Broccoli Cheddar Soup, Camp Version
Freeze-dried broccoli and a hard cheddar rebuilt into a thick cheese soup in one pot.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 4.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 138
- protein
- 22 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 3 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 15 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
- Lunch
- Canister stove
- Liquid fuel
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Backpacking
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Freeze-dried broccoli | 1 cup | florets, not powder |
|---|---|---|
| Dried carrot dice | 2 tbsp | |
| Dried minced onion | 1 tbsp | |
| Chicken bouillon | 1 cube or 1 tsp | |
| Powdered whole milk | 3 tbsp | stands in for the cream |
| Cornstarch | 1 tsp | does the thickening the cream used to |
| Sharp cheddar | 2 oz | aged, waxed or vacuum sealed |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Mustard powder | 1/4 tsp | |
| Smoked paprika | 1/4 tsp | |
| Ground nutmeg | a pinch | |
| Soy sauce | 1/2 tsp | replaces the Worcestershire, travels better |
| Salt and pepper | to taste |
Method
- Put the broccoli, carrot, onion, bouillon, and spices in the pot with 600 ml of water. Bring it to a boil.
- Simmer 8 to 10 minutes, until the carrot dice give under a spoon. Add water if it goes dry.
- Pull it off the heat. Whisk the milk powder and cornstarch into a few tablespoons of the hot broth in your mug first, then stir that back in. Dumping powder straight into a full pot gives you lumps.
- Return to low heat for a minute until it thickens, stirring the whole time.
- Off the heat again, add the oil, the soy sauce, and the cheddar in small pieces. Stir until the cheese is gone. Cheese added over direct flame breaks into grease.
- Break up the broccoli with your spoon. Salt and pepper at the end, after the bouillon and cheese have had their say.
Broccoli cheddar soup is normally a cream-and-fridge dish, so most of the work here is replacing what you can’t carry. Powdered whole milk plus a teaspoon of cornstarch does what the heavy cream did: body and mouthfeel without a cooler. Freeze-dried broccoli rehydrates in the same water that becomes the broth, so nothing gets drained and no water is wasted.
The cheese is the part people get wrong. Aged cheddar melts into a hot pot, but held over a flame it splits and you end up with orange oil on top of thin soup. Kill the heat first, add it in pieces, stir. Soy sauce stands in for Worcestershire — same job, a squirt of salt and umami, in a bottle that survives a pack.
Packing
Vegetables, bouillon, milk powder, cornstarch, and spices go in one bag at home. Cheese rides separately and stays whole until camp. Oil and soy sauce in small dropper bottles.
Variations
- A handful of instant potato flakes thickens it further and adds 200 calories.
- Vegetable bouillon in place of chicken makes it vegetarian, but the cheddar still rules out vegan.
- Crumbled bacon bits or a foil packet of chicken turns it into a heavier dinner.
https://www.maritimeglutton.com/instant-pot-broccoli-cheddar-soup