Salmon chowder is a creamy delight anytime, but especially when camping in colder temps. This recipe uses canned salmon and shredded potatoes that you dehydrate at home, and adds instant mashed potatoes for a thick and creamy chowder.

Ingredients

Makes 1 serving

• 3/4 cup instant mashed potatoes (recommend Bob’s Red Mill brand since it doesn’t have any preservatives or extra ingredients)
• 1/4 cup shredded potatoes, dehydrated
• 1/4 cup canned salmon, dehydrated
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream powder (whole milk powder also works for this recipe, but I don’t recommend using nonfat milk powder)
• 1 tablespoon butter powder
• 1 tablespoon green onions, dehydrated
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika

At home

This recipe includes three ingredients that need to be dehydrated at home: canned salmon, shredded potatoes, and green onions.

• salmon: to dehydrate salmon, purchase a pouch or can of salmon without bones and spread thinly on dehydrator trays. If your dehydrator has temperature controls, set it to 160 degrees and dehydrate until fully dried. The time required to dehydrate depends on the type of dehydrator, room temperature and humidity. It took me about 6 hours to dehydrate 1 can of salmon.
• shredded potatoes: the potatoes need to be cooked whole first (I used an Instant Pot, which only takes 5 minutes on high pressure), then shredded. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can cut the potatoes into half and boil in water until just done. To shred, I used a box grater’s largest grates. After shredding, spread in a thin layer on dehydrator trays and dehydrate at 135 degrees until fully dried.
• green onions: chop fresh green onions and spread in a thin layer on dehydrator trays. Dehydrate until fully dried. There should be no flexibility or dampness when fully dried.

Add all ingredients to a plastic bag for storage. I vacuum seal most of my meals and store in the freezer until I’m ready to go on a trip.

At camp

Empty the contents into your backpacking pot and add 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, stir and let simmer for 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit for about 10 minutes to fully rehydrate the salmon and shredded potatoes. If needed, reheat before eating.

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