Camping Stoves
A warm dinner in the evening and a steaming cup of coffee in the morning are among the best moments of any camping trip, but unless you plan on cooking over an open fire, you’ll need a good camping stove. Outdoor stoves come in a variety of burner and fuel configurations. To determine which is best for your favorite activity, keep reading.
Choose the right fuel for your camping stove
Most outdoor stoves burn one of two fuel types: gas or liquid. Gas stoves use butane or propane canisters. They’re straightforward and easy to use. Simply connect the canister to the stove, light it up, and get cooking. Gas does have its drawbacks, however. It operates poorly at higher altitudes and can be difficult to adjust lower than a full boil.
Liquid fuel stoves run on refillable tanks of “white gas”—basically very pure gasoline. These fuel tanks are equipped with a hand pump that pressurizes and aerosolizes the gas for combustion. It’s important to get the pressure just right, since a poorly-pressurized liquid fuel will produce ugly yellow flames that blacken your cookware. But for long excursions or high altitude trips, liquid fuel is the way to go.
You’re not necessarily limited to one fuel or the other. Primus makes a gas/liquid combo stove. Or, check out stoves by BioLite that run on twigs stoked by a high-powered fan to get the flames really hot and clean.
How many burners do I need for my camping stove?
For backpacking, small single burner stoves like those by MSR or Jetboil are great. Backpacking food is designed around the idea of “one-dish meals,” and single-burner stoves are by far the most weight-efficient.
But for car camping or big luxurious river trips, you need at least two burners. Classic flat top two-burner camping stoves by Eureka or Primus have been mainstays for decades, and they’re perfect for churning out multiple courses with ease. Most of these two-burner stoves run on propane. While propane comes in disposable canisters, you’re best off investing in a small refillable propane “growler” like those by Ignik, which will save you a lot of money over the long run.
Finally, while many stoves feature their own push-button igniters, it’s always a good idea to keep a lighter or matches on hand in case of emergency. Happy eating!