How To Cook A Tasty Thanksgiving In Your RV!
Cooking in your RV for Thanksgiving doesn’t have to be difficult. While the thought of cooking a family feast in a tiny space can be daunting, it definitely can be done. After many years on the road and learning some tricks from other RVers, it’s time to share with you a few recipes and tips to make RV cooking for Thanksgiving a breeze!
Get your forks ready, because we’re diving in!
RV Cooking: The Turkey
Obviously, it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without the main course. We’ve learned that RVers are very creative when it comes to cooking the turkey on Thanksgiving. There are many different ways to cook this tasty dish in an RV!
First, if you would like to cook a turkey in your RV oven, you will be limited by space. Don’t let that stop you though! You can easily buy a smaller bird or consider cooking the turkey in smaller portions.
If cooking in the RV oven doesn’t sound appealing, you still have plenty of options available to you outside. RVers have cooked their Thanksgiving turkey in smokers, deep fryers, and dutch ovens. Personally, we love these outdoor options as they feel more like the thing to do when celebrating Thanksgiving at the campground.
RV Cooking: Side Dishes
Now that you have the turkey situated, it’s time to start thinking about the side dishes. Your oven may already be occupied by the turkey, which is where an Instant Pot comes in handy! If we’ve learned anything during our years of RVing, it’s that RVers love the Instant Pot. It’s a great tool to have because it’s so versatile and really easy to store.
While the turkey is roasting, get your mashed sweet potatoes with goat cheese started in the Instant Pot.
It’s best to round out your Thanksgiving meal with some vegetables. Now that your oven and Instant Pot are cooking away, it’s time to whip out the Air Fryer. It’s very hard to ruin a recipe in an air fryer since this cooking method makes everything crispy and delicious.
RV Cooking: Rolls
You can’t have Thanksgiving dinner without rolls! While it’s super easy to use the premade dough at the store, why not try something new this year? Again, your oven might be occupied by the turkey, so fire up your convection microwave oven. If you’ve never used the convection setting on your microwave, don’t fret. It’s very easy to use and you can brush up by watching this short tutorial video by Getaway Couple.
If the convection oven seems too daunting or you simply don’t have one in your RV, then give this dutch oven dinner roll recipe a try! Cooking your dinner rolls over the campfire just seems right.
RV Cooking: Desserts
Our personal favorite, dessert! While the flavors we’re going to recommend are traditional for Thanksgiving, the RV cooking method is not. First up, give this apple pie recipe cooked on the smoker a try. The smoky flavor of the apples gives this dish a whole new flavor that can’t be beaten.
Next up, we recommend trying this pumpkin pie cake recipe. This dish is cooked in a dutch oven over the campfire. Need we say more? Lastly, don’t forget the vanilla bean ice cream to take both of these desserts to the next level!
Additional RV Cooking Tips
We wanted to leave you with a few tips for RV cooking. While having a whole Thanksgiving feast in your RV is doable, you will want to be prepared and organized to have a smooth cooking day.
- First, clean out your fridge, and then do your shopping. If you’ll be making the whole meal on your own, you will need the space.
- Cook some dishes ahead of time. You can easily make the desserts and rolls the day before.
- When it comes to seating arrangements, consider setting up your table outside. Hosting a large group of people in such a small space can get complicated. It would be easier for everyone if the seating arrangement was outside and you served the food buffet style. Mix it up and throw some pillows down for a casual but fun dinner setting. If you’re in an area where the weather doesn’t allow for outside seating, you can always ask the campground if you can host your dinner in the clubhouse.
- Don’t hesitate to ask family or friends to contribute! Cooking an entire meal is not only stressful but time-consuming. Don’t feel like you have to take on the full responsibility and ask others to bring their favorite dish so you have less RV cooking to do.
We hope this article has helped you prepare for RV cooking a Thanksgiving meal. If you’re already having thanksgiving in an RV then you’re already living outside the box, your cooking methods should reflect that!
Now that you know what to cook for the perfect Thanksgiving in your RV, you’ll want to host it in a great RV park, check out Find the Best RV Parks with These 5 Helpful Websites.
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