For this recipe, I started off with Taste Adventure’s Sweet Corn Chowder mix which is available in bulk at my local co-op. Despite the name, this soup really doesn’t have much in common with chowder. In fact, the primary ingredient is not cream or corn but dried yellow split peas. This made it an ideal base for my curried dal. To add bulk, I combined the corn chowder mix with some instant rice. Because the soup mix was essentially unflavored (seasoned only with salt, pepper and parsley,) I added in some curry powder and a touch of cayenne pepper for heat. Also, because I love it and thought it would add just the right amount of richness to the dish, I threw in some ground coconut (for this, I simply powdered unsweetened coconut flakes in my food processor.) I wanted to include some vegetables for texture, but I didn’t have time to dehydrate my own. To remedy this, I bought a packet of Just Veggies which is a colorful blend of dried peas, carrots, corn, bell peppers and tomatoes. Finally, for a garnish, I chopped up some roasted cashews.

By preparing my own backpacking meals, I get the satisfaction of making delicious and nutritious food as well as the added bonus of saving some money. Commercial backpacking meals are typically very expensive. Just Veggies, dried coconut and roasted cashews aren’t the cheapest of foods so I’m not sure this meal really saved me any money. Still, I was able to tailor the recipe to my exact tastes, and it’s always fun to figure out how to make gourmet food that is lightweight, packable and easy to prepare in the wilderness (all of my backpacking meals are designed to be made in one pot with minimal effort.) The extra expense was worth it in the end. This meal was incredibly hearty and full of flavor. It proved to be one of the tastiest dinners I’ve ever eaten in the back country – a perfect meal to end a wonderful trip!

Curried Dal

1/3 cup Just Veggies (or other dehydrated mixed vegetables)
2/3 cup instant rice
1 cup Taste Adventure Sweet Corn Chowder mix*
3 tablespoons ground unsweetened coconut
3/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped cashews

At home, place the dehydrated vegetables into a small ziploc bag. Mix together the rice, corn chowder mix, coconut, curry, cayenne and salt and place into another bag. Add the chopped cashews to another bag. Write the cooking instructions below on a small strip of paper to take with you on your trip (I usually just tuck it into one of the ziploc bags.)

At camp, bring 2-3/4 to 3 cups of water to a boil. Add the dehydrated vegetables and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the rice and chowder mix, turn the heat down to low and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes or until the dal is thick and the rice and veggies are cooked. Serve in bowls garnished with the chopped cashews.

Makes 2 servings

*If you can’t find the Taste Adventure brand of corn chowder, look for any brand of dried lentil or split pea soup mix. It is best to look for one that has very little seasoning since you will be flavoring it yourself. Obviously, different soup mixes will result in a different dish. It is always a good idea to do a trial run of any backpacking meal at home first, to see if you like the results.

Robert and I just returned from a great backpacking trip on the Washington Coast. The weather wasn’t the best, but we had the whole beach to ourselves for most of the trip – just us and the seals staring back and forth at each other! Nothing beats the sense of peace & relaxation that a few days in the wilderness provides. That said, one of my absolute favorite things about backpacking is getting to play kitchen scientist when it comes to meal planning. Each trip gives me a chance to develop and test a new recipe or two. The goal is always to come up with food that is tasty yet extremely lightweight and easy to prepare in the back country.

This year, I decided to try my hand at making ham & bean soup. My mom used to make this when we would backpack as a family many years ago, and she told me recently that it was always one of her favorites – the ultimate comfort food for when you are deep in the wilderness. After a little bit of experimentation, I achieved good results. By dehydrating the soup in the oven, I was able to transform five cups of soup into a mere six ounces. It re-hydrated beautifully at camp and – mom was right – the soup was delicious! It was awfully cold & blustery during our trip but, sitting on the beach next to a roaring fire with a bowl of hearty ham & bean soup, we didn’t mind the weather one bit!

