Indoor Hobo Packets! I was scrolling back through my summer photos and found a post I sadly neglected to publish, but I think it’s even more exciting to post in the dead of winter when we all miss the sun and beaches a lot! During the summer these foil dinners are fun to cook over a campfire, but in the winter they work really well in the oven or smoker. Sometimes these are called “Hobo Packets” sometimes “Foil Dinners”, but whatever you call them they’re amazing. Put out an assortment of veggies, sausages, meat patties, and seasonings. Let everyone customize their own dinner and enjoy a little piece of summer in the dead of winter.
In 2020, the only vacation we went on was a family camping trip to Deception Pass on the Washington coast. We’ve been visiting this same camping spot since we moved to the state almost a decade ago. Here are a few pictures from last summer (this cold won’t last forever!) and if you live in Washington, you need to make your reservations for this upcoming summer ASAP!
Assembling the Hobo Packets
There really are no rules when it comes to Hobo Packets. In general I like to have a mix of veggies, meats, and seasonings for people to pick from. In this case, I put out some potatoes, onions, carrots, corn, thin ground beef patties, and sliced sausages.
Start by spraying a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil with cooking spray. Next put down some potatoes and onions. If your aluminum foil is on the thin side, you will want to double layer it.
Top the veggies with a hamburger patty.
And then finish with some more veggies, sausage, a dollop of Cream of Mushroom Soup and a pat of butter for moisture.
Sprinkle generously with all of your favorite seasonings. In this case, I just pulled out what I had in the cupboard and let my family pick their favorites.
And seal the packets up on all sides. You can write your name in sharpie on the outsides of the packets to make it easier to serve a group.
Cook in the oven or a smoker at 375 F for 40-45 minutes. If your oven or smoker cooks unevenly, you will want to rotate the packets halfway through.
Enjoy a little piece of summer in the dead of winter!
Indoor Hobo Packets
Yukon Gold Potatoes, unpeeled and thinly sliced (about 1/3″ thick)
Sweet Onions, thinly sliced
Baby carrots, washed
Corn on the cob, broken into thirds (if you can’t find this, sub in more potatoes and carrots)
Hamburger, formed into thin patties
Precooked sausage links, sliced into 1/4” pieces
Cream of Mushroom or Cream of Cheese Soup
Lipton Onion Soup Mix
Season Salt, Salt, Pepper, and any favorite seasonings
Butter, sliced into 1 tablespoon pieces
Shredded cheese, optional
Directions
Spray a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil with cooking spray (double layer if necessary) Put down thinly sliced potatoes and onions in the center of the foil. Top with hamburger patty and sausage. Scatter with baby carrots, and corn cobs. Top with a spoon of Cream of Mushroom soup (undiluted), or sprinkle with Lipton Onion Soup, and season with Lawry’s, salt, pepper, and all of your favorite seasonings.
Seal up packet and put on smoker, grill, or oven at 375 F for 40-45 minutes. Rotate halfway through cooking if your oven/smoker cooks unevenly. If adding shredded cheese, open up the packets right after they have finished cooking and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Close the packet back up and let the cheese melt while the packet cools for a few minutes.
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