Potato Bark

Snack on Potato Bark while hiking or turn your bark into mashed potatoes for the evening meal!

How to Make Potato Bark:

2 ½ lbs potatoes
16 ounces fat free vegetable, beef, or chicken broth
Salt and Pepper to taste
Optional: Garlic Powder to taste

Peel and boil 2 ½ pounds of potatoes until soft. Drain.
Mash potatoes with 16 ounces of fat free vegetable, beef, or chicken broth. Because fats and dairy products don’t dehydrate well and can spoil, do not add any milk or butter. Add salt, if desired, but you’ll get some sodium from the broth.
Run the mashed potatoes through a blender or mixer until creamy and lump-free.
Cover dehydrator trays with non-stick sheets or parchment paper. I use Paraflexx® sheets which you can purchase directly from Excalibur Dehydrators. They clean-up easily and are reusable.
Pour a six inch puddle of potatoes onto the covered tray and spread thinly (about an eighth inch) with a spatula. 2 ½ pounds of mashed potatoes will take up five 15 x 15 trays.
Dehydrate at 135° for approximately eight hours until potatoes form a brittle sheet.
If you have an Excalibur Dehydrator, use the “flip-trick” as follows to thoroughly dry the underside of the potato sheet: After about five hours of drying, place a dehydrator tray on top of the potato sheet and flip the two trays over so that the moister bottom side is facing up.
The dried sheet of potatoes will easily snap into Bark or crush down for tighter packing.
Yield: 2 ½ pounds of potatoes will dehydrate down to 5 ½ ounces and fill two cups when crushed.

How to Make Barbecue Potato Bark:
Follow the same preparations as above, but change the ingredients as follows:
- 2 ½ lbs potatoes
- 8 ounces fat free vegetable, beef, or chicken broth
- 8 ounces Barbecue Sauce
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Make Delicious Backpacking Meals with Mashed Potatoes:
Here are some of my favorite ingredients to combine with mashed potatoes:
- Ground Turkey and Mixed Vegetables (corn, carrots, peas, green beans)
- Ground Beef and Broccoli
- Deli Ham and Green Beans
- Ground Beef and Peppers, Onions, Mushrooms
  
  Mashed Potatoes with Meat and Vegetables
  Ingredients for One Serving:
  - ½ cup Potato Bark
  - ¼ cup Dehydrated Meat
  - ¼ cup Dehydrated Vegetables
  - 1¼ cup Water
  - Optional Seasonings- garlic powder, salt and pepper, dehydrated onion
  Increase quantities proportionally for larger servings.
  
  At Home:
  
  For more food dehydrating information, see DEHYDRATING MEAT and DEHYDRATING VEGETABLES.
  Crush Potato Bark into small pieces for tighter packing.
  Pack all ingredients in a zip lock bag.
  
  On the Trail:
  
  Combine all ingredients with water in pot. Cover pot and light stove.
  Bring to a boil, remove pot lid, and continue cooking for another minute. If the potatoes soak up most of the water after they start boiling, grasp the pot with a pot gripper and hold higher above the stove to prevent burning.
  Stir continuously once the water has been absorbed. You can add a few spoonfuls of water to make the potatoes easier to stir and less likely to burn.
  Remove pot from heat and wait ten minutes to give the meat and vegetables a little more time to soften. I use a pot cozy to keep the meal hot. Stir vigorously before eating if any of the bark has not dissolved.
  
  BBQ Beef Stew
  
  Ingredients for One Serving:
  ½ cup BBQ Potato Bark
  
  ¼ cup Dehydrated Ground Beef
  
  ¼ cup Dehydrated Okra and Corn or Green Beans
  
  1¼ cup Water
  
  Increase quantities proportionally for larger servings.
  Pack and cook the same as the recipe above.
  This meal reminds me a little of Brunswick Stew with the tangy barbecue flavor.
  
  Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
  
  Ingredients for One Serving:
  
  1 cup Potato Bark
  
  1 tbsp milk powder (Optional)
  
  1½ - 2 tbsp cheddar cheese powder (from a box of mac and cheese)
  
  1½ cups Water
  
  Optional Seasonings- garlic powder, salt and pepper, dehydrated chives
  
  At Home:
  
  Crush Potato Bark into small pieces for tighter packing. Pack cheese and milk powders in a small plastic bag and enclose with potatoes in a zip lock bag.
  
