Nice video! Just to comment on dehydrating ground beef. I have for years made all my own meals. No need for bread crumbs and such. Instead of normally browning the meat (which actually makes it harder to re-hydrate!) add water to pan and basically boil the meat. Keep crushing into very small pieces. Only takes like 4 hours to dehydrate and it re-hydrates really well.
Hey Dixie, I’ve been following you since the AT, and love your trek videos. I started making my own trail food too. So some helpful things I have learned are the following. I loved your trail meal ideas. I’m definitely adding your sweet potato recipe to my backpacking routine!! You wanted egg ideas so here goes. 1. I dehydrate my own eggs. Whip them raw, in the blender and pour immediately into leather trays…less in the trays is better! The air from whipping helps them dry faster, so don’t let them sit in the blender too long. Temp 115f. My dryer takes 24 hours. Then I turn it over and dry another 12 hours. Lastly I put it back in the blender and pulse it to powder form. About 2 tbsps powder = 1 egg. Rehydration is key. I learned this by accident. Rehydrate with cold water 1/3c:2 eggs for at least 15 minutes before cooking. Cook after you see rehydration makes a creamy consistency. also I find adding some nutritional yeast or cheese while cooking, makes flavor and texture more appealing. When storing, I just use baggies and one of the desiccant packs from vitamin bottles. Besides just cooked eggs, I use the egg powder/and or nutritional yeast as added protein to lots of recipes, like pasta carbonara, stroganoff, or any meal where creaminess is desired. 2. I never use any plastic with heat as the toxin transfer is well researched. I do use silicon reusable bags occasionally, but just cook in my pot as much as possible. There are a lot of good silicon bags that are light weight at most big box stores. 3. I make my own spaghetti sauce from fresh tomatoes. This doesn’t take much time as I just throw herbs and tomatoes in a pot and run an immersion blender in the pot. When reduced to sauce consistency I pour into my fruit leather trays. 4. I have dehydrated tomato paste to powder form. It makes a great seasoning addition to any trail food. 5. Dehydrated salsas also make great seasoning or can be rehydrated to eat with corn chips for a fun trail snack before dinner. 6. I dehydrate cooked beans and add these to almost everything as great source of protein, fiber and carbs. 7. I follow Monty Boca on RUclips. Its a backpacking chef show with lots of great trail recipes. most are clean or adaptable adaptable to cleaner needs. There are several recipe books available including a plant based recipe book. I hope you do more videos on trail food and maybe show cooking them out on the trail when you can! Thanks for sharing your journeys! You’re a great source of encouragement to so many!!!!
Nice meal. I have found that dried tomatoes rehydrate quicker in a meal if put them in the blender and powder them. A year ago I started using the silicone Stacher brand pouches. there now more silicone brands now on the market. Walmart carries the Good House Keeping brand. They lock tight but not as tight as a heat seal and are reusable for hundreds of times, silicone is glass, they can take a lot of heat. We use ours every day in the kitchen and on the road. An alternative to dried tomatoes is a squeeze tube of concentrated tomato paste. Walmart carries it. Great for a tomato base soup. or a cup of juice with your meal.
Hey Ya'll Ms. Dixie, Nice rock your wearing! Congrats on your future with your local boy. If not for Covid I would have never discovered you and several other outdoor vloggers it has so changed my life for the better. I am officially a gear head and backpacker again after 30 plus years.. Kind Regards, Rich Wood-Mon . PCT 88. Central Coast .
These recipes are fantastic!!! And as many subscribers that you have, I bet that you can get a sponsor like Harvest Right to sponsor you and you would have way more clean food options to take on trail!!! You should totally reach out to them and ask them if they would sponsor you! They are very very awesome and I would love to see you be able to improve your plans for eating clean. In the meantime I would love to see you including more recipes in your plans!!!
I made the big investment and bought a freeze dryer I am happy I did it has made a big difference in my backpacking food and I think a lot better than dehydrated food.
Fancy Mae was on high alert! Loved seeing her, as always. I look forward to seeing how this effort plays out. You always do your homework and put in the work to accomplish the task at hand, so I have faith in it working out well.
For eggs while backpacking, I'll use OvaEasy brand powdered eggs. The trick I use is to add the water and hydrate the eggs for several minutes, then add a shot of olive oil and any spices (salt pepper), mix then cook. The olive oil helps with adding the fat back into the egg itself before cooking.
I love this! My wife has autoimmune disorders so all of our food has to be AIP-friendly, 100% organic, no dairy, no gluten, no preservatives, no artificial colors or flavors, no added sugar, all whole foods. It’s really hard to find “trail food” that’s not processed or full of preservatives and sugars. No preservatives also means food will spoil in a day or two if not frozen or canned. It’s way too heavy to carry whole fruit or anything jarred or canned. She also has some allergies to some of the foods that do fall within her ‘acceptable’ categories. We do eat a LOT of sweet potatoes! A good option for dairy-free is to use goat cheese, people with lactose sensitivity can usually digest goat cheese just fine. Quinoa is a good alternative to rice (rice breaks down similar to gluten, so gluten sensitive people can still react even though it’s not wheat). If you struggle with eggs (I.e. inflammation issues) try duck eggs, they don’t digest the same as chicken eggs and are easier on your metabolism. We use grass-fed bison instead of hamburger, it’s less fatty, then balance out the diet with lots of avocado. For trail snacks we eat lots of raw nuts (not roasted) almonds, cashews, pepitas, mix in a few carob chips for your chocolate fix and some dehydrated fruit and it’s pretty delicious! Camping without our camper with a fridge and freezer available is really a challenge, but it’s doable if you learn to like the stuff you can safely eat.
@@BeefNEggs057 that’s what works for me. Easy peasy. As long as people fear real fat they’ll have issues going carnivore. Who would have guessed this 56 year old could feel this healthy 😉. Hiking the AT was interesting being carnivore.
@@joolds-ruppel1846 Yeah I’m wondering how to hike on keotvore. Definitely be less quality food that we’re used to. Just pack the fridge right? But seriously, Dehydrated meat? Tuna, sardines and chicken pouches? Spam - that’s quality lol. Pretty limited. There is at least one keto freeze dried meal company. Congrats on figuring out the proper human diet! Don’t let your doc talk you out of it with the LDL scary talk.
Carnivore is a short-term diet. Eating truly healthy is a lifestyle. Just because Jordan Peterson (notably not a nutritionist) said it’s a good idea doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for everyone. You have flat teeth for a reason. Yes, you’ll drop weight and slim down (assuming you can get yourself to poop) but nutritionally your body will HATE you for it. If you aren’t sick, overweight and out of shape to begin with, “carnivore” will only increase your medical issues. At times during serious training I’ve been meal-prepping with plate after plate of bison, chicken breast, turkey sausage, burgers, all with a full-on thanksgiving turkey in the oven every Saturday… it absolutely sucks, not to mention the $1k/month it cost to have grass-fed everything shipped to your door on dry ice. When you plateau in weight loss and muscle gain you add MORE MEAT. Gluttony doesn’t even apply, after a while you don’t even have time to chew, you’re always always always hungry. Need a snack? Grab a chicken breast out of the little cooler you have to take everywhere you go. For some people, maybe carnivore is what they want, just like some people want to be vegan, but having tried both, I would never recommend either. My wife’s body weight, electrolytes and blood sugar all dropped dangerously low within just a couple weeks of going “carnivore” as part of a detox when searching for her food sensitivities. She ended up in the ER with severe cramps and tremors. If youre 5’8” and 120# carnivore is a very very BAD idea. Humans actually function better eating more like a bear (omnivore), a balance of everything (not equal portions, a balance). For us, we feel so much better and healthier, physically and mentally stronger when we’re eating absolutely clean, from our own garden, from our own animals, only what is in season at the time (other than canned stuff in the winter). Especially after my wife was Dx we had to pay such close attention to e v e r y t h i n g we ate, ingredient by ingredient and sift out the safe things from the poison things… and not just to find a “diet” but to learn how to eat for the rest of our lives. (You would be horrified at how many things contain sunflower oil) Maybe it’s different for people who aren’t forced into it by a medical condition, they can do whatever fad they want, but when it’s your own life that depends on finding the path, the name of it doesn’t matter. It’s a LOT of work and investment of time, energy, money and research just to get food for the table, but i believe you need to care for your body like you care for your soul… what you put in will determine what you get back. There’s no magic outline or shortcuts. You’ll have to give up things you love and eat things you hate, you might have to sell your dream house and move to have more land for gardens and animals… but it feels good to know where everything on your plate came from, and to know that it’s ALL GOOD FOR YOU! Joke: A guy who is vegan, atheist and a CrossFitter walks into a bar…. What does he talk about first? 😂
@@RyanGr33n you’ve obviously never been on carnivore based on the false assumption that you can’t poop on carnivore which is completely false. Fiber doesn’t make you poop. Fiber just makes more poop. There is a transition where you might be constipated but I was the opposite of that. Plenty of carnivores would disagree with your premise that it isn’t sustainable due to nutrient deficiencies. Now if you said that about the vegan diet then you would be correct. I personally think fruit and veggies should be omitted during most of the year and included during the summer months. We were never meant to eat fruit all winter. That’s a very very recent thing to get fruit all year. Grains and corn are horrible all year and should be mostly excluded from everyone’s diet. So I would say cycle some berries and vegetables. I need a good salad sometimes. Your wife had an electrolyte deficiency most likely. When your body is transitioning it loses lots of water and electrolytes. That passes and I don’t supplement electrolytes anymore. People ate meat all winter before modern life. Your body is made to handle it. It is adapted to it. I wouldn’t do it 100% of the time though except for people who have serious autoimmune or dietary problems that requires it. Your joke: he orders a bud light of course and gets kicked out of the bar.
