Teardrop Trailer Pots & Pans

For such a small trailer, we tend to have a lot of pots and pans. Like any carrying vessel, they each perform a specific function during our camping trips and while we've looked at downsizing them—they tend to stick around.

We store them all under the countertop of the galley. While this is not the most ideal place to keep them (right next to the battery), this is where they fit. Since the space is so small, they have to be stacked back in the same way each time (like a Russian nesting doll) or they don't fit.

This pot with the two handy lips is for heating and pouring water for coffee or milk for hot chocolate. We also use it to cook veggies, eggs, etc.

This is a mixing and serving bowl used for salads, pasta dishes or mixing batter for breads and pancakes.

This pot with a locking colander lid is perfect for cooking and draining pasta and veggies. We store our measuring cup inside.

Along with our cast iron frying pan, we have a non-stick, non-Teflon pan for cooking sticky things like eggs.

Believe it or not, we have had this lightweight pot for probably 20 years and used to use it for tent camping. It's large and is primarily used for heating up water for dishes and showers. You can tell it's been placed on a campfire.

This smaller pot came with the larger pot above and while we also use it for heating up water, it's the perfect container for using in the popup shower shelter.

I think the main reason we have not gotten rid of one or more of these pots is that it can be difficult to find small enough and light enough pots and pans that will fit our space. Once you have a good pot that does the job, it's hard to give it up.

What do we keep in the teardrop galley?

The galley of a teardrop is what sets this type of trailer apart from every other trailer. The galley is usually small, but can be extremely efficient and well designed. While the Sunflower is a commercial trailer, I really like the galley. It's open and clean and I can see nearly everything. We don't keep very much in it as you can see below.

Our stove is a Coleman grill with one burner. We've cooked everything from steak and fish to pancakes and eggs. The little legs keep it wedged under the galley shelf during transportation. I do put little rubber skids under the legs to keep it from sliding.

This little sunflower is a wooden trivet that we use to put hot pans or pots on. Hot cast iron will burn or melt wood and plastic picnic tables.

Our cutting boards fit perfectly into the galley shelf. I've mentioned this before, but the smaller one is actually a divider that goes into a spiral binder.

Our various cups, plates and crockery are all plastic for travel reasons. Most of them I got from a thrift store, and we have enough to feed four to five people. The fish plates are used as serving plates, and they don't fit the Sunflower theme very well (I won them during a contest at a picnic).

In two blue toy boxes we carry olive oil, spray oil, salt, pepper, spices and some hot sauces.

We also carry a small spray bottle filled with soap and water to do quick dish washes while eating on the road.

Hot coffee on a cold morning while camping is very important to us. This French press by Thermos makes at least four small cups of coffee.

Two essential items on the shelf are paper towels and aluminum foil....

...and two spatulas—one plastic and one metal.

In our two red dishpans, we carry everyday kitchen items like...

...our cast iron pan which I rescued from a rust-covered life in someone's yard,

a small bag that holds plastic grocery bags for garbage,

our two oven mitts, 

an extra bottle of propane,

and some dish towels and rags for cleaning up.

The only (and very small) drawer holds not only our cutlery, but a few tools and odds and ends like...

...the dish soap and sponge,

various kitchen tools like a good knife, peeler, can opener, bottle opener and tongs.

Of course, we have enough spoons, forks and knives for several people including two grapefruit spoons.

We've also crammed in some lighters with fuel, scissors, a mesh strainer and a pen.

We also have some emergency matches, and a clothespin always seems to come in handy.

In our one cabinet (along with the battery) we have our various pots. Personally, I think we have too many, but they all serve different needs. This one is usually reserved for our shower setup.

This pot has a locking lid and holes for draining pasta and vegetables. We carry a measuring cup inside of it.

This pot has two lips for pouring out water or hot milk into coffee and hot chocolate.

This is a bowl we use for mixing breads and eggs or for holding a salad. It was left behind in a campground bear box.

This pot is primarily used for heating up water on the campfire. It's become a little black.

Last of all is our open storage area. This area holds the two dishpans, the main propane tank, a 2.5 gallon water container and a plastic bin for dry goods. The plastic bin is handy in that it can be taken out of the galley and moved to a picnic table for quick access.

The plastic bin (which we've had for nearly 13 years) usually carries coffee, hot chocolate, a container of sugar, honey, plastic bags, creamer, rice or pasta and some storage containers. On a short or long trip—this thing is stocked full.

Looking back at the photos—it seems like a lot of stuff! However, when they are neatly organized and stored away, all the items don't seem like too much to carry around in your own mobile kitchen.

How do you make coffee?

Even if you don't drink coffee in your everyday life, there's just something about a fresh cup of hot Joe when you're camping. It really gets you ready for a day in the fresh air. However, without a regular drip coffee maker (or the electricity to power it) how do you make your morning coffee while teardrop camping? Believe it or not, this has been one of the main questions we get when out on the road with the teardrop. It's an important topic to some people and our choices of coffee gear are very international.

Personally, when teardrop camping we use an insulated French press that makes about three to four cups of coffee. If you have not used a French press before, Howcast has a video on how to use this elegant little coffee maker. You will need to heat up water in a saucepan or a teapot first, and we do this on our camp stove or on the fire pit. The ground coffee beans go into the bottom of the French press, and the hot water is poured over the top of the beans. The top lid of the press has a plunger that you press down into the water and bean mixture which extracts out the coffee. The type of French press we have is very easy to clean out and the coffee stays warm for about half an hour in the insulated base.

Another type of camp coffee maker is the Italian espresso maker. We've used this type of pot before while teardrop camping, and the benefit is that the espresso maker can go right on the camp stove without having to boil water in another pot. This video by Sean Michael of the Long Long Honeymoon is a humorous look at how to use a Bialetti Moka Express coffee maker.

You don't have to use espresso beans in this type of pot, but it helps if the beans are finely ground. Put the ground coffee in the little filtered insert that goes on top of the bottom compartment. Cold water is poured into the bottom compartment, the top pouring compartment is screwed on, and the entire pot is put on the stove. The water from the bottom will heat up and force its way through the beans and into the pouring compartment. The pot makes a cute bubbling sound and when the bubbling stops, your coffee is done. I actually prefer this type of coffee pot and use it at home, but we are usually camping with several friends and the French press makes more coffee than the Italian pot.

Our Stargazers teardrop friends like to use the classic camp coffee maker, the percolator. This type of coffee maker uses the same science from the Italian maker, but without the forced steam. We've used this type of pot on both the stove and on a campfire grate and it makes at least five to seven cups of coffee. The coffee grounds are put into a filtered container that fits into the top of the pot. The filter has a long tube that reaches into the water inside the pot and when the water heats up, it flows through the tube, into the filter and back into the pot. I love to watch the coffee percolate into the glass viewer on top of the pot, but I personally think the coffee is a little weaker with this type of maker. Check this percolator video from Howcast.


Photo by simplerich