Crockpot Mac, Trail Edition
Slow cooker mac and cheese rebuilt as one pot of boiled water, powdered dairy, and a spoon.
- calories
- 760
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 138
- protein
- 26 g
- serves
- 1, 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
- Liquid fuel
- Car camping
- Backpacking
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Elbow macaroni | 2 oz dry | small elbows cook faster than anything shaped |
|---|---|---|
| Cheddar cheese powder | 1/4 cup | stands in for the 4 cups of shredded cheddar |
| Whole milk powder | 3 tbsp | replaces the 2 1/2 cups of milk |
| Powdered cream cheese | 2 tbsp | or another tbsp of milk powder plus a pinch of citric acid |
| Butter powder | 1 tbsp | covers the fat the evaporated milk used to carry |
| Salt and black pepper | to taste |
Method
- Boil 600 ml of water. Add the macaroni and cook it uncovered, stirring, about 8 minutes.
- Do not drain. Pour off water only if the pot is clearly soupy, and keep about a finger's depth over the pasta.
- Pull the pot off the stove. Wait a minute so the water stops rolling.
- Stir the cheese powder, milk powder, cream cheese powder, and butter powder in a little at a time. Adding it all at once makes lumps.
- Cover and let it sit two minutes. It thickens as it cools. Salt and pepper at the end.
The original sits in a slow cooker for two hours because it starts with liquid dairy that needs time to melt and thicken. On the trail there is no slow cooker and no cold dairy, so the milk, cream cheese, and evaporated milk all become powders that rehydrate in the pasta water instead. Same job, one boil.
The part worth getting right is not draining. That starchy water is what turns the powders into sauce rather than gritty paste, and it is also why you take the pot off the heat first — powdered cheese scorches on a hot bottom fast. Add the powder in stages and stir between each one.
Packing
All the powders go in one bag, the pasta in another. Keeping them apart means you can control how thick the sauce ends up instead of committing at home.
Variations
- A foil pouch of tuna or a handful of dehydrated ground beef turns it into a full dinner.
- Dried chives and a pinch of mustard powder cut the flatness of powdered cheese.
- Crushed crackers or fried onions on top if you want texture.
https://mealswithmaria.site/5-ingredient-slow-cooker-mac-and-cheese