Which TT has the Best Kitchen and Why?

propchef wrote:


We're looking for a TT that can be pulled by our X5 and, most importantly, it has to have a functional kitchen. We're both professional chefs, we still love to cook, and we almost always only eat our own food/cooking. We're avid gardeners as well.

This will be a trailer for trips to see the grandkids or to events like the F1 race in Austin or the 24 Hrs of Daytona. 5-day maximum stay with just the two of us.

We're very good at mise (advance prep and planning of meals) so things that are important are cold storage, dry storage (pantry items and pots and pans) and a strong burner. I know many have three burners but if I can get just ONE high btu burner, anything beyond that is a bonus. I can always bring another burner. An oven would only be a nice addition if it was large enough to be useful.
I couldn't care any less for a microwave, but they all come with one. I'd rather use that space for storage. It will never get used.

One of my biggest concerns is the sink and water consumption. Everything has to be hand washed and if I can't fit a 10" cast iron skillet in the sink we'll be miserable. And scratch cooking is a very water-intensive act, although I doubt we'll spend any time off-grid, and if we do we can plan for it.

I really like the Airstream Bambi 22FB but I'll have to wait for the market to cool. I am OK without a slide. What else should I be looking at?

Hi,

First off, you said you can pull it with an X5? Did you mean a BMW X5 SUV? sort of like this one? https://www.bmwusa.com/vehicles/x-models/x5/sports-activity-vehicle/overview.html?event=year-end-sales-event

If that is your tow vehicle, you first need to confirm that. Reasoning is, it will limit the size and weight of the camper you buy and we could be making a lot of suggestions that will not even be an option that will work with your tow vehicle.

The smaller the camper, the smaller the kitchen, sink, counterspace, water holding tanks etc.

While I am not a Chef, I really enjoy "cooking" at camp. Some folks like to have "quick meals" at camp and that is A OK for them. I myself really enjoys the art/skill of camp cooking and how to cook it. Our motto is, "Eat" well on a campout, and diet at home! Taking an hour or more cooking a good (to us) meal is not a problem.

That said, most all our cooking, I do outside. Gas stove, gas grill, Dutch oven with charcoal, foil pack dinners in coals, cast iron cookware etc. To me, this is enjoyment to be able to cook just about anything at the campground, outside. I can bake anything I want in a Dutch oven; biscuits, bread, cake, pork chops, stew you name it. I have 2 ovens with me all the time.

With a small camper that will align to your to tow vehicle, it will be harder to find a camper with a "good sized" counterspace "inside" the camper near the stove and sink. You have to think through how will your prepare what you are going to heat, inside the camper. And then, if you find that large size, what else in the small camper do you give up? The shower stall in the bathroom, the bed area, the dining table, etc.

Then comes the stove. Many small campers (single axle) may only have a 2 burner stove to save space and weight. That is not a bad thing, just a realization you may not fit a large skillet or large griddle on the burners. Those smaller stoves, use smaller pans.

The sink size, size of the on board fresh tank water supply, and grey water tank also falls in line with the size of the camper. If they can only fit in a 2 burner stove, the sink, tanks, countertops etc. gets smaller too.

I can suggest many floor plans with large open counter tops, large double sinks that are deep, large water and grey water tanks, 3 burner ranges with oven, but all those campers will be outside the range of a small SUV in both weight and length. The smaller the camper, the smaller everything inside.

Maybe be thinking about moving your cooking outside, and use outside dish washing tubs. That opens up a very large kitchen under an EZ pop up canopy. You can pic the size of the gas stove, it can have a 30,000 BTU cast iron burner that can handle anything you want on it. From boiling clean up water quickly, to fine heat control for cooking. By having an outside gourmet kitchen, you have a smaller camper inside, the camper fits your tow vehicle and can cook to your hearts content, just it is outside.

Hope this helps.

John