Dehydrated Beef Curry – Making Dehydrated Meals for Camping

Dehydrated beef curry is one of our favorite recipes made with all dehydrated ingredients that we talk about here on the Dehydrator Chef website. We love curry, and we have a lot of curry recipes to share.

Beef curry is a versatile dish you can customize to suit your preferences. Of course, you can adjust the level of spiciness. Variations might include adding more homemade dehydrated ingredients such as mixed vegetables and spices.

Overall, beef curry is a hearty and satisfying dish with a tasty blend of ingredients, aromatic spices, and a rich, flavorful sauce.

So, let’s get started.

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Our patience has been rewarded. We have a big bowl of beef curry to chow down on. This is some good stuff. Next time, we will add a bit more water for more curry gravy. But this is some gosh darn good stuff!

Table of Contents

Dehydrated Beef Curry Recipe

Our beef curry recipe is made with easy-to-find, easily dehydrated ingredients.

This beef curry recipe is also a great meal option for individuals interested in emergency preparedness and self-sufficiency and might find dry food recipes a helpful alternative.

Supplies and Tools Needed for Dehydrated Beef Curry

  • Several 1-quart zip-top bags
  • Heavy-duty paper towels
  • Labeling materials such as masking tape and waterproof all-weather pen
  • Camp cookware and dinnerware

Look for lightweight, durable cookware that is compatible with your camping stove or heat source. Stainless steel or titanium cookware is popular for camping due to its durability and heat distribution. 

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The ingredients needed for our dehydrated beef curry recipe. From the lower left, clockwise, we have:
1) the spices, garlic powder, cumin powder, kosher salt, dehydrated beef bouillon (optional), and the star of the show, curry powder
2) dehydrated white rice, or dehydrated brown rice
3) dehydrated ground beef
4) dehydrated jalapeno peppers, crushed
5) dehydrated spinach
6) dehydrated onion flakes
7) dehydrated cooked hash brown potatoes

Dehydrated Beef Curry Dry Ingredients

You will have approximately 140 grams of dry mix for this single-serving recipe.

Dehydrated Beef Curry Dry Ingredient Notes

Measuring out 10 grams of dehydrated RoTel tomatoes by volume is about 1/4 cup.  There is a lot of air space between the dehydrated tomato pieces.

At-Home Preparation

Combine all the dry ingredients into a food-safe 1-quart quality name-brand zip-top bag for best storage results. The sharp edges of dehydrated ingredients could cause micro-punctures in lesser-quality zip-top plastic bags.

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A single serving of our beef curry dry mix in a quality name-brand zip-top bag. We’ll be making several of these single-serving bags today until we run out of ingredients.

Compared to the local big box stores, Amazon has the best prices for the name-brand 1-quart zip-top bags.  So says the 20,000 plus Amazon customer reviewers who took the time to leave feedback. The rough edges and sharp ends of homemade dehydrated ingredients very often compromise generic zip-top bags. Quality zip-top bags are a necessity when making dehydrated meals for camping.

Be sure to include a short note with the name of the dish and detailed preparation instructions. We have included detailed preparation instructions at the end of this page.

Optimize Food Protection for Storage and Travel

Double bagging, using two zip-top bags with a separator, is an option to help guard against punctures, leaks, and water penetration and to protect the food’s integrity. This way, it remains viable in the field or pantry storage.

The Scott Shop towels brand makes an excellent bag separator. These multipurpose paper towels are thicker than the average heavy-duty paper towel. As a multitasker, repurpose these towels for the after-meal cleanup activities.

These heavy-duty paper towels have over 11,000 Amazon customer reviews with an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars, which is evidence of a great product. Check them out here. You can find them at your local big-box megamart automotive department.

In the Field Preparation

Empty the contents of the zip-top bag into a suitable-sized cooking pot. 

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We have emptied the beef curry dry mix into our 700mL cooking pot. We made several pouches and we had an extra, so we are having it for lunch on a rainy day so we don’t need to drive anywhere. Practice making these dehydrated camping meal recipes at home before preparing them for the first time out in the field so you know what to expect.

