I’m known for going all out when it comes to campfire cooking; pulling out all the stops!

I made fancy breakfast hashes with fresh eggs popped in the middle. I’d cook thick steaks, swimming in butter, with baked potatoes & seasonal veggies. I’d create stews that take several hours to cook while I enjoyed a glass of wine or cider.

Yes, I was that kind of a cook. Still am to a certain extent.

I used to have no problem with spending a $100 dollars or more on groceries just for a weekend trip. And my husband was always delighted to bring half our at-home-bar to create interesting and delicious cocktails for our friends.

We were an impressive duo. So much so that friends would always jokingly ask what multi-star dining experience should they expect at camp.

Then my husband and I bought a house…

Suddenly we were on a MAJOR budget and, let me tell you, that hit us pretty hard. I had to come up with a weekend meal plan that fit into our $75 a week grocery budget.

Actually, let me rephrase that: I had to come up with a WEEKLY meal plan for only $75 bucks.

It was certainly hard at first. I had to find non-brand name replacements for the brands we were loyal to and come up with recipes that used cheaper, but still fresh, ingredients. No more organic (unless REALLY on sale), no more splurges, definitely less alcohol.

 

 

Thankfully, an Aldi grocery store moved into our area so these last few months have definitely been better but our new home is 20 minutes away….without an Aldi nearby.

I could sing praises for Aldi but I’ll save that for another post.

So, when a friend invited us to Big Bear for a weekend camping trip, we jumped at the chance to go but knew we’d have to budget wisely.

Thankfully, our local Aldi was hosting a sale on salmon at $7.99/lbs which was a really good deal.

Mind you, it wasn’t the best salmon on the market, it was farm raised and previously frozen, but it was within our budget and the results were still delicious.

I checked our fridge and pantry, noticing that we had butter, basic seasonings and a million lemons. Perfect! Easy, zesty, lemony salmon!

I also wanted to add a veggie to the meal and, since asparagus was in season, a bundle from Aldi was on sale for 0.89￠. This totally rounded everything out for a cheap, easy meal. Total cost for this meal: $12.87. Couldn’t beat that!

 

 

What was even better was I could do this all in a foil packet, thus, an easy clean up. If you’ve not tried foil packet meals, you’re really missing out. I adore my Lodge cast iron skillet but the easy clean up of foil packets sometimes has got that pan beat.

So here’s my recipe for:

Easy, Zesty Salmon & Asparagus Foil Packet

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What You Need:

• Heavy Duty Foil
• Cutting Board (I use this for camping)
• Sharp Knife

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs Salmon*
• 1 lb Asparagus*
• 1 Lemon
• Unsalted Butter*
• Salt & Pepper

*See below for food tips & alternatives.

Serving size:  2 people

 

Cooking Instructions:

Start the campfire and let it get hot. Make sure the grilling rack in down.

While the fire is going, begin working on the foil packets. Now you can do individual packets or one for the fish, another for the asparagus. For this recipe, I did the latter.

 

Take the salmon and sit it skin down on a sheet of foil. Salt and pepper the top.

Add several slices of butter to the top, as well. You determine the amount you prefer to use, I used several ¼” slices but I LOVE butter.

Cut the lemon into ¼ inch slices. Add several to the top of the butter. The flavors will blend together when the lemon heats up and the butter melts.

 

Place a second sheet of fold on top, pinch the edges close so the steam cooks the fish.

 

Put the salmon packet on the grill rack near the fire but not directly into flames. Rotate the packet every few minutes so the salmon cooks thoroughly and evenly.

Salmon should be fully cooked after 8-10 minutes, depending on heat and thickness of the fish. Check it periodically while cooking – salmon is flaky when fully cooked.

 

While the salmon is cooking, take the asparagus out and cut off about 1”-1.5” off the bottom, discard.

Take a third sheet of foil and place the asparagus in the middle.

 

Add several slices of butter, salt and pepper. Pinch the packet closed and add to the grill.

 

Cook for approximately 6-7 minutes, depending on thickness and desire of crunch.

I like my asparagus slightly crunchy so mine only took 6 minutes.

 

Remove both salmon and asparagus from grill.

 

Divide into individual portions and serve immediately.

 

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Foodie Tips:

Salmon – While I used cheap, farm raised, previously frozen salmon and it turned out great, you can certainly splurge here and get the really good stuff from Whole Foods, Gelson’s, or your local farmer’s market. You could even try this recipe using different fish like cod or tilapia.

Butter – I was raised by strong, VERY southern women so in my house we use real butter. While you might still get a similar taste with butter substitutes, I still recommend using real butter, unless you have an allergy. Also, go with unsalted as it’s easier to control the saltiness that way.

Asparagus – I used asparagus as it was in season and on sale but you could sub in another vegetable like green beans, carrots or squash. Just adjust the cooking time.

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If you’ve tried this recipe out, leave a photo or comment down below! 🙂