Campfire Chicken Fajitas

Last weekend, we headed out to Sleepy Hollow State Park for our first camping trip of the summer.  Of course, I planned out our food for the trip earlier in the week and had much of it prepped before leaving home to make the cooking around a campfire easy and fun.  I had originally planned to make some hobo dinners like we tried on our only camping trip last summer.  I had decided I'd use some chopped up chicken breasts since I had some in the freezer that needed to be used.  Then I got to thinking... why not do chicken fajitas instead of the typical hobo dinner?  So that's what I did.  These were super easy to prep and they tasted awesome!  We're not eating grains much these days, so we opted for no tortillas and just added some toppings to the fajitas and ate it all with a fork.  These will definitely be something I'll make often when we go camping - they were a total hit! 

Campfire Chicken Fajitas

chicken breasts, cut into strips/chunks
bell peppers, sliced
onions, sliced
other veggies are optional (we had asparagus in our since its in season)
taco seasoning
extra virgin olive oil, cold-pressed and unfiltered
toppings - diced avocado, homemade salsa, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, etc.

Cut the meat from your chicken breasts (or you can use boneless) into strips or chunks.  Place into an airtight container and toss with taco seasoning and olive oil.  The amount you use will depend on your tastes and how much chicken you are making.  I used two large chicken breasts and used about 3 Tablespoons of seasoning, plus enough olive oil to coat.  I didn't measure anything, just used what looked right.  Put the lid on your container and place it in the refrigerator or cooler with ice.  I prepped everything the night before we left, so my chicken marinated for about 24 hours or a little more. 

Next, slice up your peppers, onions, and whatever other veggies you like.  I added asparagus to ours since that's what was in season.  If you are taking these camping with you, do this step at home so everything is ready to go.  Then place the veggies in another airtight container or ziploc bag and place in the cooler on ice. 

When you are ready to make your campfire fajitas, tear off some large pieces of heavy duty aluminum foil.  You'll want big enough pieces to form into packets around your meals.  Place however much chicken you want in each meal in the center of the foil.  Then top with the prepared veggies.  Wrap up the foil around everything, into a packet.  Then wrap again with another piece of foil - double wrapping helps so the food doesn't get too charred on the fire. 

Finally, place the packets onto the hot coals in your campfire.  You should flip them and rotate them a few times.  Let them cook for 15-20 minutes, depending on how hot your fire is.  Once done, remove from the fire.  Unwrap the foil carefully - the steam escaping is very hot and can burn you if you're not careful.  We just dumped ours out onto our plates.  Then top with your favorite fajita toppings.  We kept it simple and just used some homemade salsa, diced avocado, and sour cream.  If you are ok with grains, serve with some tortillas.  Otherwise, enjoy with your fork - that's what we did and they were delicious!

This post is linked to:

Simple Lives Thursday at GNOWFGLINS

Pennywise Platter Thursday at The Nourishing Gourmet

Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop

Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade

Grain Free Real Food Carnival at Real Food Forager

Hobo Dinners

I decided to try out hobo dinners for the dinner that I was responsible for on our camping trip. I got the idea from my SIL, Mary. I had never even heard of these things, but after doing a little reading on the internet, I realize they are quite common. This was the first time I'd actually ever cooked over the campfire, as well... well aside from roasting marshmallows or hot dogs on those long extendable sticks, anyway. It was pretty cool... true camping food and cooking at its best. :) These hobo dinners were super easy to plan, put together, and cook. And they were awesome! Everything gets so perfectly and evenly cooked with the steam created within the packet and they end up being so delicious! They're very versatile, too. Use whatever you like. I found so many different variations online. But here's what I did.

Hobo Dinners

ground beef (or any other ground meat... I used half ground chicken and half ground beef)
potatoes, sliced
carrots, sliced
onion, sliced
any other veggie you like (I added peas)
salt
pepper

Use whatever quantity you like of all the ingredients for each hobo dinner (1 per person).

Form a patty with the beef. Lay it on a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil. Add layers of potatoes, carrots, onion, and any other veggie you like (I used peas... and Kati even put shrimp in hers, too). Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Make a foil packet around the food. Wrap again with another piece of foil (double-wrap). Place on hot coals right in your campfire. Cook for about 25-30 minutes. There is no need to flip them, as the steam within the packet will cook everything evenly.

You can also make these at home in your oven. Just bake for about 1 hour at 375-400.