Venison Albondigas Camp Soup
Rice-bound venison meatballs dropped into a chile-and-tomato broth in a single pot.
- calories
- 520
- weight
- 14 oz
- cal / oz
- 37
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 6, scales
- prep
- 30 min
- cook
- 75 min
- total time
- 105 min
- water
- 1400 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
- Campfire coals
- Liquid fuel
- Dutch oven
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Ground venison | 2 lb | kept frozen in the cooler until the morning you cook |
|---|---|---|
| Uncooked white rice | 1/3 cup | goes into the meatballs raw, not cooked |
| Egg | 1 | the binder; carry it in a hard case |
| Garlic cloves | 4 | 2 for the meatballs, 2 for the broth |
| Ground cumin | 1 tbsp + 1 tsp | |
| Dried oregano | 2 tsp | stands in for the fresh oregano in the broth |
| Dried parsley | 2 tbsp | replaces 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf |
| Salt and pepper | 1 tsp each | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Onion | 1 large | travels fine outside the cooler |
| Carrots | 3 | cut into half-inch pieces |
| Celery | 3 stalks | |
| Small red potatoes | 10 | cubed small so they cook with the meatballs |
| Canned roasted green chiles | 10 oz | |
| Canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes | 14.5 oz | |
| Chicken bouillon | 6 cups worth | powder or cubes instead of hauling boxed broth |
| Water | 12 cups total | |
| Zucchini | 2 cups chopped | optional, add at the end |
| Jalapeno | 1/2 | seeded, optional |
Method
- Mix the venison, raw rice, egg, 2 minced garlic cloves, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp oregano, the dried parsley, salt, and pepper. Roll golf-ball meatballs and set them on a plate in the shade or the cooler while the broth builds.
- Heat the oil in the pot over a moderate fire or a low stove flame. Cook the onion, carrots, and celery until the onion goes soft, about 8 minutes. Add the remaining garlic for one more minute.
- Add the potatoes, chiles, tomatoes, bouillon, 12 cups water, the remaining cumin and oregano, and the jalapeno if you want it. Bring it up and hold a low simmer for 20 minutes.
- Lower the meatballs in one at a time. Simmer 30 to 40 minutes without stirring hard. A wooden spoon nudge is enough; a whisk turns them into chili.
- Add the zucchini for the last 10 minutes. Cut a meatball open before you serve. The rice inside should be soft all the way through.
The raw rice is the whole structural trick. It swells inside each meatball as it simmers, which both binds the lean venison and keeps it from packing into a dense lump. That means the meatballs need real simmer time, not a quick poach, and it means you should not stir the pot like you mean it.
This is a car camp or basecamp dinner, not a pack-in one. It needs a cooler for the meat and egg, a big pot, and over an hour of steady heat. The changes from a home kitchen are small: bouillon instead of cartons of broth, dried parsley and oregano instead of fresh, and the meatballs go straight from the mixing bowl onto a plate rather than into a fridge. Skip that rest and they still hold, as long as you drop them into liquid that is barely moving.
Packing
Mix the meatball seasoning into a small bag at home. Venison rides frozen at the bottom of the cooler and thaws to the day you cook it. Bouillon replaces six cups of boxed broth and weighs nothing.
Variations
- Ground beef or turkey works the same way. Venison is lean, so a spoonful of oil in the mix keeps the meatballs from going dry.
- Skip the meatballs, double the potatoes, and use vegetable bouillon for a meatless pot.
- Leftovers thicken overnight in a cold cooler. Add a cup of water when you reheat.
https://realtree.com/timber-2-table-wild-game-recipes/venison-albondigas-soup