Let’s make eating the highlight of the day!

Here is a list of over 50 tried and trusted recipes suitable for preparing on an overnight walk, with the food carried in the pack. No fresh meat, chicken or fish are included in recipes because of their vulnerability to contamination.

Quantities of ingredients in recipes are on the assumption that bushwalkers are usually hungry on a walk. Amounts may need to be varied depending on the nature of the trip or appetites of the walkers.

Index

• Potato-Based Meals
• Pasta-Based Meals
• Noodle-Based Meals
• Rice & Burghul-Based Meals
• Bread-Based Meals
• Couscous-Based Meals
• Desserts
• Recipes for Campfires
• 19 More Recipes from Adelaide Uni Mountain Club

2025 editor’s comments are in italics. Unless stated otherwise, ingredients are still available in Australia and amounts serve one. In addition to regular supermarkets, single dehydrated ingredients are also available via manufacturers such as SPHiker, Back Country Cuisine, Campers Pantry, Offgrid and others. Sources are listed at the end.

Also Read: Good Protein Sources for Hiking | Menu Ideas From Our Experienced Members

Recipes Suitable For Gas Stoves

SIERRA’S PORRIDGE 

At home, pack in a zip lock bag:

• ⅓ cup powdered milk
• ½ – 1 cup instant oats
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar (or to taste)
• Pinch of salt (optional)
• ¼ cup chopped fruit, nuts, etc. (optional)

In camp, put the cereal mix in a cup or bowl and add twice as much boiling water (add extra if you have added fruit.) Stir well, cover, let stand 10 minutes while you enjoy something hot to drink or take down your tent. Using rolled oats will give greater texture if you’re prepared to wait a little longer. Add more hot water if the cereal is too thick.

Potato-Based Meals

ABW QUICK KABANA STEW

Almost effortless.

• Kabana (or chorizo?)
• Oil, butter or margarine 
• Dried peas, corn or beans
• Onion flakes
• Instant mashed potatoes

Bring billy of water to boil. Add chopped up kabana, oil (or butter or margarine), and dried vegetables. Add potato to thicken and stir. Eat out of billy.

SIERRA’S SUPERIOR SPUDS

Great when the weather is bad or when you’re so tired that even boiling water is a chore! Combine in a zip lock bag at home:

• ½ cup instant potato flakes
• 1 tablespoon instant dry milk
• Salt and pepper, garlic powder or chili powder to taste
• Optional goodies to pack separately:

• Olive oil or butter
• ¼ cup precooked crumbled bacon
• Chunks of salami or beef sticks
• ¼ cup shredded Parmesan or cheddar cheese

Put all ingredients (except spices) in your bowl and pour in ½ cup boiling water. Stir until just moist. Let stand 30-60 seconds. Sprinkle on spices and enjoy.

ABW SMOKED FISH AND PARSLEY SAUCE WITH VEGIES

• 1 or 2 pieces smoked fish (from continental deli in sealed plastic packets)
• 1 packet of parsley sauce mix (granules are still available from the UK, or you can use the Gravox liquid sachet)
• 1 packet of peas and carrots
• 1 handful of Deb instant mashed potato

If using granules, make up ½ cup of milk and blend in contents of parsley sauce sachet and then add ½ cup of water. Bring to boil stirring continuously and simmer for 2 minutes. Boil up peas and carrots and drain off water which can be used to make up the Deb. Lightly fry smoked fish, just enough to heat up. Pour parsley sauce over and add vegies.

Pasta-Based Meals

Thanks to Jeannie for pointing out that you can also buy pasta made from soybeans, chickpeas, lentils or mixed pulses which cooks faster and is gluten free.

ABW SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE

Serves 2

• 200 grams spaghetti
• Large handful of freeze-dried minced beef (TVP, olive oil and a stock cube would be a vego alternative)
• Tomato paste
• Dried onion or onion flakes 
• Dried mushroom
• Parmesan Cheese
• Spices if desired

Soak minced beef, onion and mushrooms (if using TVP, you can do this step last with all ingredients using the hot drained pasta water). Simmer mince mixture for 5 minutes and add tomato paste. Cook spaghetti and drain. Add mince (or TVP) mixture. Top with large amounts of parmesan cheese.

ABW SPAGHETTI METTWURST

Serves 2

• 200 gms spaghetti
• 40 gms mettwurst
• ½ handful dried onion
• Parmesan cheese
• Oregano

Soak onion. Fry chopped up mettwurst. Cook spaghetti and drain. Add mettwurst and onion (perhaps also oil and tomato paste) to spaghetti and mix. Top with parmesan cheese and oregano.

ABW PASTA & CHEESE SAUCE

Serves 2.

