Four-Part Chicken Marinade, Dried
Fat, acid, salt, flavor. Mixed dry at home, poured over rehydrated chicken at camp.
- calories
- 420
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 120
- protein
- 32 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 22 min
- water
- 350 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
- Campfire coals
- Grill grate
- Car camping
- Backpacking
- Basecamp
- Canoe / raft
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Freeze-dried or canned chicken | 3 oz dry | pouched chicken works if you are car-camping |
|---|---|---|
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | dropper bottle |
| Citric acid or powdered lemon | 1/2 tsp | stands in for lemon juice |
| Soy sauce powder | 2 tsp | or 1/2 tsp salt if you skip it |
| Honey | 2 tsp | a squeeze packet |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Black pepper and dried herbs | 1/2 tsp |
Method
- Boil 350 ml of water. Pour it over the freeze-dried chicken in the pot, lid on, and leave it ten minutes. Pouched chicken skips this step.
- Drain off all but a splash of the water. You want the chicken damp, not swimming.
- Stir the citric acid, soy powder, garlic, pepper, and herbs into the honey and oil in your mug until it is a paste.
- Pour the paste over the chicken and stir. Warm it over low heat for two minutes so the honey loosens and coats.
- Off the heat, lid on, five minutes. The acid and salt need that time to get past the surface.
The source is a home marinade formula: fat, acid, salt, flavor, four parts that do four different jobs. Fat carries the flavor compounds, acid loosens the surface of the meat, salt opens a path for both, and the last part is whatever you feel like. That structure survives the trip out. The ingredients do not.
So everything wet became a powder or a packet. Lemon juice is citric acid, soy sauce is soy sauce powder, fresh garlic is garlic powder. Raw chicken is freeze-dried chicken, which is already cooked, so this is not really a marinade anymore — it is a sauce applied after rehydrating. The five minutes under the lid at the end is the only soak time you get. Take it.
Packing
All the dry seasoning goes in one small bag. Oil and honey ride in leakproof bottles, bagged, at the top of the food sack. Chicken stays sealed until camp.
Variations
- Swap citric acid for a splash of vinegar from a dropper bottle.
- Chili flakes and extra honey makes a hot-sweet version.
- Serve over instant rice or couscous cooked in the leftover rehydration water.
https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/best-chicken-marinade-recipe