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Ski
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 9:14 am 
above post edited - had the amount of water wrong. just FYI: Tasty Bites Channa Masala Ingredients: Onions, Water, Chickpeas, Tomatoes, Sunflower Oil, Coriander, Garlic, Ginger, Salt, Mango Powder, Spices, Chiles, Bayleaf, Tumeric. Serving Size: 5 oz. (says two servings per 10 oz. packet) Calories 168. Fat 6 gm. Sodium 452 mg. Carbohydrates 22 gm. Protein 6 gm. Trader Joe's Punjab Choley Ingredients: Chickpeas, Tomatoes, Onions, Water, Sunflower Oil, Ginger, Garlic, Coriander, Cumin, Salt, Black Pepper, Cinnamon, Cardamom, Clove, Green Chili, Red Chili Powder, Fennel, Tumeric. Serving Size: 5.25 oz. (says two servings per 10.5 oz. packet) Calories 210. Fat 8 gm. Sodium 610 gm. Carbohydrates 27 gm. Protein 7 gm. TJ's chickpeas are twice the size of those in the TastyBites.
Sarbar wrote:
I find commercial meals dried get a weird heavy salt taste, where as home ones don't.
After looking at the numbers, I'm a bit apprehensive. We'll know in about four hours. Certainly by cooking this at home one could reduce the sodium content.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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ldyblade
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 9:15 am 
I've dehydrated the Punjab Eggplant with good results. It was awesome over couscous... smile.gif

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Ski
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 9:23 am 
TJ's had a couple shelves full of various "Indian Fare" heat-and-eat items. I figured for two bucks, I'd try the chickpea thing and see how it worked. Again, I'm a little apprehensive about the saltiness after dehydrating- it seems to concentrate and intensify the saltiness.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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Ski
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 4:35 pm 
Results of test with Trader Joe's Indian Fare Punjab Choley I used three 10.5 ounce packages.
trader_joes_punjab_choley
trader_joes_punjab_choley
spread out onto parchment on the drying racks.
spread_out_on_drying_racks
spread_out_on_drying_racks
dried fourteen hours at 130° F
fourteen_hours_at_130_degrees
fourteen_hours_at_130_degrees
each package yielded just over three-quarters cup of dry product.
dry_yield_just_over_three_quarters_cup
dry_yield_just_over_three_quarters_cup
it was pretty late, and I forgot to measure the amount of product in the pouch when I opened it. I estimated that half a cup of boiling water would probably work.
reconstituting_with_boiling_water
reconstituting_with_boiling_water
let stand in covered bowl for ten minutes and served over couscous.
punjab_choley_over_couscous
punjab_choley_over_couscous
Result: Chickpeas were borderline tough- a bit woody for my liking. Might work better if the dry product were actually cooked in water for a few minutes- I could have made the couscous in the bowl. The Trader Joe's product is much spicier than the Tasty Bites Channa Masala. My cheeks are sweating as I'm typing this. I suppose this would be fine if I was up on some ridge in the snow, but for my immediate purpose it's a bit too spicy for my liking. Girlfriend, however, thought it was just fine, although she hates couscous because of the grainy texture. Bottom line: The two remaining zip-lock bags full of dry product will stay in the freezer for now. I've got four servings of the spaghetti sauce, four of the pork stew, and I can do my usual salmon tortellini with sun-dried tomatoes, so I'm set for at least a week, which is probably longer than the weather will hold. smile.gif bk

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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sarbar
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 9:09 pm 
You were busy smile.gif I spent my weekend making apple butter and applesauce from freebie apples....yum!!

https://trailcooking.com/ Eat well on the trail.
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Ski
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 10:24 pm 
yeah... busy busy here... trying to get organized... the orzo is a bust- took too long to cook! going with the angel hair and maybe some couscous as an option for the pork thing. trying to cut down on the amount of fuel I have to haul. probably just leave an extra bottle in the truck and if I run out dash down to the trailhead and grab it. looked at YouTube for some tips on drying Parmesan. I prefer not to eat cellulose fiber or cornstarch in my cheese. one lady shaved it into tiny little bits and loaded it into a dehydrator- carefully arranged on paper towels. what a hassle. ran the Parmesan through the KitchenAid grater, spread it on two layers of paper towels over parchment on a cookie sheet and put it into the oven with the oven light on. six hours later it's starting to get crunchy. Sarbar- thanks again for your help. again, any of this jazz you want to use- feel free. bk

