Tortilla Soup, Trail Version
Chicken, beans, and chile in one pot. The crock pot version rebuilt around freeze-dried and foil.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 103
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 15 min
- water
- 600 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
- Canoe / raft
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Foil pouch chicken | 5 oz | drain nothing, the liquid is broth |
|---|---|---|
| Dehydrated black beans | 1/3 cup | instant or refried flakes, not whole dry beans |
| Tomato powder | 2 tbsp | stands in for the can of fire roasted tomatoes |
| Chicken bouillon | 1 cube or 1 tsp | |
| Freeze-dried corn | 1/4 cup | |
| Dried onion flakes | 1 tbsp | |
| Dried green chiles | 1 tbsp | or a teaspoon of chipotle powder |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Cumin | 1 tsp | |
| Chili powder | 1 tsp | |
| Salt and black pepper | to taste | |
| Dried cilantro | 1 tsp | |
| Hard cheese | 1 oz | aged cheddar or dry jack |
| Corn tortilla chips | a handful | crushed, packed last so they survive |
| Lime | 1 wedge | or a pinch of citric acid |
Method
- Boil 600 ml of water. Dump in the whole dry bag: beans, tomato powder, bouillon, corn, onion, chiles, and the spices.
- Stir, cover, and pull it off the heat. Ten minutes sitting is worth more than ten minutes burning fuel.
- Check the corn. If it still crunches, add a splash of hot water and wait another five.
- Stir in the chicken with its packing liquid and the cilantro. Warm it through for a minute.
- Crumble the cheese and chips on top. Squeeze the lime over it and eat.
A slow cooker recipe is mostly a schedule, and the schedule does not survive a trailhead. Six hours on low is really just rehydrating beans and pulling chicken apart, so both get bought that way instead: bean flakes and a foil pouch. Tomato powder replaces the can, which is the single biggest weight cut here. What is left is one boil and a rest.
The soak, not the burn, does the work. Freeze-dried corn and bean flakes need time in hot water more than they need a flame under them, so covering the pot off-heat saves fuel and keeps the bottom from scorching. Cheese and crushed chips go on last, at the table, because both turn to sludge if they see the boil. Fresh cilantro and lime were garnish in the original; dried cilantro is a fair trade, and the lime is not optional since the acid is what keeps a pot of cumin and beans from tasting flat.
Packing
Everything dry goes in one quart bag at home, spices included. Cheese, chicken pouch, chips, and lime ride separately. Chips go on top of the pack or you are eating dust.
Variations
- Skip the chicken and use a bouillon that is not chicken for a meatless pot. Add another 2 tbsp of bean flakes to make up the protein.
- Instant rice, added with the beans, turns this into a heavier bowl for cold nights.
- A squeeze packet of hot sauce weighs nothing and does more than more chili powder would.
https://domesticsuperhero.com/slow-cooker-chicken-tortilla-soup