106. Make Trail Food Fun, Functional, and Affordable with Chef Corso

In episode 106 of the Outdoor Minimalist podcast, we return to a topic that most of us likely love (I know I do): food. Trail food is something that brings me a lot of joy when I’m out in the backcountry, and it is also something that can quickly boost my morale as I hike. It gives me something to look forward to on those final miles before I reach camp and is a place to build connection and community in many other settings.

Still, camp food can be a real downer sometimes. I know that I’ve made mistakes in camp meals by not packing the right combination of things or not trying a recipe before I am out and being disappointed. Then, there’s always a chance you’re relying heavily on pre-made backpacking meals that don’t fit the bill. So, when I had a chance to sit down and chat with a chef with the goal of revitalizing and reinventing the way we see food outdoors, I had to jump on it.

Chef Corso is the head chef and founder of Outdoor Eats. A company and community focused on elevating the outdoor food experience through fast, easy, tasty recipes, cookbooks, and meal plans. He’s a classically trained chef training at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley and continued schooling in Northern Italy. He has a layered culinary history ranging from a research chef testing and developing new food products for companies like General Mills, Miller Coors, Martinelli’s, and more, as well as extensive experience as a head chef and culinary trainer for multiple brands in Seattle, WA training national and international teams. In his downtime away from the kitchen, he enjoyed hiking and backpacking in the Olympic and North Cascades NPs and noticed that most people were just boiling water and adding it to a bag or eating bars and jerky for days on end. He started testing recipes with the backpacker in mind, and the results changed his whole experience to better compliment the outdoors. Chef Corso and Outdoor Eats are here to share that elevated experience.

INSTAGRAM: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/outdoor.minimalist.book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

WEBSITE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.theoutdoorminimalist.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

YOUTUBE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@theoutdoorminimalist⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

ORDER THE BOOK: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.theoutdoorminimalist.com/book⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

VENMO: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@OutdoorMinimalist⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Outdoor Eats

Website: https://outdooreats.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/outdooreats365/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@outdooreats365

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outdooreats365/

YouTube: @ChefCorso

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Related Episodes

37. Tips for a Low-Waste Thru-Hike

68. A Backcountry Dietitian's Best Tips for Prepping Backpacking Meals

79. The Environmental Impact of Backpacking Meals

86. Homemade Backpacking Meals for Special Diets

89. A BioBased Backpacking Food Packaging That Actually Works

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Original music by Alex Carney and Ethan Wiese