Guest post from Brigette Shevy
My husband’s family first introduced me to this easy, economical, and versatile meal. We cook it on the grill, but it can also be cooked over a campfire (or in the oven in colder months). It’s a great way to use garden/seasonal veggies such as green beans, zucchini, onions, peppers, potatoes…and whatever else you want to throw in!
I love the fact that my kids can help put these together, “creating” their own personal meal – which in turn seems to help all those healthy veggies become magically more appealing to little people (okay, so maybe it’s also that I serve this with ketchup — something that seems to make everything better at our house!).
After the individual packets are made, I like to write the child’s initial on the outside of their foil packet (that way I don’t have to keep track of which one belongs to which person).
There are endless possibilities and combinations with this meal. You can even make it vegetarian by leaving out the meat.
I almost always have the ingredients for this on hand, so it doesn’t require advance planning or preparation on my part. It’s hearty and filling enough to be a meal-in-one, although it pairs fabulously with grilled bread or a simple fruit salad.
Grilled Hobo Packets
Ingredients
- Smoked Sausage/Kielbasa (We use ¾ pound for five of us – this amount is very flexible.), cut into bite-sized chunks
- Potatoes (I use one small/medium potato per person/packet.)
- Carrots
- Other vegetables (onions, cabbage, green beans, peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, etc.)
- Butter or olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Other seasonings of your choice (Possible seasoning options: garlic salt, seasoned salt, fresh minced garlic, onion or garlic powder, and/or dried herbs, etc.)
- Aluminum foil (one 18-inch long piece per person/packet)
- Ice Cubes (2 per packet)
Directions
1. Preheat grill to medium.
2. Scrub and chop the vegetables (I usually cut the carrots into small strips for some variety). The smaller the pieces, the faster they will cook. I don’t peel the potatoes, but you can if you prefer.
3. Pile sausage, potatoes, carrots, and other vegetables as desired in the center of each piece of foil. Dot with butter (or drizzle with oil) and season generously with salt, pepper, and other seasonings as desired.
4. Add two ice cubes on top.
5. Bring long ends of foil together and fold up several times. Repeat with the sides so that packet is sealed.
6. Grill over medium heat (or medium-low, depending on your grill) for 15 minutes. Flip over and grill another 15 minutes. Check potatoes for desired tenderness and continue grilling if necessary. They will probably be done at this point, but it will depend on your grill and how thick you’ve cut the vegetables.
7. Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese (optional) and serve with ketchup or barbecue sauce if desired.
Brigette is a full-time wife and mother who is blessed with three amazing bundles of energy (ages 5, 3, and 1). She enjoys music, experimenting in the kitchen, homeschooling her children, finding great deals, long-distance running, and anything chocolate.
We don’t have a grill right now. We have a stovetop grill, but I wouldn’t think that would work for this recipe. You had mentioned you can make them in the oven. Could you give the directions for that? Thanks!
I prefer them on the grill, but they are also good in the oven. Place packets directly on oven racks and bake 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes, or until veggies are done to your preference (this will vary depending on how thick you’ve cut them). The packets shouldn’t leak if you use heavy duty foil and wrap them well.
I make these with hamburger and vegetables. I sprinkle them with taco seasoning or a ranch packet for extra flavor.
This has been one of our favorite campsite meals for years, although we use raw hamburger patties instead of sausage. Our veggies typically include broccoli, cauliflower, baby carrots, potatoes, and onion. Sometimes we tenderize the carrots for just a bit on the stove before throwing them in. The juices from the hamburger make everything amazingly delish, and the broccoli and cauliflower are unbelievable! My kids love to put a bit of A-1 on the finished product. Mmmmm. We also put each person’s initial on thier packet, unless we just do a huge pile of them and let people mix -n -match. 🙂
Good idea for camping:) Thanks
Any idea the best way to pack them ahead of time? Just go for it? I’m thinking the ice would melt, but I guess that doesn’t matter?
I would think pack them without the ice and then add some liquid right before cooking.
I love the versatility of this recipe. I think I may try adapting this for the crockpot.
Awesome post! Thanks for sharing! I am a huge fan of the grill…and of Brigette Shevy! Looking forward to more posts from her.
I have made these before. It is a good way to use up leftover veggies. Instead of putting a few ice cubes in I add a little butter.
We don’t have a grill. Any suggestions on how to do these in the oven? Temp? Time?
We place on a cookie sheet and bake in oven @ 350 for 20 – 30 minutes. But time will vary depending on how much is in there and how thick veggies are sliced.
I just cooked a similar packet type thing today in my crockpot. I used white potatoes, parsnips, onions, and carrots with a bit of garlic butter and basil. I cooked it on low for four hours. It turned out really well. The veggies aren’t as crispy as they would be on the girl but you could always throw them under a broiler for a minute or two to help with that.
We have always made these with ground beef, rather than the sausage. I think we’ll have to try them with kielbassi or smoked sausage now! thank you!
Been eating these since I was a child in the 1970s. My Dad just called them foil potatoes and onions because that’s all we had in ours. But I have made them for my boys with chicken and/or yellow squash or zucchini.
We love these in our house too…you can prepare them ahead of time so they are really handy when camping. Never thought about adding ice cubes though…will have to try that! Thanks!
We make these with a hamburger patty, too. I also like to add about a tablespoon of cream of mushroom soup instead of ice cubes. They are yummy, and my family loves them!
That sounds good.
me too- I would love to try the ice cubes!!
Is the meat in the recipe cooked? I love this idea! We’ve been cooking outside a lot lately and this would add some fun easy variety! Thanks!
The smoked sausage/kielbasa that I use is pre-cooked. Many types of meats that aren’t pre-cooked would be done after a good 30 minutes of grilling time, though, so feel free to experiment. 🙂
Great idea! I don’t grill a lot but this looks like something the children would enjoy. Thanks for sharing Brigette! Have a great day. Ivy Jane
I quite often prepare something very similar for my family during the summer months. I have never heard of adding ice cubes though. Does that help steam the veggies?
It adds moisture so the veggies steam and don’t burn, and is easier to work with than water. 🙂
We make these all the time at our house! With an abundance of veggies from the garden, it’s an easy way to eat them up without getting bored with them.
We also like to make these with a hamburger instead of sausage.
I love making these. I often make them when we’re grilling meat–leave the meat out of the packet, and then you can put all the side dishes together in the packet. No cooking in the kitchen!
Our Boy Scouts call them silver turtles, and they are yummy!
we do those with carrot potato onion and ground turkey great with chicken and tariaky too
When you use chicken, do you put it in the packet raw? Sounds Delish!
Yes I use raw chicken breast the sauce veggies and bake at 350 degrees f till the chicken is done this time will very depending on the size or type of chicken meat. I think i will make some of these this week!
Ooh! These look like a hearty inexpensive meal that you can be creative with. Thanks for sharing.
We have made these before and I had forgotten all about them. I will have to put them into our menu plan soon. I am sure the kids would love making their own meals packages themselves.
I remember when I was growing up and in the Girl Scouts we used to do something similar on the fire with homemade hamburger patty, potato, carrot and wrapped in foil. that was my favorite my mother used to do the same thing for us in the oven sometimes for dinner.
We’d use hamburger patties too and called them Boy Scout meals. You can also cook them in the oven if you don’t want to use a grill.
We did, too!
I feel like they had a name-like Campfire stew, maybe?
What a great idea to do with them with kielbasa-and it’s on sale at Fred Meyer this week!