Dehydrated Ground Beef and Cabbage – Making Dehydrated Meals for Camping

 
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Today, we are making dehydrated ground beef and cabbage.  This comfort food recipe is filling, really tasty, easy to make, and it rehydrates well.

Using our Dehydrator Chef approach, we have dehydrated all of the ingredients in advance to build out our recipe.  The ingredients have all been optimized to reconstitute in a reasonable period.  So, you’ll have a hot, satisfying meal in less than 30 minutes out in the field or at the campsite.

So, let’s get started.

This ground beef and cabbage recipe is a flavorful addition to your stock of dehydrated meals for camping. It features these dehydrated ingredients you can make at home and easy-to-find seasonings, ground beef crumbles, cabbage, and onion, combined with RoTel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and a blend of Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Optional bouillon powder and jalapeno peppers provide customizable depth and heat. Lightweight and shelf-stable, it’s one of the best dehydrated meals and ready to eat in 30 minutes or less.
This ground beef and cabbage recipe is a flavorful addition to your stock of dehydrated meals for camping. It features these dehydrated ingredients you can make at home and easy-to-find seasonings, ground beef crumbles, cabbage, and onion, combined with RoTel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and a blend of Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Optional bouillon powder and jalapeno peppers provide customizable depth and heat. Lightweight and shelf-stable, it’s one of the best dehydrated meals and ready to eat in 30 minutes or less.

Table of Contents

Dehydrated Ground Beef and Cabbage Recipe

Our ground beef and cabbage recipe is a filling camping comfort food.  We use ingredients that are easy to source, and you can dehydrate at home yourself.

This 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 to other expensive options.

This ground beef and cabbage recipe is a great meal option for those interested in emergency preparedness and self-sufficiency. Some people might find dehydrated food recipes to be a helpful and more affordable alternative to expensive options like freeze-dried food. However, it’s important to note that freeze-dried food will last much longer in storage compared to dehydrated food.

Supplies and Tools needed for this Dehydrated Camping Meal Recipe

Supplies and tools are minimal for making our dehydrated ground beef and cabbage, and nothing special or out of the ordinary is needed.

  • Several 1-quart zip-top bags
  • Heavy-duty paper towels
  • Labeling material (masking tape and a waterproof all-weather pen)
  • Small food-safe leak-proof container (optional)

Dry Ingredients

This recipe makes one serving approximately 150 grams of dry mix.  Of course, you can adjust the ingredients as you wish.

The ground beef and cabbage dehydrated ingredients, starting clockwise from the lower left: 1) Dehydrated onions, 2) dehydrated ground beef crumbles, 3) dehydrated cabbage, 4) dehydrated jalapeno pepper slices (optional), dehydrated RoTel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, spices, dehydrated bouillon powder (optional).
Dehydrated ground beef and cabbage dry ingredients, starting clockwise from the lower left.
1) Dehydrated onions
2) Dehydrated ground beef crumbles
3) Dehydrated cabbage
4) Dehydrated jalapeno pepper slices (optional)
5) Dehydrated RoTel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
6) Spices
7) Dehydrated bouillon powder (optional)

Dehydrated Ground Beef and Cabbage Wet Ingredients

  • A quality oil, such as avocado or olive oil, in a leak-proof container (optional)

Ingredient Notes

We recommend making and then trying this homemade dehydrated camping meal recipe several times at home before preparing it for the first time in the field so you will know what to expect. Armed with this experience, you can dial in the spices how you like and add or subtract any of the other ingredients. Don’t depend on untested gear or untested recipes.

At-Home Preparation

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

Before placing this 1-quart zip-top bag containing all of the dry ingredients into our food pantry, we took the time to label it. The label is particularly important as it helps us keep track of our food rotation, ensuring that we use the older items first before moving on to the newer ones. A first-in, first-out rotation helps us to use items that have been on the shelf the longest, so we're using the oldest food first. This method helps us maintain the integrity of dehydrated products.
Before placing this 1-quart zip-top bag containing all of the dry ingredients into our food pantry, we took the time to label it. The label is particularly important as it helps us keep track of our food rotation, ensuring that we use the older items first before moving on to the newer ones. A first-in, first-out rotation helps us to use items that have been on the shelf the longest, so we’re using the oldest food first. This method helps us maintain the integrity of dehydrated products.

For added durability, double bagging, using two zip-top bags with a separator, is an option that helps guard against punctures, leaks, and water penetration and protects the food’s integrity. Hence, it remains viable in the field or pantry storage.

These Scott brand heavy-duty paper towels help protect your homemade dehydrated camping food meal packets. The rough edges and sharp ends of dehydrated foods very often compromise lesser-quality zip-top bags. Wrapping the inner zip-top bag with a few heavy-duty paper towels before placing it in the outer zip-top bag helps to guard against micro-punctures that may cause leaks and water penetration. This way, the food packets remain viable in the field or pantry storage.
These Scott brand heavy-duty paper towels help protect your homemade dehydrated camping food meal packets. The rough edges and sharp ends of dehydrated foods very often compromise lesser-quality zip-top bags. Wrapping the inner zip-top bag with a few heavy-duty paper towels before placing it in the outer zip-top bag helps to guard against micro-punctures that may cause leaks and water penetration. This way, the food packets remain viable in the field or pantry storage.