Dixie, on my trip down the Ohio / Mississippi Rivers prior to my first A.T. hike, I was testing meals for Alpine Aire foods. I had a bunch of freeze dried eggs "saved" up because just plain w/o any added bacon, sausage, peppers, onions, they were VERY bland. I was camping on the river bank on the Ohio River at Smithland, Ky., 2 days above the confluence of the Mississippi and I decided to walk into town and I bought 2 loaves of bread and maple syrup. I made French Toast with the eggs and bread and it was FANTASTIC! There were 3 of us in that group and we ate the whole 2 loaves of bread, the whole bottle of maple syrup and according to the packs of eggs, 68 eggs.....in one sitting! If you have the freeze dried or dehydrated eggs and they are just too plain, try French Toast! geek
AIP backpacking/camping meals- it’s your next cook book project! I’ve been eating AIP for 4 years now and what a transformation- It looks like you’ve benefited from it as well. But one of the hardest things is traveling/backpacking and camping in that diet! I would definitely purchase a great dehydrator cookbook! Thanks for the recipe- I’ll give it a shot. PS, the sweet potato goes really well with dehydrated bison- for an AIP version of shepherds pie!
A trick that works for me with ground beef is to buy as low fat as possible, break it up into boiling water and boil until cooked through. Drain, rinse with a second pot of boiling water to rinse off as much fat as possible, then dehydrate. I've (so far) never had gravel when I rehydrate. I usually store the dehydrated ground beef in the freezer until I'm ready to pack a meal. I've used beef done this way on a 10-day trip in the Wind River Range with no spoilage. YMMV.
I applaud your efforts at pre-making trail meals. While being more time-intensive, the payoff is in taste and cost. I would encourage all people to try this at home. A small dehydrator or home oven can do wonders. I also encourage meat-free meals for ease of prep and how long meals will “keep.”🌿
Yeah, I'm sure THAT's the reason for encouraging "meat-free meals". That's insane. High protein packed meals are necessary and you can't beat meat proteins for nutrition. Especially those of us who are carnivore/ketovore/keto, your body relies on meat and fat for energy, not a bunch of crappy carbs.
i have dehydrated crumbed ground beef. After browning beef, I wash off as much grease as possible before patting dry than dehydrating. worked for me. Thanks for sharing some good recipes.
If you want to vacuum seal the Mylar bags above the zipper you can cut little strips of the regular vacuum seal bags (the ones with the little bumps) and place them in the opening. They allow the air to get sucked out and you can seal it right up. It’s a little tricky to get the hang of at first, but it works.
Super cool video to see!! I know a bunch of people still today probably talk about clean eating a lot. Back in the day on the PCT I actually asked you about this like " How the heck do y'all get that energy to walk without eating "real" food?" good stuff- Thanks for the video!
Once you make the tomato sauce leather, you can freeze it and then (while it's frozen) run it through a blender. And you have tomato sauce power. Packs better. Easier to scoop and measure... You can also seal mylar with an iron...
I have figured out two methods for eggs over the years that actually work. For short (1 or 2 day) hikes, I packed whole eggs in a wide mouth bottle with rice as a packing material. As long as you don’t throw your pack around, and don’t pack too many eggs in the bottle, they are good. If the eggs break, you are having egg fried rice for breakfast, (and picking shell fragments out). The other option for longer hikes is to dehydrate. The first time I tried this (age 14), I got salmonella poisoning. Turns out dehydrators back in the day didn’t reach high enough temperatures. Since I was hiking in the high Sierras, I almost didn’t make it to the trailhead, and if a ranger hadn’t found me and taken me to the hospital, I wouldn’t have made it. Thank you Lake Tahoe rangers and hospital staff. A little research (which I should have done first) showed that to be safe, eggs must be dehydrated at 165 degrees. The next time I tried, I used an oven. Was a pain and took forever. I did it in the garage oven, so my mom didn’t know (my dad was in Vietnam). I promptly got my butt whipped when she got the electric bill. 😢. I stopped with eggs on longer hikes. Now that my health prevents me from taking longer hikes, imagine my frustration at seeing a dehydrator on Amazon that reaches the required temp: Presto model 06301. It also comes with nonstick mesh and fruit roll leathers. I still do short hikes, and I still use my old hiking tricks. One of my favorites was to get to the trailhead late in the day, and only hike about a mile in before setting camp. This allowed me to pack in a steak and potatoe dinner, and a bacon and eggs and hash browns breakfast before switching to dehydrated food for the rest of the trip. It also lets me get on the trail at first light so I am between yesterdays hikers and today’s hikers.
This is a USA&Canada problem - eggs are washed and therefore loose their natural protective layer. In the rest of the world, including Europe, eggs are not washed and can be stored without cooling for a long time, because the content is protected by nature.
@@Simple_But_Expensive get your eggs from someone who keeps chickens (I am in an urban midwestern city and many of my neighbors keep chickens) or go directly to a small or hobby farmer to get them.
@@Henning_Rech We can get fresh eggs here in the US, just not from the store. The first time I got some from a friend they were slightly different sizes and colors, and I thought, "yeah, this is probably the way it should be":)
Thanks and Hi, from Australia. Go the clean eating recipes! I almost vomited in my mouth reading the ingredients in those processed store-bought dehydrated meals. I know i will feel much healthier with meals like this. 🙏
I like dahl. Filled with nutrion and taste and because it's vegan, it lasts really well. I just cook it all without any oils and bring the oil in a separate container on trail. I also found a Mediterranean risotto I turned into a marrocan couscous. I seasoned ground beef (you can also use lamb) generously with ras al hangout spice mix, dehydrated it, and dehydrated olives and spring onions. I found som sundried tomatoes without oil, so I'm going to use those, but you can use red bell peppers or eggplants. To assemble I mix couscous (you can use minut rise for glutenfree option), a little bit of salt, dried munt and oregano, the dried beef and a table spoon of both dried olives and spring onion and two table spoons tomatoes (or other greens). If you wanna be really fancy, add some dried apricots or dates with some almond flakes. Again, I bring olive oil in a separate container. All olive and veggies are cut into very fine slices or cubes to get the real mouth feel of morrocan food.
Great ideas. Znatural foods has a bunch of bulk dehydrated foods and many are organic. One of my more delicious meals was dried organic mushrooms mix that i put in a blender. I added organic dried cashew milk from znaturals. I kept these separate until i made it and i used a variety of spices and salt. I put this over rice noodles.
I did this for Pictured Rocks... I did spinach, mushrooms, scallops and rice. Used my Excalibur (WHEEE Got it second hand for only $130 Canadian!!!) and added spices to the rice before I dehydrated it. I despise minute rice, so cooked and seasoned my rice (no oil) in a rice cooker, then dehydrated in the Excalibur. It all came out super delicious on trail! I could make it soupy or stewy, depending on how much water I added.
