This was another new dinner for 2019, and it quickly became one of my favorite dinners. Here’s why:
- Completely unique flavor profile among our 12-recipe repertoire;
- Great variety of textures;
- A hearty and filling portion; and,
- Easy to increase the calorie count and density, like by adding olive oil or chunks of protein.
Meal Stats
- Weight per serving: 5.7 ounces
- Calories per ounce: 105
- Calories per serving: 599
Ingredients
The original curry sauce recipe called for several tricky-to-find ingredients including tamarind paste and green curry paste. The ingredients in the current iteration are easier to source, but don’t sacrifice flavor.
Dried vegetables can be purchased online or in natural grocery stores. We use a mixture that contains onions, carrots, and peppers.
Cashews and banana chips can be found in bulk at a natural grocery store or online.
The powders — coconut, curry, vegetable bullion, and tomato — are easily found online or in most grocery stores. The coconut powder adds caloric density and satiating fat. The curry and tomato powders are critical for flavor.
Dried chickpeas are becoming a popular snack in natural grocery stores. We purchase plain ones in bulk, but flavored varieties will work just fine. Buy only what you’ll need, because they’ll last only a few weeks after the package has been opened.
Other types of protein can be added to this dish. Consider:
- Chicken (Dried, Pouch)
- Tuna (Pouch)
- Beef (Dehydrated, Freeze Dried)
The weight of ginger powder per serving 0.01 ounces, which won’t register on a postal or kitchen scale. It’s just a pinch.
At Home Preparation
For both soloists and groups, mix together all the dry ingredients, except:
- On longer trips, separate the chickpeas so that they stay crunchy;
- On group trips, separate the cashews, so that tree nut allergies can be accommodated; and
- On all trips, separate the banana chips and add them right before eating so they retain their crunch.
Cooking Instructions
- Bring 10 ounces of water to a boil.
- Add all ingredients except the banana chips.
- Return to boil, then remove from heat and let soak for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables and chickpeas are soft.
- Once everything is re-hydrated, add the banana chips.
Have questions about or an experience with this meal? Leave a comment.
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Tags: Meal time: Backpacking breakfast & dinner recipes
I bought dried garbanzo beans and tried snacking them after I arrived home…like chewing rocks!
Where did I go astray?
Like, you bought raw beans? Like, the ones you have to boil for hours in order to soften them up?
The chickpeas used in this recipe are the snacking variety. They’ll come in a colorful bag probably, maybe 4 to 6 ounces.
Greetings! I would love to adapt this recipe for freezer bag cooking. I am dehydrating garbanzo beans (cut in half so they rehydrate better). What do you think of dehydrating Tamarind paste and, maybe the Green Curry Paste as well? You comment that you don’t recommend curry powder, but I have found a green curry powder on line. The other ingredients are covered. I’d appreciate your input, thx.
I wouldn’t recommend dehydrating the ingredients further than the concentrated pastes, for a few reasons. Dehydrating the Tamarind will turn it into a brittle, crystalline substance akin to a candy that won’t dissolve easily. It also runs the risk of scorching easily, which will yield a bitter flavor. The green curry powder isn’t recommended because the flavor is in the aromas, and those are very volatile compounds that will be lost from dehydrating. Green Curry Powder often tastes slightly grassy and bitter, almost like a green tea mix. It doesn’t have the impact of the fresh paste. It wouldn’t ruin the dish per-se, but it won’t be thrilling either. The weight of the ingredients is trivial in comparison to how much flavor is lost from trying to dehydrate out a few extra tenths of a gram of water weight.
Thanks for your excellent insight! I will consider it.
How long does the curry paste (‘wet’ ingredients) keep on the trail, unrefrigerated? Thanks!
Excellent recipe and so easy! It’s pretty soupy so I cut back on the water the second time I made it. The tamarind/green curry paste combo makes this delicious.
Sounds delicious!
My backpacking trips are usually between 20 – 30 days in length. Have you found the curry and tamarind pastes to last that long un-refrigerated?
The ingredients are not showing up for this recipe…is the link broken?
Working for me.
I think it was my browser. Thanks!
Oh no! What happened to the ingredients? I was just about to try this recipe!
Some links broke recently, and I will need to get them restored. It won’t be until early-May though because I’m in the field until then. Sorry.
Little plastic spice jars are great for wet things: like a mini Talenti jar! Morton Bassett spices, 1.2 oz jar. I can’t weigh mine for you right now because it’s full of curry paste. Watch out; the tall 2.2-ounce version is glass.
Also try dried yuba (tofu skins) aka dried beancurd sticks with this recipe! They rehydrate really easily.
The chickpeas you want are the roasted ones.
The tamarind paste / green curry paste can be added to a very tiny Foodsaver vacuum bag or equivalent. Make one by sealing the edges of a 3” piece of roller bag and then cutting it in half. Put the paste mix in the resulting bag and vacuum seal. Will keep for a long time.
I think either your personal stash green chili paste is exceptionally mild or I made a huge measurement mistake with a paste i normally use all the time for Thai cooking. The cashew curry smelled so wonderful but was so spicy hot to eat that i ended up packing out two servings of inedible mush and scrimping to stretch my remaining meals. I will try again but will test at home before i take this one on a trip again.