How to Make Coffee While Camping: A Detailed Guide
Some people just cannot stay without their warm cup of coffee. Caffeine keeps them going, to the point that it will make them go bonkers if there is none of it.
It’s fair to say that a camper or an adventurer can stay without food but not without coffee. That is why knowing how to make a coffee while camping can be very helpful.
Of course, you can say no to many things, but a good, tasty, and warm cup of coffee just cannot be skipped.
If you are here, then either you don’t know how to brew a cup of coffee or just want to know about the various other ways you can delight yourself with a cup of caffeine and make it more interesting.
You may have seen the movie stars prepare their coffee like it’s a child’s play probably a lot of times in the movies. After all, all they do is make some coffee and emulsify it with some water, and voila, there is your coffee.
This is just not how it’s done or how you make a brilliant coffee. Coffee is a very delicate ingredient, and the right flavor profile is a bit complicated to nail and hence, must be done with a lot of care.
But here’s the good thing you’ve got us with you, and we shall not disappoint you. We will cover all the varied and exciting ways you can make your cup of coffee in this article.
So, let’s now jump into the good stuff and fill you in on making coffee while camping and preparing your dream coffee.
Things you Need for Making Coffee at Camp
You have packed every necessary camping and hiking gear you need for camping in your backpack, but hey, don’t forget about your coffee.
You will want to pack some things to make your camping coffee: a coffee maker or any brewer you like and an airtight container for storing your coffee.
Always keep a coffee grinder with you because freshly ground whole coffee tastes so much better than the pre-ground ones. At last, take your coffee with you and a kettle, and a coffee thermos to keep your coffee warm.
Instant Coffee
You have to be someone who is living under a rock if you don’t know about instant coffee because, after all, it’s the go-to choice of most coffee lovers.
Almost 50% of the coffee consumed in some countries is instant coffee, and it is not hard to understand why as it is very cheap, fast, and easier to make than regular coffee.
Instant coffee contains many healthy and powerful antioxidants, but some believe it has more antioxidants than other varieties of coffee.
You can use instant coffee on various trips that include backpacking, bikepacking, etc.
The best thing about instant coffee is that it is instant, which means you barely have to break a sweat to make it.
Just put some instant coffee powder into a cup and add some boiling or warm water to it; wait until the powder dissolves, and then you are good to go.
Cowboy Coffee
Cowboy coffee is a prevalent type of brew usually made by the cowboys themselves out camping in the wild. For a cowboy coffee to turn out fabulous, you just need to give it a bit of time.
What separates a cowboy coffee from the other coffee types is its simplicity. It is, after all, known as the simplest way to make coffee while camping.
All you need to do is heat the coarse grounds with water and then wait for the grounds to settle and after that, you can pour it into a cup and enjoy.
The clean-up process can be a bit complicated as the grounds don’t dissolve into the water, so cowboy coffee making is not suitable for backpacking.
There is a certain sheen about the cowboy coffee, which makes it different from others.
There are numerous ways to make cowboy coffee, and one of them is the clean cup method.
In this method, you have to boil water inside a coffee cloth or whatever cloth you have, and then you have to place coffee grounds in and then place it in a kettle.
Coffee Bag
A coffee bag is a very unusual but exciting way of brewing coffee. Of course, nothing can match the taste and feel of a real coffee, but the reality is that we are always on the run, and we don’t have time every day to make our perfect coffee.
That is where the fantastic coffee bags come into the picture, and it is a super-easy way to brew coffee like a proper coffee but with no high-tech or fancy equipment involved. All it takes is boiling a kettle, and it is that simple.
The brewing method is straightforward. First, add the coffee bag to a mug, then add warm or boiling water to it.
Now stir and squeeze and brew it for two minutes, tweak it a bit more to get all of the flavors out, then remove and enjoy.
The Moka Pot
The Moka Pot is a great coffee that has an Italian style to it. For people who like robust Italian-style coffee, then the Moka pot is just for you.
The Moka Pot is a stove-top coffee maker that brews coffee by passing boiling water, then pressurized by steam through ground coffee.
Alfonso Bialetti, who invented the Moka Pot, was an Italian, so it got trendy in Italy.
With the help of the Moka Pot, you can make an authentic Italian-style coffee and drink it on its own or make an Americano by mixing it with some hot water.
What’s even better about the Moka Pot is that it comes with a built-in metal filter basket which means you don’t have to buy any paper filters.
The Moka Pot is divided into three parts, the bottom is the reservoir, the metal filter is in the middle, and on top, there’s the serving carafe.
The water goes in the bottom and the grounds in the middle filter. Once the stove is lit, the water starts boiling, steams up through the settings, and assembles in the top carafe.
Aeropress
Almost all coffee lovers love the Aeropress. It has an evident taste while also being rich and smooth, and your mouth gets a pinging sensation thanks to its fantastic flavor and because the paper filter doesn’t let any oil or sediment in the cup.
The Aeropress also can make coffee concentrate, just like an espresso.
It is a budget-friendly, can be used on travels, is very easy to use, clean, robust, and lightweight.
You can use it on car camping, VanLife, and backpacking trips. For example, to make your coffee in an Aeropress, use the top-down method.
First, insert the filter, put the base over the cup, put some coffee grounds into the floor, splash a small amount of hot water to degas the settings, then add until it reaches the top.
Water will drip out the bottom into your cup. After 15 seconds, depress the plunger and enjoy.
Bripe Coffee Brew Pipe
The bripe has to be the most sophisticated coffee brew system that we have ever seen. This one will undoubtedly make a few heads go berserk, considering it is a weird concept that is pretty compelling.
The bripe coffee brew pipe is a lightweight kit which at first doesn’t seem like the perfect way to brew coffee, but it will surprise you through its magnificent efficiency and effectiveness in brewing coffee.