I began by making a very basic ham & white bean soup (any recipe will do; I used this one and I halved the recipe.) I let the prepared soup rest overnight in the refrigerator so that I could start the dehydrating process first thing the next morning. I decided to dehydrate the soup in two steps: the solids first followed by the liquid. I was worried that trying to do it all at once would end up taking forever. This two-stage process is more time-consuming, but most of this time is unattended. I don’t own a dehydrator so I do all of my dehydrating in the oven: I keep the oven at a temperature between 140 and 150 degrees and I crack the oven door slightly to provide airflow.

The first morning, I drained the soup (reserving the liquid.) I spread the solids out on a baking sheet and placed them in the oven to dry, stirring every hour or so. It took about nine hours for the solids to completely dehydrate. The next day, I started on the liquid. First, I reduced the liquid down as much as possible by simmering it in a pot on the stove. Once I had a thick puree, I poured it out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and transferred it to the oven. When the puree is dehydrated, it will break up into dry chips similar to dried mud cracks. You don’t need to stir the puree during the dehydrating process, but it is a good idea to turn the drying chips over once so that both sides dry evenly. It took about 10 hours for the puree to dry completely. Once it was dry, I crushed it to a powder using my food processor and then added it to a small ziploc bag along with the dried solids.

To prepare the soup at camp, I simply mixed the dried soup with four cups of water (the soup originally measured at five cups – knowing that it would never fully re-hydrate to its original state, I opted to use a cup less water for cooking.) I let the soup rest in the pot for five minutes to give it a head start on re-hydrating. Then, I brought it to a simmer and let it cook gently for 7-8 minutes, stirring often (basically until it was thick and no longer crunchy.) The ham stayed a bit on the chewy side. We didn’t mind it, but if it bothers you, you can always cook the soup for longer, adding more water if necessary. Everything else re-hydrated beautifully. Enjoy!

Robert and I just got back from our first backpacking trip of the season. We headed up to Lake Caroline in the Wenatchee National Forest. I wish I could say we had a great time, but, unfortunately, the mosquitoes had made it their goal to cause us misery. I have never seen such ruthless bugs! They were so bad at Lake Caroline that we decided to climb higher and higher into the mountains, hoping to find a windier, bug-free spot. No luck. We found wind and colder temperatures, but just as many mosquitoes. Even our 100% DEET wasn’t enough to keep them at bay. We ended up packing our things early the next morning and heading home, a day earlier than expected. Oh well, things can’t always be perfect. That’s the risk you take when you go into the backcountry. Robert and I have really good luck with backpacking up until now so we were probably due for a less than ideal trip.

At least, this trip afforded me the opportunity to try out a new backpacking recipe. This time I made “Alpine Peanut Noodles.” This recipes features angel hair pasta and my signature dehydrated broccoli in a spicy Asian peanut sauce. Black sesame seeds add an exotic touch – a little bit of gourmet while you’re out in the mountains! Weighing in at 12 ounces, this meal is bit heavier than I prefer for backpacking. After the exhaustive climb we did on Sunday, I am more motivated than ever to make my meals as lightweight as possible (without having to resort to commercial, freeze-dried camping dinners – blech!) That said, my Alpine Peanut Noodles were worth the extra weight. They were spicy and filling, just what you need after a long, hard day of hiking. It’s just too bad we couldn’t enjoy the meal thanks to the swarms of mosquitoes making a meal out of us!

Alpine Peanut Noodles

1 large head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
8 ounces angel hair pasta
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/8 teaspoon ground dried ginger
1/8 teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 ounces peanut butter
1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Preheat the oven to between 140 and 150 degrees. Blanch the broccoli in a pot of boiling water until just tender. Drain thoroughly. Wrap a piece of cheesecloth around a cooling rack and secure the ends using safety pins (or use a mesh screen). Spread the broccoli out on the cheesecloth arranging it in a single, uncrowded layer. Open the oven door a few inches to create airflow, making sure that the temperature remains between 140 and 150 degrees. Dry the broccoli in the oven, checking every hour or so, until completely dried and brittle (5 to 6 hours). Remove from the oven and let cool.