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. You may be able to find them at your local big-box megamart automotive department.

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. 

Compared to the local big box stores, Amazon has the best prices for the Ziploc 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 dehydrated foods very often compromise generic zip-top bags. Quality zip-top bags are a necessity when making dehydrated meals for camping.

Need another reason to buy quality name-brand Ziploc bags? An analysis commissioned by the Mamavation website showed that the majority of plastic sandwich bags sold in the U.S. contain high levels of toxic PFAS, also known as forever chemicals. Ziploc was one brand that contained no detectable levels of forever chemicals.

Be sure to include a short note with the name of the dish and detailed preparation instructions. This homemade dehydrated camping meal will look just like all others in your pack. We have included printable and detailed preparation instructions near the end of this page.

A bit of healthy cooking fat, such as olive or avocado oil added to the meal after cooking will significantly enhance the flavor. Fats concentrate the flavors in food. It gives the food a smooth and creamy texture that many of us crave. Since fat gives us more energy than proteins or carbohydrates, it makes us feel full faster, and it makes us feel content. Proteins and carbohydrates provide about four calories per gram, while fats provide nine calories per gram. From the perspective of hungry hikers and campers, fat is definitely on the menu.

In the Field Preparation

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

We've completed the first step by placing the dry ingredients into the cooking pot. Next, we need to add enough water to cover everything, plus a little extra because some water will be absorbed. It's important to keep everything well saturated with water. Don't forget to stir frequently while allowing everything to reconstitute for at least five minutes.
We’ve completed the first step by placing the dry ingredients into the cooking pot. Next, we need to add enough water to cover everything, plus a little extra because some water will be absorbed. It’s important to keep everything well saturated with water. Don’t forget to stir frequently while allowing everything to reconstitute for at least five minutes.

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 several minutes. Stir several times, and add more water if needed to keep all ingredients covered and well-saturated with water.

We added just enough water to cover the dry ingredients, and we're giving everything a good stir to thoroughly mix. Next, we'll add in just a bit more water because the dry ingredients will begin to absorb it. Add water a bit at a time so the mix doesn't get soupy. We'll let the ingredients reconstitute for a minimum of five minutes.
We added just enough water to cover the dry ingredients, and we’re giving everything a good stir to thoroughly mix. Next, we’ll add in just a bit more water because the dry ingredients will begin to absorb it. Add water a bit at a time so the mix doesn’t get soupy. We’ll let the ingredients reconstitute for a minimum of five minutes.

I’ll go with a minimum of 5 minutes of soaking time to allow the dry ingredients to reconstitute.  Five minutes is a good rule of thumb for our collection of Dehydrator Chef recipes.

So why not add all the water at once?  You certainly can, but we are metering in the water, so we don’t end up with a too-dry or a too-soupy product.  Adding water in smaller amounts seems to work best for our Dehydrator Chef recipes.

One last thing: a little too much water is better than not enough water.  Sure, dinner might be a little bit soupy; however, soupy is better than hard and crunchy.  Lastly, soupy helps prevent burning.  So, no worries here.

Next, on your cooking stove and over medium flame, bring the hydrating mix to a boil, frequently stirring frequently 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.

As the ground beef and cabbage mixture simmers on the stove, we have just given it another stir. Stirring the mixture frequently is important to ensure that the ingredients are well-mixed and to prevent any burning from occurring.
As the ground beef and cabbage mixture simmers on the stove, we have just given it another stir. Stirring the mixture frequently is important to ensure that the ingredients are well-mixed and to prevent any burning from occurring.

After simmering for at least two minutes while stirring and mixing the ingredients, turn off the stove. Then, transfer the pot into an insulated wrap or cozy. Let it rest, hydrate, and steam for an additional 15 to 20 minutes. This will allow the flavors to blend and the ingredients to fully reconstitute.

After resting for 20 minutes, the ground beef and cabbage is done. After a day spent on the water canoeing and fishing, we're hungry and ready to eat. Can you smell that? It smells good!
After resting for 20 minutes, the ground beef and cabbage is done. After a day spent on the water canoeing and fishing, we’re hungry and ready to eat. Can you smell that? It smells good!

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. 

Dehydrated Ground Beef and Cabbage Nutrition Information

Nutrition information is only an estimate. The nutrition information of this recipe may differ depending on the ingredients you use.

Approximate Serving Size: 150 grams | Calories: 575kcal | Total Fat: 10g, | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 78mg | Sodium: 363mg | Carbohydrate: 87g | Dietary Fiber: 25g | Sugar: 37 g | Protein: 42g

This ground beef and cabbage recipe is a flavorful addition to your stock of dehydrated meals for camping. It features these dehydrated ingredients you can make at home and easy-to-find seasonings, ground beef crumbles, cabbage, and onion, combined with RoTel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and a blend of Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Optional bouillon powder and jalapeno peppers provide customizable depth and heat. Lightweight and shelf-stable, it’s one of the best dehydrated meals and ready to eat in 30 minutes or less.

