Chicken & Rice Backpacking Recipes

This page features reader shared chicken and rice backpacking recipes: Jamaican Jerk Chicken with Rice & Beans, Chicken with Caramelized Onions & Tomatoes over Rice, Curry Chicken & Rice, and Penang Chicken.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken with Rice & Beans

Backpacking Chicken & Rice Recipes: Jamaican Jerk Chicken (shown), Chicken with Caramelized Onions, Curry Chicken & Rice, Penang Chicken.

Shared by Squidbilly's Wife

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 7–oz pouches or cans of pre-cooked chicken, dehydrated
2 15–oz cans black beans
1 13–oz can lite coconut milk
3 tsp Jamaican Jerk Seasoning Mix (McCormick's)
⅛ tsp ground cayenne pepper
2 cup long grain rice
2 slices dehydrated jalapeno peppers

If you prefer less heat, leave out the cayenne pepper and jalapeno.

At Home:

Drain liquid from cans of beans into a measuring cup. Add the can of coconut milk to the measuring cup and add enough water to make 4 cups of liquid.

Place the liquids, seasonings, and beans into pot and bring to a boil. Add rice and stir for one minute. Reduce heat to simmer. Put 2 slices of dehydrated jalapeno peppers on top of the water and cover tightly for 30 minutes.

Let cooked rice cool. Place on parchment paper, or fine mesh screens in a single layer and dry at 125 degrees for 5–7 hours. Break up the rice and beans about half way. Put 1 cup of dehydrated rice into storage bag for each person and seal.

Dehydrated Chicken - drain liquid from canned or pouch chicken. Break into small pieces and put on parchment paper or fine mesh screens. Dry at 155 degrees for 4–8 hours until dry and brittle. Bag and store in freezer.

The night before trip, add ½ cup of dehydrated chicken from freezer to 1 cup of dehydrated rice mixture.

On the Trail:

Add approximately 1½ cups of boiling water (start with less, add more if needed). Let sit for 10 minutes in cozy. Enjoy.

Chicken with Caramelized Onions & Tomatoes over Rice

Backpacking Recipe: Chicken with Caramelized Onions and Tomatoes over Rice.

Shared by Granuaile, Marietta, Georgia

Serves 1

Ingredients:

½ cup dried rice, precooked in chicken bouillon, or Instant Rice
¼ cup dried cherry tomatoes, halves dried to the point they have a slightly scorched flavor Read more.
⅓ cup dried caramelized onions
6 oz raw ground chicken breast
¼ cup breadcrumbs
2 tsp thyme
Salt & pepper to taste

At Home:

Dehydrate jasmine rice by pre-cooking and drying it using chicken broth.

Mix the chicken, breadcrumbs, thyme, salt and pepper. Form into two small cubes, between 1" and 2" on each side. In a skillet, cook the cubes on all sides, until mostly cooked. Remove from heat and thinly slice with a sharp knife. Return the slices to the pan and cook until lightly browned on both sides.

Dehydrate as you would regular ground chicken.

How to Caramelize Onions

Caramelize onion slices in a skillet of water until the water in the pan is syrupy. Start with 1½ sweet onions, thinly sliced. Placed them in a pan and add enough water to cover the bottom of the pan with about a cm of water, approx. ½ cup water. Cover and let simmer for 30-50 minutes, stirring a couple of times. If the pan goes dry, add more water. Once the onions are VERY soft and see through, stop adding water and uncover. Stir until the remaining water thickens into a fairly thick syrup and the onions are lightly brown.

Dehydration: Spread caramalized onion mixture on nonstick sheets as thin as possible. The result can be hard to break if it is too thick. After dehydration, the onions will be see through and look a lot like orange stained glass candy. Dehydrate @ 135° F (57° C).

Packing: Package the dried chicken "fillets", tomatoes, and onions in one bag; and the rice in another.

On the Trail:

Note: This assumes two pieces of cookware: a pot and pan/lid. You could combine all the ingredients and rehydrate in one pot, but it is much better with the onion/tomato mixture as a gravy on top of the rice.

In your pot, combine the rice and ¾ cup water. In the lid/pan, combine the chicken and vegetables with ¾ cup water. Let soak for 5 minutes. Bring the pan with the chicken and vegetables to a boil. Once boiling, put the rice pot on the flame, using the pan as a lid. Boil the rice for one minute. Insulate the rice pot. Return the chicken pan to direct flame. Boil and add water until the onions and tomatoes are fully rehydrated and soft. Add approx. ¼ cup of water and let sit, insulated or on top of the rice pot for five minutes. If the sauce is too watery, return to flame until a gravy forms. Fluff the rice and pour the chicken and onion gravy over the rice.

Variations:

Crumble the chicken instead of making patties/slices if you want a faster cook time.
Add caramelized fennel to the caramelized onions for added depth.
Replace thyme with rosemary or tarragon as your palette prefers.

Portion Note: This is a LOT of meat if you are small like me (5'3" and 90lb). My husband (6'3" and 210 lbs.) is happy with it, but it was more than I can handle so adjust accordingly.

Cookware Note: I use the 4-piece Snow Peak cookset, though I only really use the two small ones. I use an Emberlit stove, so fuel is not really an issue for me. Sticks are everywhere and don't run out. I tend to add more water as needed over the open flame to get the rehydration I need.

Curry Chicken & Rice

Shared by Tanya Wilcox

Serves 1

Ingredients:

½ cup dried rice
¼ cup dried flaked or ground chicken
¼ cup dried vegetables (recommend onions, carrots, diced tomatoes)
1 Tbsp slivered almonds or chopped cashews
1 Tbsp golden raisins or dried apricots

Spices:

1–1½ tsp yellow curry powder
¼ tsp chili powder
1 Tbsp powdered milk
Salt, pepper to taste

Pack spices and milk in a small bag or container separate from other ingredients. Combine all ingredients (except spices) with 1.25 cups water in a pot. Let soak 5 minutes. Light stove. Bring to boil and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, stir in spices, and let stand 10 minutes.

Tassie's Penang Chicken

Shared by Tassie from Tasmania, Australia

This dish is a great belly warmer for those cold nights and it's easy to cook.

Serves 4 to 6:

Ingredients:

The meat off 1 BBQ chicken, chopped and diced into small pieces (I cut into 1 x 1cm pieces)
½ cup chutney or tomato relish
½ cup tomato sauce or ketchup
¼ cup Penang curry paste (or to taste, I like it hot)
1 cup white wine
1 cup water
½ lb. frozen mixed vegetables or more, I also add capsicum (bell peppers) and onion

At Home:

Mix the paste, tomato sauce, and relish over low heat.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Bring to boil and simmer for 1 hour.

This dish dehydrates really well, 8-10 hrs in my dehydrator.

Divide and pack in desired serving sizes.

On the Trail:

Combine food with an equal quantity of water to rehydrate, soak for a while, and then heat on stove.

Note from Chef Glenn:

Tassie suggests serving this meal with rice. You could cook one cup rice, or more if desired, and dry either separately or mixed in with the dish.