Beef and Bean Taco Skillet
Half the ground beef, a pouch of refried beans, and a tortilla to shovel it with.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 7 oz
- cal / oz
- 89
- protein
- 31 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 15 min
- total time
- 20 min
- water
- 300 ml boiled
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Canister stove
- Liquid fuel
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Canoe / raft
- Nut free
- One pot
- Grab and go
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Freeze-dried ground beef | 3 oz | rehydrates to about half a pound |
|---|---|---|
| Dehydrated refried bean flakes | 1 cup | sold in bulk bins and in instant bean cups |
| Taco seasoning | 1 packet | |
| Flour tortillas | 4 small | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Hot sauce packets | 2 | optional, they weigh nothing |
Method
- Pour the freeze-dried beef into the pot with 200 ml of water and bring it to a boil. Let it sit off the heat for five minutes so the meat opens up.
- Return to low heat, add the oil and the seasoning packet, and stir until the liquid tightens around the meat.
- Add the bean flakes and the remaining 100 ml of water. Stir constantly. Beans go from soup to paste fast, so add water in splashes if it stiffens too far.
- Warm the tortillas one at a time on the lid or directly over low flame, a few seconds a side.
- Spoon into tortillas. Hot sauce at the table.
The original is a home cook’s budget trick: cut the ground beef in half and make up the bulk with a can of refried beans. It works just as well on trail, and for a better reason than money. Beans carry the fat and seasoning, stretch the protein, and turn loose taco meat into something that stays in a tortilla instead of falling out the bottom.
The can and the fresh beef are the only things that had to change. Freeze-dried beef and dehydrated bean flakes hit the same ratio at a fraction of the weight, and both rehydrate in the same pot in one pass. No cheese here — it is the one thing that keeps poorly and the one thing you will not miss once the beans are in.
Packing
Beef, bean flakes, and seasoning each in their own bag; the beans absorb any moisture the others give off. Tortillas go flat against the back panel of the pack so they arrive round instead of folded.
Variations
- Skip the beef entirely and double the beans for a vegetarian version that costs almost nothing.
- Add a handful of instant rice at step three and eat it as a bowl instead of tacos.
- A crushed handful of corn chips stirred in at the end adds fat and crunch.
https://mealswithmaria.site/taco-tuesday-recipes