  On the Trail:
  
  Combine potatoes with water in pot. Soak for five minutes. Light stove using low to medium flame.
  Cook until the potatoes are hot and have soaked up most of the water. If you are using an alcohol stove, grasp the pot with a pot gripper and hold higher above the flame to prevent burning once the potatoes have thickened.
  You can add a few more spoonfuls of water to make the potatoes easier to stir and less likely to burn if they get too thick.
  Stir in milk and cheese powders.
  I often cook a half portion of Cheddar Mashed Potatoes as a side to my main meal using my candle stove. It only takes fifteen minutes.

Bean Bark

Uses for Bean Bark:

Stew
Soup
Spread
Chips

How to Make Bean Bark:

Run a 28 ounce can of vegetarian baked beans through a blender until creamy. Use all the liquids from the can. Avoid using baked bean products containing bacon or pork because fatty meats will not dehydrate well and may spoil.
Pour puddles of blended beans on dehydrator trays covered with Paraflexx® sheets or parchment paper and spread thinly with a spatula. 28 ounces of blended beans takes up three 15 x 15 Excalibur Dehydrator trays.
Dry at 135° for eight hours. Unlike Potato Bark, which dries into a sheet, Bean Bark dries like mud… full of cracks. You can still use the “flip-trick” as described on other bark pages to thoroughly dry the bottom side of the bark.
Yield: 28 ounces of beans will bark down to three cups weighing seven ounces.
Variations: Bark other types of canned beans such as black beans, red beans, and kidney beans. Follow the steps above.

Recipes:

Bean Bark Stew

Ingredients:

½ cup Bean Bark
½ cup Instant Brown Rice
¼ cup Dehydrated Mixed Vegetables (carrots, corn, peas, and green beans)
¼ Dehydrated Ground Beef
1 cup water

Variation: Beanie-Weenie Stew. Add Franks & Beans to your homemade backpacking food list. Just substitute dehydrated hot dog slices for ground beef. Because hot dogs are generally high in fat, you’ll have to blot off beads of grease with a paper towel throughout the drying process. Storing dehydrated hot dogs long term is not a good idea, but you’ll be fine if you use them within a week or two. Go for 100% beef franks, not pork dogs, as pork is never recommended for dehydrating. To dehydrate hot dogs, cut into ¼ inch slices and dry at 135° for approximately eight hours to the pliability of a Slim Jim.

At Home:

For more information about drying ground beef and vegetables, see DEHYDRATING MEAT and DEHYDRATING VEGETABLES.
Pack all dry ingredients in a 4 x 6 plastic bag.

On the Trail:

Combine all ingredients with water in pot, cover, and light stove.
Bring to a boil and cook for an additional minute or two. Total cook time using my homemade alcohol backpacking stove is seven to eight minutes.
Remove from stove and transfer pot to insulating cozy for another five or ten minutes.
Stir briskly before eating and the bark will dissolve into tasty gravy.

Bean Bark Soup

Ingredients:

½ cup Bean Bark
¼ cup Instant Rice or Dehydrated Diced Potatoes
¼ cup Dehydrated Mixed Vegetables
¼ cup Dehydrated Ground Beef or Hot Dog Slices
1 ¼ cup Water

At Home and On the Trail:

Follow the same directions as Bean Bark Stew. Bark dissolves in hot water with a little spirited stirring.

Bean Bark Spread

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Bean Bark
1/3 cup water

On the Trail:
Combine Bark with water in pot, light stove. When water starts to get hot, begin stirring until the mixture gets pasty. Three or four minutes of heating should do the trick. Be prepared to lift the pot off the stove with a pot gripper to prevent burning. Spread on pita bread or use as a dip for freeze-dried vegetable chips.

Sweet Potato Bark

Sweet Potato Bark is a favorite hiking snack. It is delicious and chewy with a hint of cinnamon, but is also a good source of fiber, potassium, and vitamin A. It can also be turned back into mashed sweet potatoes for a hearty backpacking meal.

