Trail Baked Beans
Instant refried bean flakes rebuilt into smoky, molasses-dark baked beans in one pot.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 5 oz
- cal / oz
- 144
- protein
- 26 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 8 min
- total time
- 13 min
- water
- 400 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
- Lunch
- Canister stove
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Liquid fuel
- Backpacking
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Bikepacking
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Instant white bean or refried bean flakes | 3/4 cup | navy or great northern flakes if you can find them |
|---|---|---|
| Tomato powder | 2 tbsp | stands in for ketchup and tomato paste |
| Maple sugar or brown sugar | 1 1/2 tbsp | |
| Molasses powder | 1 tsp | blackstrap if the bulk bin has it |
| Mustard powder | 1 tsp | |
| Smoked paprika | 1 tsp | |
| Cumin | 1/2 tsp | |
| Onion powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Chicken or vegetable bouillon | 1 tsp | |
| Salt and black pepper | 1/4 tsp each | |
| Shelf-stable bacon crumbles | 1 oz | the fully cooked kind in a vacuum pouch |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp |
Method
- Boil 400 ml of water. Pull the pot off the flame.
- Whisk the whole premix bag into the water in two additions so it does not clump.
- Cover and let it sit three minutes. The flakes need the time more than they need heat.
- Stir in the bacon and the oil. If it is stiffer than you want, add hot water 50 ml at a time.
- Put it back over a low flame for a minute if it has cooled off. Do not let it catch on the bottom.
Real baked beans need hours in a slow cooker and a can of beans in liquid. Neither travels. Instant bean flakes rehydrate in three minutes and land in roughly the same place, so the sauce does all the work: tomato powder for body, maple sugar and molasses for the sweet backbone, smoked paprika standing in for the hours of smoke you are not going to get.
Mustard powder replaces the jar of prepared mustard and carries the same sharpness dry. The bacon is doing double duty as fat and salt, so if you cut it, add oil back or the whole pot goes flat. Add water slowly at the end. Bean flakes keep thickening for a minute after you stop stirring.
Packing
Everything dry goes in one bag, spices included. Bacon and oil ride separately. Tomato powder cakes in humidity, so squeeze the air out.
Variations
- Skip the bacon and use vegetable bouillon for a vegan version.
- A splash of vinegar from a dropper bottle brings back the tang the mustard alone misses.
- Add a handful of instant potato flakes if you want it thicker or heavier.
https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/slow-cooker-baked-beans