Every year, we try to go to Yosemite National Park and stay in Little Yosemite Valley. We camp at Upper Pines Campground if we can get a reservation, but it is so competitive that we stay at Housekeeping Camp for a higher cost sometimes too! Housekeeping is a little elevated from tent camping. There is a full size bed, and a set of twin bunk beds in each unit, with a covered picnic table and 2 outlets in each unit! I wouldn’t quite call it “glamping,” but the added amenities make it more comfortable and definitely easier to cook!

As I was menu planning for our 4 days in the park, my husband Scott suggested we bring the instant pot! I laughed it off at first, but the more I thought about the meals I wanted to make and the hassle of doing dishes and bringing tons of gear, the more I got on board with the one pot, fast and easy solution: the instant pot! If you are camping or even staying in hotels with an outlet, and you can bring along your instant pot, the options are endless for delicious, easy meals with few dishes and hands off preparation.

I went to Pinterest on the hunt for Instant Pot recipes with few ingredients, or ingredients that I could prepare ahead of time or wouldn’t take up much cooler space. Pinterest always saves the day and this instance was no exception. Here are a few of my instant pot hits while camping:

Homemade Chili. I came prepared with chopped onion and started with the sauté feature, cooking up the meat and onion together. Then I dumped all the cans of beans and tomatoes and cooked on manual for just 8 minutes. Remember it takes time to come to pressure, but still it is quick and easy! I serve with plenty of Fritos and shredded cheddar and call it “Chili Chips and Cheese.” Everyone loves it!

I intended to use peach cobbler as a dessert, but we ended up having it for breakfast one morning! Everyone was thrilled! Because this recipe uses steam to cook the cake portion, you need to bring a trivet and an oven safe bowl to use inside the instant pot. This recipe has few ingredients and quick prep time. Make sure you pack a working can opener!

Another hit meal was chicken and dumplings! We talked about this meal a lot while hiking up steep trails- the lure of a warm chicken dinner kept us all going! I used chicken thighs and canned biscuits from the refrigerated section. I brought my carrots chopped and frozen peas were easy! This meal reminded me so much of chicken pot pie. I’d highly recommend it!

Please do let me know in the comments if you take your instant pot on the go! It was such a surprising idea to me, and worked out so well. I hope you try it too!