Chana Masala, Dehydrated
Chickpeas and tomato cooked down at home, dried flat, and brought back with hot water.
- calories
- 610
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 111
- protein
- 19 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 45 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 57 min
- water
- 450 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
- Backpacking
- Basecamp
- Canoe / raft
- Bikepacking
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Onion | 1 medium | chopped fine, home prep only |
|---|---|---|
| Garlic | 6 cloves | minced |
| Fresh ginger | 1 tbsp | grated |
| Canned diced green chilis | 4 oz can | |
| Olive oil | 2 tbsp | for the home cook-down |
| Ground cumin | 1 tbsp | |
| Ground coriander | 1 tbsp | |
| Chili powder | 1 tsp | |
| Ground turmeric | 1 tsp | |
| Garam masala | 1 tsp | |
| Salt | 3/4 tsp | |
| Crushed tomatoes | 28 oz can | |
| Chickpeas | 2 cans | drained and rinsed |
| Sugar | 2 tsp | |
| Instant rice | 1 cup dry | packed separately, one half-cup per serving |
| Citric acid or lemon powder | 1/2 tsp | replaces the fresh lemon juice |
| Dried cilantro | 1 tbsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | carried in a dropper bottle for camp |
Method
- At home: warm the oil in a wide pan, then cook the onion, garlic, ginger, and green chilis over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
- Add the cumin, coriander, chili powder, turmeric, garam masala, and salt. Stir for two minutes so the spices hit the oil, not just the water.
- Pour in the crushed tomatoes and the chickpeas. Simmer 15 minutes, then stir in the sugar. Keep it thick.
- Spread it thin on lined dehydrator trays and dry at 135F for 8 to 10 hours, until the chickpeas rattle and no spot is tacky. Break the sheet up and bag it with the citric acid and dried cilantro.
- In camp: boil 450 ml of water. Add the curry crumbles and the instant rice, stir, and pull it off the heat.
- Cover and wait 10 minutes. Stir once at the halfway mark or the rice welds itself to the bottom.
- Check it. If the chickpeas are still hard in the middle, add a splash of hot water and give it another five. Stir in the oil last.
Canned chickpeas are 60 percent water and a can weighs a pound, so the whole recipe happens at home and only the solids get carried. Cooking the spices in oil before the tomatoes go in matters more than it sounds: the flavor compounds are fat-soluble, and a curry built with spices dumped into liquid tastes flat no matter how long it simmers. That step survives dehydration. Fresh lemon does not, so citric acid stands in for the acid at the end.
Chickpeas rehydrate slower than anything else in the pot, which is why they get spread thin and dried hard rather than left whole and soft. Ten minutes covered off the heat is usually enough; twelve is safer in the cold. The tablespoon of oil at the end is not a garnish. Without it this is a low-fat dinner with a long walk after it.
Packing
One quart bag for the dried curry, spices already in it. Rice in its own bag so you can meter the water. Oil in a leakproof dropper, never loose in the food bag.
Variations
- Skip the rice and eat it straight from the pot for a lighter, faster meal.
- Instant mashed potato flakes thicken it fast if you overshoot the water.
- A spoon of ghee or a handful of crushed chips at the end adds fat you will want on a cold night.
https://mealswithmaria.site/chana-masala-recipe