One-Pot Thanksgiving
Stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and chicken in one pot. November dinner without the oven.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 120
- protein
- 32 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
- Liquid fuel
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Backpacking
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Boxed stuffing mix | 1 cup | crush the larger cubes at home |
|---|---|---|
| Instant mashed potato flakes | 1/2 cup | |
| Gravy mix powder | 2 tbsp | turkey or chicken flavor |
| Foil-packet chicken | 5 oz | |
| Dried cranberries | 3 tbsp | |
| Margarine | 1 tbsp | shelf-stable stick or single-serve tubs |
| Salt and pepper | to taste | |
| Dried sage and thyme | 1/2 tsp |
Method
- Boil 500 ml of water. Pull the pot off the heat.
- Stir in the stuffing mix and the cranberries. Cover and wait three minutes while the bread swells.
- Add the potato flakes a spoonful at a time until the pot goes from wet to thick.
- Sprinkle the gravy powder over the top and stir it through. It thickens as it cools, so stop before it looks right.
- Fold in the chicken, the margarine, and the herbs. Salt and pepper at the end, after the mixes have had their say.
This started as a full holiday spread with a roast bird and separate pots for everything. On trail there is one pot and one boil, so the components collapse into each other: stuffing does the bread, potato flakes do the thickening, gravy powder does the seasoning. Foil-packet chicken stands in for the roast, since a whole bird is not a backcountry item.
Order matters more than technique. The stuffing needs standing time in hot water before the flakes go in, or you get dry cubes suspended in paste. Margarine replaces butter because it keeps at ambient temperature for weeks, and the fat is what keeps this from eating like wallpaper glue. Cranberries rehydrate on their own in the pot and cut the salt.
Note on tags: the gravy mix and stuffing mix are wheat-based and commonly contain dairy, so no gluten-free or dairy-free claim here.
Packing
Stuffing, potato flakes, cranberries, and herbs go into one bag at home. Gravy powder stays in its own small bag or it cakes against the bread. Chicken packet and margarine ride separately.
Variations
- Swap the chicken for a foil packet of tuna, or leave it out and add another tablespoon of margarine.
- A spoonful of powdered milk in the potato step makes it richer without a cooler.
https://mealswithmaria.site/a-really-delicious-30-thanksgiving-dinner-is-possible-in-2023