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View Full Version : Looking for Red Beans & Rice with low cooking time.



Wise Old Owl
06-22-2014, 14:22
Yes there is freeze dried - dried, but I am not looking to spend $6-8 bucks for a few ounces. So I was down at several local super markets and found this inexpensive gem that had 4 servings but a whopping 25 minutes of a boil and no simmer. So now i am thinking soaking a cup in a wide mouth gatorade bottle with one cup of water on a all day hike and maybe that will reduce the cooking time...

My question - has anyone seen anything better? 27537The shelf life on this is two years.

nastynate
06-22-2014, 14:56
Is cooking and dehydrating at home out of the question?

You can also buy dehydrated red beans and rice by the pound from Packit Gourmet. Just mix a cup of each, add 1.5 cups boiling water, and set in a cozie for 10 minutes.

rocketsocks
06-22-2014, 15:01
Woo, I know it sounds crazy to cook beans at home, then dry em, then cook em on the trail...but that's the game, or like you said soak all day, maybe even over night, no biggie, just have to know what you what to eat a day ahead of time. I can eat beans anytime...love em.

Low cook time to me means it's either dehydrated and just needs re-hydrating, or it is already cooked and sitting in it's own juice ei; canned or pouch, both of those carry a weight penalty, not much in my book though, but I don't see any other way around this. Ya either dry it at home, or bring it already cooked...or like you said, soak it.

I'll just add, a friend of mine was over an ask/reiterated/observed. "So you cook em, dry em, and cook em again" Yep I said. "I don't get it" then I explained the water weight, and fuel thing, bing the light went on, and like you, the stuff gets expensive to buy pre-dried, that's the whole appeal for me, a money savings thing. Beans are cheap!


Also wanna mention, many times those "Boil" cook times aren't necessarily required, you may be able to get by with half of that with some experimenting.

Leanthree
06-22-2014, 16:02
So how I cook these, (it isn't particularly quick so I normally save it for when I don't care if it is a quick meal):

1) Add cold water and packet contents to pot, bring to boil on alcohol stove
2) Blow out stove
3) Pot into cozy for 10 min
4) refill stove and relight, bring to boil again
5) take off stove and put in cozy for 15 min

Some people might use less water and be ok with a bit more crunch to the rice but I'd rather enough water and use a bit more fuel.

Dogwood
06-22-2014, 16:15
"Yes there is freeze dried - dried, but I am not looking to spend $6-8 bucks for a few ounces." ME EITHER, that's why I've never paid that much for Backpackers Pantry Louisiana Red Beans and Rice 6 oz(dry wt) packages that have 2 @ 300 cal servings. I find these packages often for less than $4 and then divide into my own serving sizes and caloric servings. I found REI( three times, two different stores) getting rid of these BP variety dinners for $1.50 - $1.80 each which is more in line with what this frugal backpacker is willing to pay. At one of these REI stores I bought 13 packages, all they had discounted. This is typically the cheapest BP or MH freeze dried dinners either company offers. Without even looking much for bargains I notice them being offered for $3.75 and that's not buying in bulk or getting any further discount. http://www.drvita.com/product/backpackers-pantry-louisiana-red-beans-&-rice-two-person/p48143023074?gdftrk=gdfV27505_a_7c1104_a_7c2696_a_ 7cBPP23074&gclid=CKuIndidjr8CFe4F7Aod8x0AlA Personally, I don't think 100 cal/oz is high enough so I add to each 300 cal serving(about 3 oz dry wt): sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, chia seeds, TVP, EVOO, etc. for added fat and protein. For extending the complex carbs and possibly other nutrients I'll add in some of the Knorrs Mushroom, or Chicken Fried Rice sides, bits of dried tomatoes/zesty peppers, fresh garlic, fresh green onions, parsley, etc. I've even sifted out the red beans from the Knorrs Cajun Red Beans and Rice Sides and added them in to the BP Red Beans and Rice meals. I roughly come up with a 5- 5.5 oz dinner(dry wt and EVOO) that is about 550-650 cals for roughly $2.25 - $2.75/dinner. These are filling enough for me but if you're not trail food wt obsessed as I can be add a single serving size packet(.85 oz) of Cuginos Chicken Noodle Soup http://www.cuginos.com/products-page/soup/chicken-noodle-soup-ease/ as a side soup and some Kashi Fire Roasted Vegetable Crackers. https://www.kashi.com/our-foods/crackers/kashi-crackers-fire-roasted-veggie Hungry yet?

