Back in 2016, Backpacker Magazine published a trio of ramen recipes that were poorly written (yes, I know that sounds pompous, but it is true For some reason, Backpacker Magazine was never known for writing recipes well, which I always found odd. They never had a set way of doing things, so it came down to the author of the article in how it was presented. I decided to see if I could make the recipes more straightforward to understand (the directions were oddly lacking) and also improve the results. (I have written for Backpacker before, but not recipes.) I firmly believe that a recipe should have its directions directly below the ingredients. It just makes it easier to follow. I also used freeze-dried ingredients instead of dehydrated ones, where applicable, as they produce a better meal. And I’d argue that these are all single-serving meals, not 1-2 as the original claims. Hiking gets you hungry. These are not tiny servings.
I will be making all the recipes in the article in a series.
The Pasta Raminara recipe called for half a cup of tomato powder, which gave the recipe a very overpowering flavor. Tomato powder is very strongly flavored. So I cut it in half. I also used freeze-dried ground beef instead of dehydrated hamburger gravel, and a swirl of olive oil added into the sauce to make it smoother tasting.
This recipe uses a fancy version of ramen as the base. Blue Dragon Cantonese Egg Noodles, which come in a multi-pack. They are not fried like most ramen, so they taste fresher – like real pasta, but quick cooking. However, you can swap in ramen (tossing the flavor packet); these Cantonese egg noodles are so much superior that they are worth sourcing.
I can often find Blue Dragon products in the Asian section of grocery stores. Chuka Soba (chow mein) noodles would also work (half a package) if avoiding fried ramen.
Each package has 6 “nests” of noodles. So 6 meals, making the cost not so bad.
This recipe had my oldest happy – beef-studded spaghetti? One of his favorite dishes.
Pasta Raminara
Ingredients:
- 1 nest of egg noodles or 3-ounce brick ramen
- ½ cup freeze-dried ground beef
- ¼ cup tomato powder
- 1 Tbsp dried onion
- 1 Tbsp shelf-stable Parmesan cheese
- ¼ tsp each: dried basil, granulated garlic, dried parsley, and granulated sugar
Also take:
At Home:
Pack the ground beef through the cheese in a small zip-top bag. Pack the noodles separately. Tuck the oil packet in with it.
One Pot Method:
Add 2 cups of water and the oil to a pot. Sprinkle in the sauce. Bring to a boil. Add in the noodles. Cover tightly, take off the stove, and let sit for 15 minutes.
In cooler temperatures or at high altitude, use a pot cozy to insulate.
Stir well, sprinkle on more cheese if desired.
Serves 1.
Notes:
In the original recipe, it called for half a cup of tomato powder, which was a LOT. I tried it, and felt the flavor of the tomato was too overwhelming, so I used less for a milder sauce.
~Sarah