Red Lentil Camp Dal
Split red lentils, hemp seeds, and a scoop of soy protein. Vegetarian dinner that actually carries protein.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 131
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 3 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 15 min
- water
- 550 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
- Thru-hike
- Basecamp
- Bikepacking
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Split red lentils | 1/2 cup | red only, they break down in ten minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Textured vegetable protein | 1/4 cup | stands in for the tofu, which will not survive a pack |
| Hulled hemp seeds | 2 tbsp | |
| Curry powder or garam masala | 2 tsp | |
| Onion and garlic granules | 1 tsp each | |
| Bouillon powder | 1 tsp | |
| Salt | 1/2 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | dropper bottle |
| Instant rice or a tortilla | optional | if you want more carbohydrate |
Method
- Bring 550 ml of water to a boil. Dump in the lentil and TVP mix, spice and all.
- Keep it at a low boil for eight minutes. Stir every minute or the lentils weld to the pot bottom.
- Cut the heat, lid it, and let it sit five minutes. The lentils finish in the residual heat and you save fuel.
- Stir in the hemp seeds and the oil off the heat. Cooking hemp wrecks its flavor.
- If it is soupier than you want, another five minutes with the lid on fixes it.
Red lentils are the only lentil worth carrying. Split and hulled, they cook in about ten minutes instead of forty, and they collapse into their own sauce so you never need a thickener. The whole dish is one pot and one boil.
The protein is stacked deliberately. Lentils bring roughly nine grams per half cup cooked, the TVP adds most of the rest, and the hemp seeds finish it with fat and a few more grams. Tofu was the obvious protein in the original but it is water and refrigeration, so it went. Add the hemp off the heat: it is there for fat and texture, and boiling it just makes it taste like dust.
Packing
Lentils, TVP, and all the powders go in one bag at home. Hemp seeds ride separately in a small bag; they hold oil and will go off faster than the rest.
Variations
- Half a cup of instant rice added in the last two minutes turns it into khichdi and adds 200 calories.
- A crumbled bouillon cube plus tomato powder makes a heavier, redder version.
- Swap the TVP for dried seitan crumbles if you want the protein without soy.
https://ohmyveggies.com/high-protein-foods-for-vegetarians