Two Awesome Stanley Cooksets

The word “backpacking” suggests roughing it, but today’s cooksets allow backcountry travelers to bring mini kitchens into the wilderness. These two Stanley cooksets, while light and compact, are designed for backpackers and campers who are more interested in chilling by the fire with a nip of whiskey than setting speed records on the Appalachian Trail.

Mountain Compact Cookset

For the individual backcountry traveler, there are scarce better options in the cookset category. This compact system includes a stainless steel pot, vented lid, insulated mug/bowl and a foldable spork. While the cookset isn’t as light as some of the minimally designed options out there, at .86 pounds it’s more than reasonable. Utility is the foremost priority of this cookset, and testers appreciated the smart nesting style, the included insulation and the addition of a spork.

Tester Quote: “Straight out of the box, I took notice of the nesting capability. Many ultralight folks don’t see the need to have both a pot and a bowl, but I appreciated the ability to boil a second batch of water while eating/drinking. This is especially true in winter camping scenarios or anytime when you’re relying on boiling as a purification process. But even beyond that, the Compact Cookset adds a little bit of luxury to my kit without adding too much space or weight.”

Best For: Solo backpacking

Check out the Compact Cookset >

Two Pot Prep + Cook Set: 13-piece Set

Stanley Adventure 2 Pot Prep & Cook Set

13 pieces!? Sounds like a kitchen kit that would find its way onto a wedding registry. This two-pot set is a fantastic way to take care of all of your campsite cooking needs in one place—all that’s missing is a stove.

Here’s what Stanley says is included:

• 1 - folding cutting board
• 2 - 20oz/591mL bowls + lids
• 1 - melt resistant nylon spatula with extending handle
• 1 - melt resistant nylon ladle with extending handle
• 1 - 1.58QT/1.5L pot + vented lid
• 1 - 2.43QT/L pot + vented lid

While there are only two bowls, the supplied pots, cutting boards and spatulas make this kit friendly to a group of four. Ultralight backpackers will stray away from this kit in favor of lighter and more expensive alloys, but for the casual group of backpackers, these stainless steel pots are a solid way to go. And while the kit does fit together like Russian nesting dolls, you can always break it up and leave a few things at home or divide it among hikers. Truly though, this kit is best used in car camping/basecamp scenarios or on extended road trips. Plus, at $65, it’s a total bargain.

Tester Quote: “For a road trip, this is perfect. If I am backpacking solo, I prefer something like the Compact Cookset, but otherwise I’m a fan of this set—you can always split it in half, only take one pot, etc. But that’s what’s so nice about it: you have so many options for such a cheap price. And you’re getting that Stanley look and quality.”

Best For: Car camping, basecamps, road trips