Loaded Cauliflower Soup, Dried
Cauliflower, cheese powder, and bacon bits rebuilt from a bag. Low carb dinner that weighs almost nothing.
- calories
- 520
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 149
- protein
- 24 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 8 min
- total time
- 10 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
- Liquid fuel
- Backpacking
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Car camping
- Gluten free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Dehydrated cauliflower | 1 cup | riced or thin-sliced florets, dried at home |
|---|---|---|
| Dried minced onion | 1 tbsp | |
| Garlic powder | 1 tsp | |
| Chicken or vegetable bouillon | 1 tsp | |
| Cheddar cheese powder | 3 tbsp | |
| Powdered whole milk | 2 tbsp | stands in for the cream cheese |
| Bacon crumbles | 2 tbsp | the shelf-stable jarred kind |
| Freeze-dried chives | 1 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Salt and black pepper | to taste |
Method
- Bring 500 ml of water to a boil. Add the cauliflower, onion, garlic powder, and bouillon.
- Simmer eight minutes with the lid on, stirring once. The cauliflower has to go soft or the soup stays gritty.
- Pull it off the heat and let it stop bubbling. Then stir in the cheese powder and milk powder, or they will clump and scorch.
- Mash against the side of the pot with your spoon until it thickens. Stir in the oil.
- Top with bacon crumbles and chives. Salt and pepper at the end, after the bouillon has had its say.
The original is a pressure cooker soup finished with cream cheese and an immersion blender. Neither travels. The trail version dries the cauliflower at home, rehydrates it in bouillon, and gets its body from a spoon instead of a blade — cauliflower that has been boiled soft mashes into a purée with almost no effort.
Cheese powder and milk powder replace the cheddar and cream cheese. They are the whole texture of the dish, so add them off the heat: dairy powder dropped into a rolling boil clumps, and clumps do not dissolve later. The oil is not optional either. Cauliflower is close to free of calories, and without added fat this is a hot drink, not a dinner.
Packing
Everything dry except the bacon and oil goes in one bag. Bacon crumbles ride in their own small bag so the grease stays out of the powder.
Variations
- Skip the bacon and use vegetable bouillon for a vegetarian version.
- A spoonful of instant potato flakes thickens it further if your cauliflower dried unevenly.
- Freeze-dried chicken adds about 15 g of protein.
https://domesticsuperhero.com/instant-pot-loaded-cauliflower-soup-low-carb