How to make Sweet Potato Bark:
Peel a large sweet potato and cut into chunks.
Boil until soft and mash.
Stir in ½ cup apple juice, three tablespoons maple syrup, and a half teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Run the mashed sweet potatoes through a blender or mixer until creamy and lump-free.

Cover dehydrator trays with non-stick Paraflexx® sheets or parchment paper. If you are using an Excalibur dehydrator, Paraflexx® sheets are the way to go because they are the same size as the dehydrator trays and are reuseable. Paraflexx® sheets can be cut down to fit round dehydrators.
Pour a six inch wide puddle of blended sweet potatoes onto covered dehydrator trays and spread thinly with a spatula. Shoot for eighth inch thickness. If you spread the potatoes thicker, they will take longer to dry.
Dehydrate at 135° for eight to ten hours. The potatoes will form a sheet with cracks running through it. The bottom side will dry slower than the top. If you own an Excalibur Dehydrator, you can use the "flip trick." After about five hours of drying, place a dehydrator tray on top of the potato sheet and flip the two trays over so that the bottom side of the potato sheet is facing up. When sufficiently dry, the potato sheet will easily snap into Bark. Continue drying if the potato sheet bends rather than breaks.

Yield: One large sweet potato will yield ¾ cup of Bark and weigh 2 ½ ounces. Increase the ingredients proportionately for larger batches.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients for One Serving:

1 cup Sweet Potato Chips
1 cup Water plus 2 or 3 Tablespoons
Optional: Raisins and/or Mini-Marshmallows

At Home:
Pack potatoes in a zip lock bag. Pack raisins separately because of their high moisture content.

On the Trail:
Combine potatoes and water in pot and heat over low flame, stirring continuously. It is not necessary to boil. Add a few tablespoons more water if the potatoes get too thick.
Optional: Marshmallow Sauce. If you can’t imagine mashed sweet potatoes without marshmallows, simply garnish with mini-marshmallows or make a marshmallow sauce. To make marshmallow sauce, combine ½ cup mini-marshmallows with one tablespoon of water in your pot. Heat gently while stirring continuously. Marshmallows will melt into sauce. I tried this out of curiosity, but decided it was too sweet for me.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes & Corn

This meal is good for breakfast or supper. Use dried deli ham instead of raisins for a higher protein meal.

Ingredients for One Serving:

½ cup Sweet Potato Bark, tightly packed
½ cup Dehydrated Corn
¼ cup Raisins or Dried Ham
1¼ cup Water

At Home:
Crush Sweet Potato Bark into small pieces for tighter packing. Pack raisins in a 3 x 5 plastic bag and enclose with Sweet Potato Bark and corn in a zip lock bag.

On the Trail:
Combine all ingredients with water in pot and soak for five minutes. Light stove and heat over low to medium flame for five to seven minutes. It is not necessary to boil. If the potatoes soak up most of the water, add a few spoonfuls of water to make them easier to stir and less likely to burn.
If using an alcohol stove, grasp the pot with a pot gripper and hold higher above the flame to prevent burning once the sweet potatoes have thickened.
Remove pot from heat and wait ten minutes to give the corn and ham, if you are using ham, a little more time to soften. I use a pot cozy to keep the meal hot.

Sweet Potato Apple Crunch

This meal makes a delicious, high-energy breakfast or a tasty dessert for after supper.

Ingredients for One Serving:

½ cup Sweet Potato Bark, tightly packed
½ cup Dehydrated Apples
¼ cup Raisins
¼ - ½ cup Granola
1¼ cup Water

At Home:
Crush Sweet Potato Bark into small pieces for tighter packing. Pack raisins and granola in separate small plastic bags and enclose with Sweet Potato Bark and apples in a zip lock bag.

On the Trail:
Combine all ingredients except granola with water in pot and soak for five minutes. Light stove and heat over low to medium flame for five to seven minutes. It is not necessary to boil. If the potatoes soak up most of the water, add a few spoonfuls of water to prevent burning.
If using an alcohol stove, grasp the pot with a pot gripper and hold higher above the flame to prevent burning once the sweet potatoes have thickened.
Remove pot from heat and wait ten minutes to give the apples a little more time to rehydrate. Stir in granola just before eating.

