Egg Roll Rice Bowl with Fish Sauce Dressing
Ground beef, dried cabbage, and rice under a sharp lime-and-fish-sauce dressing mixed in the cup.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 120
- protein
- 33 g
- serves
- 2, 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
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Backpacking
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Instant rice | 1 1/2 cups dry | jasmine if you can find the instant version |
|---|---|---|
| Freeze-dried ground beef | 3 oz | or a foil pouch of cooked beef, heavier but cheaper |
| Dried shredded cabbage | 1 cup | dehydrated at home from a head of green cabbage |
| Dried shredded carrot | 1/3 cup | |
| Dried celery | 2 tbsp | |
| Bouillon | 1 cube | chicken |
| Soy sauce | 1 tbsp | packets or a small bottle |
| Garlic powder | 1 tsp | |
| Ground ginger | 1/2 tsp | |
| Black pepper | 1/4 tsp | |
| Toasted sesame oil | 2 tsp | dropper bottle |
| Fish sauce | 1 tbsp | small leakproof bottle, double-bagged |
| Lime juice | 1 tbsp | one lime, or bottled juice |
| Rice vinegar | 1 tbsp | |
| Sugar | 2 tbsp | |
| Sriracha | to taste | packets |
| Sesame seeds | 1 tsp | |
| Corn tortilla | 1 | optional, torn and fried in the pot |
Method
- Make the dressing first. Put the sugar in a cup or bottle with 3 tbsp of hot water and stir until it dissolves. Add the lime juice, vinegar, and fish sauce. Set it aside.
- Pour 400 ml of water into the pot with the freeze-dried beef, cabbage, carrot, celery, bouillon, garlic powder, ginger, and pepper. Bring it to a boil, then simmer 8 minutes until the cabbage bends instead of snapping.
- Stir in the soy sauce. Add the instant rice and another 200 ml of water, cover, and pull it off the heat for 5 minutes.
- Fluff it, add the sesame oil, and pour the dressing over the top. Sriracha and sesame seeds go on last.
- If you brought a tortilla, tear it up and crisp the pieces in a dry pot before step 2, then scatter them over the bowl at the end.
The original is a keto skillet dish built on fresh cabbage and a fried egg, which does not travel. What survives the trip is the structure: a big pile of shredded vegetables cooked with seasoned ground meat, then cut through with nuoc cham at the end. Cabbage and carrot dehydrate well and rehydrate fast, so the vegetable half of the bowl costs almost nothing to carry.
The dressing is why this is worth the extra bottles. Sugar, lime, vinegar, and fish sauce make a sharp, salty liquid with no oil in it, and it hits a one-pot rice dinner in a way soy sauce alone will not. Dissolve the sugar in hot water first or it sits gritty in the bottom of the cup. The eggs and fresh garnishes from the source are gone; the sesame oil and sesame seeds do the finishing work instead.
Packing
Beef, vegetables, bouillon, and spices in one bag; rice in another so it does not soak up moisture. Sugar in a third small bag. Fish sauce, vinegar, lime juice, and sesame oil ride in dropper bottles inside a zip bag, because fish sauce in a pack is a mistake you make once.
Variations
- Freeze-dried pork or a pouch of chicken instead of beef.
- Skip the rice and use crushed ramen without its packet for a lighter carry.
- Dried mushrooms in with the cabbage add body when you leave the meat out.
https://www.maritimeglutton.com/egg-roll-bowl-fusion-recipe