Wise Old Owl
06-22-2014, 17:07
That's interesting Dogwood I saw 200 calories per cup and adding butter buds and TVP would add some energy.

Yes I will check out those packets.


Rocketsocks - I have tried it, I mailed out packets to people but I am not crazy about how it looks or tastes. Hense, I am looking for packets that I can convert, I have the stuff to play with but it looks like I need a second dryer.

Dogwood
06-22-2014, 17:20
Could add some cheese as well. I like Butter Buds for the flavoring too(they've flavors now) but I don't mix the BB into meals(like Idahoan mashed potatoes) that far in advance of eating as I think something goes rancid or becomes off tasting in the BB. I'm referring to the BB I've placed in meals and then repackaged storing these meals for near future hikes.

Tipi Walter
06-22-2014, 17:33
I'd cook them up thoroughly at home, blend with a little extra water (or soup stock) and dehydrate in the home dryer. In the field just bring to a boil and let sit in the pot cozy for 20 or 30 minutes. It will have the consistency of gruel but still tasty and easily digested.

Wil
06-22-2014, 17:49
but a whopping 25 minutes of a boil and no simmer.Tony Chachere's line of Cajun mixes are the best; taste & texture. We have them at home all the time: Jambalaya, Dirty Rice, Red Beans & Rice (the Gumbo is not all that good), but not backpacking (I use Hawk's Vittles instead, quicker).

Typically the Chachere's mixes are bring to boil and then a 25 minute simmer so I'd think they'd be OK in a cozy after the boil.

The Cleaner
06-22-2014, 18:05
Zatarain's packaged red beans and rice, found at most grocery stores, also has a low sodium version too. I can repackage it and get 2 meals from the regular size. It does require about 20 minutes simmer time, which is not happening on an alky stove. I've been using a Svea 123 stove for most of my hiking, the 1st one lasted 23 years before blowing the safety valve. I looked into a canister stove but after checking the burn time, it's way too expensive for cooking real foods with over 20 minute cook times. A gallon of Coleman fuel lasts me almost a year or less depending on how often I hike and if I cook on a campfire. For my needs, it would take a lot of propane/butane canisters to equal 1 gallon of Coleman fuel. BTW these canisters are frequently found left behind at shelters and I've never found a gallon Coleman can at a shelter....

Hikes in Rain
06-22-2014, 18:55
Lipton Sides has a decent red beans and rice, although it's a little short of beans in my opinion. Cooks as fast as any of the other Lipton rice sides; with a little summer sausage and hot sauce, it's pretty good, but nowhere as near as good as home dried.

Wise Old Owl
06-22-2014, 19:18
Lipton Sides has a decent red beans and rice, although it's a little short of beans in my opinion. Cooks as fast as any of the other Lipton rice sides; with a little summer sausage and hot sauce, it's pretty good, but nowhere as near as good as home dried.


Hey that works seven minutes - I have not seen that above the mason dixon line thank's!


While searching on this topic here is a mouth watering recipe for home use


http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dinner/red-beans-rice-nawlins-style.html

Hikes in Rain
06-22-2014, 19:36
Might be worth asking your grocer if they'd put in a special order for you. I think they have a pretty long shelf life. Amazon also has them, but sheesh, in a box of 20!

Venchka
06-22-2014, 20:41
Mrs. Wayne's Camellia red beans and Konriko Pecan Rice are the only red beans I eat. I would eat instant oatmeal 3 times a day on the trail, and Lisa's cooking at home.
That's just me. Eat whatever (ok rocket socks?) Y'all like.

Wayne


Sent from somewhere around here.

rocketsocks
06-22-2014, 21:18
Mrs. Wayne's Camellia red beans and Konriko Pecan Rice are the only red beans I eat. I would eat instant oatmeal 3 times a day on the trail, and Lisa's cooking at home.
That's just me. Eat whatever (ok rocket socks?) Y'all like.

Wayne


Sent from somewhere around here.
I like my beans to have a little tooth to em....not crunchy, just some tooth!

