“Camping” is a term that evokes a wide variety of images: wild camping in the mountains, family holidays in a motor home, a party weekend at a festival site or a sporting trip with an overnight stay at a campground. Whether it’s a purist survival trip or a comfortable permanent pitch – no matter how diverse your needs are, all campers have one thing in common: It’s all or at least partly about being self-sufficient. Pack in a stove for your travels, so you are self-reliant.

Not surprisingly, the selection of camping stoves is as diverse as camping itself. The range extends from full-blown outdoor gas stoves with grill plates, featherlight gas burners, stormproof alcohol and versatile multi-fuel stoves to puristic solid and simplistic bushboxes. Small, acceptable alternatives such as the compact outdoor cookers from Eifel Outdoor Equipment have joined traditional manufacturers such as Campinggaz or Primus. Those who are about to choose must first consider what the outdoor or camping stove will be mainly intended for. Should it be a single-burner, extremely light outdoor stove? Or a multi-burner stove, on which several pots can be placed at the same time? There is also the question of camping fuel. Gas, power, methylated spirits?

Multi-burner stove for the larger camping kitchens

For motor homes or campervans, campsite holidays and group trips, family camping and sporty weekends transporting with a car, it is usually less important to keep weight and pack size to a minimum. What’s more important is the capacity for advanced cooking for up to several people – meet the multi-burner camp stove! If you are looking for a larger stove for cooking with more than one pot, there is no getting around a multi-burner. The same goes for the consummate camp host or large family camping adventures – a duel burner or more will deserve your attention.

What is the quintessence of a multi-burner outdoor stove?

• Windshield: If cooking mainly outdoors, an integrated windshield is recommended, which also screens the hotplates sideways. This makes cooking more effective, which also saves fuel.
• Fuel: Multi-flame burners are usually gas stoves, although there are some differences. Some are used with large commercial gas cylinders; others are designed for special Primus or Campingaz liquid gas cylinders and require a separate adapter or pressure reducer for butane gas cylinders. Others such as the Primus Tupike Stove can also handle smaller screw-in cartridges. It is essential to consider which fuel source is handy or sufficient for its intended use in such cases.
• Heating Capacity: The range from 1,400 W for inexpensive models to 3,360 W for each burner in the Primus Atle Stove. The high-performance classic is considerably more rigid on the budget. However, the boiling time for one litre of water is only three minutes.
  Other features: An integrated piezo igniter is practical. Many of the current designs also offer one or more removable grill tops. The Campingaz 400-SG 2-burner stove, for example, provides an integrated toaster.
• Maintenance and cleaning: A stainless steel housing is robust and easy to clean; removable shelves facilitate cleaning. Pay attention to an anti-stick coating on the grill plate!
• Drawbacks: Two-burner camping stoves are not as suitable for off-road use as their light and compact siblings. “Light” types such as the Primus Tupike can be carried a tad further for a picnic than where you have parked the car, however with a weight of 4.5 kilos; it’s too heavy to take with you on a full-blown hike. In such cases, a more compact outdoor stove will be better suited to your choice of an outdoor outing.

The small-size campsite kitchen: Outdoor stove

So-called “outdoor stoves” are an optimal solution for all those who transport their outdoor cooking needs primarily in their rucksack, in a waterproof stuff sack, pannier or similar. The single-flame stoves impress with their relatively compact size, low weight and very flexible range of use. The critical differences in choosing the right camping stove are, first and foremost, fuel and construction.

Gas stoves: Inexpensive, simple to use, excellent heating performance

Gas stoves are ideal for trekking, a bike trip or a cosy camping weekend. They are inexpensive to buy and provide convincing performance. The use of a standard gas cooker is also straightforward: screw or plug it in, and off you go. The flame can be finely regulated via a gas regulator.

• Tip: If you like cooking with larger pots on a single-burner stove, look around for a model with an external fuel supply line. Due to the low centre of gravity and more giant footprints, such camping stoves are more stable against tilting than plugged or screwed directly onto a cartridge.
  Differences also exist in the gas cartridges used, which take up more or less space depending on the type. Depending on the stove, you may require a specific kind of canister. These are; a piercable canister, screw-on, an easy-clip canister or even an aerosol canister. However, these are not readily available in all parts of the world. The remedy is an adapter to run the stove with “both”.

If you wish to use a gas cooker in colder temperatures or winter, here’s a valuable tip. Instead of the classic butane propane mix cartridges, Primus offers certain winter gas, for example, in which isobutane is used. The enlarged surface is using a specific structure of cartridge to volatilise the gas. Even at higher altitudes, the use of a gas stove is highly recommended. It needs no pre-heating; gas weighs less than fuel and other forms of heating.

Multi-fuel stove: Efficient and cold-resistant

Multi-fuel stoves, e.g. liquid-fuel stoves, barely differ in appearance from gas stoves with an external supply line. They, too, are very popular when it comes to handling large pots with a stable base. These stoves are designed to run off white fuel, unleaded or paraffin and even gas. Regardless of where you’re headed, you’ll find a suitable fuel source virtually anywhere.

As a rule, multi-fuel stoves burn vigorously and even in frigid temperatures, whereby fuel has the best heating capacity. Caution should be exercised when using diesel or petroleum due to the formation of soot. This can be problematic in caravans, cabins or the apse of a tent. Another disadvantage is that it is a little more challenging to use: it takes longer to put the stove into service and requires more cleaning and care.

Storm Cooker: Robust, inexpensive and reliable

Fueled with methylated spirits, this outdoor stove is synonymous with one brand name and its entire product range: Trangia. Especially noteworthy for adverse weather camping, this lightweight aluminium stove comes standard with a complete cooking set and is designed for one to two or three to four people. In addition to a burner and windshield, the individual pots, pans, tongs and water kettles can be ideally stowed inside each other for the smallest possible packing size.

Trangia stoves are operated with the methylated spirit (ethanol), which is available in virtually every drugstore or pharmacy worldwide. The stoves are very low-maintenance and easy to clean. One drawback is the decreased heating capacity of alcohol, which is also more difficult to ignite in cold weather. Adjusting the flame also requires some practice.

Our tips for outdoor campsite stoves

• Heat reflectors: When cooking outside, heat reflectors protect the ground and reflect some of the heat towards the cooking pot. This makes the stove more effective and saves energy.
• Windshield: the same applies to the windshield, which can also be installed separately.
• Flying to your camping destination: neither flammable liquids nor gas cartridges are permitted on holiday flights. Petrol stoves should be cleaned thoroughly before departure to avoid unnecessary strain when checking luggage. Don’t forget to check before you depart for your trip whether the required cartridges or fuels are available at your destination.

Ultra-light: The minimalist camping kitchen

Camping, yes, cooking, no? If you don’t need more in the morning than an espresso or a cup of tea and would rather eat in the local restaurants, you can get by with a minimalist camping kitchen. Due to the uncomplicated handling, relatively low initial outlay and outstanding performance, you can’t go past the tried and tested gas stove.