When you pull into a free camp 300km from the nearest town, dinner is entirely on you. There is no powered site, no camp kitchen, and no takeaway around the corner. Cooking off-grid is one of the most important skills you will build on the big lap, and the good news is that it is not complicated once you understand your options. This guide walks you through every practical way to cook without mains power: gas, fire, diesel, battery, and the clever low-tech tricks that stretch your fuel and your patience further. Get your kitchen sorted and remote camping stops feeling less daunting and a lot more delicious.
Know Your Fuel Before You Cook
Before you choose a cooker, work out what you will feed it. Off-grid cooking runs on one of four fuels: LPG, butane, diesel, or your house battery. Each has a place, and most Big Lappers end up carrying two or three so they are never caught out.
LPG (the propane mix in your refillable 4kg and 9kg bottles) is the backbone of van cooking. It burns hot, works in the cold, and you can top up bottles at servos, Bunnings swap-and-go, and most caravan parks. A 9kg bottle is the standard workhorse; a 4kg is worth carrying as a compact spare for the portable cooker. Butane, the little disposable cartridges that slot into camp stoves, is cheap and convenient but has one real weakness: it struggles below about 5°C, so a frosty morning in the High Country can leave you waiting on a lukewarm brew. Diesel and battery power are the newer alternatives, and both earn their own sections below.
Carry a 4kg bottle as well as your main 9kg. It runs the portable two-burner outside, keeps the van’s gas separate for cooktop and hot water, and gives you a full spare bottle when the main one runs dry mid-roast.
Gas: Your Off-Grid Workhorse
Gas is the default for a reason. It is instant, controllable, needs no power, and it is what your van’s internal cooktop already runs on. For 90 per cent of your off-grid cooking, gas is the answer. The question is just how many ways you want to burn it.
Your built-in cooktop handles everyday meals, but the smart move is to cook outside whenever you can. It keeps heat, smells, and moisture out of the van, which matters enormously in a small space. A dedicated portable two-burner is the single best cooking upgrade most travellers make. The Companion High Output 2 Burner (around $150) puts out roughly 25,000 BTU per burner, folds flat, runs off your refillable LPG bottle, and will boil a big pot of pasta water in the sort of time your home stove takes. It is the best all-round option for a couple or a family who wants a proper outdoor kitchen. On a tighter budget, the Gasmate 2 Burner Classic (around $60 to $80) does the same job with less grunt and is fine for occasional cooks.
For a lightweight backup, keep a single butane stove in a cupboard. The Gasmate Travelmate II (around $35 to $45) weighs almost nothing, costs less than a tank of fuel, and is the thing you reach for when the main bottle runs out at the worst moment. It will not replace your two-burner, but every van should have one.
| Cooker | Price | Fuel | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Companion High Output 2 Burner Best Pick | ~$150 | LPG (refillable) | The main outdoor kitchen for couples and families |
| Gasmate 2 Burner Classic Budget Pick | ~$60 to $80 | LPG (refillable) | Occasional cooks and lighter budgets |
| Gasmate Travelmate II Single | ~$35 to $45 | Butane cartridge | Lightweight backup and quick brews |
Cooking With Fire and a Camp Oven
When you have got a fire pit and the fire ban is lifted, a camp oven turns a pile of coals into a slow-roast, a curry, or a damper that will have the neighbours wandering over. This is bush cooking at its best, and it costs nothing to run once you have the gear.
A traditional cast iron camp oven (around $60 to $120 depending on size) holds heat beautifully and cooks evenly, but it is heavy and can crack if you drop it or cool it too fast. A spun-steel Bedourie oven is the lighter, tougher alternative that many full-timers prefer because it will not shatter on corrugated tracks and stores more easily. For a 9-inch to 12-inch oven, you are in the right range for feeding two to six people. If you want to bake on the gas stove rather than coals, a Coleman stove-top camp oven folds flat and turns any burner into a small oven for scones, pizza, or a roast.
Fire cooking has a learning curve, so it is worth reading up before you are hungry and staring at a bed of coals wondering how many go on the lid.
The Portable BBQ
A gas BBQ is not a luxury on the big lap, it is a second kitchen that keeps the mess and the heat outside. The Weber Baby Q (Q1200N) at around $399 is the benchmark. It runs off a small gas bottle, the domed lid means it roasts as well as it grills, and the cast iron plates hold heat for a proper sear. It is worth every cent if you cook outdoors most nights, and it doubles as an oven for a whole chook or a tray of vegies when your van has no oven of its own.