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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sarbar
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 10:31 pm 
I'd personally just take a wedge of the real stuff with me ;-) And cut it off or grate as needed (tiny graters at the dollar store....) I know I prefer less wood pulp in my diet as well paranoid.gif I get wedges from Italy at Costco. That stuff lasts even on trips!

https://trailcooking.com/ Eat well on the trail.
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 10:40 pm 
haven't done this one in quite a while. no photos, but you'll figure it out. world famous Chicken #437 - as demonstrated on KIRO noon news 12/07/88 with Susie Hutchison and Steve Raible by yours truly: Chicken #437 two tablespoons butter two tablespoons fresh grated orange peel one tablespoon minced dried candied ginger one clove garlic, minced fine one half teaspoon ground dry mustard one tablespoon brown sugar two tablespoons honey two tablespoons sesame seed quarter teaspoon cayenne pepper two chicken breasts, bone in, skin on cream all ingredients (except chicken) together in a bowl. spread on top of chicken breasts in shallow baking pan. cover with foil. bake at 350° F for 35-45 minutes. remove foil and put under broiler to put on a little color, watching carefully to avoid scorching top. I usually served with basmati rice and matchstick carrots. smile.gif

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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PostSun Aug 04, 2013 10:42 pm 
I've been hauling it already grated (in a zip-lock) for years. seems to work fine except it gets kind of clumped together when it's hot out. figured drying it a bit might help with that. also gets mighty damn whiffy after a few days. maybe that's why the bears up there leave me alone. if anybody has a whole mess of eggplant, I've got three great recipes for caponata. bk <edit 08/05/13 12:38 am> paper towels under grated parmesan fairly saturated with oil. just replaced with four layers of paper towel to absorb as much of the oil as possible. looks like this method (drying the cheese) works pretty good.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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EJ
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PostFri Aug 09, 2013 1:39 am 
I have to thank you for this thread because it got me firing up my dehydrator again. I have trouble with prepackaged backpacking meals - they either rile up my stomach or I get a migraine (msg? excessive sodium?) Having a home-made alternative sounds good to me. Anyhow, last weekend I dehydrated a couple of pounds of frozen veggies and a can of chicken. It was so easy, even I could do it! I had to test out my creations, so I made some coconut curry chicken rice with veggies. It was pretty yummy, even if the veggies were still a bit chewy. I found packages of dry coconut milk at Uwajimaya, so I think this is a dish I can make to take backpacking. Next up: dehydrating cantaloupe (if I don't eat the whole thing before I get around to firing up the dehydrator.)

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PostSat Aug 10, 2013 6:55 pm 
EJ wrote:
it got me firing up my dehydrator again
me too. mine was in storage since 1997. many thanks to Sarbar for her tips and encouragement. of the three experiments, the spaghetti sauce was the clear winner. I made another batch last night and will fire up the dehydrator again later this evening. not sure if we ever tried cantaloupe. we tried watermelon once, but it turned out a bit chewy- more like jerky than fruit leather.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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sarbar
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PostSat Aug 10, 2013 7:53 pm 
Ripe cantaloupe dried is like heaven! Candy in a bag ;-)

https://trailcooking.com/ Eat well on the trail.
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PostSun Aug 11, 2013 8:35 am 
Sarbar- ever have any issues with freezing pre-prepared-bought-at-the-grocery-store hummus? love taking a small container with me for the first day or so, but in 80° weather "piquant" tends to become "pungent". thought maybe freezing and packing at the last minute might help a bit with that. <edit> took a look at your blog last night and saw your most recent entries. must say I'm quite flattered! especially when I felt while I was doing all that that I had no clue what I was doing! smile.gif <edit 081113 14:12 PDT> just pulled another batch of spaghetti sauce out of the dehydrator. have enough stuff in the freezer now for another week. thanks again for the tips. pack weight (according to my cheapo K-Mart bathroom scale) down to 55 pounds now. quite a difference with the stuff dried.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
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PostSun Aug 11, 2013 4:45 pm 
I'm definitely going to try your sauce recipe, Ski! As predicted the cantaloupe didn't make it to the dehydrator. I'll just have to get another. 😋

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sarbar
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PostSun Aug 11, 2013 9:08 pm 
Oh darn. Now go another melon lol.gif I got a personal watermelon at the farmers market this weekend, from the same gent who comes every year from Yakima. It was the BEST melon ever. Next week I have GOT to get more! It cost only $1.50! Anyhow, yes, you can freeze hummus :-) While there is shelf stable hummus in squeeze pouches, I don't care for it a lot. It is sharp tasting. Also, if you make hummus and leave the oil out (and add in camp) you can dry it!

https://trailcooking.com/ Eat well on the trail.
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