Small Camper Galley Basics

The first mistake I made when I stocked my teardrop camper galley was having way too much stuff! I can only fit 2 people in my camper, but had enough dishes and silverware for 4 people! Now I keep it very basic – if I am camping with other people they will have their own dishes.

Cooking in a small camper galley is fun and you can cook almost anything that you can cook at home! If you have a new camper, here are the small camper galley basics that you need to cook fantastic meals in your mini camper or van.

Small Camper Galley Basics

Small Camper Basic Cooking Gear

Dishes for a Small Camper

Small Camper Galley Clean Up

Small Camper Food Storage

Small Camper Galley Checklist

Small Camper Basic Cooking Gear

Most small camper galleys are short on storage space, luckily there are many items that are small and collapsible and can easily fit in your camper. Click here for our article on the best teardrop camper cookware.

The GSI Outdoor Escape 3L Pot and Frypan is the perfect starter set for your small camper galley. The pot is collapsible and folds down to fit inside the frying pan.

The Stanley French Press is a great addition to your small camper galley because it is small and fits nicely into a camper cabinet It can be used to make coffee, but I use the pot almost daily just to boil water. Anything that you can buy for your camper that has multiple uses is a great choice.

A cast iron skillet is a must have because not only can you cook on your stove top, you can also use it for baking and cooking right on the campfire. Make sure you pay attention to care instructions, cast iron skillets will rust if left wet.

A wind screen is a must have for your small camper galley. Whenever you are cooking outside, you are likely to have wind. I use this almost every time I cook, and it folds up very small to fit in the galley for storage.

My teardrop camper has a propane stove, but I still carry a small butane burner for cooking bacon or anything else that is greasy. I can cook on the picnic table or on my little table. The Coleman Portable Butane Stove comes with a carrying case.

This cute toaster goes right on the stove top and folds flat for storage.

This Collapsible Colander Set is sturdy and collapses for easy storage.

The Stansport Egg Container is a must-have to protect your eggs from breaking. Another idea is to crack eggs into a clean water bottle and just pour out as you need them.

I love silicone pot holders – this set has everything you will need to cook in the galley or over the fire. The trivet mat is great for setting down a hot pan, I store these in my sink while traveling.

Small Camper Dishes

This UCO Mess Kit is cute, small and easily packable in your small camper galley, I just love the UCO products and having all of this in one small kit is perfect. The cup is collapsible as well. I have a few of the UCO sporks in my galley because I just love the weight and feel of them.

If you are going to take the time to make coffee in the morning, I suggest using an insulated mug to keep it warm for much longer. When you are camping there are all kinds of things that can keep you busy, so having a hot cup of coffee next to you is a nice treat.

Galley Clean Up

You may already have a sink in your small camper galley, but it’s probably really tiny. Having an extra dish basin allows you to wash your dishes on the picnic table, or I use my extra camp table next to my outdoor “shower” hose so I can rise the dishes from there. Just heat up some water on the stove top to wash dishes.

These odor free dishcloths dry quickly and are great for washing dishes.

I keep this collapsible drying rack stored next to my 12v refrigerator in my galley when not in use.

This mini Dustpan and Brush Set is the perfect size for your small kitchen galley.

This camping table comes in a storage bag and rolls up to a nice compact size for storage.

Small camper Food storage

If you are camping in bear country, make sure that you keep ALL fool and water in your tow vehicle, and clean the galley well after cooking so you won’t attract bears or other animals. For food storage I use a plastic bin from Target with a locking top to keep pests out – easy to carry and fits nicely in the backseat of my SUV.

I installed a 12v refrigerator on a slide out in my galley, although I keep it in my SUV when driving between camp sites or if I’m in bear country. I love the ICECO Go12 and the larger version the GO20 because they are the perfect size, have a phone app so you can keep track of the temperature in the refrigerator and the GO20 can have single or dual zones so you can use as a refrigerator, freezer, or both!

You should have a pack of food storage containers – a nesting set is great for storage.

I hope this list of teardrop camper galley basics helps you to stock your teardrop kitchen. Did we miss anything? Leave your ideas in the comments below!

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