• 200 gms of uncooked spaghetti
• 100 gms mettwurst
• 20 gms (½ handful) dried mushrooms
• 20 gms (½ handful) dried onions
• 1 tablespoon milk powder
• 1 tablespoon cornflour
• 1 tablespoon grated cheese 
• small amount of oil or butter for frying

Put mushrooms and onion in a cup and add water to rehydrate. Place chopped mettwurst in a billy and fry in a small amount of butter. Add mushrooms and onions and fry until cooked. Meanwhile add the milk powder to a cup of water and then add the cornflour. Add this mixture to the billy and then add the grated or chopped cheese. Stir until cheese melts and mixture becomes thick. Remove from stove. Bring about 1 litre of water to the boil and add spaghetti, cook until al-dente. When spaghetti is cooked remove from stove and reheat sauce. Drain spaghetti, place in bowl and pour cheese sauce over spaghetti.

Variation: try bacon if you can keep it fresh or bacon-flavoured bits which even come in a vegan variety.

VEGAN ‘MAC AND CHEESE’

Adaptation of a popular internet recipe. Suggested amounts of pasta + sauce are around 150g + 100g per person. Blend the cashews to a fine consistency at home and mix all the ingredients except pasta in a zip-lock bag. Spice quantities are very much to taste.

• 1 ½ cups raw cashews
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice (not essential- only if you already carry it)
• ½ cup nutritional yeast 
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder or one garlic clove
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon smokey paprika 
• ½ teaspoon cayenne 
• Elbow macaroni: for low fuel use can be added to cold water and covered once boiled

Boil water with elbow macaroni, leaving extra water to reconstitute the sauce. Once al dente add sauce powder and mix until becomes a smooth gluggy mac and cheese consistency. 

SUN-DRIED TOMATO PESTO MACARONI

Adaptation of a popular internet recipe. 

• ½ small packet of sun-dried tomatoes, chopped 
• 3 -4 tablespoons pine nuts (around 50g)
• 50g tomato & herb paste or tomato soup mix sachet
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 clove garlic 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (40g)
• 150-200g macaroni pasta
• 1 litre water
• Parmesan or other cheese

Add macaroni to cold water and bring to the boil, then take off heat, cover and let stand. Meanwhile, finely chop the sun-dried tomatoes. Once the pasta is soft, add all other ingredients, toss and serve.

BASIL PESTO is another delicious and easy pasta sauce to combine with elbow macaroni. If you can’t find it in a plastic container you could decant it into reused plastic jars. It will leak through zip-lock bags. 

COOK’S MAGIC CURRY

• ½ packet Dried Mince (a handful of TVP would work well too)
• Handful of dried mushrooms
• Sachet of tomato paste
• One onion or onion flakes and or clove of garlic
• 1 teaspoon each of black pepper, curry powder and chutney
• ½ handful of sultanas
• 2 handfuls of quick cooking lentil or edamame pasta

Soak the mince/TVP and mushrooms. Fry the onion and or garlic, one tablespoon of curry powder, black pepper to taste, chutney and sultanas. If you are able to judge the amount of water the pasta will absorb, this could all be done in the same pot. Otherwise, cook the pasta and when cooked, add the mince, mushrooms and tomato paste and then the other ingredients and warm. 

COOK’S SATAY SPAGHETTI

Serves two. At home, mix tomato soup and spices, seal in a plastic bag. Put the peanut paste in a wide-mouth container or use some from the lunch supplies.

• 200 grams Spaghetti
• 2 tomato soup sachets
• 1 teaspoon Curry powder with sprinkles of powdered Ginger and Garlic powder
• 2 heaped dessertspoons of crunchy Peanut Paste
• 50 grams your choice of dried veges

Boil water with veges, mix a cup of boiling water with the tomato soup sachets and peanut paste in a mug or bowl to make the satay sauce. Cook spaghetti and drain. Mix satay sauce through and serve spaghetti with veges on the side.

COOK’S PEPERONI CREAMY PASTA

Put ingredients into a snap-lock bag. If using canned tomatoes, decant from can into a plastic container.

• Stick of peperoni (could also use bacon or rehydrated jerky)
• 1 onion
• 2 or 3 ripe tomatoes or soaked dried tomatoes
• 125 ml carton of UHT cream
• Pasta

Chop onion and slice peperoni. Peel the tomatoes if using fresh ones and chop into large chunks. Fry the onion and peperoni until brown. Add the tomatoes and cook for another minute or so. Stir in the cream and stand. Cook the pasta. Drain the pasta, add the peperoni sauce and spoon into bowls.

JEANNIE’S FAST COOK BEAN NOODLES

Fast cook bean noodles with gorgonzola/parmesan and dried mushrooms + onions. 

