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Sausage, pepper and potato packets

Cook up a delicious, healthy campfire meal in these clever little packets.
Plan a session with this activity

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You’ll need

  • Ingredients (see recipe)
  • Mixing bowls
  • Aluminium foil
  • Knives
  • Chopping boards
  • Scissors
  • Baking trays
  • Access to a campfire
  • Heatproof gloves or tongs

Before you begin 

  • Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Take a look at our guidance to help you carry out your risk assessment, including examples.  
  • Make sure all young people and adults involved in the activity know how to take part safely.
  • Make sure you’ll have enough adult helpers. You may need some parents and carers to help if you’re short on helpers. 
  • Check for allergies, intolerances, fasting, food-related medical conditions, eating disorders, food sensitivities or dietary requirements, then adjust the food items used as needed. This may include making sure there’s no cross-contamination of packaging and no cross-contamination during the storage, preparation, cooking and serving. 
  • You may need to use separate chopping boards, equipment and utensils, such as tongs or toasters, for different dietary requirements, allergies and foods.
  • If you’re unsure, check with the young person and their parents or carers. You can check with the adult directly if it’s a volunteer or helper.
  • Some people may not like certain food textures or tastes and that’s OK. People don’t need to use all the ingredients if they don’t want to, and no-one should be made to try foods if they don’t want to. You can try to find an alternative for them. 
  • People can work in small groups or as a whole group to bake or cook. Each group should have adult supervision.
  • You may want to be in groups, but everyone to use the same cooking source, rather than having each group have their own.
  • You may wish for groups to make or prepare the ingredients in a wider, more spacious area, then invite each group into the kitchen to cook one at a time. 
  • Remember the groups not using the kitchen or cooking will still need to be supervised, always following the Yellow Card. 
  • Make sure you have all the ingredients ready. You may want to pre-chop or pre-measure some activities.

Ingredients

You can increase or decrease the number of ingredients needed, depending on the size of the groups.

  • 3 medium potatoes – cut into round slices, about half a centimetre in width
  • 1 bell pepper – sliced
  • 4 chicken sausages – cut into quarters
  • 1 onion – sliced
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp dried thyme
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Serves: 4

Potato packets

  1. This recipe is designed to be cooked on a campfire, check out Construct a campfire for top tips on safely building one.
  2. Everyone should wash their hands, then hand out the equipment and ingredients to each group.
  3. Using scissors, cut 8 pieces of aluminium foil around 30 cm long. You need two for each packet.
  4. Cut the potatoes into round slices, which are about half a centimetre wide
  5. Cut the chicken sausages into quarters. The equipment used to cut the chicken should be washed or put to one side for washing.
  6. Put all the ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Add the paprika, thyme, salt and oil.
  7. Mix all the ingredients together until everything is coated with the oil and spices.
  8. Lay out four of aluminium foil sheets on a baking tray, which will help to contain the ingredients.
  9. Using a spoon, divide the ingredient mixture evenly between them, placing in a pile in the middle of each sheet.
  10. Fold the edges of the sheets over the ingredients, fully sealing in the goodness.
  11. Place each packet, with the folded side facing down, onto another sheet of aluminium foil.
  12. Wrap the packet up again using the second foil sheet to make sure all the food stays inside.
  13. Cook the packets for 25 minutes, or until the sausages are fully cooked, over campfire embers. Use heatproof gloves or tongs to remove the packets, which should be done by an adult or under adult supervision.

Reflection

This activity was all about trying new things. Had anyone made a similar recipe before?

Cooking on a campfire can be very new and exciting. What did you learn about cooking on a campfire that was different to a normal oven or stove?

Maybe you learned to cook on the embers and not the flame? Or you found out how to put things on the fire or take them off safely without getting burned?

This activity was also about being a team player. How did everyone work together? Did you split up all the different jobs to make sure everyone could help? Or did you help each other to wrap up and check the packets to make sure they were tightly sealed?

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

Hot items and hot water

Kettles, cookers and microwave ovens produce a lot of heat by the very nature of them. Caution is needed when in contact with items that have been heated and young people should use them under adult supervision. Use on a suitable surface, protecting it if necessary. Never leave hot items unattended and make sure there’s a nearby first aid kit, with items to treat burns/scalds.

Cooking

Teach young people how to use cooking equipment safely. Supervise them appropriately throughout. Make sure it’s safe to use and follow manufacturers’ guidelines for use.

Food

Remember to check for allergies, eating problems, fasting or dietary requirements and adjust the recipe as needed. Make sure you’ve suitable areas for storing and preparing food and avoid cross contamination of different foods. Take a look at our guidance on food safety and hygiene.

Consider pre-chopping the vegetables before you begin. You could also pre-cut the aluminium foil.

There are lots of different jobs that need doing when planning, making and cooking on a campfire. There’s a role for everyone, so encourage everyone to be involved in a way that works for them.

If anyone struggles with fine motor skills, they could do the mixing parts of the challenge or have support when chopping, such as someone holding the vegetables in place. If people work in pairs or groups, their partner can also help with the parts they find tricky.

With appropriate supervision, this recipe is very hands-on. The ingredients can be mixed by hands and the packets can be sealed by everyone individually.

Make sure to check for any dietary requirements or allergies in the group. All these ingredients can be swapped out with dietary or allergen friendly alternatives, such as vegan or vegetable sausages.

All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.

Squirrels Super Chef Activity Badge
Beavers Cook Activity Badge
Beavers Health and Fitness Activity Badge

You can cook lots of different things in these great little packets. You could try coming up with your own recipes, planning out the ingredients you need, and chopping or dicing them up in to small chunks to make sure they cook through.