Dear Dixxy. Thanks for these great ideas. Here are my Tips for you: Eggs that are not washed after they where laid by the henn will stay good for 2 weeks without refrigeration. If carrying fragile eggs is no option, you can crack them and put the egg into a tight container. Without refrigeration this should be good for up to two days. Alternatively there is the powder option. Make sure to get the full egg powder (I don't like it). If you need to speed up drying. Use a freeze dryer (quite expensive). You can make tomato souce by using concentrate tomato paste (little cans). If you try to dry tomato's they can release some of their oils. But having this dry meal option (just add water) is neat. My favorite clean meal prep is called "Grenola Dust" from Jamie Oliver. It's a breakfast and I eat it with milk. But I never tried it with milk powder, maybe that's an idea for you.
Ooh...I love the granola dust idea. Looks like a good option! I am a big fan of protein powder, powder coconut milk, ginger and ginger chips in my backpacking oats. Maybe I will try the dust with the add ons!
Thanks so much for sharing these recipes. Am on the Paleo diet because I am allergic to grains. Have already dehydrated a pound of ground beef with7% fat in it. Drained it in a collander. My gas oven has a dehydrate setting. Oh ues...used the almond meal crumbs.
I make a lot of my own dehydrated meals. It is great but I suggest trying them rehydrated before you are on a trail. That way you can make adjustments before you are out and really hungry. Also - just dry until it is really really dry- I never go by time because it is quite humid where I live and it always takes at least over night except for jerky. One of my staples is dehydrated brown rice and dehydrated frozen mixed vegetables. The rice is just cooked regularly and then dehydrated - it is then like instant brown rice. Frozen veg just go from freezer to dehydrator tray. I also like to dehydrate beans - I pressure cook (instant pot) the beans and don;t add any oil -then slightly mash and dehydrate. Beans and rice with vegetables is a favorite of mine
Egg suggestion is Ova Easy egg crystals. They're not "powdered" egg. They are literally egg in a crystal form which re-hydrates beautifully. Not much more to it. Pricey but cannot tell it isn't fresh.
Great video! I would love to see the rehydration process on camera while you're on trail. Also, I wonder if since eating healthier on trail you have a harder time getting in enough calories and if you feel like you have less energy while hiking or struggle more to keep your electrolytes balanced? Thanks for all your great content!
Wow, those Mylar bags look fantastic! A vacuum sealer is so handy, now I have to shop for a dehydrator. I’d love to buy a freeze drier but wow, so expensive!
This is off subject. I wanted to thank Dixie for making the effort to share her travels. I saved my boxtops and got my decoder ring, quilt, tent, etc, but, I will never make a great journey. I am grateful for your story. It has been something to see.
I think you would love a freeze dryer. Eggs, snacks, full meals are all doable at home with one of these units. I prefer them over dehydrating because the food retains its nutritional value, lasts longer and tastes better.
Great to see this! Now I know what those baggies are called! Going to prep as much food as possible to take to Kyrgistan in August since we want to do some 4/5 day trecks and there is one outdoor store in the country as far as I know which doesn't sell food. Last time we were there we brought fresh which was perfect for max 3 days. But heavy!
For eggs on the trail you can just make your own egg powder. Great for scrambled eggs, for instance! Therefore whisk the amount of eggs without any additional ingredients and spread them onto a backing tray or your dehydrator. I prepare ten eggs at a time on one baking tray. When using the oven, turn it on on the lowest heat possible (I use 50°C) and make sure to put a wooden spoon in between the door so that the moisture can escape. You will see when the eggs are done which will take at least two hours. When the eggs have completely dried, take them out and let them cool off. Then you can grind them with a mortar. Because eggs consist of a large amount of fat, you can not store it for too long but as far as you prepare your egg powder just before you go, it'll be fine. 😊
@@juliea8603 When the eggs have completely dried in the oven, you take a spatula and scrape the remains from your baking tray. Then you can easily grind it into powder. If you don't have a mortar, even a spoon should do the job.
@@juliea8603 Oh! Just add some water until you get the desired consistency. Of course, you should also add some spices, at least salt. I also like freeze-dried parsley and chili flakes. 🤫 Then you can fry it or just stir it in your pot. Another option is to mix the egg powder to some flour and (oat) milk powder and bake some pancakes. Add some salt (and sugar) here, too.
@@IgraineOhnefurcht Ooooh, I like the pancake idea, but alas I'm carnivore for arthritis. So boil the powder with water for scrambled eggs (and whatever I add.....)...thanks.
This is great. I've been looking for inexpensive healthier meals. I stopped buying freeze dried meals a while ago. I need to get used to using the dehydrator. Could save leftovers for backpacking meals instead of letting it go to waste.
I'm a ultra distance runner, and people often laugh at me for eating baked potato. Thank you Dixie for showing me some different that will be useful and healthy on the trail! BTW, I think you might be my sole mate, no disrespect if you already have a wonderful man who treats you right.
Thanks Dixie! For dehydrating ground beef I will use a meat chopper / masher to break up the big chunks and even rinse the cooked beef off to remove as much fat as possible.
Yeah I was thinking smaller chunks would dry better. A good carnivore/keto recipe for meatballs is to use pork rinds instead of bread crumbs. It might work for short trips. I’d be worried about getting enough fat out to make it stable. Better than whatever that powder was she used though. They usually have maltodextrin, potato or corn starch and garbage like that in them.
@@BeefNEggs057 First time I've seen someone else mention carnivore/keto. Prepping meals for a trip is what I hate most because I'm ketovore. Every single hiking/prepper food is almost entirely carbs (not to mention the added sugar) and my body operates on meat/fat. I actually take my fat with me, like transfer ghee to a tupperware.
Excellent ideas! In Keto diets, ground pork skins are often added in place of bread crumbs. Let me know if that would soften the dehydrated ground beef.
Love your videos! I have one of Chef Glenn's books and will now be trying the sweet potato with nuts! Ova Easy, hands down the best freeze dried eggs...wish they were still affordably available in Canada.
Another way we do it is just make the whole meal and dehydrate it . Eg if cooking spag bol for dinner at home (Aussie for spaghetti bolognaise) just make a bit extra. You know exactly what ingredients are in it ie made your own tomato sauce etc. The extra/leftover goes in the dehydrator. At camp rehydrate the spag bol. Tastes pretty much like it did at home.
Great ideas! I've been making my own bp food since I started in 2014. I don't even add breadcrumbs to my ground beef and it dehydrates/rehydrates fine. I don't eat gluten for the most part either.
I have some food allergies- thankfully minor, but not something I want to deal with when out on the trail. I love the sweet potato idea, but I'll have to sub the apple juice, probably pear or white grape juice will work. I have some of the individual items already dehydrated for some of the recipes too. I have dried eggs and blitzed them in the blender to a powder, you can cook them into scrambled eggs, and add some dry seasonings and milk powder for taste. Augason farms has dried eggs too. Also, there is a kind of mylar vacuum sealer bag, and I've seen a trick with putting a piece of a vacuum sealer bag in the top of a mylar bag to vacuum seal them, but I haven't tried either method yet, but have the materials to do it.
You can also make whole meals and then dehydrate them. Example...chili mac with your choice of gluten free pasta, beef stroganofff, ground chicken with veggies and potatoes, and soups. Make the meal and then dehydrate the whole thing. For storage you can put the meal in a vacuum bag and then freeze it till you go backpacking. Having a homemade coozie for your pot or bag helps. Boil the water and add to food bag or dump in pot, put in coozie and let sit for 10 min. Enjoy.
For eggs: 1. Powdered eggs in a ziplock bag 2. A couple butter packs. Put water in your ziplock bag with powdered eggs. Mix. In your pot, melt your butter. When the butter is melted put your egg mixture in the pot. Stir continuously. Just before you think the eggs are done, take them off the heat.
The canoe trippers that do dehydrated meals suggest when doing ground beef, to rinse it under hot water after browning to get the fat out before putting it in the dehydrator.
As Dixie said, dehydrated eggs don't taste very good, but freeze dried eggs taste very much like fresh eggs. However, freeze dried eggs need to be cooked on trail which is inconvenient and requires a frying pan and burns more fuel. You can boil them inside of a boilable bag immersed in boiling water. Home use freeze dryer machines are very expensive, starting at about $2,500.00, so most people aren't going to purchase one. But for dehydrated scrambled eggs you can add salsa and mix it with dehydrated breakfast sausage crumbles, both of which disguise the poor flavor of dehydrated eggs. Single serve salsa condiments are available from Packit Gourmet, or you can dehydrate your own.
