When backpacking, dinners are the most time intensive, but perhaps not the most visually appealing for pictures. So I am starting this post with a picture of my pretty pears. I dehydrated 3 trays of pears. I used the mandolin to make sure they were all the same size and sprinkled some with cinnamon and the others with ginger. I dehydrated them to a crisp texture.
Ok, Backpacking dinners. First a few notes. I have always made our meals for backpacking, but I used to do dinners were I assembled the components. This time thanks to a friends interest, we cooked most of the dinners ahead and dehydrated whole meals. This has really cut down on our weight. In addition, we used the handy food saver on all our dinners so they are sealed firmly and take up as little space as possible. Nine days of food is still a fair amount of food to carry, especially when everything needs to be in our bear proof containers.
Yes, I said it - there will be bears, mostly black, but probably some grizzly around. But, we have backpacked in many bear areas and do take all the precautions, so I'm sure we'll be fine. The bear proof canisters are important because I get grumpy without food. So even if they get their paws on the canister, I feel good that they can't get to the food.
Yes, I said it - there will be bears, mostly black, but probably some grizzly around. But, we have backpacked in many bear areas and do take all the precautions, so I'm sure we'll be fine. The bear proof canisters are important because I get grumpy without food. So even if they get their paws on the canister, I feel good that they can't get to the food.
We are hiking with another couple. We each bring our own breakfast and daytime eats, but we share dinners. So I made four dinners to feed four people as did our fellow backpackers. Following are the four meals I came up with. For all meals, you just put them in a pot just cover with water and heat until rehydrated.
Potato Chowder with Smoked Salmon & Bacon
Sorry, this is a made up recipe. I loosely follow this Cooking Light recipe, for Baked Potato Soup, but I only add about 1/2 the liquid, since it is being dehydrated anyway. In addition, I add smoked salmon chunks, bacon, and lots of cheddar. The beauty of walking 9-10 miles is you don't have to worry about the calories and usually need the fat.
Sorry, this is a made up recipe. I loosely follow this Cooking Light recipe, for Baked Potato Soup, but I only add about 1/2 the liquid, since it is being dehydrated anyway. In addition, I add smoked salmon chunks, bacon, and lots of cheddar. The beauty of walking 9-10 miles is you don't have to worry about the calories and usually need the fat.
Hamburger Stroganoff
For this recipe, I based it on a Black Bean Stroganoff recipe out of a book we have been using called Backpack Gourmet by Linda Frederick Yaffe. If you have a desire to make your own backpacking food, I highly suggest this book.
Quinoa, Black Bean and Vegetables
This is another made up meal, but I'm excited about it. I sauteed up a bunch of vegetables, such as onion, corn, lots of greens, and zucchini. I added Black beans and mixed it with quinoa. It's pretty tasty and the black beans and quinoa will combine to give us great protien.
Tamale Pie
I got this recipe from a pdf I downloaded ages ago and I apologize I can't find the link. The pdf was full of backpacking recipes and it was titled, "Outdoor Cooking for Troop 591". It was posted in 2003 by Chris Knapp. Thanks for the recipes Chris! this recipe will give you an idea of how many backpacking meals are created.
Bag A:
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 can whole olives
1 can kidney beans
1 can diced chilies
1/4 cup chopped dried tomatoes
Bag B:
1 cup masa harina (corn flour)
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 packet Lipton Instant Onion Soup Mix
At home, dehydrate the olives, kidney beans, and chilis. Add all Bag A ingredients together. (I also added green pepper to my mix). In second bag, add all Bag B ingredients together and label them.
On the trail, place Bag A in the pot and cover with water torehydrate. When rehydrated, add Bag B and about 1 cup more water.
This makes three servings, if cooking separately, will need to take that into consideration when it comes to how much water you add. Heat slowly over low heat stirring until thick. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Enjoy with the gusto that fresh air provides!
Bag A:
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 can whole olives
1 can kidney beans
1 can diced chilies
1/4 cup chopped dried tomatoes
Bag B:
1 cup masa harina (corn flour)
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 packet Lipton Instant Onion Soup Mix
At home, dehydrate the olives, kidney beans, and chilis. Add all Bag A ingredients together. (I also added green pepper to my mix). In second bag, add all Bag B ingredients together and label them.
On the trail, place Bag A in the pot and cover with water torehydrate. When rehydrated, add Bag B and about 1 cup more water.
This makes three servings, if cooking separately, will need to take that into consideration when it comes to how much water you add. Heat slowly over low heat stirring until thick. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Enjoy with the gusto that fresh air provides!
And to close us off on this edition of what do people carry when backpacking, I have a little bag of veggie chips I dehydrated for the fun of it. In the bag are a mix of carrots, cucumbers, yellow squash, and pickles.
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