Heath Wood
As summer draws near, numerous people begin to plan for vacations, small getaways, and weekend fun.
For nature lovers, summer plans revolve around being in the outdoors. It may be camping, fishing, hiking, or simply relaxing in a secluded spot where Mother Nature showcases her beauty. Most importantly, summer fun in the outdoors is often spent with family and friends. Something that typically coincides with family and friends is food. Food is one thing that brings families closer and is the foundation while making memories with good friends and also meeting new ones.
One of my favorite hobbies is cooking while at home with my wife and our son. We enjoy preparing the meals and cooking together, whether inside or using the grill in the backyard. As much fun as the meal's preparation is, the best part transpires when we sit down together as a family to enjoy our meal.
I have recently discovered many modern cooking technologies designed to be taken along while traveling in the great outdoors. Using these new cooking apparatuses has opened my eyes to the endless possibilities of travel and food while spending quality time with friends and family. Below are three must-have products to increase the enjoyment of food and drinks outdoors.
Butane Portable Cooktop
The convivence of having a portable cooktop without hooking up to propane bottles or adding camp fuel is why the Can Cooker Portable Cooktop stove was made. With a small butane bottle that conveniently hides underneath the stove's body, The Can Cooker Portable Cooktop is ideal for camping, backpacking, or wherever the next outdoor adventure takes you.
One of my favorite uses for the portable cooktop is to make fresh coffee in my percolator coffee pot. There is nothing more sociable than visiting with others over a good cup of coffee. While at deer camp, camping, or performing a remote cook, a hot cup of coffee is always pleasant. Plus, it seems to taste better when brewed outdoors. My wife maintains that the best coffee she has ever had was a cup I made in the percolator while eating breakfast when we were camping as a family on the river.
Campground Style Gravity Grill
Almost everyone who has ever been at a campground has encountered the small portable grill grates that sit directly over a fire or charcoal. Can Cooker also makes the Gravity Grill Combo that is highly portable and versatile while allowing one to grill, BBQ, or use it as a griddle. It quickly sets up with no tools required and can be used virtually anywhere.
One of my favorite ways to use the Gravity Grill Combo is while floating the rivers and streams in a canoe. A few hours of floating down the river, combined with the heat, the paddling, and the common stops to take a swim, can make a person quite hungry. Who wants a soggy sandwich out of the cooler? Instead, the grill combo can easily be set up on the gravel, sand, or dirt banks. After a quick start of a fire, hamburgers and hotdogs can be grilled up in no time. It is also an excellent time for everyone to sit around the fire and share their day's highlights.
Portable Pellet Grill With Portable Power Unit
One of my favorite ways to cook while in the backyard at home is on my electric pellet smokers. The quality of food with ease of use is incomparable. I longed for that same cooking experience while camping or enjoying a remote cook. The only problem was taking an 885 square inch smoker along; to say the least, it is an inconvenience, plus an arduous task.
The Traeger Grills Ranger portable grill is an excellent invention for portable outdoor cooking. The Ranger has all the cooking capabilities that my giant grills/smokers at home have, yet in a much smaller version. When I pair the Ranger with the Blackfire USA PAC1000 Portable Power Pack Generator, I can take my pellet smoker virtually anywhere my outdoor adventures lead me. I love taking my portable pellet grill to the river, setting it up with a picturesque background, and cooking a quality meal for my family or friends.
I recently traveled to a remote area on private land with the beautiful Eleven Point River running through the property. As my wife and son enjoyed the river and the beautiful sites nearby, I prepared a package of venison sausage and venison patties from the Mossy Oak GameKeeper Butchery. I cooked a wonderful lunch for us in an area that would have been hard to cook at without the ease of use of the portable grill. After finding a flat spot near the riverbank, I set up the Ranger grill and Blackfire USA power station, and within thirty minutes, we had a wonderful tasting meal while enjoying the outdoors and each other.
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