Have you tried tomato powder. I first used it in NOLS. It works wonderfully for making tomato sauces. I’ve bought it myself several times. The only downside I’ve found is that it absorbs water from the atmosphere and turns into a hard brick when you don’t use all of it and want to use it again on your next trip. It comes in a ziplock but I think I’m going to have to have it vacuum sealed if I want to save the rest. They have an organic version of it too.
My go-to fast 'n easy receipe is 1 cup couscous (or some glutein-free alternative if needed), 1/2 cup of crushed almonds, 1/2 cup shredded dried apricots, 1 spoonful of raisins, 1/2 vegetable bouillon cube, 1 spoonful of almond powder, garlic powder as preferred (and a dash of cayenne pepper if preferred). No need of drying anything, just buy ingredients and mix. I think I got this receipe from one of Eric Tornblad's dry food books.
Also I make my meals combining all the stuff that dehydrates good. I leave out the cheese, oils and anything else the might go bad. I add those ingredients when I cook the meal. for me its easier and faster and they seam to rehydrate better.
I skip breakfast.... Coffee, cigs, bong hits, hike! I used to to make granola with powdered milk in a single Ziploc bag for each day. Oatmeal - good. Lunch was a bid deal. Mountain house was a staple. Warning, I tried some other dehydrate food from my local outfitter, it was horrible, Richfood was ok. You should probable test your freeze dried products before hiking, I bought some junk once and I had to force it down knowing I needed calories. On a side note, I can't go through with all Dixie is doing, Thx Dix......Sorry
Great video! Thank you! You are inspiring. I would worry about the plastic dehydrators and how they will off gas chemicals, I would choose stainless steel instead. Off gassing is high above 120 degrees F. I decided to dehydrate my food from now on, the backpacking meals contain too many chemicals and it is difficult to find organic.
And it's nothing but carbs and sugar. Those backpacking meals are terrible for you. I'd spend all day squatting in the woods instead of hiking if I ate that crap.
Am I the only person that thinks she looks even better than when she started her channel. I'm hoping to finally do the PCT next year and hope I as am healthy as her when I start. I doubt it but hopefully I come close.
Even when intended as a compliment, commenting on somebody’s looks just perpetuates the idea that how people look is of paramount importance. Probably not something worth perpetuating. People who take care of themselves can still look bad due to stress, health issues beyond their control, etc. and people can go out of their way on cosmetic procedures, and living an unhealthy lifestyle. Maybe best to just focus on the content of the video.
@@RC-qf3mp I'm just trying to get into shape. I never getting a compliment can also be detrimental to people. I can count almost all compliments given to me on one hand and I appreciated every single one of them. Compliments can be dirty and not warranted but they can also be uplifting and supportive.
The face swelling is likely inflammatory response from very high glucose spikes and the insulin your body has to keep high to remove that glucose (poisonous levels) from your blood. Keep the glucose spikes down and the insulin stays at normal levels. Less pain and inflammation in the joints and back. Took me too long to learn this. Feel 20+ years younger and back to high school fit weight. Low carb/keto/carnivore is the best especially for those who have inflammation or overactive immune systems. Worth a try with your chemistry set (your body). Nothing works for everyone. When you feel great don’t let anyone tell you to stop. Ever wonder why hikers never lose weight? High insulin makes it impossible to burn fat. It is a fat storage hormone. It tells the body to store everything as fat. No one can burn as much glucose as hikers eat. The body must store it, but never gets to use those fat stores when people eat 5 times a day. Exercise all you want with high insulin. Never gonna lose fat. Only muscle.
I know this is a stupid question but how many days would you package for in one go? I assume you have food drops or locations for support to meet along the way?
Hey, Dixie - question: have you hiked or have any plans to hike the John Muir Trail? I'm planning to hike it with my brother in spring of next year and I'd love to see it from your perspective. I've watched a number of videos already, but I've come to trust you more than anyone else on RUclips for this kind of information. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks for another great video.
Best idea is find a friend with a Harvest Right freeze dryer. Cook your regular meals and freeze dry them. Very light in weight and nutritious. Quick to rehydrate too.
@@pvesely299 That's a presumptuous and untrue statement. You can't speak for "most people". I know a few people, preppers, who have them and they aren't letting anyone use them. Aside from being a few thousand dollars, even the best brands are kinda notorious for breaking or not having a super long life. They're not wasting their machine's life on letting others use it (excluding the, "what if your moron friend breaks it?" concern).
UNSTUFFED PEPPERS. You guys, it comes with me on every long hike. Or any hike I want a “nice meal.” TOTALLY worth it. Thank you for the tater recipe! Bringing it next weekend 🤗
For the first couple of days after resupply, hard boiled eggs are great. Pack them with some air (don't try to suck all the air out). If you can buy them already hard-boiled, then the bag will last 2-3 days unopened (and unrefrigerated). Obviously do a sniff test just to be sure.
Hi Dixie, I always bring freeze-dried eggs with me to make scrambled eggs. In the Netherlands we have a company called globetrotter that sells al kind of freeze-dried food that I mix to make healthy meals.
Uh, you forgot something! Cook the meal and eat on camera. Nice video otherwise. Thanks for the references, the Mylar bag idea is awesome. I think there is a time and place for ready made freeze dried meals but putting together your own menu is cheaper, healthier, and tailored to your tastes. Keep up the great work!
If you get free range eggs that have not been washed yet they will last days at "room" temperature . In there natural state they are vary strong and can be stored in a regular cardboard carton cut down to the size of the number of eggs that you are taking. Once on trail if you are concerned the freshness of the eggs simply place in water...if they sink they are fine if they float dont eat them.
Chili. Cook meat separately, wash off any residual fat with hot water, then add to your favorite tomato-based chili recipe. Let the ingredients marry (BTW, congrats) for a bit, then dehydrate the mess at meat setting. Endures several years in the freezer with no noticeable decrease in quality. My fav freezer bag cooking meal
Nice video! Just to comment on dehydrating ground beef. I have for years made all my own meals. No need for bread crumbs and such. Instead of normally browning the meat (which actually makes it harder to re-hydrate!) add water to pan and basically boil the meat. Keep crushing into very small pieces. Only takes like 4 hours to dehydrate and it re-hydrates really well.
Totally refreshing to see someone who is also aware of the nutritional quality of foods . Dixie is wonderful
Hey Dixie, I’ve been following you since the AT, and love your trek videos. I started making my own trail food too. So some helpful things I have learned are the following. I loved your trail meal ideas. I’m definitely adding your sweet potato recipe to my backpacking routine!! You wanted egg ideas so here goes.
1. I dehydrate my own eggs. Whip them raw, in the blender and pour immediately into leather trays…less in the trays is better! The air from whipping helps them dry faster, so don’t let them sit in the blender too long. Temp 115f. My dryer takes 24 hours. Then I turn it over and dry another 12 hours. Lastly I put it back in the blender and pulse it to powder form. About 2 tbsps powder = 1 egg. Rehydration is key. I learned this by accident. Rehydrate with cold water 1/3c:2 eggs for at least 15 minutes before cooking. Cook after you see rehydration makes a creamy consistency. also I find adding some nutritional yeast or cheese while cooking, makes flavor and texture more appealing. When storing, I just use baggies and one of the desiccant packs from vitamin bottles. Besides just cooked eggs, I use the egg powder/and or nutritional yeast as added protein to lots of recipes, like pasta carbonara, stroganoff, or any meal where creaminess is desired.
2. I never use any plastic with heat as the toxin transfer is well researched. I do use silicon reusable bags occasionally, but just cook in my pot as much as possible. There are a lot of good silicon bags that are light weight at most big box stores.
3. I make my own spaghetti sauce from fresh tomatoes. This doesn’t take much time as I just throw herbs and tomatoes in a pot and run an immersion blender in the pot. When reduced to sauce consistency I pour into my fruit leather trays.
4. I have dehydrated tomato paste to powder form. It makes a great seasoning addition to any trail food.
5. Dehydrated salsas also make great seasoning or can be rehydrated to eat with corn chips for a fun trail snack before dinner.
