Photo by Matt Berger in San Juan NF. Native Lands of the Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute) and Pueblos

By Callie Smith

Food is essential to staying  safe, energized, and happy while in the backcountry. Whether you’re a backcountry pro or just starting out, these recipe suggestions can help you spice (pun intended) up your backcountry meal experience. 

You can always go for pre-made dehydrated meals to save weight and time. There are several different types of these meals on the market, and many are made to satisfy specific dietary requirements such as vegan and gluten free. However, if you’re car camping or just feeling a little fancy and want to chef it up on the trail, here are some great trail meal options. 

PESTO MAC: GF and Vegan alternatives available

Pesto macaroni and cheese, also known as “pesto mac” is a wonderful backpacking meal that is great for those cold trips where you really need the extra carbs for warmth. This is basically just what it sounds like and you only need three ingredients 

You will need: 

• A knife
• A camp stove 
• Water
• A lightweight pot 
• A bowl or something to eat out of and a utensil to eat with

Ingredients:  

• Macaroni (or whatever form of pasta you prefer; bowtie pasta is also a great option) 
• A lot of cheese
• Powdered pesto packet 

Recipe: 

• Begin by cooking your pasta
• While your pasta is cooking, cut up lots and lots of cheese into small pieces 
• Once your pasta is cooked, strain the water (or save it in a different container to drink later if drinking grey water is your thing) and then put the little bits of cheese into the pasta and stir until goey 
• Add it the pesto packet and stir until combined 
• Eat! 

You can also make this easier by just buying and making boxed mac n’ cheese and adding a pesto packet to the finished result. This can also be done with the vegan or gluten free boxed mac n’ cheese available in grocery stores. 

BACKCOUNTRY THANKSGIVING

You will need: 

• A camp stove 
• One or two lightweight pots 
• A lightweight frying pan 
• Water 
• Something to eat out of and eat with 

Ingredients: 

• As much instant or stove top stuffing as you need to feed your backpacking crew 
• Instant Mashed potatoes (make sure you only need to add water to them) 
• Canned cooked chicken or cooked chicken packets 
• Powdered gravy packet
• Seasoning (salt, pepper, whatever you prefer) 
• Olive oil or your preferred cooking oil
• BONUS: Cranberry sauce (you can buy the canned kind and add some to a tupperware to bring with you)
•  

Recipe: 

1. Boil water in your pot
2. Use the water to rehydrate your stove top stuffing and mashed potatoes
3. Then use your camp stove and fry pan to saute the chicken with some seasoning and a little oil 
4. Combine all the ingredients into a bowl and enjoy! 

STIR FRY → can be vegan and gluten free

You will need: 

• A camp stove
• Water 
• A lightweight frying pan 
• A lightweight pot 
• Something to eat out of and eat with 

Ingredients: 

• Pre Chopped mushrooms (you don’t have to have these items pre-chopped but it makes it much easier when on trail or camping) 
• Pre Chopped bell pepper 
• Pre Chopped white onion 
• Pre Chopped Carrots 
• Pre- chopped Broccoli 
• Rice noodles 
• Olive oil (or your preferred cooking oil)
• Homemade sauce with soy sauce (or tamari coconut aminos if you’re gluten free) , toasted sesame oil, honey, rice vinegar (you can add peanut butter to this too) 
• Seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic powder ect.) 

Recipe: 

1. Add the onion, oil, carrots, broccoli, and peppers to the frypan and let that cook until they are mostly soft, stirring occasionally. 
2. Add the mushrooms and seasoning to the pan and cook until soft. 
3. Remove pan from heat and boil water 
4. Add your noodles to the boiling water and wait until the noodles are cooked. 
5. Strain the noodles and dispose of the water in an LNT-approved way (you can dig a hole and pour the water into the hole then cover it, or you can save the water to drink for later) 
6. Add the veggies and sauce to the noodles and stir until combined 
7. Enoy! 

Backcountry Nachos

You will need: 

• A lightweight pot. 
• A rehydration vessel, or a gallon ziplock with the top rolled down to use as a bowl. 

Ingredients: 

• Dehydrated refried beans + water to rehydrate according to directions
• Tortilla chips
• Diced tomato
• Cheese shreds (optional)
• Avocado (If backpacking, buy your avocado slightly under ripe at the grocery store and leave in your rehydration vessel or pot during hiking. This will help you avoid crushing it, but also to help it ripen. It should be ready in a day or two.) 
• Jalapeno to dice, hot sauce, or red pepper flakes

Recipe: 

1. Boil water 
2. Use boiled water to rehydrate beans according to directions 
3. Put all of the ingredients into a bowl and enjoy! 

TRAIL SNACKS 

Trail snacks are a VERY important part of the backcountry experience, since they provide energy to keep you going throughout the day. Here are some of our suggestions for yummy snacks to bring with you. 

• Jerky! 
• Nut butters + dates
• Meal bars
• Dried fruits 
• Pringles (they won’t get crushed as easily in your pack)
• GORP (also known as good ol’ raisins and peanuts) 
  • Good ol ‘raisins and peanuts are a great base but you can also doctor it up with some extra goodies. Add any sort of nuts, sweets, dried fruit, yogurt covered pretzels or whatever you want! It’s a super filling snack and very easy to much on on the trail  

Callie Smith is CDTC’s Community Engagement Coordinator. In her free time she enjoys whitewater rafting, skiing, and learning to knit.