Spring of 2016, as we started watching more and more Overlanding videos, we began researching gear and products that we could use on our trips. All Jeremy kept talking about was a Skottle that he saw on an episode of Mountain State Overland on YouTube and how that was a must have in our gear. To be honest, all I thought was “What is he talking about?" and "What the heck is a Skottle?” As the days went on, he kept telling me all about the Skottle and kept going back to the fish taco episode from MSO. Clearly he was excited about it! So I decided to start searching for this Skottle thing he wanted and thought it might make a great Father’s Day present. Not realizing however, that it would ultimately change our camp kitchen and what we cooked at camp and at home!
With my internet browser in hand, I did a quick search. Low and behold I found his crazy Skottle thing he wanted from TemboTusk in California! Then as I dug in more I found out that Blue Ridge Overland Gear also sold them and they are right here in Virginia! Which works out great for me since we live in Virginia! I told the girls what we were getting Jeremy for Father’s Day and they made sure it was the thing that he could cook fish taco’s on! I assured them it was. We got the Skottle ordered in time to arrive for Father’s Day. Hadley and I told Bailey that it must stay a surprise for Jeremy, since Bailey can’t keep a secret and we were almost sure he would find out before it came! About two days before Father’s Day I checked the tracking number of our Skottle, only to find out that there was an issue with shipping…. Concerned, I made a quick phone call and luckily I was able to contact Matt at Blue Ridge Overland Gear and he was able to make sure that our Skottle and bag were delivered the day before Father’s Day!
The Saturday before Father’s Day I asked Jeremy what he wanted for his Father’s Day breakfast and all he said was “It would be great to have an omelette made on a Skottle, if only I had one…..” It killed me knowing that it was wrapped and hidden away for the next day, but I knew that he’d have plenty of opportunities to make omelette’s on it in the days to come. Father’s Day morning came and he had to settle for an omelette from on the stove. I know, poor guy… After breakfast, he had to run a quick errand. Which gave the girls and I time to get his present out so we could surprise him when he got back. Since we don’t normally exchange gifts between the two of us for any occasion, he was a little surprised when he got home and saw two big boxes in the kitchen. All he had to say was “I know you didn’t buy me anything for Father’s Day?!?!” I said “No I didn’t. The girls did!” We had him open the box with the Skottle first. As he saw the TemboTusk logo stamped on the side of the box he stopped for a second and said “I know exactly what this is and you shouldn’t have!” He finished unwrapping everything and he couldn’t set it up fast enough. He was determined to test it out right then and there! The first thing he made was fried summer sausage, since it was readily available in the fridge. But shortly after, we loaded up and headed out to the store to pick up stuff to make shrimp tacos!!!!
That night, as we made dinner and experimented, I finally started to realize what all of his hype was over this thing and why he wanted a Skottle so badly…. The shrimp tacos where amazing and cooked really fast! The girls devoured their grill cheesed sandwiches and to this day, when they want a grill cheese sandwich, they want it made on the Skottle. Simply because it tastes better! From that one meal, we realized that not only do we love cooking on the Skottle but our girls love cooking on it as well! Still to this day they’re always asking what they can do and what they can cook!
We began experimenting more and more with the Skottle at home. Trying quick camp meals like, eggs, pancakes and french toast for breakfast and hotdogs, burgers and grilled cheeses for lunch. Then we got more creative and started trying gourmet meals like beef tips with potatoes, kielbasa with pirogies, and of course our favorite, shrimp tacos for dinner! As we found more and more things that we could cook on the Skottle, I became more intrigued by the possibilities and decided to figure out a way to make cinnamon rolls on it. Our girls love cinnamon rolls and lets be honest, who wouldn’t love to smell cinnamon rolls baking on their Skottle while drinking coffee at camp?!?!?! I knew to start “baking” on the Skottle I would need a lid. Luckily, TemboTusk sells that as an accessory! Once I got the lid, a whole new world opened and I discovered the possibilities of what a Skottle really can do!!! It didn’t take long for fresh cinnamon rolls to get added to our meal planning for trips and it didn’t stop there. I was now determined to make apple pies and after a couple of failed attempts I had success. They were amazing!!!
Photo credit: C.T. Bell
Over the summer and fall of 2016, as we meal planned for our trips, we found that we were using the Skottle more and more. After just a few trips we realized that we were no longer using our cast iron pans, or any of our big pots and pans for that matter. The Skottle had replaced all of them! So as most of us do, we unpacked our kitchen gear and re-thought about what we actually needed and used from trip to trip. We realized we didn’t use the 2 burner Coleman stove anymore but we did still needed something to boil water and make coffee with. So we purchased a Jetboil Flash with a coffee press and a Sea to Summit collapsable pot to take care of those things and said goodbye to the Coleman stove, cast iron pans, and all the other various sized pots and pans we carried. Now all of our cooking is done on the Skottle and Jetboil Flash!
If you’ve followed along in our journey so far, you can probably see how the Skottle has changed what we cook at camp and how having the Skottle and gives you endless possibilities of what to cook and bake! I am never done experimenting. Actually, I have a list of recipes that others want me to try to make along with a few other things I came up with. So there is still a lot to come! Needless to say, we love our Skottle and the possibilities it has opened. We can’t say for certain that you will love a Skottle as mush as we do, but we can say you’ll never find us without ours! If you are looking into buying one or are new to owning a Skottle and would like some extra tips, we have posted some videos on our Youtube channel that maybe useful to watch. We have a setup, cleaning, and several cooking videos posted there. As always, if you have any questions about any of our gear that a you may see, please send us a message! We look forward to seeing how you like your Skottle and the meals you cook on it!!