6. I dehydrate cooked beans and add these to almost everything as great source of protein, fiber and carbs.
7. I follow Monty Boca on RUclips. Its a backpacking chef show with lots of great trail recipes. most are clean or adaptable adaptable to cleaner needs. There are several recipe books available including a plant based recipe book.
I hope you do more videos on trail food and maybe show cooking them out on the trail when you can! Thanks for sharing your journeys! You’re a great source of encouragement to so many!!!!
I’m just starting the dehydration journey, definitely going to try some of these…thanks!!!
Nice meal. I have found that dried tomatoes rehydrate quicker in a meal if put them in the blender and powder them. A year ago I started using the silicone Stacher brand pouches. there now more silicone brands now on the market. Walmart carries the Good House Keeping brand. They lock tight but not as tight as a heat seal and are reusable for hundreds of times, silicone is glass, they can take a lot of heat. We use ours every day in the kitchen and on the road. An alternative to dried tomatoes is a squeeze tube of concentrated tomato paste. Walmart carries it. Great for a tomato base soup. or a cup of juice with your meal.
Hey Ya'll Ms. Dixie, Nice rock your wearing! Congrats on your future with your local boy. If not for Covid I would have never discovered you and several other outdoor vloggers it has so changed my life for the better. I am officially a gear head and backpacker again after 30 plus years.. Kind Regards, Rich Wood-Mon . PCT 88. Central Coast .
These recipes are fantastic!!! And as many subscribers that you have, I bet that you can get a sponsor like Harvest Right to sponsor you and you would have way more clean food options to take on trail!!! You should totally reach out to them and ask them if they would sponsor you! They are very very awesome and I would love to see you be able to improve your plans for eating clean. In the meantime I would love to see you including more recipes in your plans!!!
I made the big investment and bought a freeze dryer I am happy I did it has made a big difference in my backpacking food and I think a lot better than dehydrated food.
Hello Clara
How are you
Fancy Mae was on high alert! Loved seeing her, as always.
I look forward to seeing how this effort plays out. You always do your homework and put in the work to accomplish the task at hand, so I have faith in it working out well.
For eggs while backpacking, I'll use OvaEasy brand powdered eggs. The trick I use is to add the water and hydrate the eggs for several minutes, then add a shot of olive oil and any spices (salt pepper), mix then cook. The olive oil helps with adding the fat back into the egg itself before cooking.
Coming to say the same thing. The only one I’ve found that actually tastes and feels close to real eggs.
I love this! My wife has autoimmune disorders so all of our food has to be AIP-friendly, 100% organic, no dairy, no gluten, no preservatives, no artificial colors or flavors, no added sugar, all whole foods. It’s really hard to find “trail food” that’s not processed or full of preservatives and sugars. No preservatives also means food will spoil in a day or two if not frozen or canned. It’s way too heavy to carry whole fruit or anything jarred or canned. She also has some allergies to some of the foods that do fall within her ‘acceptable’ categories.
We do eat a LOT of sweet potatoes! A good option for dairy-free is to use goat cheese, people with lactose sensitivity can usually digest goat cheese just fine. Quinoa is a good alternative to rice (rice breaks down similar to gluten, so gluten sensitive people can still react even though it’s not wheat). If you struggle with eggs (I.e. inflammation issues) try duck eggs, they don’t digest the same as chicken eggs and are easier on your metabolism. We use grass-fed bison instead of hamburger, it’s less fatty, then balance out the diet with lots of avocado.
For trail snacks we eat lots of raw nuts (not roasted) almonds, cashews, pepitas, mix in a few carob chips for your chocolate fix and some dehydrated fruit and it’s pretty delicious!
Camping without our camper with a fridge and freezer available is really a challenge, but it’s doable if you learn to like the stuff you can safely eat.
She’d do well with carnivore. Calms the immune system and lowers inflammation. Maybe you’ve already discovered it but thought it was worth mentioning.
@@BeefNEggs057 that’s what works for me. Easy peasy. As long as people fear real fat they’ll have issues going carnivore. Who would have guessed this 56 year old could feel this healthy 😉. Hiking the AT was interesting being carnivore.
@@joolds-ruppel1846 Yeah I’m wondering how to hike on keotvore. Definitely be less quality food that we’re used to. Just pack the fridge right? But seriously, Dehydrated meat? Tuna, sardines and chicken pouches? Spam - that’s quality lol. Pretty limited. There is at least one keto freeze dried meal company.
Congrats on figuring out the proper human diet! Don’t let your doc talk you out of it with the LDL scary talk.
Carnivore is a short-term diet. Eating truly healthy is a lifestyle. Just because Jordan Peterson (notably not a nutritionist) said it’s a good idea doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for everyone. You have flat teeth for a reason. Yes, you’ll drop weight and slim down (assuming you can get yourself to poop) but nutritionally your body will HATE you for it. If you aren’t sick, overweight and out of shape to begin with, “carnivore” will only increase your medical issues. At times during serious training I’ve been meal-prepping with plate after plate of bison, chicken breast, turkey sausage, burgers, all with a full-on thanksgiving turkey in the oven every Saturday… it absolutely sucks, not to mention the $1k/month it cost to have grass-fed everything shipped to your door on dry ice. When you plateau in weight loss and muscle gain you add MORE MEAT. Gluttony doesn’t even apply, after a while you don’t even have time to chew, you’re always always always hungry. Need a snack? Grab a chicken breast out of the little cooler you have to take everywhere you go.
For some people, maybe carnivore is what they want, just like some people want to be vegan, but having tried both, I would never recommend either. My wife’s body weight, electrolytes and blood sugar all dropped dangerously low within just a couple weeks of going “carnivore” as part of a detox when searching for her food sensitivities. She ended up in the ER with severe cramps and tremors. If youre 5’8” and 120# carnivore is a very very BAD idea. Humans actually function better eating more like a bear (omnivore), a balance of everything (not equal portions, a balance). For us, we feel so much better and healthier, physically and mentally stronger when we’re eating absolutely clean, from our own garden, from our own animals, only what is in season at the time (other than canned stuff in the winter). Especially after my wife was Dx we had to pay such close attention to e v e r y t h i n g we ate, ingredient by ingredient and sift out the safe things from the poison things… and not just to find a “diet” but to learn how to eat for the rest of our lives. (You would be horrified at how many things contain sunflower oil) Maybe it’s different for people who aren’t forced into it by a medical condition, they can do whatever fad they want, but when it’s your own life that depends on finding the path, the name of it doesn’t matter. It’s a LOT of work and investment of time, energy, money and research just to get food for the table, but i believe you need to care for your body like you care for your soul… what you put in will determine what you get back. There’s no magic outline or shortcuts. You’ll have to give up things you love and eat things you hate, you might have to sell your dream house and move to have more land for gardens and animals… but it feels good to know where everything on your plate came from, and to know that it’s ALL GOOD FOR YOU!
Joke: A guy who is vegan, atheist and a CrossFitter walks into a bar…. What does he talk about first? 😂
@@RyanGr33n you’ve obviously never been on carnivore based on the false assumption that you can’t poop on carnivore which is completely false. Fiber doesn’t make you poop. Fiber just makes more poop. There is a transition where you might be constipated but I was the opposite of that. Plenty of carnivores would disagree with your premise that it isn’t sustainable due to nutrient deficiencies. Now if you said that about the vegan diet then you would be correct.
I personally think fruit and veggies should be omitted during most of the year and included during the summer months. We were never meant to eat fruit all winter. That’s a very very recent thing to get fruit all year. Grains and corn are horrible all year and should be mostly excluded from everyone’s diet. So I would say cycle some berries and vegetables. I need a good salad sometimes.
Your wife had an electrolyte deficiency most likely. When your body is transitioning it loses lots of water and electrolytes. That passes and I don’t supplement electrolytes anymore. People ate meat all winter before modern life. Your body is made to handle it. It is adapted to it. I wouldn’t do it 100% of the time though except for people who have serious autoimmune or dietary problems that requires it.
Your joke: he orders a bud light of course and gets kicked out of the bar.