Oatmeal Recipes

These homemade oatmeal recipes pack a lot more fruit than the instant oatmeal packets you buy at the store. It amazes me that most of the little pieces in store-bought oatmeal packages, wistfully referred to as fruit, are artificial. For Apple Cinnamon Crunch, I stock up on locally grown apples in the fall and crank up the dehydrator.
For a boost of 75 calories, try these oatmeal recipes with milk. Combine two tablespoons of instant dry whole milk with ½ cup of water and stir. I usually pour about half the milk over the oatmeal and drink the rest.
When preparing these oatmeal recipes, keep an eye on the pot and stir frequently. Once the water gets absorbed, you’ll need to remove the pot from the stove. Instant oatmeal cooks up easier than old fashioned oatmeal, but you sacrifice a little of the nutritional value if you go that route. For instant oatmeal, bring the fruit to a boil first and then add the instant oatmeal. Cook for about a minute and remove pot from stove.

Apple Cinnamon Crunch Oatmeal
Ingredients:

½ cup old fashioned oatmeal
¼ cup apple slices, dried
1 tsp sugar or more if desired
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup raisins
¼ cup granola cereal
1¼ cups water

Milk Option:

2 tbsp instant dry whole milk
½ cup water

At Home:
For more information about dehydrating apples, see DEHYDRATING FRUIT.
Place oats, apples, sugar, and cinnamon in a 4 x 6 plastic bag. Place granola cereal in a 3 x 5 plastic bag and raisins in another 3 x 5 plastic bag. Enclose the two smaller bags inside the 4 x 6 bag with the other ingredients. I package the raisins separately because I don’t want the moisture from the raisins migrating into the other ingredients.
If you plan on serving milk over your oatmeal, pack two tablespoons of dry milk in a 2 x 3 plastic bag.
On the Trail:
Combine all ingredients except granola cereal with 1¼ cups water. Bring to a boil and continue cooking for a minute or two. Stir frequently and reduce flame to prevent the oatmeal from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Place pot inside insulating cozy for a couple of minutes to let the flavors mingle a little longer.
Prior to serving, top with granola cereal. Mix milk separately.

Oatmeal with Fruit and Dark Chocolate

Ingredients:
- ½ cup old fashioned oatmeal
- ½ cup dehydrated fruit. The photo shows banana, pineapple, mango, and shredded coconut with dark chocolate chips. Try bananas with strawberries and blueberries or peaches.
- 1 tsp sugar or more if desired
- ¼ cup Almond and Dark Chocolate granola cereal (Cascadian Farm) or any granola with added chocolate pieces if desired.
- 1¼ cups water
Milk Option:
- 2 tbsp instant dry whole milk
- ½ cup water
At Home:
Place oats, dehydrated fruit, and sugar in a 4 x 6 plastic bag. Place granola cereal in a 3 x 5 plastic bag and enclose inside the 4 x 6 bag with the other ingredients.
If you plan on serving milk over your oatmeal, pack two tablespoons of dry milk in a 2 x 3 plastic bag.

On the Trail:
Prepare in same manner as Apple Cinnamon Crunch.

Grits Recipes

My grits recipes include ham and vegetables, but let’s face it; grits won’t wake you up without some butter or cheese. At home, I might drop half a stick of butter and some bacon grease into a pot of grits, but on the trail, butter spoils, and imitation Butter Buds taste like something other than butter to me.
Chef Glenn’s secret ingredient for adding real cheddar flavor to grits without carrying a heavy hunk of cheese is Pepperidge Farm Baked Goldfish. Pepperidge Farm packs those little fish with real cheddar cheese without slipping in any artificial ingredients or Trans Fat.
When preparing these grits recipes, remember that grits suck up a lot of water. Use ¼ cup of grits and 1 ¼ cups of water. Because the water gets absorbed quickly, you’ll need to baby sit the pot with some stirring. Shortly after the water and grits start to boil, you may need to lift the pot off the stove or adjust the flame way down if using a canister stove. If the grits get too thick, stir in a little more water.

