Foods that need refrigeration really aren’t ideal for camping. That said, some comfort food while out in the wilderness will make just about anyone enjoy their time away that much more.
How can you keep milk cold while camping? The simplest way to keep milk cold while camping is to freeze it and store it in a well-insulated container. Individually pack servings of milk so that you aren’t letting the cold out every time you take milk out.
This solution isn’t for everyone, though, and coolers won’t keep frozen milk cold forever.
In this post, I’ll share some tips on how to make sure your milk doesn’t turn rancid as well as a few other options.
Freezing Milk to Keep it Cold
All milk will separate once it’s been frozen. The texture will be a little different once you turn it back into a liquid, even after you shake the milk to mix it.
Lower fat content milk (like skim milk) does better when frozen, but you can still tell the difference if you’re drinking it directly. If you’re cooking it or mixing it in some other way (like in your coffee), you probably won’t be able to tell.
Some alternative types of milk, like almond and oat milk, don’t freeze well. Their texture will change to grainy and kind of gross once they’ve thawed out.
If you really want to restore dairy to how it was, you can technically mix it back into shape, but this takes a lot of effort. This will work fine with a blender, but chances are that you won’t have one when you’re camping.
Pick a Good Cooler
The easiest way to keep your food cold when camping is to use an electric cooler. Then you don’t have to worry about freezing or weird separation or strange textures.
You can buy coolers that can plug into, not only a regular outlet, but also your car or boat. They take very little energy to run, and you don’t have to worry about letting the cold out while you’re rummaging.
They don’t actually cost all that much, either.
This Coleman powered cooler (Amazon) is great because it can stand up like a fridge or lay down like a cooler, and it’s not ridiculously heavy like some other ones out there.
It works fantastic for camping trips as long as you have access to electricity in some form.
If you don’t want to get a powered cooler, there are still a few options that can work well. The only downside is that you’re on a more limited schedule in regards to how long it will keep your stuff cold.
For example, the Coleman Xtreme 6 can keep food cold for a maximum of 6 days. It’s a great size for larger families, and the size is what helps to keep its contents cooler, too.
Keep in mind, though, that for these non-powered coolers, the maximum rating is only good for when they’re 2/3rds packed with something frozen (like milk, for example!) and they aren’t being opened.
In other words, if you fill it with frozen milk and don’t open it for 6 days, your milk will stay cold. Otherwise, every time you open it will reduce this time frame.
A workaround for this is to have more than one cooler. Use a smaller one for the stuff you want to use within the first day or two so you don’t have to open your long-term cooler.
Bring a Mini Fridge
This obviously doesn’t work so great if you’re camping without access to electricity, but if you’re not looking for a rugged experience, this might actually be a viable option.
I’ve done this before just for the sake of keeping beer cool when camping with the guys.
To keep bears away, and to prevent anyone from stealing my stuff, I just left the minifridge in my car, with an extension cord running to the outlet.
It’s really important to make sure that there’s space for air to circulate around the fridge or it’ll overheat. If you’re driving a dad-mobile with stow-n’-go seats (like I am right now), then this is easy.
Sure, it’s not classy, but it also works.
Block Ice
The thicker and bigger the block of ice, the longer it will take to melt. This is why we use those oversized ice cubes in our whiskey, they don’t water down your drink as much as smaller cubes because they melt more slowly.
If you want to cool things down for the longest amount of time possible, use massive chunks of ice instead of gas station bags.
I like to use old ice cream pails and freeze them completely through. At room temperatures, they take an entire day to melt. In a cooler, you could possibly get them to last a week if it’s well sealed and not too hot outside.
Powdered or Canned Milk
If all you want is something milk-like after a week of camping, this is the cheapest and easiest solution. No electricity required, and they’ll store well for months until they’re ready for use.