Dogwood
06-22-2014, 21:22
If you're not stuck on dehydrated red beans there's also dehydrated black beans. I usually buy these as a black bean soup mix. I've found this in bulk bins at Whole Foods and Health Food Stores at the cheapest price but also in a few mainstream large grocery stores like Krogers, Earthfare, etc in bulk bins sold by the lb. for about $4-5/lb which is quite a lot to me. I sometimes sift the whole dehydrated black beans out of the mix and add them to a Knorr's Rice side like the Cajun Red Beans and Rice which I've found in Walmart across the U.S. for as low as 3 Sides for $2 or about 67 cts each. The normal everyday price for Knorr's Sides is about $1 each at Walmart. I've also found dehydrated Black Bean Soup at Target in the past. I've been having problems finding it lately in Target so they may not so be carrying it anymore. I liked the dehydrated Black Bean Soup Mix Target has carried because the whole dehydrated black beans were in a separate bag inside the box separated from the seasonings packet(No sifting). Although rather pricey IMO, Dr. McDougall's Black Bean Soup is available in the 1.6 oz 160 cal cups, but this would be more along the line of a snack in terms of cals for a hiker. I can't imagine a 160 cal dinner alone satisfying any hiker. http://www.vitacost.com/dr-mcdougalls-soup-cup-low-sodium-black-bean-and-rice-1-6-oz-1?csrc=GPF-PA-Foods%20%26%20Beverages-767335000869&ci_gpa=pla_with_promotion&ci_kw=&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=767335000869&gclid=CKvjs5Lljr8CFabm7Aod6nYA4w Another Black Bean Soup Mix that may be worth seeking out is Nueva Cocina. I've found this brand being sold in several large mainstream grocery stores. http://www.amazon.com/Nueva-Cocina-Black-Cuban-6-Ounce/dp/B000E3VA0W Again, sometimes I sift out the whole dehydrated black beans. The other dehydrated soup I find in the same places at around the same price per lb as the black bean soup mix that I find can easily be mixed into a Knorr's Rice Side and is quite hearty is Lentil Soup. I hear of folks messing around soaking and cooking regular lentils on the trail which has me scratching my head because I know this excellent product in dehydrated form isn't difficult to locate if one looks in the places I mentioned. BTW, I agree with Hikes in Rain. The Knorr's Cajun Red Beans and Rice is a little skimpy on beans. IMHO, it's the same skimpiness w/ the beans with the Zatarain's rice and bean mixes I've tried but when I'm eating rice and beans I want BEANS and rice. :) I'll look for the Tony Chachere brand. I haven't tried that.

Dogwood
06-22-2014, 21:24
BTW, I like the idea of adding some pecan pieces to a red beans and rice side. Thx for the idea Venchka

Venchka
06-22-2014, 21:25
I will be on the lookout for tooth in Lisa's red beans later this week. They really should be called red beans, ham, sausage and sausage.

Wayne


Sent from somewhere around here.

Venchka
06-22-2014, 21:27
BTW, I like the idea of adding some pecan pieces to a red beans and rice side. Thx for the idea Venchka

Enjoy.

Wayne


Sent from somewhere around here.

Odd Man Out
06-22-2014, 21:37
Zatarain's packaged red beans and rice, found at most grocery stores, also has a low sodium version too. I can repackage it and get 2 meals from the regular size. It does require about 20 minutes simmer time, which is not happening on an alky stove....

I've cooked Mahatma's Red Beans and rice over an alcohol stove.

http://www.mahatmarice.com/products/63/RedBeansRice.aspx

I've also used Zatarains. Even though they say to cook for 20 to 25 minutes, I don't find that necessary. What I do is to dump the contents of one package into a mixing bowl. Then add about 1/2 cup of basmati rice, mix, and divide evenly into two zip bags. For dinner, add the contents of one bag to 2 cups water over alcohol stove with enough fuel to bring to a rolling boil. With practice, you can have enough fuel so it boils for a minute or two before the flame goes out (or fill the stove with fuel, and after a minute of boiling, snuff out the stove with a snuffer and retrieve the excess fuel). Then put the pot in a cozy for 15 minutes. Eat.

These are made with parboiled rice and dehydrated beans, so they cook pretty quickly. The basmati rice I add cooks very fast (faster then regular long grain white rice, and tastes better), absorbs the excess water, and stretches the package to two meals made with two cups of water each. I also add a tsp of curry for extra flavor. After 15 minutes in the cozy it's cooked well enough. The rice and beans may be a bit al dente, but it's not really necessary to boil the full 20 to 25 minutes. I've used this same trick with a number of pre-packaged meals that use about 3+ cup of water. I practice with one portion at home and use the other for hiking. You can also add lentils. They also cook (mostly) with one minute of boiling and 15 minutes in a cozy.

