Camp Cooking

I've cooked for plenty of camps in Oz, but this was my first Argentine camp cooking experience ..... and yep, it was a bit different!

With 2 years experience observing Argentines create food with the bare basics in equipment, I nervously brought half my kitchen with me. I recall my first Argentine camp where cooks peeled potatoes for 40 people with blunt knives and every morsel of food was used and re-used and used again.

The Argentine eats 4 meals a day, starting with a very simple breakfast .... no need for me to get up early as everyone was satisfied to eat leftover cake and stale bread, as long as it was washed down with a milky coffee or mate (Argentine tea drink).

Lunch and dinner are both big affairs, and there was the expectation of a solid hot meal at each. Of course we served the classic camp favourite ... milanesa and puré (crumbed meat and mashed potato). We also churned out a pasta dish, homemade pizzas, and roast chicken.

But the 4th meal each day is a big afternoon tea, offered at 6 or 7pm. This is how our friends survive until the 10pm dinner time. I was a bit disappointed that some students had no room for dinner after pigging out on the cake and coffee. I suspect that many students skip dinner by just eating lots of bikkies and bread in the afternoon...

Two things I would do differently next time ....
1. Try not to over-cater (though working with students is always a challenge when it comes to catering, as they are a bit slack on the old RSVP thing .... we´ve been caught short before with unexpected students rolling in at lunch time!).
2. Be careful not to leave food unattended in the kitchen ... a local stray dog swiped nearly 2 kilos of leftover chicken when my back was turned!

Posted by Julie