The main goal of the bripe was to make top-notch coffee without requiring any devices that are “too complex, bulky, and weighed too much to fit into a backpack or river kayak.”
The kit has six essential components: a quad-jet butane torch, copper cooling stand/base, thermometer, reusable metal filter, bripe brew pipe, and coffee vial, which contains three servings.
To make your coffee, first, you need to put the grounds and water into the pipe cup, then boil the water with the help of a lighter or a stove-top.
After this, all you need to do is sip through the attached straw when it cools down.
Pour-Over Stand
With the Pour-Over Stand, you are in total control because these pour-overs provide you complete control over your pouring style, which is also one of the reasons why many baristas enjoy it.
Pour overs also stand out in terms of giving you the freedom to regulate the temperature of your water, which also means it can provide extra caffeine.
The pour-over coffee brewing produces coffee that is not only delicious but also rich and very balanced. Ripe and stunning flavors with intense aromas are some of the qualities that make pour-overs stand out.
These days, many coffee shops are all about pour-overs, but pour-over stands are specifically designed for lightweight and compact campers.
To make your coffee in pour-overs, first, fill a paper or cloth filter with some coffee grounds and put it over your cup. Then, after the water is boiled, slowly pour it into the filter in a circular motion.
You need a kettle that can pour a steady stream of water without dribbling.
French Press
French press or cafeteria is a simple yet fantastic coffee brewing device. A french press provides a totally different coffee experience which is without a doubt worth it.
A French press uses a more coarse filter, and after the coffee has steeped and filtered, it has more fine particles. French press gives you coffee in its purest form as there is no paper filter to change the flavor.
If you prefer a more robust cup of coffee, then you steep it for a more extended period of time. Unfortunately, the french press with the glass carafe is not made to withstand outside and camping life rigors. Still, other models are available on the market that is then, after sturdy and durable.
You should know about a french press because it needs more coarse grounds than any other coffee-making method.
First, put some spoons of coarse coffee grounds into the bottom to make your coffee in a french press.
Then splash a little bit of hot water onto the degas, fill the container with hot water, stir it a bit, then wait for 10 minutes before you depress the plunger.
Percolator
The percolator is probably known by every camper who is a coffee lover.
There is no exceptional coffee made specifically for percolators. That is why you can use any coarsely ground coffee with coarse to medium grind.
Many believe percolators brew more robust coffee because you get a double brewed coffee on the first go.
With the percolator, you can make lots of strong coffee over a camp stove or campfire. You can use the percolator for car camping, VanLife, RV, etc.
To make your coffee in a percolator, first, fill your kettle with water, put a paper filter in the basket, fill it with coffee grounds, and then leave it boiling until it’s ready.
Many percolators have a glass viewing bubble at the top so that you regularly take a look at the color of the coffee.
Portable Espresso Maker
True coffee lovers are always scared of not having their daily cup of coffee when they are on a weekend getaway or a hiking trip.
Although there are so many coffee shops nowadays at every possible location, there are still some spots where they don’t exist. That is why you should be able to make your shot of espresso for yourself, and there is nothing better than a portable espresso maker to do just that.
These days, many lightweight and compact espresso maker options available would easily fit in your overnight bag.
Espresso is very different from regular coffee since it is a highly concentrated drink that needs high pressure, which forces hot water through finely-ground coffee grounds.
With espresso, you can get yourself a quick caffeine boost, and it also has a robust and intense flavor due to its high concentration, which tastes fantastic.
If you are someone who can’t stay without his espresso shots, then an espresso maker is just for you.
The instructions vary from different models, but generally, to make your coffee in an espresso machine, you need to pack some coffee grounds into one compartment and add some hot water to another container.
Gradually, the pressure will start to build and will push steam through the grounds.
FAQs
How do you make coffee without a campfire?
You can use the camping stove. You do not have to start a fire. Just boil the water and add the grounds like you would on your stove at home. Use your camp cup or pot as usual (most of them are for cooking). You can also use this method with most any other dehydrated food.
How do you make iced coffee when camping?
If you have an old coffee pot and can find ice, this is a great treat one evening.
Coffee Ice Cubes: Get out your clean empty coffee pot and put some leftover coffee in it. Freeze overnight or until desired frozenness of the cubes is reached.
When that cold drink needs to be cooled off just pop one out and use it like an ice cube. These come in handy if you are entertaining kids, having a pot roast, or any other time you would want to use them. You can also add a little water to make the cubes smaller and easier to pop out if desired.
How long should I percolate coffee?
Percolating coffee is a matter of determining how long to percolate it. The amount of time varies according to the freshness and strength (aroma) desired in the finished beverage.
If you want a stronger or fresher-tasting drink, use more ground coffee and percolate it longer. If you want a milder, mellower-tasting beverage; use less ground coffee and percolate it for a shorter period of time.
Is instant coffee bad for you?
Instant coffee contains the same ingredients as regular ground coffee. In fact, instant coffee is also made from roasted beans that have been finely ground. However, solubles in a cup of percolated java are dissolved by hot water so quickly they can’t be detected.
However, instant coffee is produced using a process that forces the water into the solubles while they are still dry. This formation process causes the natural flavor and aroma compounds to “bleed-out” of something called super-critical fluid extraction method of producing instant coffee. The complex fragrant essential oils responsible for the rich aromas of ground coffee.
Final Thoughts
We hope you have enjoyed this detailed guide on How to Make Coffee While Camping, and now have the information to brew up a cup of great coffee while you are outside camping or fishing.
By following the simple tips and procedures mentioned above you can have a great cup of coffee while out on the trail. The key is to keep the method as simple as possible, and the results will be great. So, as you drink your next cup of coffee out on the trail be sure to connect with mother nature and enjoy!
