Cocoa Chili with Beef and Beans
Dehydrated at home, rehydrated in one pot. Cocoa powder does the heavy lifting.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 5 oz
- cal / oz
- 124
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 15 min
- total time
- 20 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
- Backpacking
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Dry kidney beans | 1/2 cup | cooked soft and dehydrated at home |
|---|---|---|
| Lean ground beef | 4 oz raw | browned, rinsed of fat, then dehydrated |
| Tomato powder | 3 tbsp | stands in for the can of tomatoes |
| Dried bell pepper and onion | 1/3 cup | |
| Garlic powder | 1 tsp | replaces two fresh cloves |
| Chili powder | 1 tbsp | |
| Ground cumin | 1 tsp | |
| Ground coriander | 1/2 tsp | |
| Dried oregano | 1/2 tsp | |
| Unsweetened cocoa powder | 1 tsp | |
| Kosher salt and black pepper | 1/2 tsp salt, several grinds | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | dropper bottle; the fat came out with the dehydrating |
| Hot sauce | to taste | optional, packet or small bottle |
Method
- Add the whole bag to the pot with 600 ml of water. Stir once so nothing clumps at the bottom.
- Bring it to a boil, then cut the flame to the lowest it will hold and simmer 8 to 10 minutes. Stir every couple of minutes.
- Kill the heat, cover the pot, and wait 5 minutes. The beans finish softening off the stove and you save fuel.
- Stir in the olive oil and check the salt. Add hot sauce if you carried it.
- If it is still soupy, leave the lid off two more minutes. If it is stiff, splash in hot water.
The original is a pressure cooker recipe built around soaking dry beans, which is a non-starter on trail. So the beans get cooked soft and dehydrated at home, and the pot at camp is only rehydrating them. Same for the beef: brown it, rinse the fat off, dry it. Fat is what turns dehydrated meat rancid, so it goes back in as olive oil at the end instead of riding in the bag for a week.
Cocoa powder sounds like a mistake and is not. A teaspoon adds bitterness and depth that reads as long-simmered, which matters when the actual simmer is ten minutes. Salt goes in at home rather than at the start of cooking for the same reason the source holds it back: salted water tightens bean skins. Tomato powder replaces the can and drops most of the carried weight, since a can of tomatoes is mostly water you can add for free at camp.
Packing
Everything dry goes in one quart freezer bag, spices included. Oil rides in a dropper bottle in a side pocket. At altitude or in cold weather, add five minutes to the simmer and expect to use a little more fuel.
Variations
- Skip the beef and double the beans for a vegan version that carries lighter.
- A crushed handful of corn chips stirred in at the end adds fat and salt.
- Instant refried bean flakes, 2 tbsp, thicken it fast if you overshot the water.
https://www.bowlofdelicious.com/instant-pot-chili-with-ground-beef-and-dry-kidney-beans-slow-cooker-optional