Cooking is a big part of camping and thus an important part of my overland build. My cooking setup as a car camper has evolved a bit over the years.
On my first few camping trips we simply cooked over the fire. I slowly shifted to using a cookstove as there are times when having a fire isn’t realistic. Over the past decade, I tend to use the cookstove on larger road trips, and I still cook over the fire when doing base camping closer to home. Nothing cooks a steak better than a roaring campfire! As I’ve slowly gotten into wild camping, there isn’t always a picnic table to set the stove on…
So the first upgrade was an Outback Adventure Trailgater. It’s basically a fold down counter top that attaches to the tailgate. It’s a terrific product that’s very solid and well built. It attaches into existing holes, so there’s no need for drilling. It works perfectly as a place to put my Coleman stove, with extra room on the pullout cutting board. It’s also at approximately the right height that I could use it for a computer desk or table. I actually installed this last year and on it’s own it amplified some other issues; more on that below.
Another important part of camp cooking is the cooler. While a regular cooler can totally work, always remembering to replenish the ice can be annoying. I’ve also had trips into the wilderness for a few days and by the end all the ice is gone, or times in super hot weather when it melts too fast. Not to mention that food just doesn’t keep as well when it’s next to ice. Some food drowns in the water in the bottom and vegetables tend to go soggy faster. The cooler was my original biggest annoyance with camping, so there were very early plans to get a powered fridge.
So I got a Dometic CFX3 45 powered cooler. It was tough choosing, as there are several good options. In the end I chose the Dometic because it seemed to have reasonable power efficiency, good insulation, and good reviews. On my recent trip the fridge did it’s job perfectly…mostly in that I didn’t have to pay any attention to it, and it kept my food cold. It also used very little power…however, it was quite cool out east, so very little power draw should be expected. I’ve been powering it with a custom battery setup, which I will write about in a future post.
And then there’s organization of the cooking gear: pots, pans, etc. In the early years I kept everything in cardboard boxes. Eventually I settled on a couple of plastic bins. One that held all the cooking gear and another for dry food. They worked well at campgrounds, as I would often just take them out to the picnic table. Once I had the tailgate tray, the bins caused a lot of hassle. They were stacked, so I could only access one at a time, and I couldn’t set anything on top of them without losing access.
I had previously seen Goose Gear’s products and really liked how they were setup. They are quite expensive, but are a premium product and very well built. They can also be made specifically to bolt into a Jeep without any drilling. In theory you could probably build your own for significant savings…but I’m not a handy individual. There otherwise aren’t many other solutions that simply bolt into a Jeep Wrangler. So I got a slider for the fridge and a set of drawers…along with the floor replacement that they bolt onto.(more on that when I write about the battery setup)
The drawers were especially expensive, but I really enjoy them as they are so much simpler to access than plastic bins. With my tailgate tray open, the top drawer can still open all the way, and the lower one can open part way. So I keep my cooking gear in the top one, and dry food, coffee grinder and moka pot in the bottom one. It’s also easier to cleanup after a meal, as I can put things away as I use them…rather than spreading out across a picnic table.
The fridge slider is also amazing, as it allows me to pack stuff on top of the cooler and still be able to access it. The same can be said for the drawers vs my old containers. Currently, I pack the stove on top of one side, so when I’m cooking that area is empty and acts as extra counter space.
All together, these upgrades have made cooking out of the back of the Jeep quite nice. I didn’t use a picnic table at all on my last trip! Just being at the back of the Jeep means I have more shielding from wind than a picnic table would have. Setup and cleanup is much quicker too! As mentioned in a previous post, my 270 awning covers the rear kitchen area, so everything is fully contained and I can cook when it’s raining!
It does add a fair bit of weight to the back, but it seems worth it. Also, since the Jeep is still my daily driver, with these upgrades, I’ve given up being able to use the trunk for anything other than camping…but this is a small sacrifice for what I get out of it!
There are still a few small upgrades planned. I recently picked up a WaterPORT pressurized tank with a hose that I plan to use for running water for washing dishes. Also I think I’m going to add some lights to the back area for cooking in the dark…as right now I would need a flashlight. I’m also looking into other stoves, as I really only ever use one burner of my two burner stove…although I still think I prefer the Coleman fuel stove to propane. Either way, the current upgrades have been amazing! Coming up next: custom battery setup!
The Narrow Twisty Road 