If you are travelling for a long period of time, you’ll save a fortune by taking food for lunch on the road, and making it as you go. On shorter trips, we are happy to pull into a bakery or café from time to time, but it soon adds up to be a very expensive luxury, that you really don’t need.

That’s completely aside from the fact that regularly buying pies and cream and jam donuts will have you stacking on the kilograms very quickly, and its not exactly good for you on a regular basis!

We have a couple of DIY roadside lunches that are common, and they taste good, fill you up, are pretty healthy and aren’t too slow to prepare. If you want to see more of what we eat, check out our Camp Cooking hub page.

We almost always pull up for lunch, just to stretch the legs and let the kids run around for a while. Of course, it is possible to make lunch on the road before you head off, and then you can just eat while you drive. We like having a break, so opt to pull over and make something more substantial.

Get a good kitchen setup

If you want to do more roadside stops and have tasty lunches, you need a setup that is easy to use, convenient and quick. A fold out table, running water, an easy to access fridge (we use an upright fridge now), and food that is quick to grab is imperative.

What are your lunch on the road options?

Sangas or wraps

By far the most common stop for us is sandwiches or wraps, and I usually make 3. However, sandwiches can be boring as, and you’ve got to do a few things to make them tasty.

The first thing, which works super well is to roast a piece of beef before you leave home, and take it with you. Cold, home cooked roast beef on your sandwich is a winner every day of the week.

The second, is to take some decent pickles or relishes with you. Home made tomato relish will turn an average sandwich into one that is amazing.

Some good mayonnaise never goes astray, and neither will a few pieces of beetroot, which we always keep in a container in the fridge.

Add all that together, with some nice tomato, cheese, lettuce (or sprouts keep very well) and cucumber, and you are onto a winner, even if you don’t really feel like a sandwich.

I’ll switch the meat up to the packed smoked ham, tuna, or what ever we have available to keep things interesting. The key here, is to go beyond the boring salad sandwich, or you’ll soon get sick of it.

Crackers, cut vegetables, dips and cheese

We usually have a couple of dips and cheeses in the fridge, and they are quick to get ready with some chopped up carrot, cucumber and capsicum.

If you are feeling really fancy a few slices of salami or sausage goes well too, but its the sort of meal you can prepare very quickly and that the kids will eat even if they aren’t really feeling hungry.

Mini Quiches

Sarah stumbled across a delicious recipe ages ago, which tastes amazing both cold, and hot. They freeze well, and we often take some with us as snacks, or as a main side to lunch on the road. Make them at home, and there’s no work on the road; you just get them out and eat them!

Tuna and crackers

Whilst the kids don’t really take too well to Tuna, I quite like it and will occasionally have a tin (naturally smoked is amazing) with some crackers. It’s super fast, needs no fridge space and you can munch on it while walking around your 4WD and trailer to check everything is all OK! This makes for a great long term camping food option, because nothing needs refrigerating and it lasts forever.

Corn Crackers with cheese and smoked salmon

We don’t have this often, but it is delicious – the Cheese dip with small slices of smoked salmon, on the various flavoured corn crackers (I love the tomato ones). It’s easy to make, doesn’t need much refrigeration and we love them.

Left overs

We rarely throw anything out, and if you can eat it cold, I’ll often eat left overs for lunch. Whether that’s nacho’s, a salad, some pasta or potato bake, I’m not fussy, and will happily eat it.

What do you do for lunch on the road?

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