Boil bean noodles with dried mushroom and onion, stir in miso (does not go off in the heat) for high protein soup. 

Noodle-Based Meals

ABW LENTILS AND NOODLE SOUP

Serves 2

• ½ handful lentils
• ½ handful bacon chips
• 1 handful egg noodles
• ½ handful dried onion
• 1 stock cube
• 2 good pinches basil

Put the lentils and onion in a billy and cover with water. Allow to soak for about 1 hour (even better, from breakfast). Bring to the boil (add more water) and add egg noodles and stock cube.

ABW QUICK NOODLE STEW

Light, cheap and effortless. 

• 75 gram packet 2-minute noodles (possibly two per person is better)
• 1 packet Cup-o-Soup of your choice
• 50 gram dried vegetables – peas, carrots, corn, onion, beans (hard to find in 2025 but you could dry them yourself)
• 15 grams chopped nuts
• 400-500 mls. water

Add nuts and dried vegetables to water and bring to boil. Add soup mix and noodles. Ready to eat when noodles are soft.

PEANUT MISO NOODLES

Adaptation of a popular internet recipe. 

• 180g dry Udon noodles (can use rice or bean noodles)
• Miso soup tablet
• Large dollop of crunchy peanut butter
• 30g TVP (optional for protein)
• Dried garlic (optional)
• ½ x 100 gm packet dehydrated peas
• ½ packet dried porcini mushrooms 

Heat water with all the ingredients added from the start. Keep stirring until the water boils, then leave covered until soft.

COOK’S GINGER GARLIC NOODLES

Decant Canola oil into an air-tight plastic container. Measure all other ingredients into Snap-lock bags. You can use dried flakes of parsley and coriander, but use fresh ingredients if possible and always carry fresh garlic and ginger – the flavour is so much better. 

• 300gms Dried beef jerky (optional, seems like a lot!)
• Handful of dried mushrooms and raw cashew nuts
• Canola oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon each of ginger, parsley, coriander
• 2 blocks of noodles

Soak dried beef jerky and dried mushrooms, preferably at lunch time, during the afternoon, or as soon as reaching camp. Fry raw cashews (or pine nuts) in a small quantity of Canola oil with chopped garlic. Add parsley, coriander, ginger and the pre-soaked mushrooms and jerky. Add water and noodles to pot and simmer. Stand for a short time and serve.

Rice & Burghul-Based Meals

All rice recipes can substitute coarse burghul (bulgur) to reduce fuel use, which only needs to soak in boiled water to soften. 

ANDREW’S DAHL & BURGHUL

Red lentils need a little bit of cooking to remove the raw flavour but are much faster than other lentil varieties or any other beans. They can also be precooked and dried at home. 

• 100g or more of dried red lentils
• 150-200g Burghul
• 1-2 tablespoons Dahl spice mix from the supermarket spice section
• ⅓ of 50g packet Ayam dried coconut milk   – optional as contains milk products
• salt to taste

Soak lentils for at least 1 hour if possible. Boil water, pour over burghul in bowl, cover and let stand, topping up as needed. Then bring the lentils to the boil and cook briefly until lose colour and soften. Then add coconut cream, spices and salt and mix through. Drain the bulgur when it is soft and top with the lentil dahl. Once you get this right, you will find you can judge the amount of boiled water to avoid wasting extra.

A one-pot version is to bring water to the boil already with the burghul, then cover and allow to soften. Then add precooked lentils and spices such that they soak up the remaining water and mix them through. It’s more convenient but the result is more homogenised. 

1 POT THAI GREEN CURRY

Adaptation of a popular internet recipe. 

• ½ cup rice
• 1½-2 cups water
• 1 -2 teaspoon Thai green curry paste
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ cup soya protein (many interesting dried varieties are found in Asian supermarkets)
• ¼ of 50g packet Ayam dried coconut milk   – optional as contains milk products
• fresh veges, e.g. ½ capsicum, handful of fresh greens collected during day, chopped carrot

Rehydrate soya chunks. Once they’re spongy, remove from the pot and top up water, if needed, to make 1½ cups. Bring water to the boil. Add rice (washed if possible), garlic powder, curry paste and chopped vegetable. Cook with the lid on for 10min or so, stirring occasionally and adding more water if needed. Add coconut milk powder, greens and the soya chunks just before the rice is cooked.

