Trail Beef Stew
Freeze-dried beef, dried root vegetables, and tomato powder rehydrated into a thick stew in one pot.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 5 oz
- cal / oz
- 124
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 15 min
- total time
- 17 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
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Car camping
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Freeze-dried beef | 2 oz | or dehydrated ground beef, which rehydrates faster |
|---|---|---|
| Dried carrot, parsnip, and turnip | 3/4 cup total | sliced thin at home or bought dried |
| Dried minced onion | 1 tbsp | |
| Beef bouillon | 1 cube or 1 tsp powder | |
| Tomato powder | 1 tbsp | stands in for tomato paste |
| Soy sauce powder | 1 tsp | or a small squeeze bottle of coconut aminos |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Dried thyme and marjoram | 1/2 tsp each | |
| Freeze-dried peas | 2 tbsp | |
| Instant potato flakes | 2 tbsp | the thickener |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Salt and pepper | to taste |
Method
- Put the beef, root vegetables, onion, bouillon, tomato powder, soy powder, garlic, thyme, and marjoram in the pot with 600 ml of water. Stir once.
- Bring it to a boil, then hold a low simmer for ten minutes. Stir now and then so the tomato powder does not scorch on the bottom.
- Add the peas. Kill the heat, lid on, and let it sit five minutes.
- Stir in the potato flakes a pinch at a time until it thickens. Pour the oil over, salt to taste, and eat.
The original is a pressure cooker recipe, and pressure is what makes root vegetables give up in twenty minutes. On a stove at altitude you do not have that, so the vegetables are dried thin at home instead. Thin slices rehydrate in the ten minutes the beef needs anyway.
Tomato paste becomes tomato powder, broth becomes bouillon, and the frozen peas become freeze-dried ones that only need residual heat. The potato flakes are new. A pressure cooker reduces liquid and thickens on its own; a backpacking pot just boils, so the flakes do that job at the end. Add them slowly, because they are hard to take back out.
Packing
Everything dry goes in one bag except the oil and the potato flakes. Flakes stay separate so you can control how thick it gets.
Variations
- Freeze-dried chicken and chicken bouillon work the same way.
- A tablespoon of instant refried beans thickens it and adds protein instead of the flakes.
- Skip the beef and double the vegetables for a vegan version; use vegetable bouillon.
https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/instant-pot-beef-stew