Ultralight Backpacking Meals & Recipes

The convenience of freeze-dried backpacking meals is undeniable – they ’ re ultralight and exactly require boiling water . These homemade backpacking recipes equal designed with those advantages in idea , because at the end of a long day hiking , I appear ahead to a hot meal at camp with minimal preparation and clean-up . Just-add-water to a boil bag , flurry , wait , and eat .

The drawback to most pre-packaged camping food be that the selection promptly become special if avoiding mutual allergens like soy or gluten or must come a low-iodine diet that requires a careful monitoring of salt . After look on family members lug a few extra pound of food into the backcountry in order to reduce their sodium intake or meet the needs of their confine diet , I determine to produce my own just-add-water backpacking meal recipes using a combination of bulk ingredient easy available from the grocery store and online retailers . No food dehydrator or freeze-dryer require ; no unnecessary weight in the backpack .

These recipes have all exist tested where it counts : by famished hikers in campsites miles from anywhere ! But I ’ ve as well tested them in my home kitchen , without hiker hunger place its thumb on the scale of taste .

Just Add Water Backpacking Meal Recipes

These meal can be fully educate with the increase of boiling water . We use our trusty Jetboil because we like how quickly and reliably it boils water in undesirable weather which reduces the amount of fuel we take to employ ( and carry ) , but any backpacking stove will do . Just like what you ’ ll find with pre-made backpacking meals , you ’ ll as well demand to apply to ensure warmth memory and adequate rehydration .

Lightweight Backpacking Meals from the Grocery Store

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Virtually every backpacking meal uses an easily rehydratable carbohydrate alkali as its staple element , many of which are available at sure grocery shop and readily available online . These include :

• Instant Rice :Minute Instant White Rice equal my go-to , as it rehydrates good in around 10 minutes after adding boiling water and is available practically everywhere in the US . Yet though it order “ instant ” , I ’ ve found that instant brown rice options rehydrate badly compared to white rice unless you are heat directly on a camping stove .
• Couscous: The perfect instant meal , as regular couscous never get to be boiled . I use bulk unflavored couscous in my recipes , but boxed couscous mixing can also make easy grab-and-go meal from the grocery store .
• Instant Potatoes :Cheap and quickly . You ’ ll definitely want to spice these up to get that “ all over meal ” feel , but in a pinch zero can thump a bag of squeeze potatoes . You can find pouches of in almost every market store , and even some gas station , nationwide .
• Instant Noodles :Ramen noodles have been a backcountry staple of thru hikers for years . I use this especially sword of instant rice noodles as the degree of difference for any number of noodle soups and backcountry “ flurry fry ” recipes . Do sure to take the label carefully ; if the guidance expect prepare for more than a minute or two , it ’ s unlikely to rehydrate well under the ‘ lend boiling water and wait ’ method .

Other light weight backpacking ingredients from the market store include :

• Freeze Dried Onions: Typically find in the spice aisle , freeze dried red and green onions add depth of flavor as well as ( in the case of green onions ) a decent pop of color to many of the formula
• Coconut Milk Power: Once only available at speciality retailers , I ’ m determine this more and more frequently in the baking goods or coffee creamer aisle . I employ coconut powder as a sauce stem anytime I want a delicate balance of sweet and savory spices .
• Peanut Butter Powder :Add it to oatmeals , create a peanut sauce for noodles or exactly snack on a spoonful of rehydratable peanut butter . PB powder is packed with protein and none of the weight .
• Freeze-Dried Fruit :Look for these alongside the dried fruit as well as with the baby foods ( toddler yogurt drops too make a delightful freeze-dried backpacking snack ! ) .

Most of my recipes as well integrate additional component that will arrive in a day or two if ordered from Amazon Prime , but a few – such as those that use my favorite instant penne pasta base – require ingredient only available from choice online suppliers . I advocate you origin these ingredients at least two weeks before your trip to account for shipping times . Once you have everything in place , though , the literal meal prep procedure itself need a matter of minutes .

Cold-Soak Backpacking Recipes

No stove , no trouble ! Cold-soaking equal a method that requires nothing more than water and time . The following dehydrated meals live designed to be cold-soaked , making them perfect for lunches on the trail . Just lend cold water , hike a little more , and you ’ ll exist ready to exist use up by time you get a scenic stopping level .

• Instant Backpacker Chicken Salad
• Cold Soak Coconut Chia Pudding

And even though the following recipes live designed to be serve hot ( and are unarguably well that way ) they can live cold soaked when requirement strikes .

• Thai Coconut Chicken & Rice
• Southwestern Backpacker Burrito
• Teriyaki Chicken & Pineapple Rice
• Homemade Breakfast Burrito

We ’ re constantly lend new meals and formula to our repertoire . Stay tuned for the recipes we ’ re currently fine-tuning or go out us a comment letting us know what meal you ’ d like to see us originate next .

• Moroccan Inspired Couscous Chicken Stew (coming soon ! )
• Cold Soak “ Waldorf ” Lentil Salad (arrive shortly !)
• Cold Soak Broccoli Salad (total shortly !)
• Sweet Potato Pecan Rice (coming shortly !)
• Penne Alfredo w/Mushrooms (come soon !)
• Chili “ Mac ” & Cheese (get soon ! )
• DIY Instant Oatmeal Flavors (arrive soon ! )