Dixie, on my trip down the Ohio / Mississippi Rivers prior to my first A.T. hike, I was testing meals for Alpine Aire foods. I had a bunch of freeze dried eggs "saved" up because just plain w/o any added bacon, sausage, peppers, onions, they were VERY bland. I was camping on the river bank on the Ohio River at Smithland, Ky., 2 days above the confluence of the Mississippi and I decided to walk into town and I bought 2 loaves of bread and maple syrup. I made French Toast with the eggs and bread and it was FANTASTIC! There were 3 of us in that group and we ate the whole 2 loaves of bread, the whole bottle of maple syrup and according to the packs of eggs, 68 eggs.....in one sitting! If you have the freeze dried or dehydrated eggs and they are just too plain, try French Toast!
geek
AIP backpacking/camping meals- it’s your next cook book project! I’ve been eating AIP for 4 years now and what a transformation- It looks like you’ve benefited from it as well. But one of the hardest things is traveling/backpacking and camping in that diet! I would definitely purchase a great dehydrator cookbook! Thanks for the recipe- I’ll give it a shot. PS, the sweet potato goes really well with dehydrated bison- for an AIP version of shepherds pie!
Hello Elevate
How are you
Love the dog spying the ground beef
Thanks for this! I love ideas about clean eating on trail. It's not easy but doable!!
A trick that works for me with ground beef is to buy as low fat as possible, break it up into boiling water and boil until cooked through. Drain, rinse with a second pot of boiling water to rinse off as much fat as possible, then dehydrate. I've (so far) never had gravel when I rehydrate. I usually store the dehydrated ground beef in the freezer until I'm ready to pack a meal. I've used beef done this way on a 10-day trip in the Wind River Range with no spoilage. YMMV.
I applaud your efforts at pre-making trail meals. While being more time-intensive, the payoff is in taste and cost.
I would encourage all people to try this at home. A small dehydrator or home oven can do wonders. I also encourage meat-free meals for ease of prep and how long meals will “keep.”🌿
Yeah, I'm sure THAT's the reason for encouraging "meat-free meals". That's insane. High protein packed meals are necessary and you can't beat meat proteins for nutrition. Especially those of us who are carnivore/ketovore/keto, your body relies on meat and fat for energy, not a bunch of crappy carbs.
This sounds like the start of a great series
.
i have dehydrated crumbed ground beef. After browning beef, I wash off as much grease as possible before patting dry than dehydrating. worked for me. Thanks for sharing some good recipes.
If you want to vacuum seal the Mylar bags above the zipper you can cut little strips of the regular vacuum seal bags (the ones with the little bumps) and place them in the opening. They allow the air to get sucked out and you can seal it right up. It’s a little tricky to get the hang of at first, but it works.
Thank you for offering different options. Even non-hiking would be a good options of a healthy quick alternative.
I love the way she says potatoes .. TATERS … I ❤️her .. she’s the best
This is amazing! I too cannot have dairy, gluten or certain oils so I am so glad I found this! Can you do more recipes? Please 😊 maybe a series?
yes please Dixie
Super cool video to see!! I know a bunch of people still today probably talk about clean eating a lot. Back in the day on the PCT I actually asked you about this like " How the heck do y'all get that energy to walk without eating "real" food?" good stuff- Thanks for the video!
Once you make the tomato sauce leather, you can freeze it and then (while it's frozen) run it through a blender. And you have tomato sauce power. Packs better. Easier to scoop and measure...
You can also seal mylar with an iron...
Loved this! Thank you for all your cooking tips!
I have figured out two methods for eggs over the years that actually work. For short (1 or 2 day) hikes, I packed whole eggs in a wide mouth bottle with rice as a packing material. As long as you don’t throw your pack around, and don’t pack too many eggs in the bottle, they are good. If the eggs break, you are having egg fried rice for breakfast, (and picking shell fragments out). The other option for longer hikes is to dehydrate. The first time I tried this (age 14), I got salmonella poisoning. Turns out dehydrators back in the day didn’t reach high enough temperatures. Since I was hiking in the high Sierras, I almost didn’t make it to the trailhead, and if a ranger hadn’t found me and taken me to the hospital, I wouldn’t have made it. Thank you Lake Tahoe rangers and hospital staff. A little research (which I should have done first) showed that to be safe, eggs must be dehydrated at 165 degrees. The next time I tried, I used an oven. Was a pain and took forever. I did it in the garage oven, so my mom didn’t know (my dad was in Vietnam). I promptly got my butt whipped when she got the electric bill. 😢. I stopped with eggs on longer hikes. Now that my health prevents me from taking longer hikes, imagine my frustration at seeing a dehydrator on Amazon that reaches the required temp: Presto model 06301. It also comes with nonstick mesh and fruit roll leathers. I still do short hikes, and I still use my old hiking tricks. One of my favorites was to get to the trailhead late in the day, and only hike about a mile in before setting camp. This allowed me to pack in a steak and potatoe dinner, and a bacon and eggs and hash browns breakfast before switching to dehydrated food for the rest of the trip. It also lets me get on the trail at first light so I am between yesterdays hikers and today’s hikers.
This is a USA&Canada problem - eggs are washed and therefore loose their natural protective layer. In the rest of the world, including Europe, eggs are not washed and can be stored without cooling for a long time, because the content is protected by nature.
@@Henning_Rech Great! How does that help Dixie and I who both live and hike in the US?
@@Simple_But_Expensive get your eggs from someone who keeps chickens (I am in an urban midwestern city and many of my neighbors keep chickens) or go directly to a small or hobby farmer to get them.
@@Henning_Rech We can get fresh eggs here in the US, just not from the store. The first time I got some from a friend they were slightly different sizes and colors, and I thought, "yeah, this is probably the way it should be":)
@@georgemcduffey2622 Yes, I always had assumed that the eggs leave the hens unwashed in North America, too 😀
Meals my daughter and I can eat on the trail! Thank you!
Thanks and Hi, from Australia. Go the clean eating recipes! I almost vomited in my mouth reading the ingredients in those processed store-bought dehydrated meals. I know i will feel much healthier with meals like this. 🙏
I like dahl. Filled with nutrion and taste and because it's vegan, it lasts really well. I just cook it all without any oils and bring the oil in a separate container on trail.
I also found a Mediterranean risotto I turned into a marrocan couscous. I seasoned ground beef (you can also use lamb) generously with ras al hangout spice mix, dehydrated it, and dehydrated olives and spring onions. I found som sundried tomatoes without oil, so I'm going to use those, but you can use red bell peppers or eggplants. To assemble I mix couscous (you can use minut rise for glutenfree option), a little bit of salt, dried munt and oregano, the dried beef and a table spoon of both dried olives and spring onion and two table spoons tomatoes (or other greens). If you wanna be really fancy, add some dried apricots or dates with some almond flakes. Again, I bring olive oil in a separate container. All olive and veggies are cut into very fine slices or cubes to get the real mouth feel of morrocan food.
Great ideas. Znatural foods has a bunch of bulk dehydrated foods and many are organic. One of my more delicious meals was dried organic mushrooms mix that i put in a blender. I added organic dried cashew milk from znaturals. I kept these separate until i made it and i used a variety of spices and salt. I put this over rice noodles.
Love all your videos! One tweak from me would be to use an iron above the zip lock on your mylar bag instead of the vacuum sealer!
Great idea!
I did this for Pictured Rocks... I did spinach, mushrooms, scallops and rice. Used my Excalibur (WHEEE Got it second hand for only $130 Canadian!!!) and added spices to the rice before I dehydrated it. I despise minute rice, so cooked and seasoned my rice (no oil) in a rice cooker, then dehydrated in the Excalibur. It all came out super delicious on trail! I could make it soupy or stewy, depending on how much water I added.
Dear Dixxy. Thanks for these great ideas.
Here are my Tips for you:
Eggs that are not washed after they where laid by the henn will stay good for 2 weeks without refrigeration.
If carrying fragile eggs is no option, you can crack them and put the egg into a tight container. Without refrigeration this should be good for up to two days.
Alternatively there is the powder option. Make sure to get the full egg powder (I don't like it).
If you need to speed up drying. Use a freeze dryer (quite expensive).
You can make tomato souce by using concentrate tomato paste (little cans).
If you try to dry tomato's they can release some of their oils.
But having this dry meal option (just add water) is neat.
My favorite clean meal prep is called "Grenola Dust" from Jamie Oliver. It's a breakfast and I eat it with milk. But I never tried it with milk powder, maybe that's an idea for you.
Ooh...I love the granola dust idea. Looks like a good option! I am a big fan of protein powder, powder coconut milk, ginger and ginger chips in my backpacking oats. Maybe I will try the dust with the add ons!
