This high energy quick prep meal loaded with protein makes spicy Thai noodles with peanut sauce a good choice for dinner at the end of a long day of hiking. There’s very little advance prep for this recipe that uses a simple sauce of just three ingredients, but still has the feel of a home cooked meal. Spicy Thai noodles can be made at a fraction of the cost of similar commercially freeze dried meals and is a much tastier option.

This meal can either be made backpacker style, or for shorter overnights fresh ingredients can be added to take the meal to the next level.

Ingredients (Makes Two Servings)

• 4 oz thin rice noodles (half of an 8 oz package)
• ¼ cup peanut butter
• 4 soy sauce packets
• 2 Sriracha packets
• ¼ cup dried chives
• ¼ - ½ tsp dried pepper flakes
• ¼ cup chopped peanuts

At Home

In a resealable plastic freezer bag combine noodles, chives, and pepper flakes. Pack the rest of the ingredients separately. Tip: breaking up the noodles at home by hand will make the meal easier to eat later on the trail.

In Camp

Add soy sauce packets and the Sriracha packets, as well as the peanut butter to bag. Add 1.5 cups hot water, stir, and let sit for 5-10 minutes / until noodles are fully cooked. Stir again and top with chopped peanuts to add some crunch. To cook in a pot add the contents of the bag to your cookpot and add all ingredients except the peanuts. Bring this plus 1.5 cups of water to a boil, turn off heat, and allow 5-10 minutes for the noodles to cook, lastly topping with peanuts.

Overnight Option

For a fresher taste and consistency and if on a quick overnight, substitute ¼ cup soy sauce for the packets, use 1 TBSP Sriracha, and combine with peanut butter all at home in a leak proof container. Separately pack 2 green onions or scallions, along with 2 mini red peppers (in place of the chives and pepper flakes), again packing the peanuts separately. Once in camp, cook the noodles as described above with 1.5 cups of water (either in a pot or using a freezer bag method). Allow the noodles to sit 5-10 minutes until fully cooked. While noodles are seeping, chop green onions or scallions and mini red peppers. Stir sauce and veggies into the noodles and serve topped with chopped peanuts.

Thin rice noodles can be found in the Asian section of most well stocked grocery stores and are a favorite of backpackers because they require only a quick boil on the trail, conserving precious fuel. For a ready-to-eat lunch, cover noodles with warm water in the morning and let soak until lunchtime. I like to heat extra water for my coffee and use it to rehydrate the noodles while I’m hiking. The fresh red peppers and green onions are optional but add a nice crunch and a healthy feel to this meal. This is a vegan recipe that can be made gluten free by using gluten free soy sauce. For a less spicy version just reduce the Sriracha and / or pepper flakes.

Editor's Note: This recipe originally appeared in Issue 40 of TrailGroove Magazine. You can read the original article here.