Cheap dehydrated refried beans?

[vaporjourney]

no, I dont have a dehydrater (may have to get one..they are expensive...)...and was looking for dehydrated refried beans at the store. seemed like a great idea for trips (minus the included gas), and would be nutritious and not empty calories like lots of carb heavy pasta. The only beans I saw that fit the bill were made by 'Fantastic' i think, and cost 3 bucks just for enough for one meal. I know that dehdrated goods are expensive, but no way I could afford to live off of those on a thru hike. Are there other more affordable options, or does everyone dehdrate their own?

[Ewker]

I haven't dehydrated any yet. I buy them already dehydrated from Wild Oats.

[bigcranky]

The Fantastic Foods beans are good, and make a fair amount when rehydrated. More than a meal for me, anyway. They also make dehydrated "taco filling" mix (vegetarian). Buy one box of each, mix together, and put in ziploc freezer bags. You should get 3-4 bags. In camp, add about a cup of boiling water to the bag, mix well, and put in a cozy for a few minutes, then cut off a corner of the bag and squirt this mixture into a warm tortilla. Add a slice or two of cheddar if desired, and maybe a couple of packets of taco sauce you acquired at the last Taco Bell. These are good stuff. You'll want to experiment with amounts before hiking with this, but it's worthwhile.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

See if there is a natural food store or food co-op near you. If not, you can probably get them cheaper on-line in bulk than in the grocery store.

[jlb2012]

I have heard that Mexicali Rose Instant Refried Beans are good but I can't say that they are all that cheap - over $3 for 7 ounces.

[Two Speed]

Refried beans and tortillas are one of my staple dinners. I don't buy the kind that Publix sells as they have an extremely unfortunate effect on me. The dehydrated refried beans that the local organic co-op sells don't have the dreaded "Vulcan Bean" effect.

I'm not sure how you'd work this out for a thru-hike because I'm not aware of a lot of organic co-ops or health food stores in the trail towns I've made it to. I've hiked the AT up to Pearisburg and can't honestly think of that many towns where you could be assured of getting the quality version.

Of course, if you're losing in the World Series of Fart Baseball (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=17391&highlight=Fart+Baseball) this could be a way to even up the score. :p

[sarbar]

The Fantastic are some of the best, but trust me: a box of those beans is huge! They are stick to the ribs food.

This recipe using them will fill you up fast!

Bean & Rice Burritos:

In the first quart freezer bag

1/2 cup instant rice
pinch of salt, if desired
1/4 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp dried onions

In a second quart freezer bag

1/3 cup instant refried beans

Also take 4 tortillas, 2 parmesan cheese pkts, or cheddar cheese, and a salsa or picante pkt per burrito.

In camp: add 1/2 cup boiling water to the rice, and 1/2 cup to the beans. Let sit for 5 minutes. The beans may be thick-add water to thin to liking. Spread the beans on tortillas. Put rice and toppings on top.

Serves 2.

Also good with dried hamburger added, or cheddar cheese sliced on. If you like to actually cook, cook up a fresh bell pepper in oil and add....

[Tipi Walter]

Frontier Herbs is a good source, check it out:http://www.frontiercoop.com/dspCatPct.php?ct=dfmbgs

I've gotten alot of my backpacking food from them over the years. And it's organic.

Another good source is Mary Jane's Farm, she sells in bulk though it's expensive.

[Tipi Walter]

Here you go: http://www.maryjanesfarm.com/pfoshop/AllProducts.asp?dept_id=1

Now the secret with her food is to buy it in bulk, the selection is great and of course meatless and organic. Expensive? Probably not what you're looking for but it's some good eating.

[Outlaw]

Another great source for refried beans (they use pinto beans and come in a couple of different styles) is Adventure Foods http://www.adventurefoods.com/afsearch.asp

[Creek Dancer]

Dehydrating refried beans is very easy and very cheap. I do mine in a dehydrator, but you could probably just as easily use an oven. Maybe someone else here could tell you how to do that. I find that using a can of fat-free refried beans work best for drying.

[Brrrb Oregon]

For variety, keep your eye out for dehydrated black beans, too. I'd make a local search for bulk sources before buying packaged, as suggested.

[Nightwalker]

I have heard that Mexicali Rose Instant Refried Beans are good but I can't say that they are all that cheap - over $3 for 7 ounces. That makes 26 ounces of beans, slightly less than two cans worth. It's all according to how bad you want them, unfortunately. That's a good bit more than the "wet" ones, and strangely enough, it only saves five ounces in water weight*. Can weight is another story... :) The taste ratings, however, are pretty high.

*Info from this site (http://www.beanbible.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=27&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0).


Dehydrating refried beans is very easy and very cheap. I do mine in a dehydrator, but you could probably just as easily use an oven. Maybe someone else here could tell you how to do that. I find that using a can of fat-free refried beans work best for drying.
I use the oven for meats and some other things. Haven't thought about refrieds. Good idea.

My oven goes down to about 150°, which is perfect for cooked ground sausage. If drained pretty thoroughly ahead of time, this method takes out most of the rest of the bad/saturated fat without taking the flavor with it. This is my favorite meat to add to most foods on the trail. (Apologies to all the vegetarians in this crowd.)

