We make a lot of delicious meals on camping trips. We often joke that we eat better when we are camping then we do at home. Most meals are made from scratch with fresh ingredients but sometimes we have homemade dehydrated meals or premade, quick and easy meals, like Chicken Quinoa.

At home, we had prepared all of my dried ingredients into a Ziploc bag and then added a label with directions. We make these types of packets together so we can have quick meals or we can prepare them away from the campsite. We always have water, a pot and a Whisperlite camp stove in the truck, along with bowls, cups and utensils. That way we don’t have to worry about being anywhere specific when it’s time to eat.

At home we, added the following ingredients to the Ziploc: (see revised ingredient list below)

• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 Tbsp dried chives
• 1/4 tsp ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1 packet of True Lemon
• 1 – 3 oz foil packet of chicken (we used precooked chicken) – pack chicken separately

We brought 2 cups of water (or you could add chicken broth) to a boil and then added everything from the bag to the pot and stirred it all together.

We then added the precooked chicken to the mixture.

It took 10-15 minutes for all of the liquid to be absorbed and the quinoa to become tender. Make sure you watch it carefully and stir often so that it doesn’t stick or burn. Add more liquid if necessary.

Once the quinoa was tender and the liquid was absorbed, we fluffed the quinoa with a fork and served it with a side salad.

This was the first time that we had cooked this meal and felt it needed more flavour. We would have added more of each spice, some granulated (or powdered) garlic, chicken broth instead of water (could use an OXO cube), salt and pepper and fresh scallions.

Chicken Quinoa Camping Recipe

• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 Tbsp +1/4 tsp dried chives
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 packet of True Lemon
• 1-2  chicken broth cube(s) or packet(s)
• precooked chicken (packaged separately)

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add chicken broth cube or packet and stir until dissolved. Add quinoa, spices and True Lemon packet, then stir. You can add the chicken now, or after the quinoa is cooked. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until quinoa is tender. Add more liquid if necessary. Add chicken if you haven’t already, toss and serve with side salad or vegetables. Enjoy!