or dehydrated.  It's also a stand-out option for those of us that think that stuffing is the star of the show at Thanksgiving.

 

MOUNTAIN TRIP THANKSGIVING DINNER:   Mountain Trip's Thanksgiving Dinner is pretty darn similar to our very own Thanksgiving favorite.   Stovetop stuffing and instant mashed potatoes are two of the rare dishes that are arguably as good from dried versions as their fresh counterparts.

 

AVID4ADVENTURE BACKPACKERS THANKSGIVING DINNER:  Though similar to the recipes above, one thing that I really love about this recipe:  Real Butter.   Thanksgiving without real butter is just not the same.

 

IN SHORT:  There's a long tradition of making backcountry Thanksgiving across outfitters, backpackers and campers.  It's a great go-to anytime of year, but particularly after a long day when folks are craving carbs and fats.  Some of the staple ingredients that are lightweight, nonperishable and taste just about as good as the real thing:

  • -Packaged Chicken or Canned Turkey
  • -Instant Mashed Potatoes
  • -Instant Gravy
  • -Stovetop Stuffing
  • -Dried Cranberries
  • -Dried veggies

 

You can prepare them all as separate dishes or one big “slop”, but either way, you're likely to leave feeling full, satisfied and full of gratitude for the year's best meal.