Cheaper flat-plate BBQs and the Ziggy-style units are lighter on the wallet and the payload, so if you mostly cook snags and steaks rather than roasts, you do not need to spend Weber money. For the full rundown of grills, plates, and stands, see our dedicated BBQ guide.
Diesel Cooktops: The Gas-Free Premium Option
If you are building a serious full-time off-grid setup, a diesel cooktop is worth knowing about. Units like the Wallas 88DU (around $2,550) burn diesel drawn from a small tank, using only about 200mL an hour, and they cook on a sealed ceramic glass surface with no open flame. The appeal is real: no gas bottles to refill or store, no gas compliance to worry about, and no added humidity inside the van because the combustion is fully enclosed and vented outside.
The catch is the price and the install. These are expensive, they need a proper fitted install, and they are slower to heat than a roaring gas burner. For most travellers, gas is still the sensible choice. But for hardcore off-gridders who want to ditch gas bottles entirely and already run a diesel heater, a diesel cooktop rounds out a genuinely self-sufficient rig.
Induction and Electric: Can You Cook Off Battery?
Induction cooking off-grid is possible, but only if your electrical system is built for it. A portable induction cooktop draws between 1,800W and 2,400W flat out, which is a huge load on a battery bank. To run one for even 45 to 60 minutes of cooking a day, you realistically need at least a 200Ah lithium battery (300Ah to 400Ah is safer), a pure sine wave inverter rated 2,000W or more, and 400W to 600W of solar to put it all back the next day.
If you have that kind of system, induction is fantastic: instant, precise, flameless, and it adds no heat or fumes to the van. If you do not, it will flatten your batteries before the pasta is done. Be honest about your setup before you rely on it, and treat it as a bonus on top of gas rather than your only cooker. Working out whether your batteries and solar can handle it starts with knowing your power budget.
Never use a gas or diesel cooker inside a closed van without ventilation. Any fuel-burning appliance produces carbon monoxide, which is odourless and deadly. Cook outside or with a window and roof vent open, and fit a caravan-rated CO alarm.
The Secret Weapon: Thermal Cookers
The most underrated bit of off-grid kitchen kit is the thermal cooker, and it uses barely any fuel at all. A Dreampot (around $180 to $200 for the 5L) is an insulated outer pot with a sealed inner pot. You bring your stew, curry, or rice to the boil on the gas for a few minutes, then drop the inner pot into the insulated shell and walk away. The retained heat keeps cooking the meal for hours, no power and no flame required.
This is close to magic for a travel day. Get dinner started before you hitch up, pack the Dreampot in the van, and by the time you have driven 400km and set up camp, a slow-cooked meal is ready and waiting. It cuts your gas use dramatically, there is nothing to watch or stir, and it will not tip and spill on rough roads. For anyone doing long driving days between camps, it pays for itself in convenience and fuel saved.
Fuel Management and Safety
Cooking off-grid is only as good as your fuel planning. Run out of gas at a remote camp and you are eating cold beans, so build a few habits early. Fit a gas bottle level gauge or a simple magnetic indicator so you are never guessing how much is left. Refill or swap bottles whenever you hit a decent-sized town rather than waiting until you are nearly empty. And carry that butane backup stove and a couple of spare cartridges as a genuine safety net.
A few mistakes catch people out. Relying on a single fuel source is the big one, so mix gas with fire or a thermal cooker to spread the load. Letting your only bottle run dry before you have a spare is the second. And cooking inside a sealed van is the dangerous one, so always ventilate. Get your caravan’s gas system and bottles understood properly before you leave, because a leak or a badly fitted regulator is not something you want to discover 500km from help.
- Gas is your off-grid workhorse: a portable two-burner LPG stove plus a butane backup covers almost everything
- A camp oven or portable BBQ like the Weber Baby Q gives you roasting and fire-cooking without mains power
- Diesel cooktops suit hardcore full-timers who want to ditch gas bottles, but they are expensive
- Induction only works off-grid with a big lithium and solar system built to handle 2,000W-plus loads
- A thermal cooker like the Dreampot slashes fuel use and cooks while you drive
- Carry more than one fuel type, watch your bottle levels, and always cook with ventilation
For the full picture on living without mains power, from batteries and water to waste, start with our complete off-grid guide.
Comment (0)