ABW KEDGEREE

• 1 small onion (or dried onion)
• 1 tablespoon margarine (or oil)
• 2½ tablespoons short grain white rice
• ½ x 100 gm packet dehydrated peas
• ½ small lemon
• ½ packet tomato vegetable soup
• ½ litre water
• 185 gm tin (or sachet) tuna

Melt margarine/oil and fry the chopped onion gently for two or three minutes. Add the rice and continue to fry the mixture until it is a light golden brown. Add the water and the dehyd peas, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the juice from the tin of tuna and some extra cold water if necessary. Stir in the tomato vegetable soup, bring back to the boil and simmer until the mixture is cooked, stirring occasionally. Add the tuna meat and squeeze in the juice of ½ the lemon. Stir thoroughly to break up the tuna meat into small pieces. Reheat and eat.

ABW TUNA MORNAY

• 100 grams rice or pasta
• 50 grams dried vegetables
• 50 gram packet dried peas
• 200 gram tin of tuna in brine (or sachet)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons powdered milk
• Cheese
• Seasoning to taste 

Boil vegetables, seasoning and rice/pasta until cooked. While rice or pasta and vegetables are cooking, mix together flour, milk and water into a paste.  Add flour mix to rice or pasta and vegetables until mixture thickens. Add more water and stir quickly if it becomes too thick. Add tuna and some cheese, stir and eat.

SIERRA’S ITALIAN ‘RICE’

Combine in a heat proof zip lock bag (e.g. clean and reuse your Radix pouches):

• 1 ⅓ cups coarse burghul 
• ⅓ cup pine nuts (optional)
• 1 tablespoon dry onion flakes
• ½ cup sundried tomato slices
• 2 teaspoon instant chicken or vegetable stock 
• 1 teaspoon mixed herbs 
• Pack separately: Grated Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons olive oil (little Nalgene bottles are easily bought)

In camp, bring 1 ½ cups water to a boil oil and pour over the contents of the rice bag. Add oil and cheese, remove from heat, cover and let stand 10 minutes. 

SIERRA’S HOT STUFF

Pack in a heat proof re-sealable container or zip lock bag:

• ½ cup coarse burghul
• 1 tblsp dried onion
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• ¼ teaspoon oregano
• ¼ teaspoon cumin
• ¼ teaspoon dried garlic

Carry cheese and 1 tablespoon olive oil separately. Boil 1 cup water and pour it in the bag of bulgur ingredients. Scramble the bulgur with the olive oil and small pieces of the cheese, allowing it to melt before serving.

COOK’S SALMON RISOTTO 

• 185 gram tin salmon (also available in pouches)
• Small onion
• ½ packet dehydrated peas
• ½ packet Continental brand Tomato Vegetable soup
• ½ lemon (optional)
• 1 dessertspoon margarine/butter/ cooking oil
• ½ cup Rice
• 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Chop the onion, fry in the oil/margarine for a couple of minutes and then add the rice and continue to fry until the mix has lightly browned. Add ½ litre of water and the peas. Bring to boil and simmer until the rice, peas and vegetables are almost cooked. Add the vegetable soup, bring to boil and simmer, stirring and adding extra water as the soup thickens, if needed. When this has cooked, add the salmon and squeeze in the juice of the lemon. Spoon into bowls and sprinkle with black pepper and parmesan cheese.

COOK’S KIMBERLEY RICE

Place all ingredients in one zip-lock bag: 

• 150 grams rice
• 20 grams dried peas
• 10 grams dehydrated carrots
• 15 grams lentils
• 15 grams TVP
• 1 teaspoon dried onion flakes or garlic granules (according to taste)
• ½ teaspoon each of mixed herbs and black pepper.
• Salt to taste

Soak for as long as possible before the meal. Bring to boil and simmer until tender.

COOK’S PERSIAN EGGPLANT

For 3-4 people. Mix all the ingredients except the currants and store in a zip-lock bag: 

• 400 gms burghul (cracked wheat) 
• Handful of currants
• ½ packet of dehydrated Peas
• Beetroot (dehydrated)
• Dried eggplant and pumpkin
• Packet of cheese and leek soup mix
• Cumin and cayenne to taste

Soak the mix in warm water to cut down on cooking time. Bring to the boil and cook. Just before it is soft enough to eat, add the currants.

Wheat-Based Meals

ABW CHEESE FONDUE

• 1½ teaspoons butter or margarine
• 1½ teaspoons flour
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 3 teaspoons powdered milk
• 1 chicken cube
• ¼ finely chopped small onion 
• 50 gm Parmesan cheese
• 50 gm Jarlsberg cheese
• ½ cup water (or white wine from a 2 cup sachet of white wine)
• Dunkables – cubes of bread, celery, kabana

Melt butter or margarine in bowl or billy. Blend in flour and cayenne. Gradually add liquids. Add onion and cook, stirring until thickened. Add cheese and cook until melted.

ANDREW’S CHICKPEA BURRITOS 

Chickpeas are carried dry and soaked for 24h (therefore this meal is best for late in a hike when pack weight is lower). Then they will cook faster once brought to the boil, though remaining quite firm.

