Mediterranean Chopped, Trail Version
Chicken, cucumber, and feta chopped into a bowl at camp. No stove, no cold chain.
- calories
- 560
- weight
- 8.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 66
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 0 min
- total time
- 10 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Lunch
- No cook
- Car camping
- Day hike
- Canoe / raft
- Basecamp
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- Eat in the bag
- Grab and go
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Foil pouch chicken breast | 1 pouch (5 oz) | stands in for leftover marinated chicken; no cooler needed |
|---|---|---|
| Cucumber | 1/2 | whole cucumbers ride two or three days unrefrigerated |
| Grape tomatoes | 1/4 cup | |
| Feta cheese | 1/4 cup | vacuum-packed in brine, or a freeze-dried crumble for longer trips |
| Sunflower seeds | 1/8 cup | |
| Vinaigrette | 2 tbsp | oil and vinegar in a leakproof bottle |
| Pepperoncini or slivered red onion | a few | optional; the jarred peppers keep on their own |
| Shelf-stable salad greens | 2 cups | day one only; swap in shredded cabbage or dehydrated greens after that |
Method
- Dice the cucumber and halve the tomatoes on a lid or a flat rock.
- Drain the chicken pouch and break the meat up with a spoon.
- Put the greens, cucumber, tomatoes, and chicken in a gallon freezer bag.
- Add the feta, sunflower seeds, and peppers or onion.
- Pour in the vinaigrette, seal the bag with air in it, and shake. Eat out of the bag.
This started as a way to use up grilled chicken from the fridge, which is not a thing you have on trail. A foil pouch of chicken does the same job at the same protein and needs no cooler, so that is the one substitution that makes the whole recipe work away from a kitchen.
Greens are the weak link. Bagged salad is a day-one food and nothing else, so this is a first-night car-camping lunch or a day-hike bowl. For anything longer, shredded cabbage is the right call: it survives being sat on, and it does not go slimy when the vinaigrette hits. Everything else here is already shelf-stable or close enough. Assemble in the bag and there is nothing to wash.
Packing
Seeds, feta, and dressing go in their own small containers so nothing wets the greens before you want it wet. Cucumber and tomatoes travel whole and get cut in camp; pre-cut vegetables weep and turn the bag to slush by noon.
Variations
- Cabbage instead of greens holds up for three or four days and shakes better.
- A pouch of tuna or salmon swaps in for the chicken with no other changes.
- Add a handful of cooked couscous or a tortilla on the side to turn it into a heavier lunch, but the gluten-free tag goes away.
https://mealswithmaria.site/mediterranean-chopped-salad-recipe