All you have to do is fold a bath towel to fit a cookie sheet, spread the sausage on it in a 1" layer, let sit in 150° oven overnight, stir around with your hands in morning to give the under part of the layer some air, turn off oven, let sit for 2-4 hours in the oven and then bag. 50 grams is a very healthy-sized trail serving of this, and it can be put directly in your freezer bag with the rest of the meal. Takes about 10 minutes to rehydrate, which a freezer-bag meal is probably going to require anyway. The water required is negligible. Keeps for >1 month without refrigeration, and longer than I've been able to leave it in the freezer so far. The sign to me that the stuff I'd not frozen was going towards bad was a "funny" smell. It still tasted good, but I quit using it at that time. seemed sensible. :eek:

[Creek Dancer]

I imagine you could use a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, spread the beans over the paper and then dry in the oven. Otherwise, it might be difficult to get the dried beans off the cookie sheet. Just a thought.

The fat-free refried beans dry pretty quickly.

[Grinder]

What can I use in place of parchment paper?? I couldn't find any at the local winn dixie and don't want to make the trip to WalMart for just that.

I have a load of frijoles that need to be used and I'm tired of eating them, so I thought i'd dry them for later.

Do you "paint" ( or squash or plop or?) them onto the paper and than scrape them off when dried?

Thanks in advance
Tom

By the way, per the ingredients label, refried beans are just beans with lard added.

Ordinary Frijoles, served universally as a side dish in Mexico, omit the fat. Two cups of pintos ,water to cover and 1 or 2 tsp of salt. cook til tender and whip with a beater. There are a million fancy recipies out there, but they are for the "ricos" . This recipe gives the taste of the real deal.

[Creek Dancer]

Hmmmmm.... you might be able to use that "Release Tin Foil" that they sell now. I haven't had anything stick to that and you could reuse it. Or maybe just a really good non-stick cookie sheet would work.

Yeah, I would "paint" or spread the stuff as thin as possible for quick drying.

I have seen both regular and fat-free refried beans in the can. I guess the fat-free ones don't have the lard added.

Frijoles on the trail sound really good!!!!

P.S. I haven't done refried beans in the oven. These are suggestions on my part.

[Grinder]

I forgot:
Soak beans overnight. For best results change water once.

(This is where the farts escape. <G>)

Tom

[sarbar]

No parchment paper? Just use non stick pans or lightly mist with Pam, the spread in a uniform layer, and dry at your ovens lowest setting till dry (no wet spots. It helps if you can run your fingers thru it periodically as it gets near being dry :)

[mudhead]

Has anyone tried this brand of refried beans? I prefer Fantastic Food to Taste Adventure (too watery, less value) but seek a blander version. Not really into comino. I can only seem to locate these on Amazon, and would rather not have a whopper load of yuck to use up. Yes, I could just pitch them if they were nasty, but it is not my nature.

[sarbar]

Has anyone tried this brand of refried beans? I prefer Fantastic Food to Taste Adventure (too watery, less value) but seek a blander version. Not really into comino. I can only seem to locate these on Amazon, and would rather not have a whopper load of yuck to use up. Yes, I could just pitch them if they were nasty, but it is not my nature.
I know a couple people who have had them, and rave about the Santa Fe ones on Amazon. Someday I'll get around to ordering them!

[atraildreamer]

I imagine you could use a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, spread the beans over the paper and then dry in the oven. Otherwise, it might be difficult to get the dried beans off the cookie sheet. Just a thought.

The fat-free refried beans dry pretty quickly.

I spray the fruit leather trays for my dehydrator with a light coating of Pam, or any similar cooking spray. This prevents the dried beans from sticking to the trays. This should work with any drying method.

Dr. Gabe Mirkin's website: http://www.drmirkin.com/recipes/recipeListType.html

has a lot of good recipes that are readily adaptable to dehydrating. He suggests bringing the beans to a boil causing the skins to split, then adding a teaspoon of baking soda to the po ( this can be smelly! :eek:) This degasses the beans. Rinse the beans and put them in clean water and let them soak overnight before cooking.

Dr. Mirkin's site http://www.drmirkin.com/ has a wealth of info readily usable by the hiking community.

[atraildreamer]

I imagine you could use a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, spread the beans over the paper and then dry in the oven. Otherwise, it might be difficult to get the dried beans off the cookie sheet. Just a thought.

The fat-free refried beans dry pretty quickly.

I spray the fruit leather trays for my dehydrator with a light coating of Pam, or any similar cooking spray. This prevents the dried beans from sticking to the trays. This should work with any drying method.

Dr. Gabe Mirkin's website: http://www.drmirkin.com/recipes/recipeListType.html

has a lot of good recipes that are readily adaptable to dehydrating. He suggests bringing the beans to a boil causing the skins to split, then adding a teaspoon of baking soda to the pot ( this can be smelly! :eek:) This degasses the beans. Rinse the beans and put them in clean water and let them soak overnight before cooking.

Dr. Mirkin's site http://www.drmirkin.com/ has a wealth of info readily usable by the hiking community.

[lonehiker]

A local grocery store (Albertsons) just had a sale on cans of Taco Bell Brand refried beans. 10 for $10. I bought the fat free type and dehydrated them using my dehydrator. Dried three cans for appx 8 hours (might have been overkill) then powdered using a coffee grinder. End result was appx. 12 oz for $3. Rehydrated a portion of them right away for quality control and (aside from needing to tweek the amount of water to rehydrate) I was pleasantly surprised with how good they tasted.

One thing that I will do differently next time is to buy more of the fruit leather trays. I only had one so for the other two trays I tried plastic wrap and tin foil. The fruit tray dried quicker and more evenly.

[sarbar]

Lonehiker: parchment paper cut to fit works great for lining, and can often be reused. Cheaper than the leather liners!