Last Updated on 25 September 2025 by Colette
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Remember a couple of months ago I was sharing the joys of a breakfast picnic? Well this time I’m bringing you love for a hot picnic!
This weekend with the weather being grey and a little cold we knew that a typical sandwiches and pork pies picnic wouldn’t cut the mustard – even with a flask of coffee or hot chocolate on the side it was too cold for a traditional picnic lunch. Although there was a cafe on site, we didn’t really want to spend a fortune on eating lunch out (especially as we were about to go on holiday and would be eating out every day) so we decided that we’d take a hot picnic instead!
Although we do love picnic and almost always take lunch with us on a day out, I think it’s safe to say we are probably “fair weather picnickers” and only really dine alfresco during the warmer months. Taking warm food with us on a day out isn’t something we’ve done before – but having been sent Contigo food flasks for the kids in the summer, we decided to order a pair of Thermos food flasks for Dave and I (hello Amazon prime) and go for it!
We already had bolognese and chilli in the freezer as they are standard batch cooked meals for us so all Dave needed to do was cook some rice and pasta first thing in the morning and heat up the sauces. We even took little pots of grated cheese and guacamole.
Everyone carried their own lunch in their backpack along with a hot drink and a cold drink (if your kids don’t already carry their own kit, get on it – it makes such a difference).
When we sat down for lunch (keeping our bums warm and dry with our PACMAT sit mats) everyone was so excited for their hot meal – partly through novelty value I’m sure but also because, sitting on a blustery hillside in late October – a hot lunch was just what we needed! We ate like kings and I was left with a Ready Brek style glow for ages afterwards.
Our food had been sat in our flasks for around four hours when we sat down to eat and it was still piping hot though next time we will pre warm the flasks with hot water (this is a top tip for any time you’re filling flasks with hot drinks but Dave forgot this time!) The Thermos flasks claim to keep food hot for 9 hours and the Contigo for up to 6 hours. (It’s worth noting that both flasks can also be used to keep food cold!)
Although the flasks are bit of an investment (between £15 and £20 each) – they will have paid for themselves within a couple of days out! Lunch for five is pretty expensive so taking hot food with us on a day out is going to be really economical. We’ve been carrying hot drinks for years but this is next level.
Of course there’s a little bit of organising and preparation involved, having meals that will batch cook in the freezer is a great idea: spag bol, chilli, stew or anything that comes from a can: ravioli, beans and sausages, soup etc. These can all be easily heated up and popped into a food container to be kept warm for when you want to eat them! Hot dogs are a super easy minimal prep meal to eat on the go too – all you need to do is pop the hot dogs in a flask with hot water, take some pre-cut bread rolls and a bottle of ketchup and you’ve got a ready made lunch. Dave isn’t a fan of hot dogs which is why we’ve never done this one but it would certainly mean carrying less stuff and you wouldn’t have to buy food flasks for everyone, just one fairly standard flask would do the trick. You can use little pots to take extras like grated cheese, sour cream or ketchup if you want to feel really fancy! Just remember your cutlery – imagine opening up a flask of hot food and having nothing to eat it with! Our thermos flasks come with a handy fold out spoon in the lid though I think we’ll generally just take a fork with us.
Have you had a hot picnic before? Have you got any tips to share?
For tips on how to be an outdoor family in the winter, read this next!
Or click through here for five easy hot picnic ideas.
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A hot picnic sounds like a fab idea and the food sounds delicious. I think we need to try this idea x
Absolutely recommend it!