Elk and Wild Rice Camp Stew
Wild rice, dried potato, and elk in one pot over a long simmer.
- calories
- 540
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 90
- protein
- 34 g
- serves
- 4, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 55 min
- total time
- 65 min
- water
- 900 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
- Campfire coals
- Liquid fuel
- Dutch oven
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Dairy free
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Wild rice | 1 cup | true wild rice, not a blend |
|---|---|---|
| Freeze-dried or home-dehydrated elk or venison | 6 oz | beef works if you have no game |
| Beef bouillon | 4 tsp | stands in for the stock pot |
| Dried diced potato | 1 cup | the kind sold for hash browns |
| Dried carrot | 1/2 cup | |
| Dried kale flakes | 1 cup | packed loose, it crushes to nothing |
| Dried rosemary | 1 tsp | crumbled between your fingers |
| Red pepper flakes | 1/2 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 2 tbsp | |
| Salt and pepper | to taste |
Method
- Bring 900 ml of water to a boil with the bouillon stirred in.
- Add the wild rice and the dried meat. Cover and hold a low simmer for 35 minutes. Wild rice takes longer than you think and will not shortcut.
- Stir in the potato, carrot, rosemary, and pepper flakes. Simmer another 15 minutes, adding a splash of water any time the grains poke above the surface.
- Add the kale and the oil off the heat. Five minutes with the lid on and it will be soft.
- Taste and salt. Bouillon is already salty, so salt last, not first.
Wild rice is the whole reason this takes an hour. It is a grass seed, not rice, and it holds its hull until it has had thirty-five minutes of real simmer. Start it with the meat so the dried elk rehydrates in the same liquid it will season.
The original is a home stew with fresh potatoes, carrots, and kale. Dried versions of all three go in later and drink up the broth, which is why the water starts high. Kale flakes last because they collapse in a minute and turn to sludge if they cook with the rice.
Packing
Rice, meat, and bouillon in one bag; the vegetables and herbs in a second. They go in at different times, so keeping them apart saves you sorting in the dark.
Variations
- A dutch oven over coals works well here. Bank the coals low and give it an hour.
- Swap the elk for a pouch of chicken added in the last five minutes if you are not carrying game.
- A spoon of tomato paste from a tube darkens the broth.
https://realtree.com/timber-2-table-wild-game-recipes/elk-and-wild-rice-stew