• 100g chickpeas (or black eyed peas)
• 50g dried peas
• 2 teaspoons onion flakes or garlic 
• 20g burrito mix
• Cayenne to taste 
• 3 small tortillas

Add peas and chickpeas to water and bring to the boil until chickpeas lose their raw taste. Then partly drain and add spice mix, garlic, chilli. Look for premix burrito spices which contain thickeners. They will require a little remaining water but they then make a nice sauce. Use as filling for tortillas. Add cheese for extra flavour.

PADDY’S DOUGHBOYS (OR DUMPLINGS). 

May be done whenever simmering. Mix stiff dough of SR flour and water as for damper (see below). Form dough in very small, ping-pong size balls (they will double in size). Then either:

1. Drop into boiling stew or water at boiling point. Cooking time, 8 to 12 minutes.
2. Set on top of a simmering stew or soup. Cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes until the middle of the dumplings are dry.

For use with stewed fruit as a sweet, mix sugar with the dough.

Couscous-Based Meals

DEAD SIMPLE COUSCOUS 

• 150gm couscous 
• 1 instant soup of your choice (pumpkin works well)
• 2 teaspoon olive oil 

Pour boiling water over the dry mix, allow to reconstitute, then add oil and fork through. 

ANDREW’S COUSCOUS

Serves 2

• 300 gm couscous
• 670ml water
• Vegetable stock cube or instant soup sachet
• 50g dried peas
• 30g currants
• 30g TVP
• 1 teaspoon harissa
• Salt
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil to separate
• Flaked almonds and dried shallots to serve

Could also add to couscous:

• 50g tomato paste 
• Nuts, chopped dried fruit 
• Chopped sun-dried tomato 

Bring water, stock and peas to the boil. While waiting, premix couscous, TVP, harissa & currants. Once boiling, remove heat, add the couscous mix, stir immediately and allow the couscous to expand (will happen very quickly!) Fork through with oil to separate, serve with almonds and shallots. 

COOK’S COUSCOUS CURRY

Put the spice mix, cardamom and chilli seeds in one container and the sesame seeds and almonds in another. Put couscous in a snap-lock bag and leave the coconut milk in its sachet. Everything else can be mixed together in another zip-lock bag.

• 1 cup couscous
• 1 cup of TVP (this is a lot)
• 1 -2 tablespoons dry spice mix (e.g. tika, biryani)
• 1 cup dried eggplant
• ⅓ cup of dehydrated peas
• ½ cup sundried tomatoes
• ⅓ cup dried shallots (from an Asian Grocery)
• 4 cardamom seeds in their seed-cases
• Chilli seeds to taste (eg 10 seeds)
• ½ sachet of coconut milk (Ayam brand)
• 1 dessertspoon sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon diced almonds

Remove the TVP and the vegetables from their bag on arrival in camp, place in cooking pot and cover with water and allow to re-hydrate. Add the spice mix to the reconstituted mix and heat to boiling point. Stir constantly and add water as required to maintain a firm, casserole-like consistency. Add the chilli seeds and the cardamom seeds after breaking them open from their cases. Simmer until tender. Finally, just before serving, add the sesame seeds, almonds and coconut milk.

Cover and set aside. Boil 3 cups water in another pot. Pour the couscous into the water. Cover and leave while re-heating the curry mix (3 to 5 minutes). Place a bed of couscous in the bowls and spoon curry on top.

Desserts

Add a dessertspoon of sugar to a mugful of self-raising flour, and then add a pinch of salt. Mix in a heaped dessertspoon of butter or dripping. If desired (and available), a few raisins, sultanas, chopped up dates or currants may be used. This should be mixed into a dry dough as for a damper, and placed in a well floured ration bag —big enough to allow for swelling. The bag should be tied up and dropped into a billy of boiling water. The billy must then be kept boiling until the pudding is served. Allow ½ hour for a mugful of flour, and longer for a bigger pudding. Over-boiling (within reason) will do no harm.

PADDY’S STEAMED PUDDINGS

BAKED APPLES

Core an apple aiming to keep one end closed. Fill the centre with raisins, crushed nuts, brown sugar, butter and cinnamon. Wrap in heavy-duty foil and bake in hot coals for 20-30 minutes. 

COOK’S FRUIT AND CUSTARD 

• Foster Clarks Quick Custard Powder Mix
• Dried fruit ( e.g. prunes, pineapple, apples and apricots).

At home, seal Custard powder and dried fruit in zip-lock bags.

On the day, soak fruit in water to soften. Make custard and pour over fruit in bowls.

COOK’S FRUIT PUDDING

• Two slices of non-crumbly fruit cake (Big Sister brand is good)
• 2 dessertspoons Rum, or Brandy, or Port.

