Savory Fall Dinners on the Road – RV Cooking at Its Finest

Savory Fall Dinners on the Road – RV Cooking at Its Finest

When you travel in your own RV one of the best things is you can make your own meals and save as you go. Of course, occasionally eating out in restaurants is certainly fun and tasty, but if you have your own kitchen in your home away from home, why not cook up some amazing dinners to wow your family.

Here are some suggested savory fall dinners for your RV traveling on the road. We looked for gourmet but simple recipes to find some that you may not have tried yet at home. You can make your RV’ing experience also a culinary tasting expedition. What fun!

 

1) Sheet Pan Chicken and Sweet Potatoes

 

One-dish dinners are a dream come true for on the road cooking. You can cook everything you need for your meal—in this case, chicken leg quarters and sweet potato wedges—at the same time, and on the same dish. This saves you time, mess, and a whole lot of effort. This dish is quite simple, which is why it’s so great for RVing. 

This easy meal uses just one baking sheet. The chicken comes out with delicious crispy skin, which pairs well with crunchy, peppery watercress and crisp, salty bacon. The roasted sweet potatoes add a bit of sweetness to round out the plate. From start to finish, the dinner takes just 30 minutes. And the best part is that 20 minutes of that time are hands-off. For easy cleanup, line your baking sheet with foil.

You can change up the herbs (it calls for sage, but rosemary would be good, too) and switch the greens from watercress to butter lettuce or anything you have on hand. This is also delicious and your family will ask for it again and again.

Recipe: Sheet Pan Chicken and Sweet Potatoes

     Ingredients:

• 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken leg quarters (about 2 lb.)
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-in. wedges
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
• ½ teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 3 slices bacon
• 3 cups baby watercress
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Arrange the chicken and sweet potatoes side by side in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Season with the sage, salt, and pepper and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the oil, tossing to coat. Lay the bacon on top of the sweet potatoes.
2. Roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of a thigh registers 165°F, 20 to 25 minutes
3. Meanwhile, toss together the watercress, lemon juice, and the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Serve the chicken with the sweet potatoes and salad, with the bacon crumbled over the top.
5. Enjoy!

2) Pasta With Turkey (or other meat) and Broccoli

This dish might taste like those slow-cooked Italian pastas with vegetables and sausage–but our take is ready in 20 minutes and uses ground turkey, a leaner, healthier alternative to sausage or beef that also cooks up quickly. You can also use sausage or beef if you prefer and the recipe is unchanged. You’ll brown the meat in one pan but boil the pasta and the broccoli together. Chopped garlic and crushed red pepper gives the pasta a bit of a zip. But for picky eaters, hold the red pepper and let everybody season their own plate as they sprinkle on the Parmesan.

Recipe: Pasta with Turkey (or other meat) and Broccoli

Ingredients:

• ¾ pound orecchiette pasta
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon fennel seed
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• kosher salt
• Parmesan, for serving

Directions: 

1. 1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions, adding the broccoli during the last minute. Drain and return the pasta and broccoli to the pot.

 

• Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey (or other meat), garlic, fennel seed, and red pepper and cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until browned, 3 to 5 minutes; season with ½ teaspoon salt.

 

1. 1. Toss the turkey mixture with the pasta and broccoli and the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. 

 

• Serve with Parmesan and red pepper as desired.  

 

3) Easy Fried Zucchini 

This is an easy and delicious side-dish that you can pair with almost any main dish. It’s lovely in the summer when zucchini are in season but you can add them to a fall dish and pep it up with a bright flavor.

Ingredients: 

• 2 zucchinis, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 sleeve buttery round crackers (such as Ritz®), crushed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions: 

1. Coat each zucchini slice with egg, then press into cracker crumbs, coating both sides. Shake off excess and place the breaded zucchini onto a plate while breading the rest; do not stack.
2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Pan fry zucchini until crust browns and zucchini softens, about 3 minutes on each side. Season with salt and pepper.

4) Grilled Pork Chops with Peach-Parsley Salad 

A grill is the gift that keeps on giving for easy fall dinners, as in the case of this easy pork chop recipe. The pork chops get a perfect sear thanks to patting dry before you add them to the hot, oiled grill grates, and as a bonus, there’s no smoky kitchen to worry about after. You can cook these outside and make the peach-parsley salad inside or out, as you choose. You’ll then serve the chops with a peppery arugula and stone-fruit salad; a perfect savory-sweet dinner pairing. Peaches and apricots are called for here, but any in-season stone fruit like plums or nectarines would taste great alongside.

Recipe: Grilled Pork Chops with Peach-Parsley Salad

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 6 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for grill grates

• 4 ½-in.-thick bone-in pork chops (about 2 lb.)
• 4 cups arugula (about 4 oz.)
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, torn
• 4 ripe peaches, nectarines, or apricots, pitted and sliced

Directions: 

 

• Preheat grill to high (450°F to 500°F) and lightly oil grates. Whisk vinegar, honey, garlic, ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper, and 5 tablespoons oil.

 

1. Pat pork chops dry and brush with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Season both sides with remaining 1 teaspoon salt and teaspoon pepper. Grill, uncovered, flipping once, until a meat thermometer inserted in thickest portion registers 145°F, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Let rest for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, toss arugula with parsley and peaches. 
3. Serve with pork, drizzled with vinaigrette.

Whatever you decide to cook on your RV adventure, be sure to check with your local El Monte RV Sales dealer before you go. Check out specials they may have.