Put the broccoli and pasta in a plastic baggie (I break up the pasta into smaller pieces to make it fit.) Put the garlic granules, ginger, cayenne, brown sugar and salt into a small packet. Put the peanut butter into another small container (I actually buy JIF’s “to-go” cups which are 2.25 ounces each. I’m not a big fan of JIF peanut butter, but the small cups are perfect for backpacking.) Pour the soy sauce, vinegar and sesame oil into a small plastic bottle (for the soy sauce, you can also use those tiny packets that you get with Asian take-out – three packets is about right for this recipe.) Put the sesame seeds into another little packet. Place all of this into a larger baggie along with written cooking instructions. Now, it is ready to be taken on any backpacking trip!

To prepare the meal, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta and broccoli and cook until almost done (about 4 minutes.) Drain most of the water out, leaving about 3/4 cup of water in the pot. Add the spices and cook for another 30 seconds. Stir in the peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar and sesame oil until well-mixed. Sprinkle in the sesame seeds and enjoy!

Robert and I just returned from a wonderful backpacking trip to Sprite Lake via Paddy Go Easy Pass. It was a pretty steep climb, but the beautiful scenery, complete solitude and (mostly) nice weather was the perfect reward. We spent most of the trip reading our books, watching the playful chipmunks and listening to the pikas make their strange beeping sounds. Foodwise, I was pretty lazy and packed a couple of quick, no-brainer meals. Although it wasn’t gourmet, we still managed to eat pretty well during the trip. We had frito pie one night (of course) and Mary Jane Farm Organic Couscous & Lentil Curry the next which, as far as packaged food goes, is actually really good. Since it is always nice to have something fresh with your jerky and dried fruit and crackers, I packed a couple of CSA nectarines which held up surprisingly well. I also found these beautiful huckleberries growing near the lake which we ate as a morning snack with coffee and homemade zucchini bread. I can think of few things that are better than waking up in the mountains to the sunrise and a handful of freshly-picked wild huckleberries!

Robert and I just returned from a fantastic backpacking trip to Toleak Point, located on Washington’s beautiful Olympic Coast. My family used to backpack at Toleak Point every year when I was little, and it was always my favorite place to go. Unlike most modern coastal areas, which are typically lined with hotels and tourist traps, the Olympic Coast is made up of natural, protected wilderness. Rocky headlands, dense forest, rugged beaches, tidepools and creepy off shore sea stacks are the name of the game here. Hiking on the Olympic Coast usually means scrambling up steep, unstable cliffs and over giant, slippery rocks in order to get where you are going. A tide chart is a necessity in order to avoid getting trapped between impassable headlands. But, once you arrive at your destination, you are rewarded with some of the most beautiful, pristine wilderness in the United States.

Although the coastline is always changing, everything at Toleak Point was basically the same as I remembered. In a way, I felt like I had been there just yesterday (20 years can really fly by!) We saw plenty of wildlife including seals, bunnies, starfish, sea anemones, blue herons, bald eagles and a family of river otters who would come out to play in the ocean twice a day (the river otters were there when I was a kid too, so I was glad to see that they were still around.) The weather was very kind to us – no rain! A huge heatwave hit Washington State during our trip so, even though it was pretty sweltering out at the coast, it was still a much better place to be than in the city. We were lucky to have a giant ocean to cool off in. Mostly, we spent our time sitting in the sand reading our books or staring out at the water. I may love my computer and TV, but you really can’t beat the Pacific Ocean for entertainment. Robert’s well-crafted campfires provided lots of entertainment as well.