At home, wrap fruit cake in gladwrap and place in pack where it will not be broken. Decant liquor into an airtight container.

On the day, moisten the slices of cake with liquor. Gently warm the cake on both sides in a frypan. Serve with UHT cream or Foster Clarks Quick Custard and any remaining liquor.

COOK’S CRUNCHY FRUITS

• Dried apples
• Sultanas
• Butternut or Anzac biscuits
• Foster Clarks Quick Custard Powder Mix

At home, put the fruit into one snap-lock bag and the biscuits into another.

On the day, soak the apples and sultanas in a cup of hot water. Crunch up the butternut biscuits. When the fruits are soft, sprinkle lots of the crunched up butternut cookies over them. Reconstitute custard with hot water and pour over the biscuits and fruit.

COOK’S MACARONI SURPRISE

The surprise is that this is a dessert

• 150 grams macaroni
• Full cream milk powder
• ½ handful of sultanas
• Sugar or honey
• Milo to taste.

At home, put macaroni into a zip-lock bag with the milk powder and milo, sugar or honey into a small plastic container. Cover macaroni with water in an uncovered pot and bring to the boil. Simmer for a few minutes until just cooked. Remove from heat and stir in milk powder, sweetener and Milo to give as chocolaty a taste as you prefer. Add extra water while mixing, if necessary.

ABW PANCAKES

• 5 tablespoons powdered milk
• 5 tablespoons plain flour
• 2 tablespoons wholemeal flour
• 2 tablespoons dried egg or a fresh egg

Mix ingredients and add water to make up 375 ml. Soak for at least ½ hour. Cook on a buttered or oiled hot pan. Serve with honey or jam.

ABW FLAPJACKS

Serves 2

• 1 cup SR flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 heaped tablespoons milk powder
• Dried fruit to taste, or alternatively, jam or honey for spreading.

Mix ingredients well, with a sifting action. Make a mound with a crater, and gradually add water, stirring well to eliminate lumps until it becomes a thick batter. Leave to stand at least ½ hour. Fry in butter or margarine, cooking both sides.

PADDY’S FLAP JACKS

Mix flour and water into a creamy batter — no lumps, please. Put a little butter or dripping in the pan – just enough to grease it thoroughly. Heat it till it is smoking hot, and then pour enough batter to only just cover the bottom of the pan. Run this all over the bottom of the pan, and in a minute or two it will be cooked to a golden brown, and if the pan was clean and hot at the beginning it will not stick, and may be “flapped” or “tossed”. If you are not too sure of your powers, turn it with a knife and cook the other side.

PADDY’S “CREPE RUBBERS”, “JOHNNY CAKES” or “DROP SCONES”.

(No responsibility taken for names!)

If a thicker batter is made — one which will only just pour – and a few little “blobs” are poured into a dry, hot, clean pan they will not stick and may be turned with a knife when cooked on one side. A little butter (mixed dry with the flour) improves these. Sultanas or currants may be added.

Appendix 1: AUMC Recipes From Chunder! 1990

These recipes are structured differently but worth including here. Note that the instructions are decoded via the key and that they hail from the days of one meal for the entire group.

The preparation of most of these recipes is self-evident. Most consist of a base of rice or pasta with some topping. The preparation of the topping is rather flexible. Rather than give detailed descriptions I will indicate what I would do with each ingredient.

Key

# boil and thicken for topping
+ topping ingredient
* fry and add to topping
@ boil and drain
! soak, drain and rinse

MACARONI CHEESE

• 250 gm macaroni @
• 50 gm dried veg. @
• 1 onion *
• 2 tbsp flour *
• 400 gm cheese +
• 1 pkt. cheese and leek soup +
• 600 ml milk +
• cloves/nutmeg/pepper +

NOODLES

• 250 gm noodles @
• 1 onion *
• 100 gm bacon *
• 30 gm dried mushrooms +
• 100 gm cheese +
• chives/pepper +

MUSHROOM SOYARONI

• 250 gm soyaroni @
• 2 pkts. D.H. beans @
• 40-50 gm dried mushrooms !+
• 1 pkt mushroom soup +

CHINESE NOODLES

• 250 gm noodles @
• 100 gm dried veg. @
• 1 onion *
• 150 gm tin of shrimps +
• (or 100 gm bacon)
• soy sauce/five spice +

VEGERONI AND FISH

• 250 gm vegeroni @
• 100 gm dried veg. @
• 1 onion *
• 1 can herrings/pilchards +
• 30 gm dried tomato paste +
• herbs +

SPAG. BOL

• 300 gm tubular spagetti @
• 1 large onion *
• 200 gm lentils +
• 50 gm dried tomato paste +
• garlic/basil +
• 75 gm parmesan cheese +

