Dutch Oven Beef Curry and Rice
Ground beef, curry powder, and rice cooked down in one pot over coals.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 69
- protein
- 28 g
- serves
- 4, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 50 min
- total time
- 60 min
- water
- 830 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
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Basic
Ingredients
| Ground beef | 1 lb | kept in the cooler, cook it the first night |
|---|---|---|
| Onion | 1 | |
| Celery | 2 stalks | |
| Carrot | 1 | |
| Frozen peas | 1/2 cup | they thaw in the cooler and that is fine |
| White rice | 1 1/2 cups | uncooked, long grain |
| Curry powder | 1 1/2 tsp | |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Ground ginger | 1/4 tsp | |
| Salt | 1/4 tsp | |
| Water | 3 1/2 cups |
Method
- Build a bed of coals and set the dutch oven over enough of them to hold about 350F. You want a real frying heat.
- Brown the beef, breaking it apart as it cooks. Do not drain the fat, the rice needs it.
- Dice the onion, celery, and carrot and add them. Stir five minutes, until the onion goes soft.
- Add the peas, curry powder, garlic powder, and ginger. Stir two minutes so the spices hit the hot fat.
- Pour in the rice and 3 1/2 cups of water. Bring it to a boil, salt the top, and lid it.
- Pull coals until the oven sits around 225F. Simmer about 40 minutes, stirring every fifteen so the bottom does not scorch. Done when the rice is soft and the water is gone.
This is a one-pot skillet-and-rice dish more than a curry. The rice cooks in the beef fat and the vegetable liquid, which is why draining the pan is a mistake: fat is what keeps the grains separate and carries the spice through the pot.
The spice step matters. Two minutes of curry powder in hot fat before the water goes in tastes like something; the same powder stirred into boiling water tastes like dust. Keep the simmer low and stir every fifteen minutes, because a dutch oven bottom over coals will scorch rice quietly and you will not smell it until it is too late.
Packing
Measure the rice, curry powder, garlic powder, ginger, and salt into one bag at home. Everything else is cooler food. The vegetables can be diced the night before and bagged together.
Variations
- No cooler? Swap the beef for a pouch of dehydrated ground beef and the fresh vegetables for freeze-dried, then add another half cup of water.
- A can of coconut milk in place of a cup of the water makes it richer and closer to a curry you would recognize.
- Raisins and a squeeze of lime at the end cut through the fat.
https://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/recipe/beef_curry-2433.asp