Dogwood
06-22-2014, 21:40
Throw some shrimp in there too. Let's make it a Portuguese trail dinner night.

Dogwood
06-22-2014, 21:45
Or save cooking the regular rice and beans until you have a campfire night. Who cares how long it takes. Stove fuel or heat isn't an issue. I amazingly just cooked the best(perfectly cooked) rice(reg brown rice) I've ever cooked over a campfire of all things in Arkansas on the Ouachita Trail that I found that someone left behind.

Another Kevin
06-22-2014, 23:55
Harmony House has dehydrated red beans. Instant rice you can get anywhere. Add dehydrated onion, dehydrated celery (also available from Harmony House), garlic powder, thyme, marjoram, parsley, bay leaf, salt, black and red pepper. On the trail, add some cut-up dry sausage (abruzzese works well), rehydrate with boiling water, and add some olive oil. Let it sit in a freezer bag cozy 15-20 minutes while you do something else.

To be authentic, it should be pickled port butt or Andouille rather than the dry sausage, but I wouldn't trust either to travel in warm weather.

If you can find vinegar in single-serving packaging (minimus.biz has it, but theirs is expensive), tuck some in to dash over the stuff at the very end.

Of course you have to make any recipe your own. You can try starting with the proportions at something like http://allrecipes.com/recipe/authentic-louisiana-red-beans-and-rice/ and scale it down to the serving size you want. Then work out the amount of dehydrated stuff reconstitutes to that amount and choose the amount of water accordingly.

sarbar
06-25-2014, 15:59
As mentioned above, just buy the beans from Harmony House Foods (they are precooked and dried) or rinse, drain and dry canned beans. Use with instant rice, dried onion, some granulated garlic, broth packet or bouillon, and whatever else sounds good. Easy. Cheap.

Venchka
06-25-2014, 18:45
For the authentic, Dogwood unfriendly variety: Ham and smoked sausage, hot smoked sausage, andouille, etc. are required.
rocketsocks,
After soaking for 24 hours and cooking for 2-3-4 hours, I doubt that lisa's red beans have much "tooth" left. They aren't mush, but they are soft. And tres good!

Wayne

rocketsocks
06-25-2014, 18:53
For the authentic, Dogwood unfriendly variety: Ham and smoked sausage, hot smoked sausage, andouille, etc. are required.
rocketsocks,
After soaking for 24 hours and cooking for 2-3-4 hours, I doubt that lisa's red beans have much "tooth" left. They aren't mush, but they are soft. And tres good!

Wayne
Yep, that wouldn't be toothy at all. I also love al dente pasta...haven't had andouille yet.

Hikes in Rain
06-27-2014, 08:02
Lipton Sides has a decent red beans and rice, although it's a little short of beans in my opinion. Cooks as fast as any of the other Lipton rice sides; with a little summer sausage and hot sauce, it's pretty good, but nowhere as near as good as home dried.

Sorry to dredge this thread back up, but as of last night, I really have to withdraw this recommendation. The recipe has changed in the past couple of years. (I'd been using up a stash of the old recipe, and didn't realize). Most of the rice has been replaced with vermicelli, which significantly changes the texture and flavor for the worse. I think they may have dialed the cajun flavor down a notch, too. Instead of decent rice with a few beans, it's a pasty mess, not at all appetizing. I'd mentioned in a later post that Amazon carries them in bulk; the reviews there were my first clue. Got some from the grocery last night to try. Blech!

Odd Man Out
06-27-2014, 09:52
Sorry to dredge this thread back up, but as of last night, I really have to withdraw this recommendation. The recipe has changed in the past couple of years. (I'd been using up a stash of the old recipe, and didn't realize). Most of the rice has been replaced with vermicelli, which significantly changes the texture and flavor for the worse. I think they may have dialed the cajun flavor down a notch, too. Instead of decent rice with a few beans, it's a pasty mess, not at all appetizing. I'd mentioned in a later post that Amazon carries them in bulk; the reviews there were my first clue. Got some from the grocery last night to try. Blech!

Good to know. I always try to avoid those "rice" mixes that stretch it with pasta. Not a good sign.

SunnyWalker
06-27-2014, 09:59
I had a liptons Red Beans n Rice last night with shaved beef jerky in it. Wow was it good.

Venchka
06-27-2014, 15:52
Red beans & vermicelli? :eek:
"The Horror!"
Fail. Definitely fail. :cool:

Thanks for the heads up.

Wayne