Salads on the trail

[Laurie Ann March]

As you all know, I am really big into having salads and sprouts on the trail. Last week Seattle Backpackers Magazine published another of my articles, this time about jicama. I included a slaw recipe with the article and I hope you enjoy it.

Here is the link…

An Inspiration from the Produce Aisle

and here is the recipe…

Jicama, Savoy Cabbage, and Mango Slaw
from Another Fork in the Trail

Dehydration Time: 5–10 hours
Makes 3–4 servings

Jicama (pronounced hick-a-ma) has a slightly nutty and sweet flavor with the texture of a water chestnut. Although it looks like a turnip and is often referred to as “Mexican turnip” or “Mexican Potato,” jicama is actually a legume. I first made this slaw for a backpacking trip along the rugged coastline of Georgian Bay in Ontario, Canada.

2/3 cup carrot, coarsely grated
1 cup jicama, coarsely grated
2/3 cup mango, julienned
1 1/4 cup savoy cabbage, shredded
1/4 cup celery leaves, optional
1/4 cup red onion, minced
1/3 cup red pepper, julienned
2 tablespoons white balsamic or white wine vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt to taste

At Home
Grate the carrot jicama on a coarse grater. Place on dehydrator trays to dry. Dry the mango on a separate dehydrator tray. Shred the cabbage, mix it with the celery leaves, if using, and dry the mixture on separate dehydrator trays lined with parchment paper or an additional mesh screen. Dry the minced red onion and red pepper on separate mesh-lined trays. When all the ingredients are dry, place them together in a ziplock freezer bag. Put the vinegar in a leakproof container and put that in the bag with the cabbage and jicama mixture. Add the olive oil to the oil you will take with you on the trip.

At Camp
Shortly before you plan to eat the salad, rehydrate the dried ingredients with cold water using a ratio of 1 part dried mix to 2/3 part water. Check the salad after a few minutes and add a little more water as necessary. Drain any excess water once the cabbage and jicama have reconstituted and dress with a mixture of 2 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar, 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil. Adjust to suit your taste. Season the slaw with salt and pepper.

Tips
Don’t let the slaw rehydrate in too much water or for too long or it will become soggy.

So, let's open the discussion. What are your favorite trail salads?

[Will Webster]

Sounds really good Laurie Ann.

Here's something I tried for the first time last week. Unfortunately I didn't write down the proportions (that's how I usually cook) but it turned out very well and may serve as an inspiration to others:

Sweet potatoes (peeled, shredded in food processor, steamed, and home dried)
Craisins
Freeze-dried apple and pineapple chips
Cayenne pepper (just a dusting)
Lime juice (a few drops)

Toasted pumpkin seeds
Olive oil

At home I combined the first group of ingredients in a freezer bag, folded the pumpkin seeds in waxed paper, and put the oil in a tiny nalgene. Half an hour or so before lunch I added barely enough water to cover the mixture in the FB. At lunch I drained as much of the remaining water as I could into my mug/bowl, added the oil, mixed as well as I could (trying to make an emulsion), and returned it to the rehydrated mix. I distributed the salad between our bowls, topped with the pumpkin seeds, and enjoyed.

[Jerry Adams]

It doesn't seem like celery leaves or cabage would dry and reconsititue well

Do they taste good, anything like fresh?

[Laurie Ann March]

Will… often I cook like you when I'm not writing books and have had to learn to write down measurements because someone almost always asks me for a recipe. I'll have to try your salad this summer… it's always nice to have more options.

Jerry… the celery leaves impart flavor and react like any herb would (basil for example). The cabbage dries and rehydrates wonderfully. While the photo in that article was done at the last minute and was taken prior to drying… this photo is of another cabbage slaw that was taken post-rehydration when we were in the wilderness.

Chicken and Apple Slaw

Here is the actual canoe trip log and you'll see the photo on Day 3.
Lake Louisa Trip 2006

And this one, which uses fennel instead of cabbage, was also taken after rehydration on an interior trip.

Pear and Fennel Slaw

[Diane Pinkers]

Does the cabbage give off a noxious gas while dehydrating? Last year I tried to dehydrate broccoli slaw, thinking it would be a great trail salad. It stank up the whole kitchen to such a horrible degree I ended up throwing it out. I've been nervous about trying to home dehydrate any cruciferous veggies since. Has anyone else had that problem?

[Laurie Ann March]

I've never had that problem with any of the brassicas.

Then again… my kitchen is in the back of a home built in the 1870's and the addition for the dining room and kitchen are from 1891… so this place, while double brick and pier construction, isn't exactly airtight. When I dry smelly things like curry or seafood I put a fan in the kitchen window facing outwards… it seems to pull the smells out quite nicely.

[Alice Hengst]

I have a question about the excess water once a salad is rehydrated. I made chicken salad for wraps with freeze dried chicken, dehydrated carrots, cukes, and onions. (Plus a few spices, raisins, peanuts, etc.) Everything rehydrated well and I drained the small amount of excess water as well as I could, but once I added the mayo and tried making wraps, it got fairly drippy. In fact it was so messy that I ended up tearing up the tortillas and adding them to the freezer bag with the salad, then eating everything with a spoon.

Is there any good way to dry out the salad ingredients in the bag so they are dry enough to not drip when mayo is added?

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