Dehydrated Ground Beef and Cabbage

Dehydrator Chef
Do you want a no-fuss meal when you’re out in the field? Try this dehydrated ground beef and cabbage recipe. This flavorful dish brings together savory ground beef, cabbage, and zesty RoTel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, all seasoned with garlic, Italian herbs, and just the right amount of spice. A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes adds a nice kick, and if you want more heat, jalapeno slices or chipotle peppers in adobo sauce are a nice addition. With the option of adding a bouillon powder for extra depth, this meal is satisfying and easy to prepare.
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Print Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Dehydrated Camping Meal
Cuisine Backpacking, Camping, Hiking
Servings 1
Calories 575 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients
  

Dry Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

  • quality cooking oil, such as avocado or olive oil (stored in a leak-proof container)

Instructions
 

At Home Preparation

  • Add the dry ingredients to a food-safe 1-quart quality name-brand zip-top bag. Label the zip-top with the contents and the date.
    50 grams dehydrated ground beef crumbles, 50 grams dehydrated cabbage, 15 grams dehydrated onion, 1 tablespoon bouillon powder, 3 grams dehydrated jalapeno pepper slices, 3 grams dehydrated chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
    homemade dehydrated ground beef and cabbage meal in a 1-quart zip-top bag
  • Store the leak-proof container of cooking oil in your cooking pot or with your camp kitchen spices and condiment packets.
    quality cooking oil, such as avocado or olive oil

Packaging

  • Wrap the zip-top bag with a heavy-duty paper towel to help guard against punctures, leaks, and water penetration due to the sharp edges of the dehydrated ingredients and to protect the food's integrity. This way, it remains viable in the field or pantry storage.
  • Add the paper towel wrapped dry mix bag to the last food-safe 1-quart quality name-brand zip-top bag and label it with the contents and the date.

In the Field Preparation

  • Empty the dry mix contents of the zip-top bag into a suitable-sized cooking pot. 
    dehydrated ground beef and cabbage dry ingredients in our cooking pot
  • Add 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 a minimum of five minutes.
    adding water to the dehydrated ground beef and cabbage in our cooking pot
  • Next, on your cooking stove and over medium flame, bring the hydrating mix to a boil, frequently stirring to mix. After coming to a boil, turn the flame down to a simmer to reduce the chance of burning.
    dehydrated ground beef and cabbage simmering on the backpacking stove for two minutes
  • After two or more minutes of simmering and stirring, turn off the stove and move the pot into an insulated wrap or cozy to rest, hydrate, and steam for 15 to 20 minutes or more for the flavors to blend and the ingredients to fully reconstitute.
  • If desired, add a bit of the healthy cooking oil from the leak-proof container. Stir to combine.
    quality cooking oil, such as avocado or olive oil
    dehydrated ground beef and cabbage cooked and ready to eat in only 30 minutes

Notes

Canned ingredient used in this recipe may include added salt. It is assumed that some, but not all, of the sodium content would be drained away with the canning liquid when processed for dehydration. So the actual sodium may be less than shown above.
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 575kcalCarbohydrates: 87gProtein: 42gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 363mgFiber: 25gSugar: 37g

Nutrition information is only an estimate and may differ depending on the ingredients you use.

Keywords dehydrated camping meal recipes, dehydrated ground beef and cabbage, homemade dehydrated camping meals, make your own dehydrated meals, recipes using dehydrated food
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Dehydrated Ground Beef and Cabbage Preperation Instructions

Include these detailed preparation instructions with your dehydrated meal for use in the field or at the campsite.
Active Time30 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Dehydrated Camping Meal
Cuisine: Backpacking, Camping, Hiking
Keyword: dehydrated camping meal recipes, dehydrated ground beef and cabbage, make your own dehydrated meals, recipes using dehydrated food
Yield: 1
Author: Dehydrator Chef

Equipment

  • camp kitchen equipment (including camping stove, cooking pot, utensils, etc.)

Materials

Instructions

  • Empty the dehydrated ground beef and cabbage 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 at least five minutes.  Stir all of the way to the bottom now and again. Add more water if the hydrating mix gets too dry.
  • Next, on your cooking stove and over a medium flame, bring the slurry to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent burning.
  • After bringing the slurry to a boil, turn the stove down to a low simmer for two minutes.
  • After two or more minutes of simmering and stirring, turn off the stove and move the pot into an insulated wrap or cozy to rest and hydrate for 15 to 20 minutes or more for the flavors to blend and the ingredients to fully reconstitute.
  • Finally, after the ground beef and cabbage have rested for 15 to 20 minutes, add some of the optional cooking oil and stir to mix. Enjoy!
    dehydrated ground beef and cabbage cooked and ready to eat in only 30 minutes

Notes

Repurpose the heavy-duty paper towels for the after-meal cleanup activities.

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