Rainy Day Chili Mac
One pot of pasta and beans for the afternoon the weather shuts the campsite down.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 80
- protein
- 26 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 20 min
- total time
- 25 min
- water
- 700 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
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Grab and go
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Elbow macaroni | 1 1/2 cups dry | |
|---|---|---|
| Canned chili beans | 1 15 oz can | drain half the liquid, keep the rest |
| Tomato paste | 2 tbsp | tube travels better than a can |
| Dried minced onion | 2 tbsp | |
| Chili powder and cumin | 1 tbsp total | |
| Olive oil | 2 tbsp | |
| Hard cheese | 2 oz | cheddar or gouda, no refrigeration needed for a few days |
| Salt | to taste |
Method
- Bring 700 ml of water to a boil with the dried onion and a good pinch of salt. The onion needs the full cook time to stop being crunchy.
- Add the macaroni. Stir every minute or so, because pasta on a camp stove sticks to the bottom fast.
- When the pasta is nearly soft and most of the water is gone, stir in the beans with their reserved liquid, the tomato paste, and the spices.
- Simmer two or three minutes on the lowest flame you can hold, stirring, until it thickens.
- Cut the heat. Stir in the oil, then grate or crumble the cheese over the top and put the lid on for a minute.
Rain in camp means you want one pot, a lid, and twenty minutes of standing over a stove instead of an hour. Cooking the pasta in the water it will finish in does most of the work here: the starch that would go down the drain stays behind and thickens the whole thing into a sauce, so there is nothing to strain and nothing to wash but the one pot.
The tomato paste is not optional. Canned chili beans on their own are thin and taste like the can; two tablespoons of paste give it enough body and acid to read as a real meal. Oil goes in off the heat so it stays as fat rather than frying, and the cheese melts on residual heat under the lid.
Packing
Pasta, onion, and spices go in one bag together. The can, the tomato tube, and the cheese ride separately. Pack the empty can out.
Variations
- A foil packet of chicken or a chopped stick of summer sausage turns it into a bigger dinner.
- Crushed tortilla chips on top give it something crunchy.
https://lunolife.com/blogs/journal/cozy-autumn-car-camping-rainy-day-cooking