Measure in enough water to cover the dry ingredients. Then add a tad bit more water. Stir to mix thoroughly. Cover, and let the dry ingredients hydrate for at least five minutes. Stir several times, and add more water if needed to keep the ingredients covered and well-saturated.

beef curry dry ingredients in a cooking pot  | dehydrated beef curry | making dehydrated meals for camping | homemade dehydrated meal recipes | make your own dehydrated camping food | homemade dehydrated camping meals | homemade dehydrated backpacking meals
We added just enough water to cover the beef curry dry mix ingredients and gave everything a good stir for a thorough mix. We’ll let it hydrate for at least five minutes, stirring it all every minute or so. Top off the water as it gets absorbed into the dry mix.

The next step is to add a bit more water; this part is more art than it is science. Depending on your cooking pot’s size and style, you’ll need to gauge how much additional water to add to the hydrated mix. The mix should remain fully covered with water.

beef curry after 5 minutes of hydration and before any more water added | dehydrated beef curry | making dehydrated meals for camping | homemade dehydrated meal recipes | make your own dehydrated camping food | homemade dehydrated camping meals | homemade dehydrated backpacking meals
The beef curry dry mix has hydrated for five or so minutes, and we topped it off with some more water. The hydrating ingredients will continue to absorb the liquid. We are metering in the water a bit at a time so it doesn’t end up too dry or soupy. It might look like we have added too much water, but we have not.

So why not add all of the water at once? You certainly can, but we are metering in the water, so we don’t end up with a soupy or dry product.

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Our collection of stainless-steel cooking pots for the pack. We’re camping kitchen cookware junkies. We have others, but for the pack, we’ll grab one of these.

Practice these Dehydrator Chef homemade dehydrated camping meal recipes at home several times with the very same outdoor kitchen gear used in the field or at the campsite. This approach lets you practice your skills to know what to expect and where to adapt.

Bring the hydrating mix to a boil on your cooking stove and over medium flame, frequently stirring to mix. After coming to a boil, if your stove is capable of a low-heat simmer, turn the flame down to reduce the chance of burning.

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We are practicing our technique at home today. It’s windy and raining with a nor’easter heading up the coast. Instead of heading out, we’re spending quality time at home practicing with the camping gear.

After two or more minutes of simmering, stirring, and mixing the ingredients, turn off the stove and move the pot into an insulated wrap or cozy to rest and hydrate for at least 15 to 20 minutes more for the flavors to blend and the ingredients to fully reconstitute.

beef curry after 20 minutes of resting |  dehydrated beef curry | making dehydrated meals for camping | homemade dehydrated meal recipes | make your own dehydrated camping food | homemade dehydrated camping meals | homemade dehydrated backpacking meals
The beef curry after 20 minutes of resting in a cozy. All of the ingredients have hydrated. We probably could have added a tad bit more water this time around. Consistent results are why we practice at home before preparing these homemade dehydrated camping meals for the first time out in the field.

Add any remaining seasonings like kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, or some hot sauce for added spice.

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Collect some of those spice and hot sauce packet offerings from your fast-food eats to enhance your homemade camping food meals. 

Dehydrated Beef Curry Detailed Preparation Instructions

Empty the dehydrated beef curry dry mix contents of the zip-top bag into your cooking pot.

Pour in enough water to cover the dry mix, then add a tad bit more.

Cover, and let the dry ingredients hydrate in your camp cookware for a minimum of 5 minutes. Stirring all of the way to the bottom every now and again. Make sure the mix stays covered and well-saturated with water.

Next, on your cooking stove and over a medium flame, bring the mix to a boil, stirring frequently, all the way to the bottom of the cooking pot. If your stove will simmer, turn the heat down to a simmer after bringing it to a boil.

After two or more minutes of cooking, simmering, and ingredient mixing, turn off the stove and move the pot into an insulated wrap or cozy to rest and hydrate for 15 to 20 minutes more or until your preference for doneness.

Drizzle in any olive or avocado oil, and stir to mix.

Add any remaining seasonings like kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, or some hot sauce for added spice.

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