Green Grits and Ham
Ingredients:

¼ cup quick grits
¼ cup peas, dehydrated
¼ cup deli ham, dehydrated
¼ cup Pepperidge Farm Xtra Cheddar Goldfish
Salt and pepper to taste
1 ¼ cups of water

At Home:
For more information about dehydrating sliced deli ham, see DEHYDRATING MEAT
Place grits, peas, and ham in a 4 x 6 plastic bag. Place Goldfish in a 3 x 5 plastic bag and enclose inside the 4 x 6 bag with the other ingredients.
On the Trail:
Combine grits, peas, and ham with 1 ¼ cup water. Bring to a boil and continue cooking for a minute or two. Stir frequently and reduce flame to prevent the grits from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Place pot inside insulating cozy for another five minutes to let the peas and meat finish rehydrating.
Prior to serving, stir crumbled Goldfish into grits. I leave a few of the Goldfish whole for kicks.

Pizza Grits Supreme

Ingredients:

¼ cup quick grits
¼ cup mixed dehydrated tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, and onions
2 tbsp pineapple pieces, dehydrated
¼ cup deli ham, dehydrated
1 ¼ cups of water
¼ cup Pepperidge Farm Xplosive Pizza Flavored Goldfish
Salt and pepper to taste

Pack and prepare in the same manner as Green Grits and Ham.

DIY Grits:
Before your next backpacking trip, create your own grits recipes by dehydrating your favorite vegetables and meat. Peppers, tomatoes, and ground beef feel right at home in grits. For a single serving, follow the basic formula of ¼ cup grits, ¼ cup meat, ¼ cup veggies, and 1 ¼ cups of water.
Another trick for making cheddar cheese grits is to add a couple tablespoons of cheese mix from a package of Annie’s Homegrown Macaroni and Cheese.

Vacuum Sealing Food

Vacuum sealing food will extend its storage-life and provide light-weight portability for trips outside the home. For storing dried foods in the home for a year or less, glass jars with tight-fitting lids are all you need. You can use zip-lock bags, but jars are a better defense against insects and mice. Most people who dry food for home consumption rotate their supply once a year before the quality of the food diminishes. Jars are more convenient than vacuum sealed bags because you simply take out what you need from the jar and put the lid back on.
Some vacuum sealers come with a tube that attaches to optional canisters. With canisters, you can open them, take out the food you need, and vacuum seal the canister again. The canisters are pricey, and I have found that storing dried food in jars is sufficient.
The enemies of dried food are moisture and air. Dried food may absorb humidity from the air allowing mold to grow. You would not want to store dried food in a damp basement. The humidity in most homes is not a serious threat to your stash. Oxygen may slowly oxidize dehydrated food and diminish its quality. Fruits may turn darker in color and loose some of their vitamin content. Oxidation of fat may turn meat rancid. I store dried meats, seafood, and anything that has oil in it in the freezer.

All set for a month of eating on the trail.

Whether you are vacuum sealing food or using jars, the key is to make sure you dry your foods properly in the first place. Follow the drying guidelines that come with your dehydrator, but here are a few examples: Corn and peas will dry hard, broccoli and green beans will dry brittle. Onions, peppers, and tomatoes will dry pliable. Apples, peaches, mangos, and bananas will dry pliable. The surface of fruit should feel smooth, not sticky. Some tackiness will remain in dried pineapple because of the high sugar content. Dried fruits may still contain up to 15% water. If I am using dried fruit in a backpacking recipe, I pack the fruit in its own plastic bag to keep any moisture from migrating to the other dryer ingredients.
Dry all meats until brittle, except for beef jerky. Although it is dried raw, beef jerky is preserved with a salt rub or brine solution, so drying it until leathery is fine. Most people say their family gobbles up their beef jerky as fast as they make it. For deli meats like ham, blot-off any beads of fat on the surface of the meat with a paper towel a couple of times while drying. When dry, deli meats will snap into pieces rather than bend. Allow meat to cool before placing in storage containers.

Conclusion:

Vacuum sealing food protects your food on long hikes.
Glass jars are sufficient for home storage up to a year.
Dry your food sufficiently before storing.
Store dried meats and foods containing oil in the freezer until ready to use.

Dehydrating Meat

Dehydrating Meat: Deli Style

Choose lean ham, turkey, roast beef, or chicken with fat content less than 10%. I prefer dehydrating meat that has not had any “solutions” injected into it, because that usually means high sodium. Ask the server to slice your deli meat thick, around 1/16 of an inch.

