Sweetcorn and Avocado Camp Salad
Freeze-dried corn rehydrated cold, tossed with tomato, avocado, and basil the day you carry it.
- calories
- 320
- weight
- 4.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 71
- protein
- 6 g
- serves
- 4, scales
- prep
- 15 min
- cook
- 0 min
- total time
- 15 min
- water
- 300 ml cold
- 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
- Basecamp
- Day hike
- Canoe / raft
- Vegetarian
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- Eat in the bag
- Grab and go
- Day one only
- Basic
Ingredients
| Freeze-dried sweet corn | 2 cups dry | about 4 cups once rehydrated |
|---|---|---|
| Sun-dried tomatoes in oil | 1/2 cup, chopped | the oil counts toward the dressing |
| Avocado | 2, ripe | pack them hard and let them ripen in the car |
| Fresh mozzarella | 6 oz | day-one only, out of a cooler |
| Dried basil | 1 tbsp | fresh leaves if the trip is short |
| Red onion | 1/2 small, diced | |
| Lemon juice | 3 tbsp | bottled travels fine |
| Olive oil | 3 tbsp | |
| Salt and black pepper | to taste | |
| Red chilli | 1, minced | or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes |
Method
- Put the freeze-dried corn in a wide-mouth jar or a quart bag. Add 300 ml of cold water, seal, and leave it 20 minutes. Drain off anything that did not get absorbed.
- Chop the sun-dried tomatoes, onion, and chilli. Dice the avocado last so it does not brown while you work.
- Whisk lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper in the bottom of the bowl or bag.
- Add the corn, tomatoes, onion, chilli, and basil. Toss.
- Fold in the avocado and torn mozzarella at the end, gently, so the avocado stays in pieces.
The original is a summer table salad built on fresh corn on the cob, which is a lot of weight and a boil you do not want at midday. Freeze-dried corn solves both. It rehydrates in cold water in about twenty minutes and comes back sweet rather than starchy, so nothing needs heat.
Cherry tomatoes go to mush in a pack, so sun-dried in oil stand in. They bring their own acid and their own fat, which means the dressing is doing less work. Avocado and mozzarella are the only cooler-dependent parts, and they are what pin this to the first day out. Everything else will sit in a pack for a week.
Packing
Corn, dried basil, onion, and chilli travel dry and need no cooler. Mozzarella and avocado are the cooler items and the reason this is a day-one meal. Carry the oil and lemon juice in small leakproof bottles, upright.
Variations
- Drop the mozzarella and it is vegan and dairy-free. The avocado already carries the richness.
- A drained can of black beans turns the side dish into a lunch with real protein.
- No cooler at all: skip the cheese and avocado, add a handful of dried cranberries and a foil pouch of olive oil.
https://blog.9jakitchen.com/sweetcorn-salad-fresh-colourful-recipe