RISOTTO

• 250 gm rice @
• 100 gm dried veg @
• 125 gm bacon *
• 1 onion *
• l25 gm nuts +
• soy sauce/mixed herbs +

NASI GORENG

• 250 gm rice @
• l00 gm dried veg. @
• 150 gm bacon *
• 1 onion *
• 1 pkt nasi goreng mix +

RICE, CORN AND FISH

• 250 gm rice @
• 150 gm dried veg. @
• 100 gm nuts +
• 100 gm sardines/pilchards +
• chutney/tumeric/cummin/pepper +

SHRIMP CURRY

• 200 gm rice @
• l00 gm dried veg. @
• l50 gm dried shrimps !#
• (chinese grocer)
• 1 onion *
• 50 gm dried apple +
• curry, hot mango chutney etc.+

CURRIED SNAGS

• 300 gm rice @
• 1 pkt. packed sausages +
• 1 onion *
• l00 gm dried apple +
• 75 gm sultanas +
• 100 gm dessicated coconut +
• curry mix (maggi?) +
• curry powder *
• can substitute veggies for snags

QUICK RICE

• 200 gm rice @
• l00 gm dried veg @
• 125 gm bacon *
• 200 gm cheese +
• herbs +

FONDUE

• 400 gm emmental cheese +
• 300 ml dry white wine +
• 2 cloves garlic +
• 1 tbs kirsch +
• 2 teaspoon cornflour +
• 1 – 1.5 loaves of bread +

TUNA MORNAY

• 1 onion *
• 500 gm tuna +
• 300 gm cheese +
• 3 cups of milk +
• 3 tbsp flour *
• (with 250 gm macaroni will serve 6)

CORN CASSEROLE

• 300 gm dried corn #
• 100 gm dried peas #
• 30 gm dried mushroom #
• 150 gm cheese +
• 125 gm bacon *
• 3 powdered eggs +
• (with 250 gm rice serves 6)

CURRIED FISH MORNAY

• 500 gm tuna +
• l00 gm dried veg. #
• 50 gm dried apple #
• 1 onion *
• 1 pkt Dutch curry and rice soup #
• (with 250 gm rice serves 6)

POTATO HASH

• a good one to keep in reserve!
• 350 gm dried potato #
• l00 gm dried veg #
• 2 pkts pea and ham soup #
• 100 gm bacon/metwurst *

SOYBEAN CASSEROLE

• 125 gm soy beans !@#
• 300 gm cracked wheat @
• 100 gm dried green veg @
• 100 gm dried tomato paste +
• 2 tbsp powdered milk +
• parsley/sage/oregano +
• soy sauce/peanut paste +

CHILLI BEANS

• 250 gm rice @
• 150 gm red kidney beans !#@
• 1 onion *
• chilli/paprika/cayenne *
• 50 gm dried tomato paste +
• pepper/garlic

Appendix 2: Recipes For Campfires 

These mostly flour-based recipes are generally more time-consuming and probably best for relaxed trips, base camping or rest days when extra time is available for faffing about. However, there should always be a place for the mighty damper, of which we have three recipes here.

A few words on campfires. 

1. Safety. Many areas in Australia now ban open fires, and ALL of them during the fire ban season. When safe to light, cooking fires should be in existing fireplaces, no larger than necessary, surrounded by a wide zone of swept ground and fully extinguished before leaving unsupervised. 
2. Efficacy. A good cooking fire is not the same as a good sitting fire. To cook well, you need even heat from a bed of coals or hot ashes, not flame. Do this by lighting the fire one hour in advance, then pushing the burning logs to the side to expose the coal bed. 

PADDY’S BACON AND PRUNES

Wrap a rasher round a couple of eating or “soft” prunes, skewer bacon with splinter of wood and fry. The result is delicious.

PADDY’S BAKED EGG

With a twig, puncture the shell and skin at top of egg – stand egg in hot ashes and it will cook – result is same as a boiled egg. If skin is not punctured egg may protest by exploding.

ABW ARDENTINNY DROP BANNOCKS

• 1 cupful of fine oatmeal
• 2 dessertspoons dried egg (if available)
• 2 dessertspoons dried milk 
• 1 very good pinch of baking soda
• 1 good pinch salt 
• A small pinch pepper

Mix together. Add 1 cup water, mix. Let stand for 5 or 10 minutes. Pour blobs onto a hot oiled frypan or griddle, turn when bubbles form. Serve hot with Maple Syrup, or as a filler with the main course, with gravy etc.

