camp meals

Camp Breakfast Burrito Scramble

Ham, eggs, and cheese in a tortilla, rebuilt from powder so nothing has to ride in a cooler.

calories
620
weight
5.5 oz
cal / oz
113
protein
30 g
serves
2, scales
prep
3 min
cook
8 min
total time
11 min
water
180 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.

  • Breakfast
  • Canister stove
  • Campfire coals
  • Grill grate
  • Car camping
  • Backpacking
  • Basecamp
  • Bikepacking
  • Nut free
  • One pot
  • Pre-mix at home
  • Shelf stable
  • Basic

Ingredients

Powdered whole egg 3/4 cup about six eggs' worth
Powdered whole milk 2 tbsp
Shelf-stable diced ham or canned ham 5 oz pouch drain a can before it goes in
Dried minced onion 2 tbsp
Garlic powder 1/2 tsp
Hard cheddar 2 oz waxed or vacuum-sealed keeps a week out of the cooler
Oil or ghee 1 tbsp
Flour tortillas 4 small the shelf-stable kind, not bakery
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

  1. Put the dried onion in the pot with 3 tbsp of boiled water. Let it sit five minutes while you get everything else out.
  2. Whisk the egg powder, milk powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper into 150 ml of water in a mug or bottle. Lumps are fine now, not later, so keep at it.
  3. Heat the oil in the pot over a low flame. Add the ham and the rehydrated onion and cook two minutes.
  4. Pour in the egg and stir constantly. Powdered egg goes rubbery fast on a hot spot, so keep the flame low and keep the spoon moving. Three to four minutes.
  5. Off the heat, grate or crumble the cheddar in and stir until it melts.
  6. Warm the tortillas one at a time in the empty pot or straight on a grate. Fill, roll, eat.

The original of this is a fridge recipe: fresh eggs, fresh milk, diced onion, cooked ham. All four are cooler items, and a cooler is the thing you leave behind first. Egg powder, milk powder, dried onion, and a shelf-stable ham pouch do the same jobs and add up to about five ounces a person.

The milk powder is not filler. Powdered egg alone sets tight and dry; the extra fat and protein slow that down and keep the scramble soft. Low heat matters more than anything else here. Rehydrated egg has no forgiveness in it, and a hot spot in a titanium pot will make one part of your breakfast into rubber while the rest is still liquid.

Packing

Egg powder, milk powder, onion, garlic powder, salt, and pepper premix into one bag at home. Ham pouch, cheese, oil, and tortillas pack separately. Tortillas go flat against your back panel or they come out folded.

Variations

  • A packet of taco seasoning in the premix turns this into something closer to a breakfast taco.
  • Freeze-dried peppers rehydrate alongside the onion for bulk without weight.
  • Skip the tortillas and eat it out of the pot. Same food, one less thing to crush.

https://campfirefoodie.com/easy-camping-breakfast-burritos