As for the food? Well, my kitchen experiments last month really paid off because our dinners were all excellent! Of course, food always tastes so much better when your have dirt on your face and sand between your toes. Breakfasts and lunches were pretty standard fare: logan bread and oatmeal for breakfast and peanut butter, crackers, dried fruit and snacks for lunch. The dinners were the real highlight. The first night, I made frito pie, Robert’s favorite. It was just as good as it was during our last backpacking trip, if not better. At this point, I don’t know if I’ll be able to go on a backpacking trip without bringing along frito pie fixings. It is perfect camping food – spicy, filling and lightweight! My tuna & broccoli pasta was good, although, out of fear of starvation, I added more pasta than my own recipe called for, and we had a really hard time finishing it. I suppose being too full is better than going hungry, however. My final dinner was the result of another kitchen experiment: Vegetable Jambalaya. This dish was just OK when I tested it at home, but I doctored the recipe a bit and it ended up being completely delicious out at the beach. I combined instant rice with corn, okra, green beans and red bell pepper (that I dehydrated at home in my oven.) Green chilies, sun-dried tomatoes and spices add flavor.

Click here to see photos from the trip >>

Vegetable Jambalaya

1 cup green beans, cut into 1-inch lengths
1 small red bell pepper, peeled and sliced
1 to 1-1/2 cups frozen okra, thawed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
2 garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 to 4 sun-dried tomatoes, minced (you may need to use kitchen shears for this)
2 tablespoons dehydrated green chili flakes*
1 tablespoon broth powder
1/2 teaspoon dried cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups instant rice
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat the oven to between 140 and 150 degrees. Blanch the green beans in a pot of boiling water until just tender. Drain thoroughly. Wrap a piece of cheesecloth around a couple of cooling racks and secure the ends using safety pins (or use a mesh screen). Spread the green beans, bell pepper, okra, corn and garlic out on the cheesecloth arranging them in a single, uncrowded layer. Open the oven door a few inches to create airflow, making sure that the temperature remains between 140 and 150 degrees. Dry the vegetables in the oven, checking every hour or so, until completely dried and brittle (2 to 3 hours for the corn and 4 to 5 hours for the rest). Remove from the oven and let cool. Mince up the dehydrated garlic and break the bell pepper slices into smaller pieces.

Mix the dehydrated vegetables and all of the spices into a zippered plastic baggie. Put the instant rice in another plastic baggie. Place all of this into a larger baggie along with the olive oil (in a small bottle) and printed cooking instructions. Now, it is ready to be taken on any backpacking trip!

To prepare the meal, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Add the vegetables & seasonings and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the rice, return to a simmer and then turn off the heat. Let rest for 5 minutes or according to the instructions on the package of instant rice. Stir in the olive oil and enjoy!

*I used dehydrated green chilies from New Mexico because I had them already. If you can’t find dehydrated chilies, you can simply add more chili powder or you can make your own dehydrated chilies. Using fresh green chilies, follow the instructions for dehydrating red bell pepper.

One of the main challenges with backpacking is getting your daily requirement of veggies. You could theoretically carry fresh carrots or other sturdy vegetables with you but, after a day or so they won’t be very good. Plus, fresh vegetables weigh a lot, and weight is always a big issue when you are backpacking. You could fork over the cash and buy dehydrated vegetables from Just Tomatoes. Or, you could buy a home dehydrator which you will use once a year and then need to find space for in your storage closet the rest of the time. But, most people do what I do – simply go without, relying instead on dried fruit and instant beans in place of vegetables. A few days without vegetables isn’t going to hurt you. Still, I just don’t feel right if there isn’t something green on my dinner plate.

My solution? Turn a conventional oven into a makeshift dehydrator! The two keys to dehydrating foods are to be able to maintain a consistent, low temperature (140 to 150 degrees) and to allow air to reach all sides of the food for even drying. An oven may not be the most efficient tool for the job, but I was able to get it to work just fine. After trying a few different low settings, I was able to maintain an oven temperature of about 147 degrees (an oven thermometer comes in real handy here.) I ended up propping the oven door open slightly with a pair of kitchen tongs to get the right temperature. Doing this also helps improve the airflow. Rather than using baking sheets or pans, you need place the food on something that will allow air to move all around it. You can buy mesh screens for this purpose or you can do what I did which was to wrap a piece of cheesecloth around a cooling rack (securing the ends with safety pins helps keep it in place.)