ABW CHEESE & HERB BANNOCK

• 2 cups S/R wholemeal flour (or ½ oatmeal with a pinch of baking powder)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
• 2 heaped dessertspoons milk powder
• A pinch chilli powder
• 1 oz butter
• 4 oz grated cheese
• 1 cup water

Mix all dry ingredients. Rub in butter to crumbs. Mix in cheese. Add water & mix to soft dough. Transfer to floured plate (with floured hands). Form into a 7 inch round (or a little larger). Place in preheated oiled frypan & cook over low heat. Turn once (after about 7 or 8 minutes). Test with a wooden skewer – nothing should stick.

ABW CHAPATTIS

Makes 10 chapattis. Suitable for serving with curries, and good for wiping out the bowl. Frying pan not to be too hot, or chapattis will burn but not cook.

• 250 gm wholemeal flour 
• Salt to taste 
• ¾ cup of water

Whisk flour with salt in a bowl with a spoon, make a depression in centre and add water, a little at a time. Knead till mixture forms a soft dough, but not sticky. Keep dough aside for 15 minutes. Divide into 10 portions and flatten into thin round shapes. Heat frying pan on stove in simmer position, or on fire coals. Cook chapattis on both sides and serve hot.

ABW DAMPER 1

• 1 cup SR flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 1 tablespoon milk powder
• ½ handful sultanas
• Non-stick baking and cooking paper to fit into bottom of billy.

Put milk powder into cup and fill with water, mix well. Place flour in a bowl and add salt and sultanas and mix well. (mixture should be doughy, not runny). Place the baking paper in billy and pour in mixture until bottom of billy is covered. Place lid on billy. Cook on a very low flame being careful not to burn the bottom. When bottom has become crusty, lift out using the paper. Turn damper over on paper and place back on stove for about 5 more minutes.

Note: Precut your baking paper so it will fit into your billy. Also, take a few spare pieces of paper as they sometimes burn.

ABW DAMPER 2

• 1 cup self raising flour 
• Pinch salt
• 2 teaspoons powdered milk 
• water

Mix dry ingredients thoroughly. Add water sparingly and mix to a dough that is as dry as possible. Flatten dough to about 30 mm thick and place in wet newspaper or foil for cooking. A good bed of coals from an open fire is necessary. Scrape coals aside, place dough in position and cover with a deep bed of coals. In a good hot fire, dough should take about 25 minutes to cook. When wrapping dough with foil, allow room for dough to increase by ⅓ to ½ in size.

PADDY’S DAMPER

• 1 cup self raising flour 
• Pinch salt
• Water

A dry dough must be made for this, which is most easily done in a camp on a plate. Put the required amount of flour on the plate, and mix in a little salt, and scoop out a hole in the middle. Pour water in the hole and mix with a fork and you will soon get a little ball of dough. Moisten this from time to time and work in the flour until you have a dough which will not stick to the plate. The best time to bake damper is after cooking a meal, when there are lots of hot ashes. The damper may be baked in the frying pan (previously wiped round with a piece of greasy paper) and covered over with a plate. The pan should be buried well into the ashes, and ashes heaped over the plate. Let it cook for 20 minutes or more according to the size of the damper. To test the damper, stick a sliver of wood into it. If the sliver comes out clean the damper is ready.

To cook without a pan, you must have a good fire with plenty of white ashes. Rake away the coals and drop the damper into the hot white ashes. Then cover it over with the hot ashes and let it bake.

PADDY’S TASTY STEW 

Soak 1 oz. of dried vegetables in 1½ pints of water for 1 hour. (If you are travelling, just sufficient water to cover the vegetables should be put over them at lunch time. This will soak into the vegetables while lunch is being eaten and may be carried without fear of spilling).

Cut up 8 oz. of smoked pork loin or corned beef, and place with vegetables. Stew for 30 minutes, add 2 ozs. of instant potato and/or dumplings (see above) and simmer for 30 minutes. A thick, appetising stew results. Ample for two persons.

ABW BAKED POTATOES

Wrap in alfoil and cook on a real campfire.  Depending on size can take at least 45 minutes to cook on the coals. You can cook the potatoes until the skin became nearly black and eat out the inside- serve with lashings of salt & butter. Also same with whole garlic bulb/onion.

Sources

Paddy Pallin’s Handbook of Australian Bushcraft (‘PADDY’S’)

Sierra Club Wilderness Cookbook (SIERRA’S) Wilderness Basics Course – Sierra Clubhttps://wildernessbasics.orgPDFWILDERNESS COOKBOOK

The ABW Bushwalkers Cookbook (‘ABW’)

The Lightweight Cooks Driscoll, Pearce Eds. (‘COOK’S)

Adelaide University Mountain Club magazine chunder! 1990 Appendixhttps://aumc.asn.au/old-aumc-magazines/

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