Black Bean Camp Soup
Instant black beans, dried peppers, and lime. Half of it blended smooth with the back of a spoon.
- calories
- 520
- weight
- 4.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 116
- protein
- 22 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 17 min
- water
- 600 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
- Backpacking
- Winter / snow
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Instant black bean flakes | 1 1/2 cups | dried refried style, not whole dry beans |
|---|---|---|
| Dried onion | 2 tbsp | |
| Dried carrot | 1/4 cup | shredded rehydrates fastest |
| Dried bell pepper | 1/4 cup | |
| Dried jalapeno | 2 halves | crumbled, or skip for mild |
| Garlic powder | 1 tsp | |
| Chili powder | 1 1/2 tsp | |
| Salt | 1 tsp | adjust at the end, bouillon is already salty |
| Vegetable bouillon | 2 cubes | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | dropper bottle |
| Lime juice powder | 1 tsp | or a real lime if you are car camping |
| Corn chips | 1 cup | packed on top, crushed is fine |
Method
- Bring 600 ml of water to a boil with the bouillon, dried onion, carrot, peppers, and chili powder.
- Take it off the heat, cover, and let the vegetables sit five minutes. They need the soak more than they need the flame.
- Stir in the bean flakes a little at a time. Put it back over low heat for two minutes, stirring, until it stops looking grainy.
- Mash about half the pot against the side with your spoon. That is the blender step, done badly and well enough.
- Kill the heat. Stir in the oil, the lime powder, and salt to taste.
- Crush the corn chips over the top as you eat.
The original is a pressure cooker soup built on soaked beans, fresh onion, and six cups of stock. None of that travels. Instant bean flakes do the same job in two minutes because the cooking already happened in a factory, and dried peppers and carrot rehydrate straight in the broth with no extra step. The fresh toppings are gone too: sour cream and avocado are cooler food, so the fat comes from oil instead.
Two things carry the flavor. The lime is not optional, acid is what keeps a pot of beans from tasting flat and heavy, so bring it as powder if you cannot bring the fruit. The other is mashing half the pot. Whole beans in thin broth read as watery; a half-smooth base clings to the spoon and makes the same ingredients feel like dinner.
Packing
Everything dry except the oil and chips goes in one bag. Chips ride in a rigid container or you get dust.
Variations
- A foil packet of chicken adds 20 g of protein and drops the vegan tag.
- Powdered coconut milk stirred in at the end makes it creamier without a cooler.
- Instant rice on the side turns two servings into three.
https://www.theseasonalhomestead.com/instant-pot-black-bean-soup