Instant Grits with Cheese and Egg
Southern breakfast, four ounces, one boil.
- calories
- 540
- weight
- 4 oz
- cal / oz
- 135
- protein
- 18 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 1 min
- cook
- 4 min
- total time
- 5 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.
- Breakfast
- Canister stove
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Liquid fuel
- Backpacking
- Winter / snow
- Car camping
- Thru-hike
- Vegetarian
- Gluten free
- Eat in the bag
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Instant grits | 2 packets | plain, not flavored |
|---|---|---|
| Powdered egg | 3 tbsp | |
| Powdered cheddar | 2 tbsp | |
| Butter powder or olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Black pepper and hot sauce | to taste |
Method
- Premix the grits, egg powder, and cheese powder into one bag at home.
- Boil 350 ml of water and pour it into the bag.
- Stir immediately and hard. Powdered egg lumps if it sits for even ten seconds.
- Seal and wait four minutes in a cozy, then stir in the fat and a lot of pepper.
Powdered egg gets a bad reputation from people who tried to scramble it. Stirred into a hot starch it disappears completely and adds 6 grams of protein for almost no weight, which is exactly what a backcountry breakfast is short on.
Buy plain grits and season them yourself. The flavored packets are mostly sugar and they will not take the cheese.
Packing
Freezer bag and a cozy. The four minute rest is doing the cooking, so insulation is what makes it work below freezing.
Variations
- Bacon bits and dried chives, which turns it into the loaded version.
- Polenta instead of grits, which is the same thing wearing a different hat.