If you’re looking for a hearty, comforting meal to try out on your next backpacking trip, Corned Beef & Cabbage might be just the dish you need. I recently revisited this classic recipe after making it years ago, and while it turned out delicious, I decided to take it one step further by turning the leftovers into a freeze-dried backpacking meal.

Corned Beef & Cabbage | Freeze-Dried Backpacking Meal Recipe

Ingredients

6 Quart Crockpot
3 to 4 lbs corned beef brisket, uncooked with spice packet
1 onion, chopped into chunks
3 garlic cloves, sliced
2 bay leaves
2.5 to 3 cups of water
2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, quartered Make sure these are cut into thicker pieces as opposed to smaller ones. If they’re too small, they will cook down to mush.
2 large carrots, chopped Make sure these are cut into thicker pieces as opposed to smaller ones. If they’re too small, they will cook down to mush.
1 small head of green cabbage, cut into wedges

Cooking Instructions

  • Add onion to the bottom of the Crockpot. Top with corned beef and seasoning packet.
  • Pour water into Crockpot until it just about covered the corned beef. Add garlic and bay leaves
  • Cook on low 8 to 10 hours
  • After the initial 3 hours, add potatoes and carrots to the Crockpot
  • Two hours before serving, add cabbage wedges to the Crockpot
  • Remove corned beef from the Crockpot and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with potatoes, carrots and cabbage

1 Serving = 2 Cups

Freeze-Drying Instructions

On a freeze dryer tray, add 1 (1 cup) serving of Corned Beef & Cabbage into a thin layer and spread it evenly over the tray.

Load the trays into the freeze dryer, start the batch and wait anywhere from 20 to 24 hours for the batch to be complete.

After the batch has been completed, remove the food trays from the freeze dryer and package up each meal into a single serving bag.

1 Serving = 2 Cups

Weight Before Freeze Drying: 14.7 ounces
Weight After Freeze Drying: 3.2 ounces

I use the Harvest Right Home Pro Freeze Dryer (Medium) with the Premier Industrial Pump. Click here for more details about my freeze dryer.

Rehydrating in the Backcountry

  • Transfer the food into a food safe container that can withstand boiling water like a mylar bag, Stasher bag or a quart-sized Ziploc Freezer bag
  • Boil water
  • Add just enough water to cover the food inside the bag. I don’t have exact measurements. I usually just eyeball this for each meal. When adding water, less is more to avoid the meal getting too soupy.
  • Stir and close the bag
  • Add food bag into an insulated food pouch or food cozy
  • Let food rehydrate for 10-12 minutes
  • Remove the bag from the insulated food pouch (of food cozy) and stir
  • Serve and enjoy!

1 Serving = 2 Cups of Corned Beef & Cabbage
592 calories per serving
39 grams of protein
Cost Per Serving: $4.90

GROCERY STORE BACKPACKING FOOD | MORE Cheap & Easy DIY Freeze-Dried Backpacking Meal Ideas

Learn how to make your own backpacking meals with some of other favorite grocery store backpacking meal recipes:

Beef Stroganoff
Chicken & Dumplings
Biscuits & Gravy (with Homemade Biscuits)
Chili & Cornbread
Hamburger Pie
Chicken Fajitas & Guacamole
Beef Stew

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