Looking for easy, healthy dinners to make any night of the week? Foil pack meals are delicious and fun to eat, and you can use your imagination to create unique meals by mixing together tasty ingredients! Foil pack meals were made popular among campers – what could be easier than tossing together a meal in aluminum foil and heating it over the campfire? But now, home cooks everywhere are creating foil pack meals for their families to gobble up around the dinner table. Whether you need a quick weeknight meal or are entertaining on the weekend, here are 36 foil pack meals you’ll love!
What are Foil Pack Meals?
Foil pack meals are a simple, fuss-free way of cooking that allows you to cook an entire dinner in aluminum foil. You can choose your own ingredients, they can be baked, roasted or grilled, and you don’t have to worry about heavy clean up. You may associate foil pack meals with camping trips, but there’s no reason you can’t make them at home! They’re simple to put together and you can be sure your family or guests will end up loving the final result!
7 Tips to Create the Perfect Foil Pack Meals
1. Use Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil
The last thing you want is for your flavourful juices to pour out of your foil pack. Use heavy duty aluminum foil to prevent any tears and keep your meal as compact as possible. You can also double up on foil if needed, especially when you boil the foil packs.
2. Use Thin Meat and Put It On the Bottom
The thinner the meat, the easier it will be to cook. Pound or slice your meat into bite-sized pieces so it’s easy to eat right out of the pack. You should also place meat on the bottom of your foil pack meal. Meats take the longest to cook and will benefit from being closest to the heat source.
3. Don’t Disregard Different Cook Times
Some foods take longer to cook than others, and this shouldn’t be ignored. Although it’s ideal to put everything in the foil pack at once, quick-cook foods like cheese can be thrown in once the meal comes out of the oven or off the grill to keep from burning. Consider the cook time of your meats, protein and vegetables to figure out what will work best for your foil pack meal.
4. Pre Cook Rice and Pasta
If you plan to use rice or pasta in your foil pack meal, you’ll need to pre cook them. The foil packet won’t get hot enough or have enough liquid to cook these types of food. There are plenty of foil pack meals that don’t use rice or pasta, but if you want to use either one of them, you’ll have to do that extra step!
5. Pick Your Veggies
Veggies are a key part of foil pack meals, and you can use your favourites to create a meal your family will love! Keep in mind that different vegetables have different cook times. You’ll want to cut harder veggies like potatoes and carrots into small pieces so they cook at the same rate as larger cut onions and mushrooms.
6. Add Flavourful and Moist Seasonings
Add your favourite seasonings to give your meal a good dose of flavour! Consider ingredients like chilli powder, cumin, oregano, red wine vinegar and cajun seasoning. Add onion and garlic to up the flavour, and use tomatoes and flavourful liquids like soy sauce to increase the moisture in your meal.
7. Seal Your Foil Packet Properly
It turns out there’s a proper way to seal your foil packet. Sealing it the wrong way can lead to leaks and undercooked food. Rather than simply pinching the sides shut, bring the long sides of the foil together in the centre, crease them together and tightly fold in a downward motion. Continue folding until the foil lies flat against the packet’s top. Then, fold the shorter sides inward the same way.
12 Vegetarian Foil Pack Meals
1. Curry Cauliflower Grill Packets with Yogurt Sauce | Vegan Yack Attack
2. Tex-Mex Foil Wrap Meal | Tablespoon
3. Polenta Stack with Navy Bean Salad | SELF
4. Loaded Baked Potato Foil Packs | Creme de la Crumb
5. Whole Wheat Pasta with Goat Cheese and Tomatoes | Cookin’ Canuck
6. Pesto Butter Veggie Foil Packs | Oh Sweet Basil
7. Tofu and Eggplant Foil Packets | My Recipes
8. Grilled Halloumi and Summer Veggie Foil Packets | Oh My Veggies
9. Roasted Veggie Foil Packets | Happy Foods Tube
10. Herbed Mushroom and Rice Foil Packs | Tablespoon
11. Italian Vegetable Foil Packs | Tablespoon
12. Indian Spiced Baked Potato Egg Foli Packs | Cotter Crunch
12 Foil Pack Meals for Meat Lovers
1. Butter Garlic Herb Steak Foil Packets | The Recipe Critic
2. Grilled Hawaiian Barbecue Chicken in Foil | Creme de la Crumb
3. Creamy Salsa Verde Chicken, Rice and Veggies | Chelsea’s Messy Apron
4. Sausage, Potato and Green Bean Foil Packs | Damn Delicious
5. Bacon and Cheese Baked Potato | Everyday Dishes
6. Grilled Chicken Fajita Foil Pack | Real House Moms
7. Lemon Herb Steak Foil Packets | Sandy Toes and Popsicles
8. Foil Pack French Dip Sandwiches | Chelsea’s Messy Apron
9. Southwest Pork Chop Foil Packs | Pillsbury
10. Honey Mustard Chicken Foil Packs | The Salty Marshmallow
11. Sweet Potato and Bacon Foil Packs | Tablespoon
12. Hamburger and Potato Foil Packets | Spend with Pennies
12 Keto-Friendly Foil Pack Meals
1. Shrimp and Asparagus Foil Packs with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce | Cooking Classy
2. Zucchini Parmesan Foil Packs | Damn Delicious
3. Mediterranean Chicken | Easy and Delish
4. Salmon Foil Packets with Pesto | I Breathe, I’m Hungry
5. Baked Tilapia in Foil (Four Ways) | The Wicked Noodle
6. Sausage and Cabbage Foil Packs with Radishes | Delicious Little Bites
7. Cheesy Grilled Asparagus Foil Packs | Diethood
8. Shrimp Scampi Foil Pack | Lynsey Kmetz
9. Keto Steak Foil Packs | Stylish Cravings
10. Salsa Chicken Foil Packets | All Day I Dream About Food
11. Chicken Fajita Foil Packets | Life Made Sweeter
12. Keto Ranch Chicken Foil Packs | CJ’s Keto Kitchen
These foil pack meals are about to make your dinner nights so much easier! Whip them up whenever you need quick and healthy meals!