Utensil free and grill-ready snacks for the next game.
Football season is in full swing and that means it’s time to fire up the grills and get tailgating. Our ideal tailgate setting includes a fun matchup, plenty of good friends and a solid spread of food. We took the BaseCamp and CampStove tailgating last year at a UT Austin and had a blast grilling up for crowds and generating electricity to keep phones powered up before kickoff.
One thing we noticed was that good tailgating and camping food share something in common: simplicity is clutch. Smart preparation, combining steps, and clever ways to serve food can make all the difference between a seamless day or a total stress-fest. With that in mind, we decided to marry the world of tailgating and camping together with a few recipes that are perfect for either occasion. Each of the recipes make for easy grilling, utensil free eating, and little clean up.
Buffalo Chicken Skewers
Buffalo wings. A tailgate staple, for sure, but let's face it: they're a mess. In our recipe, we got rid of the bones by putting cubes of chicken on a skewer instead. The result is more chicken per bite, wood-fired flavor, plus there's almost no clean up. After you eat, just toss the wood skewer in the fire of the BaseCamp and you're done.
What you’ll need:
- Chicken breast
- Buffalo sauce (we liked this recipe on food.com)
- Celery
- Blue cheese or ranch dip (debate amongst yourselves)
- Skewers
How to prepare:
Sausage Sliders
Sliders are a great tailgate snack. But when you're parked in a lot without a running faucet, molding tons of raw meat into tiny patties can get a little rough. So we put a spin on the average slider by replacing the patty with sausage instead. Many sausages come pre-cooked, and even if you decide to go raw, you can easily place them on the grill with tongs - no hand molding here. Another benefit of using sausage is that you can easily grill up multiple types to satisfy all the eaters in your group (ie. chicken, veggie, pork). We recommend using jagerwurst, which translates into Hunter's Sausage.
What you’ll need:
- Jagerwurst sausage (one sausage will create two sliders)
- Slider buns
- Lettuce
- Tomato
- Onions
- Cheese
- Mustard & Ketchup
How to prepare:
(Show off points: pre-boil your jagerwurst in a KettlePot full of beer - it adds really awesome flavor)
S’mores
No tailgate is complete without at least one sweet. S’mores are a crowd favorite and fun surprise for a tailgate. They are a sure fire way to bring everyone together around the grill to make their own perfect creation while Grillmaster can take a break and get in on the fun. Since you’ll already have skewers on hand, bring along s’more supplies. Satisfaction guaranteed.
What you’ll need:
How to prepare:
Place a marshmallow or two on a skewer, hold over the BaseCamp until golden brown (or burnt, if that's how you take your s'more), make a sandwich of your marshmallow, chocolate and graham cracker and dig in.
