Dehydrated Hummus
A tub of grocery-store hummus, dried flat and rehydrated in a bag with cold water.
- calories
- 300
- weight
- 1.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 200
- protein
- 9 g
- serves
- 3, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 0 min
- total time
- 5 min
- water
- 60 ml cold
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Snack
- Lunch
- No cook
- Cold soak
- Backpacking
- Thru-hike
- Bikepacking
- Day hike
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Dairy free
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- Eat in the bag
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Prepared hummus | 10 oz tub | plain or red pepper, whatever you actually like |
|---|---|---|
| Hot sauce | 1 tsp | optional, stirred in before drying |
| Lime juice | 1 tsp | optional, brightens plain hummus |
| Olive oil | up to 1 tbsp per serving | carried separately, added at camp |
Method
- At home: stir the tub smooth, including any oil or topping sitting on the surface. Stir in the hot sauce or lime now if you want it.
- Spread it in a thin, even layer across three fruit leather trays, or on parchment over a sheet pan. Thin and even matters more than neat.
- Dehydrate at 100F for 8 to 10 hours, until it cracks and lifts off the tray in flakes. In an oven on its lowest setting, 180F or under, it takes about an hour, so check it. You are drying it, not baking it.
- Break the sheets up and divide into three small zip bags, about 7 tbsp of flakes each.
- In camp: pour cold water into the bag until it just covers the flakes. Start with less than you think.
- Wait five minutes, then work the bag with your fingers until it is smooth. Add water a splash at a time if it is still stiff, or oil if you want it richer.
Store-bought dried hummus is expensive and thin. A ten-ounce tub of the real thing costs less, tastes like what you already buy, and dries down to about four and a half ounces total. The only equipment you need is a dehydrator or an oven that goes low enough not to cook it.
Rehydration is where people ruin it. Chickpea flakes drink slowly, so water added all at once sits on top and then turns the whole bag to soup once it finally absorbs. Cover the flakes, wait, stir, and add more only if it needs it. Olive oil at the end does what the oil in the original tub did before it dried out.
Packing
Three single-serving bags, one per snack. Hummus is oily and will eventually go rancid, so store the bags in the freezer between trips. Two months in a pack has been fine.
Variations
- Pita chips or a flour tortilla turn it from a snack into lunch. Neither is gluten-free.
- Crushed dried olives or a pinch of za'atar in the mix before drying.
- Skip the oil at camp if you are watching the weight; it costs you about 120 calories a serving.
https://thehikingtreeblog.wordpress.com/2017/02/22/gourmet-trail-recipes-hummus