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Foil Dinners
with Chicken and Vegetables

Foil dinners are an important camping tradition. They are fun to make and fun to eat.

I love that all of the prep work can be done at home. At camp all you have to do is build the fire, let it burn down to coals, place your premade dinners in the coals, and wait! Soon you'll have a delicious supper that the whole family will love.

Foil dinners with chicken and vegetables are especially tasty.

Here's how to make enough for four people.

Cooking time will vary depending on lots of factors: the temperature of your coals, the thickness of your vegetable slices, the temperature of the chicken when it comes out of the cooler, the thickness of your brand of foil.... so I can't give you an exact cooking time.

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At home

What to do

• Thinly slice 1 lb/500 g chicken breast. 

• Put it in a shallow pan and cover it with your favorite marinade. (Bottled Italian salad dressing is easy and tasty.)

• Refrigerate overnight.

• In the morning, slice 4 smallish onions. 

• Chop 4 peppers and 4 carrots.

• Place a piece of foil on your work surface and place on it a layer of onion slices (use 1/4 of your onion).
  

• Top the onions with 1/4 of the chicken, 1/4 of the carrots and 1/4 of the peppers.

• Take the ends of the foil and draw them upwards.

• Fold the ends over several times.


• Fold the foil to make a secure packet. 

• Seal the ends securely.

• Wrap in a second layer of foil.

• Label the top of the packet. (Put the onion side on the bottom.)


• Repeat to make 3 more packets.

• Put the packets in a plastic bag. (This is so that any leaking juices won't touch your other food.)

• Put a cold pack or some ice inside the plastic bag. (The plastic bag may insulate the packets from the cold air in the cooler. You want to be certain that the chicken stays cold.)

• Place the plastic bag in the fridge until it's time to pack.

• Discard the marinade.

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What to pack

Food

In the cooler

• the plastic bag of foil packets (Put this in the coldest part of the cooler.)

• lots of ice
  

Pots and Utensils

• oven mitts or heat guard gloves

• a long handled spade (optional but highly recommended - click here for more information)

• tongs

• plates

• forks and spoons

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At camp

• Build a fire.

• Let it burn down to red glowing coals.

• Place the foil packets in the coals, onion side down.

• Let cook for a while. (Sorry - I'd be more exact if I could, but I just can't! Check the packets soon and often.)

• Using a spade, or an oven mitt and tongs, remove one of the packets.

These heat resistant gloves would be even better!

• Open each packet carefully and check for doneness.

• If there is no pink in the chicken, and the vegetables are tender but not soggy, your supper is ready!

• Transfer the food to a plate - or eat it right out of the foil.

• If it's not ready, carefully rewrap the dinner and place it back in the coals. Keep checking it regularly until it is done.

For detailed information about making tin foil dinners, click here.

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Now that you know how to make Foil Dinners with Chicken and Vegetables, check here for more easy camping food ideas.

I'd love to help you prepare for your next camping trip. Please visit The Camping Family home page to get started.