camp meals

Skillet Egg Bake with Dried Vegetables

Powdered eggs, dried chard and peppers, and a block of cheddar. A one-pan dinner that reheats into breakfast.

calories
430
weight
3.5 oz
cal / oz
123
protein
24 g
serves
2, scales
prep
10 min
cook
20 min
total time
30 min
water
350 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
  • Breakfast
  • Canister stove
  • Campfire coals
  • Car camping
  • Basecamp
  • Backpacking
  • Vegetarian
  • Gluten free
  • Nut free
  • One pot
  • Dehydrate ahead
  • Shelf stable
  • Basic

Ingredients

Whole egg powder 6 tbsp reconstitutes to 6 large eggs
Powdered whole milk 2 tbsp stands in for the 1/2 cup of fresh milk
Olive oil 2 1/2 tbsp dropper bottle
Dried red onion 1/4 cup
Garlic granules 1 tsp
Dried swiss chard or spinach 1/2 cup packed leaf flakes, stems dry too woody to bother
Dried red bell pepper 1/4 cup
Dried grated zucchini 1/4 cup
Dried oregano 1 1/4 tsp
Dried thyme 1 tsp
Kosher salt 1 tsp
White cheddar 3 oz grate it at camp with a knife

Method

  1. Put the dried onion, pepper, zucchini, chard, garlic, oregano, thyme, and salt in the pan with 250 ml of water. Bring it to a boil, then hold a low simmer for 8 minutes until nothing crunches.
  2. While that runs, whisk the egg powder and milk powder into 100 ml of cool water in a mug. Let it sit two minutes so the lumps go away, then whisk again.
  3. Pour off any standing water in the pan. There should be very little. Stir in the oil.
  4. Turn the flame to its lowest setting and pour the eggs over the vegetables. Do not stir for the first minute.
  5. Drag a spoon through it every 20 seconds or so, pulling set egg off the bottom. Five to seven minutes total.
  6. Kill the heat, scatter the cheese over the top, and put the lid on for two minutes to melt it.

The original is an oven casserole in a cast-iron skillet. Nothing about that survives a stove with one burner, so this is a scramble instead of a bake: the same eggs, vegetables, herbs, and cheese, set in a pan over low heat rather than in dry oven air. Fresh milk becomes milk powder, fresh eggs become egg powder, and the whole produce list becomes dried.

Order matters more than technique. The vegetables have to be simmered and drained before the eggs go in, because dried chard and zucchini hold a lot of water and will leave you with egg soup otherwise. Low heat is the other half. Powdered eggs turn rubbery faster than fresh ones, so pull the pan the moment the last of the liquid sets and let the residual heat and the cheese finish it.

Packing

Vegetables, herbs, and salt go in one bag; egg and milk powder in a second bag, since they need separate water. Cheese rides in the coldest part of the pack.

Variations

  • A hard sausage or a foil packet of chicken diced in with the vegetables makes it a heavier dinner.
  • Swap the cheddar for parmesan in a bottle if the weather is hot. Less melt, no grease.
  • Nutritional yeast in place of the cheese and dairy-free milk powder keeps it vegan.

https://ohmyveggies.com/summer-veggie-bake-with-cheese