Another great video Dixie!! Thank you for sharing the recipes and dehydrating tips!
Thanks so much for sharing these recipes. Am on the Paleo diet because I am allergic to grains. Have already dehydrated a pound of ground beef with7% fat in it. Drained it in a collander. My gas oven has a dehydrate setting. Oh ues...used the almond meal crumbs.
Always enjoy your videos, your knowledge and the way you enjoy nature. 😉 be safe and be happy.
Thank you! I get tired of store bought and have been doing some recipe experimenting of my own lately.
I make a lot of my own dehydrated meals. It is great but I suggest trying them rehydrated before you are on a trail. That way you can make adjustments before you are out and really hungry. Also - just dry until it is really really dry- I never go by time because it is quite humid where I live and it always takes at least over night except for jerky. One of my staples is dehydrated brown rice and dehydrated frozen mixed vegetables. The rice is just cooked regularly and then dehydrated - it is then like instant brown rice. Frozen veg just go from freezer to dehydrator tray. I also like to dehydrate beans - I pressure cook (instant pot) the beans and don;t add any oil -then slightly mash and dehydrate. Beans and rice with vegetables is a favorite of mine
Isn’t boxed rice already dried? 😂. You’re just cooking it and then drying it again…
What am I missing? Beans are poison btw.
Egg suggestion is Ova Easy egg crystals. They're not "powdered" egg. They are literally egg in a crystal form which re-hydrates beautifully. Not much more to it. Pricey but cannot tell it isn't fresh.
Great video! I would love to see the rehydration process on camera while you're on trail. Also, I wonder if since eating healthier on trail you have a harder time getting in enough calories and if you feel like you have less energy while hiking or struggle more to keep your electrolytes balanced? Thanks for all your great content!
Hello Betsy
How are you
Great ideas! Thanks for sharing!
Wow, those Mylar bags look fantastic! A vacuum sealer is so handy, now I have to shop for a dehydrator. I’d love to buy a freeze drier but wow, so expensive!
This is off subject. I wanted to thank Dixie for making the effort to share her travels. I saved my boxtops and got my decoder ring, quilt, tent, etc, but, I will never make a great journey. I am grateful for your story. It has been something to see.
My alternative for bread crumbs is crushed pork rinds. It does the same thing as the bread stuff.
I think you would love a freeze dryer. Eggs, snacks, full meals are all doable at home with one of these units. I prefer them over dehydrating because the food retains its nutritional value, lasts longer and tastes better.
Yummy mate.! Will put it into our recipe book for sure. Cheers.
So glad to see Fancy got a bite, she was such a good girl watching and not grabbing.🙂
Great to see this! Now I know what those baggies are called! Going to prep as much food as possible to take to Kyrgistan in August since we want to do some 4/5 day trecks and there is one outdoor store in the country as far as I know which doesn't sell food. Last time we were there we brought fresh which was perfect for max 3 days. But heavy!
Great! Thanks Jessica.
For eggs on the trail you can just make your own egg powder. Great for scrambled eggs, for instance! Therefore whisk the amount of eggs without any additional ingredients and spread them onto a backing tray or your dehydrator. I prepare ten eggs at a time on one baking tray. When using the oven, turn it on on the lowest heat possible (I use 50°C) and make sure to put a wooden spoon in between the door so that the moisture can escape. You will see when the eggs are done which will take at least two hours.
When the eggs have completely dried, take them out and let them cool off. Then you can grind them with a mortar. Because eggs consist of a large amount of fat, you can not store it for too long but as far as you prepare your egg powder just before you go, it'll be fine. 😊
How do you then prepaire the powder? (sorry, I can't cook)
@@juliea8603 When the eggs have completely dried in the oven, you take a spatula and scrape the remains from your baking tray. Then you can easily grind it into powder. If you don't have a mortar, even a spoon should do the job.
@@IgraineOhnefurcht No, I mean then how do you reconstitute or cook....what do you DO with the powder on trail?
@@juliea8603 Oh! Just add some water until you get the desired consistency. Of course, you should also add some spices, at least salt. I also like freeze-dried parsley and chili flakes. 🤫 Then you can fry it or just stir it in your pot. Another option is to mix the egg powder to some flour and (oat) milk powder and bake some pancakes. Add some salt (and sugar) here, too.
@@IgraineOhnefurcht Ooooh, I like the pancake idea, but alas I'm carnivore for arthritis. So boil the powder with water for scrambled eggs (and whatever I add.....)...thanks.
This is great. I've been looking for inexpensive healthier meals. I stopped buying freeze dried meals a while ago. I need to get used to using the dehydrator. Could save leftovers for backpacking meals instead of letting it go to waste.
I'm a ultra distance runner, and people often laugh at me for eating baked potato. Thank you Dixie for showing me some different that will be useful and healthy on the trail! BTW, I think you might be my sole mate, no disrespect if you already have a wonderful man who treats you right.
Fancy sure got very engaged when the ground beef package was opened up
Thanks Dixie! For dehydrating ground beef I will use a meat chopper / masher to break up the big chunks and even rinse the cooked beef off to remove as much fat as possible.
I poor it onto a clean kitchen towel. I have some old towels, I don't mind getting another stain ;-)
Yeah I was thinking smaller chunks would dry better.
A good carnivore/keto recipe for meatballs is to use pork rinds instead of bread crumbs. It might work for short trips. I’d be worried about getting enough fat out to make it stable. Better than whatever that powder was she used though. They usually have maltodextrin, potato or corn starch and garbage like that in them.
@@BeefNEggs057 First time I've seen someone else mention carnivore/keto. Prepping meals for a trip is what I hate most because I'm ketovore. Every single hiking/prepper food is almost entirely carbs (not to mention the added sugar) and my body operates on meat/fat. I actually take my fat with me, like transfer ghee to a tupperware.
Love the sweet potato recipe.
Excellent ideas!
In Keto diets, ground pork skins are often added in place of bread crumbs.
Let me know if that would soften the dehydrated ground beef.
Love your videos! I have one of Chef Glenn's books and will now be trying the sweet potato with nuts! Ova Easy, hands down the best freeze dried eggs...wish they were still affordably available in Canada.
Great videos Dixie! Keep on kirkin' year taydurs!
Another way we do it is just make the whole meal and dehydrate it . Eg if cooking spag bol for dinner at home (Aussie for spaghetti bolognaise) just make a bit extra. You know exactly what ingredients are in it ie made your own tomato sauce etc. The extra/leftover goes in the dehydrator. At camp rehydrate the spag bol. Tastes pretty much like it did at home.
Great ideas! I've been making my own bp food since I started in 2014. I don't even add breadcrumbs to my ground beef and it dehydrates/rehydrates fine. I don't eat gluten for the most part either.
I have some food allergies- thankfully minor, but not something I want to deal with when out on the trail. I love the sweet potato idea, but I'll have to sub the apple juice, probably pear or white grape juice will work. I have some of the individual items already dehydrated for some of the recipes too. I have dried eggs and blitzed them in the blender to a powder, you can cook them into scrambled eggs, and add some dry seasonings and milk powder for taste. Augason farms has dried eggs too. Also, there is a kind of mylar vacuum sealer bag, and I've seen a trick with putting a piece of a vacuum sealer bag in the top of a mylar bag to vacuum seal them, but I haven't tried either method yet, but have the materials to do it.
Umm this was excellent please more videos like this!
You can also make whole meals and then dehydrate them. Example...chili mac with your choice of gluten free pasta, beef stroganofff, ground chicken with veggies and potatoes, and soups. Make the meal and then dehydrate the whole thing. For storage you can put the meal in a vacuum bag and then freeze it till you go backpacking. Having a homemade coozie for your pot or bag helps. Boil the water and add to food bag or dump in pot, put in coozie and let sit for 10 min. Enjoy.
For eggs:
1. Powdered eggs in a ziplock bag
2. A couple butter packs.
Put water in your ziplock bag with powdered eggs. Mix.
In your pot, melt your butter. When the butter is melted put your egg mixture in the pot. Stir continuously. Just before you think the eggs are done, take them off the heat.
Good video. Some day, I'll try such recipes instead of just a can of chili. Someday.
The canoe trippers that do dehydrated meals suggest when doing ground beef, to rinse it under hot water after browning to get the fat out before putting it in the dehydrator.
