Eight-Week Trek Prep Trail Bowl
A dense one-pot dinner for the nights you spend training with a loaded pack.
- calories
- 790
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 132
- protein
- 42 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 3 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 13 min
- water
- 500 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
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Backpacking
- Day hike
- Thru-hike
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Instant white rice | 1 cup | parboiled, the kind that rehydrates in five minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Dried lentils, red | 1/3 cup | red split cook fast; brown will not |
| Foil-packet chicken | 5 oz | |
| Dried vegetable flakes | 1/4 cup | carrot, onion, bell pepper |
| Bouillon powder | 1 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | dropper bottle |
| Smoked paprika and black pepper | 1/2 tsp | |
| Salt | 1/4 tsp |
Method
- Bring 500 ml of water to a boil. Stir in the lentils and vegetable flakes and hold a low boil for five minutes.
- Add the rice, bouillon, paprika, and salt. Stir once, cover, and kill the heat.
- Wait five minutes. Do not lift the lid to check.
- Tear in the chicken packet, pour the oil over, and stir until the liquid is gone.
This is a training-block dinner. Eight weeks of walking with a weighted pack means eating like you walked, and the two things that get skipped are protein and salt. Red lentils and a foil chicken packet put roughly forty grams of protein in one pot without hauling anything that needs a cooler.
The lentils go in first because they need real boiling time; the rice only needs steam. Adding them together gets you crunchy lentils in mush. The oil is not optional — a lentil-and-rice bowl is thin without fat, and fat is where the calories are.
Packing
Rice, lentils, vegetable flakes, bouillon, and spices go in one freezer bag at home. The chicken packet and oil bottle ride separately.
Variations
- Swap the chicken for a tuna packet or a handful of dried soy curls.
- A squeeze of lime and a pinch of chili flakes cuts the starch.
https://tente-trek.com/preparation-physique-trek