Buttered Noodles, Camp Version
Egg noodles, ghee, and garlic powder. Four ingredients, one pot, no drain step.
- calories
- 450
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 129
- protein
- 9 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 12 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
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Liquid fuel
- Campfire coals
- Backpacking
- Car camping
- Bikepacking
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Grab and go
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Dried egg noodles | 4 oz | the wide flat kind cooks fastest |
|---|---|---|
| Ghee | 2 tbsp | stands in for butter, keeps unrefrigerated for weeks |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | more than the home version needs |
| Salt | 1/2 tsp | |
| Powdered parmesan | 2 tbsp | optional, the shelf-stable shaker kind |
Method
- Bring 600 ml of water to a boil with the salt in it.
- Add the noodles. Stir for the first thirty seconds so they do not weld to the bottom.
- Simmer 6 to 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the water is mostly gone and what is left is cloudy and thick.
- Pull the pot off the heat. Do not drain. That starchy water is the sauce.
- Stir in the ghee and garlic powder until the noodles are coated and glossy.
- Add the parmesan if you brought it, stir once, and eat out of the pot.
The home version drains the noodles and saves a splash of pasta water to bring back. On trail you skip both moves: cook in just enough water that none is left over. Less fuel, no strainer, nothing to dump in a place you should not dump starchy water. Getting the ratio right matters more than timing — 600 ml to 4 oz of noodles lands close to dry with a thick starchy film that behaves like sauce once fat goes in.
Butter is swapped for ghee, which has the milk solids cooked out and does not need a cooler. Garlic powder gets bumped up because a pot cooling in cold air dulls everything. Powdered parmesan is shelf-stable and worth the ounce; it thickens the coating along with the starch.
Packing
Noodles, garlic powder, salt, and parmesan go in one bag. Ghee rides in a small screw-top jar with the lid taped, because ghee finds a way out.
Variations
- A foil packet of tuna or chicken turns it into a real dinner.
- Dried mushrooms added with the noodles rehydrate in the same water and add body.
- Swap in olive oil if you would rather carry a dropper bottle than a jar.
https://budgetrecipedb.com/recipes/butter-noodles