Cut deli meat into one inch strips and place on the dehydrator trays. Dehydrating meat takes about six hours at 125° using my Excalibur Dehydrator. If any oil droplets form on the outside of the meat, blot off with a paper towel. When the meat is completely dry, you will easily be able to break the strips into smaller pieces for use in backpacking recipes or leave as is for snacking.

Try munching a few slices of dehydrated deli ham with your oatmeal when backpacking. You can eat it cold and crunchy, or put it in your pot with a little water and heat. After a few minutes of warming and rehydrating, you’ll enjoy a chewy, near bacon experience. The photo below shows how I include dehydrated ham in my recipe for

HAM AND VEGETABLES WITH RICE

Dehydrating Meat: Ground Beef & Turkey

The one problem I encountered with dehydrated ground beef and turkey in my backpacking meals was that the meat didn’t fully rehydrate. It was tough-- my teeth got a workout chewing it. With a little experimentation, I finally came up with the secret to dehydrating meat so that it turns out tender every time… bread crumbs! When you add bread crumbs to ground meat before you dehydrate it, more liquid will penetrate the meat when you cook it in your pot, resulting in tender meat.

I recommend using only lean or extra lean ground meat. Meat with high fat content produces beads of oil as it dehydrates which you have to blot off throughout the dehydration process. Also, fatty meats may spoil on the trail, so stick with the skinny stuff. Pork is not recommended for dehydrating, with the exception of lean ham, because of its high fat content. Ground turkey breast is naturally low in fat. Check the labels for ground beef and shoot for a fat content less than 15%, preferably in the 7% to 10% range. Ground beef with 15% fat content is often labeled as Ground Round. Ground Chuck and Hamburger will have higher fat content. I dehydrate grass fed beef that has only 7% fat.

For each pound of beef, sprinkle ½ cup of bread crumbs evenly over the meat. Work the bread crumbs into the meat with your fingers. Unseasoned bread crumbs work well, but if you plan to use the beef in a pasta recipe, try Italian seasoned bread crumbs. I make my own bread crumbs by dehydrating bread slices in the dehydrator for a few hours and then chopping the dried bread into crumbs.

Break the meat into small pieces and stir continuously in a skillet over medium high heat until the beef turns slightly pink or brown depending on your taste. Remove from heat and blot off any remaining liquid with paper towels.

Place small pieces of ground beef on the dehydrator trays. I can fit about a pound of cooked meat on one Excalibur Food Dehydrator tray. I set the thermostat at 145° for the first two hours and then reduce the temperature to 125° for another six hours. There should be no moisture remaining in the meat when you break a piece in half.

Dehydrating meat with bread crumbs following these instructions will yield 2 ½ cups of dried meat per pound processed. Most of my backpacking recipes call for a ¼ cup of dried meat, so I get ten meals from a pound of meat. Of course, you may want to use more meat in your meals than me.

Dehydrating Shrimp

To save time, I buy frozen, pre-cooked and peeled, medium shrimp. Thaw shrimp, pinch off the tails, and rinse. Slice each shrimp into four or five pieces, arrange in a single layer on dehydrator tray, and dehydrate at 145° approximately six hours until hard and firm. There should be no moisture remaining when you cut a piece in half. Store shrimp in an air-tight container or refrigerate until ready to use. Dehydrated shrimp taste great in grits.

Dehydrating Tuna

I dehydrate canned tuna for my tuna casserole backpacking recipe. Use only Solid White Albacore Tuna packed in water. Fattier varieties of tuna and tuna packed in oil may spoil. Drain off the water into your dog or cat's bowl. Break the tuna up into small pieces and spread out in a single layer on the dehydrator tray. Dehydrate at 145° for six hours until crispy. I dehydrate tuna on the front porch during the day to avoid stinking up the house. Don’t try it at night or a raccoon might steal your tuna. Six ounces of tuna will weigh a little over an ounce when dry and yield about half a cup.

How long will dehydrated meat last?

Dehydrated meat will last at least two months if stored in a low humidity environment or up to a year if you use a vacuum sealer.

Now that you know how easy dehydrating meat is try: DEHYDRATING VEGETABLES

See how i use a vacuum sealer to pack meals for long backpcking trips: Vacuum Sealer