As Dixie said, dehydrated eggs don't taste very good, but freeze dried eggs taste very much like fresh eggs. However, freeze dried eggs need to be cooked on trail which is inconvenient and requires a frying pan and burns more fuel. You can boil them inside of a boilable bag immersed in boiling water. Home use freeze dryer machines are very expensive, starting at about $2,500.00, so most people aren't going to purchase one. But for dehydrated scrambled eggs you can add salsa and mix it with dehydrated breakfast sausage crumbles, both of which disguise the poor flavor of dehydrated eggs. Single serve salsa condiments are available from Packit Gourmet, or you can dehydrate your own.
Have you tried tomato powder. I first used it in NOLS. It works wonderfully for making tomato sauces. I’ve bought it myself several times. The only downside I’ve found is that it absorbs water from the atmosphere and turns into a hard brick when you don’t use all of it and want to use it again on your next trip. It comes in a ziplock but I think I’m going to have to have it vacuum sealed if I want to save the rest. They have an organic version of it too.
So i found if you run your ground beef through a grinder after it cools from cooking it will dehydrated and reconstitute better IMO
My go-to fast 'n easy receipe is 1 cup couscous (or some glutein-free alternative if needed), 1/2 cup of crushed almonds, 1/2 cup shredded dried apricots, 1 spoonful of raisins, 1/2 vegetable bouillon cube, 1 spoonful of almond powder, garlic powder as preferred (and a dash of cayenne pepper if preferred). No need of drying anything, just buy ingredients and mix. I think I got this receipe from one of Eric Tornblad's dry food books.
The actual measurements are in dl but I figure dl converts to a cup easily (?)
Thank you for this! I have Hashimoto's and want to do a thru-hike this summer, so this was very inspiring!
Also I make my meals combining all the stuff that dehydrates good. I leave out the cheese, oils and anything else the might go bad. I add those ingredients when I cook the meal. for me its easier and faster and they seam to rehydrate better.
I skip breakfast.... Coffee, cigs, bong hits, hike! I used to to make granola with powdered milk in a single Ziploc bag for each day. Oatmeal - good. Lunch was a bid deal. Mountain house was a staple. Warning, I tried some other dehydrate food from my local outfitter, it was horrible, Richfood was ok. You should probable test your freeze dried products before hiking, I bought some junk once and I had to force it down knowing I needed calories. On a side note, I can't go through with all Dixie is doing, Thx Dix......Sorry
Great video! Thank you! You are inspiring. I would worry about the plastic dehydrators and how they will off gas chemicals, I would choose stainless steel instead. Off gassing is high above 120 degrees F. I decided to dehydrate my food from now on, the backpacking meals contain too many chemicals and it is difficult to find organic.
And it's nothing but carbs and sugar. Those backpacking meals are terrible for you. I'd spend all day squatting in the woods instead of hiking if I ate that crap.
Am I the only person that thinks she looks even better than when she started her channel. I'm hoping to finally do the PCT next year and hope I as am healthy as her when I start. I doubt it but hopefully I come close.
Beautiful, smart, hiking master. Lucky husband!
Even when intended as a compliment, commenting on somebody’s looks just perpetuates the idea that how people look is of paramount importance. Probably not something worth perpetuating. People who take care of themselves can still look bad due to stress, health issues beyond their control, etc. and people can go out of their way on cosmetic procedures, and living an unhealthy lifestyle. Maybe best to just focus on the content of the video.
Can you dehydrate grated cheese?
@@RC-qf3mp I'm just trying to get into shape. I never getting a compliment can also be detrimental to people. I can count almost all compliments given to me on one hand and I appreciated every single one of them. Compliments can be dirty and not warranted but they can also be uplifting and supportive.
@@scottjohndonlan I believe so but cheese preserves itself so well just cutting off the mold it usually the best way.
Love the pan that flashes the Homemade Wanderlust logo! When will that show up in your merchandising?😂😂
The face swelling is likely inflammatory response from very high glucose spikes and the insulin your body has to keep high to remove that glucose (poisonous levels) from your blood. Keep the glucose spikes down and the insulin stays at normal levels. Less pain and inflammation in the joints and back. Took me too long to learn this. Feel 20+ years younger and back to high school fit weight. Low carb/keto/carnivore is the best especially for those who have inflammation or overactive immune systems. Worth a try with your chemistry set (your body). Nothing works for everyone. When you feel great don’t let anyone tell you to stop.
Ever wonder why hikers never lose weight? High insulin makes it impossible to burn fat. It is a fat storage hormone. It tells the body to store everything as fat. No one can burn as much glucose as hikers eat. The body must store it, but never gets to use those fat stores when people eat 5 times a day. Exercise all you want with high insulin. Never gonna lose fat. Only muscle.
I want to see what the rehydrated meals look like!
Buckwheat flour is a good gluten free alternative for breadcrumbs
Looks great!
Very Nice! Do you have a recommendation for a dehydrator? There are a lot of models out there - $50 - $400
What do u think about the new line of Teton packs? Mainly the mountain advantage pack.
Hi Dixie i make meatloaf and cut it into s;ices and put them into zip seal bags it keeps me happy...
I know this is a stupid question but how many days would you package for in one go? I assume you have food drops or locations for support to meet along the way?
If you can have beans or lentils are good too, add to the unstuffed peppers and season with chili powder.
That's not unstuffed peppers anymore, you basically just made chili (if you're not in Texas).
Hey, Dixie - question: have you hiked or have any plans to hike the John Muir Trail? I'm planning to hike it with my brother in spring of next year and I'd love to see it from your perspective. I've watched a number of videos already, but I've come to trust you more than anyone else on RUclips for this kind of information. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks for another great video.
Best idea is find a friend with a Harvest Right freeze dryer. Cook your regular meals and freeze dry them. Very light in weight and nutritious. Quick to rehydrate too.
They are also very expensive
Most people who have one are very gracious in letting their friends batch food now and then. Love your posts. Thanks for your encouraging manner.
@@pvesely299 That's a presumptuous and untrue statement. You can't speak for "most people". I know a few people, preppers, who have them and they aren't letting anyone use them. Aside from being a few thousand dollars, even the best brands are kinda notorious for breaking or not having a super long life. They're not wasting their machine's life on letting others use it (excluding the, "what if your moron friend breaks it?" concern).
Thank you, Dixie. Thank you for pronouncing "pecan" the way the Good Lord intended. LOL :D
UNSTUFFED PEPPERS. You guys, it comes with me on every long hike. Or any hike I want a “nice meal.” TOTALLY worth it.
Thank you for the tater recipe! Bringing it next weekend 🤗
Can you cook everything together and then dehydrate or do you have to do it all separately?
For the first couple of days after resupply, hard boiled eggs are great. Pack them with some air (don't try to suck all the air out).
If you can buy them already hard-boiled, then the bag will last 2-3 days unopened (and unrefrigerated).
Obviously do a sniff test just to be sure.
Eggs always smell bad lol. How to know when they’re really bad is the question.
There's also gluten free panko that you can use as a bread crumb substitute.
Hi Dixie, I always bring freeze-dried eggs with me to make scrambled eggs. In the Netherlands we have a company called globetrotter that sells al kind of freeze-dried food that I mix to make healthy meals.
another good source for recipes is the hungry hammock hanger youtube channel he has some really good meals.
All of these years and I am STILL in love with you.....I HAS to be REAL! 🙂
Uh, you forgot something! Cook the meal and eat on camera. Nice video otherwise. Thanks for the references, the Mylar bag idea is awesome. I think there is a time and place for ready made freeze dried meals but putting together your own menu is cheaper, healthier, and tailored to your tastes. Keep up the great work!
If you get free range eggs that have not been washed yet they will last days at "room" temperature . In there natural state they are vary strong and can be stored in a regular cardboard carton cut down to the size of the number of eggs that you are taking. Once on trail if you are concerned the freshness of the eggs simply place in water...if they sink they are fine if they float dont eat them.
Thanks for the video
Excellent content!
Chili. Cook meat separately, wash off any residual fat with hot water, then add to your favorite tomato-based chili recipe. Let the ingredients marry (BTW, congrats) for a bit, then dehydrate the mess at meat setting. Endures several years in the freezer with no noticeable decrease in quality. My fav freezer bag cooking meal