Cooking While Camping: Sausage and Bean Dutch-Oven Stew

Once you start to feel comfortable with your camping routine, it can be fun to start trying more adventurous recipes or outdoor cooking techniques.  Certain recipes are better suited for outdoor cooking so I'll be sharing some of my tried and true favorites.

I originally saw the recipe for Sausage and Bean Dutch-Oven Stew in Sunset magazine in an article that featured outdoor cooking recipes.

The recipe is delicious, and very kid-friendly, but I do have a few suggestions to make it a bit easier.

Ingredients

2 cans each cannellini beans and chickpeas (garbanzos), drained and rinsed

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves or 1/2 tbsp dried rosemary leaves

1 bell pepper, sliced

1 poblano chile, sliced

4 medium garlic cloves, chopped

1 1/2 pounds cooked Italian sausages, such as Saag's or Aidells, cut into 1-in. chunks (I use 1 package which is usually about 12 oz. but that is plenty for our family of 3)

1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves or 2 tbsp. dried oregano leaves

Preparation

At Home:

Prep and mix all ingredients in a 1-gallon ziploc bag. This only takes about 10 minutes and makes cooking at the campsite so much easier.

At The Campsite:

1.Prepare your heat source, either a fire with a grate or a campstove.  

2. Dump the contents of your ziploc bag into a dutch oven or large soup pot.  Add 3/4 cup water and cover.  Add to heat source.

2. Check the pot and stir every 10 to 15 minutes, and adding more water if stew gets dry, until peppers soften and sausages swell, 30 to 45 minutes. 

Dish up and bon appetit!