Dehydrated Chili Mac
Made at home in a dehydrator, weighs five ounces, tastes like actual food.
- calories
- 780
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 142
- protein
- 34 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 15 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
- Liquid fuel
- Backpacking
- Thru-hike
- Winter / snow
- Nut free
- Eat in the bag
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Cooked ground beef | 1/3 cup dehydrated | rinse the fat off before drying or it goes rancid |
|---|---|---|
| Dehydrated chili with beans | 3/4 cup | |
| Small pasta | 3/4 cup | macaroni or small shells, dried, not cooked |
| Powdered cheese | 2 tbsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp |
Method
- At home, dehydrate a batch of chili on lined trays at 135 F for 8 hours, then bag it with the dry pasta.
- In camp, boil 450 ml of water and pour it into the freezer bag inside a cozy.
- Stir, seal, and wait 12 minutes. Stir again at the halfway mark.
- Add the cheese powder and oil, stir, and give it two more minutes.
Dehydrating at home is the single biggest jump in backcountry food quality available, and it costs one evening per trip. Commercial freeze dried meals run 110 to 120 calories per ounce for eight dollars. This runs 140 for about two.
The one rule: rinse the fat off cooked ground meat with hot water before it goes on the tray. Fat does not dehydrate, it goes rancid, and it will find you on day four.
Packing
Freezer bag plus a reflective cozy. The cozy is not optional in cold weather, it is what makes a no-simmer rehydration work.
Variations
- Dehydrated marinara and a different pasta shape gives you a second meal from the same technique.
- A packet of parmesan carried separately is worth its weight.