I choose broccoli for my dehydration experiment. First, I cut the broccoli into bite-sized pieces and blanched it in boiling water until it was just cooked through. I then spread it out in a single, uncrowded layer on the cheesecloth and placed it in the oven. I checked on the broccoli every hour or so; 6 hours later, it was ready! It was completely brittle and showed no signs of moisture whatsoever. One whole head of broccoli was transformed into a small 1 ounce handful. I also dehydrated some garlic and capers and used it to make a tasty tuna & broccoli noodle dish which should be delicious out in the wilderness. The broccoli reconstituted fairly well. Its texture was definitely different, but it tasted like broccoli and remained pretty green through the whole process. And, as long as I can see something green in my bowl, I will be one “happy camper.”

elliemay’s backcountry tuna & broccoli noodles

1 large head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 to 3 garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 heaping tablespoon capers, well-drained
zest of one large lemon
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
6 ounces angel hair pasta
one 7-ounce foil packet of tuna or salmon
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat the oven to between 140 and 150 degrees. Blanch the broccoli in a pot of boiling water until just tender. Drain thoroughly. Wrap a piece of cheesecloth around a cooling rack and secure the ends using safety pins (or use a mesh screen). Spread the broccoli, garlic and capers out on the cheesecloth arranging them in a single, uncrowded layer. Open the oven door a few inches to create airflow, making sure that the temperature remains between 140 and 150 degrees. Dry the vegetables in the oven, checking every hour or so, until completely dried and brittle (4 to 5 hours for the garlic and 5 to 6 hours for the broccoli and capers). Remove from the oven and let cool.

While the vegetables are dehydrating, leave the lemon zest out to dry on a paper towel for several hours. Crush the dehydrated garlic and capers lightly and mix with the lemon zest, oregano, pepper and salt. Wrap this up a small piece of plastic wrap. Wrap the parmesan cheese in a separate packet. Put the broccoli and pasta in a plastic baggie (I break up the pasta into smaller pieces to make it fit.) Place all of this into a larger baggie along with the tuna packet, olive oil (in a small bottle) and printed cooking instructions. Now, it is ready to be taken on any backpacking trip!

To prepare the meal, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and broccoli and cook until almost done (about 4 minutes.) Drain most of the water out, leaving about 1/2 cup of water in the pot. Add the seasoning packet, stir well to mix, and cook until the pasta is done. Add the cheese, tuna and olive oil, stir to mix, and allow the tuna to heat through. Enjoy!

Here is the food rundown: The first night, we had tuna fillets (Starkist pouches), gravy and instant mashed potatoes which I spiked with parmesan cheese and olive oil. It was okay but the freezing wind turned our dinner cold almost instantly so that was a bummer. But, the frito pie on the second night was perfect! Instead of bothering with a roux and then adding ingredients separately, I just threw it all in together and it was ready in minutes. The spiciness of the chili really warmed us up. Lunches consisted mainly of snacks: trail mix, peanut butter, summer sausage, crackers, etc. For breakfast, I made homemade instant oatmeal packets using quick-cooking rolled oats (I pureed some in a blender to act as a thickener), powdered milk, brown sugar and dehydrated strawberries from Trader Joe’s. Also for breakfast, I made logan bread which my mom always used to make when we would backpack as a family. The logan bread was fantastic with coffee. You can find the recipe that I used here. I replaced the raisins with dried cranberries and dried apricots and I added more than the recipe calls for. We also brought a lime and some tequila minis and had “margaritas” while sitting on a sunny rock down by the lake one afternoon. I’m not sure if life can get any better than that!