Two-Bean Taco Chili
Taco-seasoned beef and two kinds of beans, rehydrated in one pot.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 5 oz
- cal / oz
- 124
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 14 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
- Car camping
- Winter / snow
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Dehydrated ground beef | 3 oz | cooked lean, rinsed with hot water, then dried |
|---|---|---|
| Dehydrated cooked kidney beans | 1/3 cup | canned beans rinsed and dried work fine |
| Dehydrated cooked pinto or chili beans | 1/3 cup | |
| Tomato powder | 3 tbsp | stands in for the can of tomato sauce |
| Taco seasoning | 1 tbsp | |
| Chili powder | 1 tsp | |
| Cumin | 1/2 tsp | |
| Onion powder | 1 tsp | |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Salt | 1/2 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | in a dropper bottle |
| Corn chips | 1 oz | crushed, added at the end |
Method
- Bring 600 ml of water to a boil and dump in everything except the oil and chips.
- Stir, cover, and simmer on the lowest flame you can hold for five minutes. Stir once or twice so the tomato powder does not scorch on the bottom.
- Kill the heat and let it sit covered for another seven minutes. The beans need the soak more than the boil.
- Check the beans. If they are still chalky, add 50 ml of hot water and wait five more minutes.
- Stir in the oil and top with crushed chips.
This started as a skillet taco-chili with sour cream, lettuce, and tomato on top. None of that travels. The beef gets dehydrated after cooking and rinsing, the canned tomato sauce becomes tomato powder, and the garnishes become crushed corn chips, which do the same job of adding crunch and fat without needing a cooler.
Rehydrating beans is the whole problem here. Home-cooked or canned beans that have been dried will come back, but only with time, so most of the twelve minutes is the pot sitting off the flame with a lid on. Boiling harder does not speed it up and only burns fuel. Adding the oil at the end keeps it from separating out during the simmer.
Packing
Meat, beans, and all the powders go in one quart freezer bag at home. Chips ride in their own bag or they turn to dust. Oil separate.
Variations
- Cold-soak it instead: same bag, cold water, three hours in the pack. Beans get chewy but it works with no fuel.
- A spoonful of powdered cheese or a hunk of hard cheese stirred in at the end replaces the sour cream.
https://mealswithmaria.site/fast-food-recipes