Loaded Mashed Potatoes
Loaded with grated cheese, bacon bits and green onions! Enjoy as a side dish or a quick meal in the backcountry.
This recipe was created for a recent project with Jetboil. We headed deep into the mountains, out of cell service, to camp at one of our favourite hidden gems in the Rockies. We nearly had the place to ourselves other than a few other campers, but we did have a few grizzlies hanging around. Fresh tracks and a couple sightings by other campers - definitely kept us on our toes! If you’re heading into bear country soon, make sure to be aware, be smart and be prepared! If you’re wanting some info on how to be bear smart while enjoying the outdoors, check out this resource from Alberta Parks.
Alright, lets get to the recipe. This idea was actually first sparked during a conversation with my mom, so I gotta give credit where credit is due - thanks mom! Loaded baked potatoes are a favourite in our family but obviously whole potatoes are too heavy to be carrying into the backcountry. So we thought of using mashed potato powder and dressing it up a bit with some classic toppings, and it totally worked!
There are many different dried mashed potato mixes available at your local grocery store so when looking for one to use, I recommend looking for one that needs the least added ingredients as possible (some will ask for milk or butter to be added). If you choose one that does need milk and butter, you can always substitute some skim milk powder for the milk and add a little extra water when preparing the potato mix. For butter, you can either bring along some butter or use butter powder instead. I chose Betty Crocker Butter and Herb Mashed Potatoes and brought along milk powder and real butter to prepare it with.
Whatever you choose, make sure to follow the instructions on the package if they differ from the ones I’ve included in the recipe below.
Now comes the toppings - the fun part!
I tried to keep it lightweight, simple and classic at the same time. If you grate cheese before heading out, it’s really not too heavy or bulky to pack. Then bring along some bacon bits and some onions (either fresh green onion or crispy fried onion pieces) and you got yourself delicious loaded mashed potatoes!
Enjoy as a quick backpacking meal or as a side dish to your camp meal!
Hope you enjoy this quick and easy recipe! Let me any questions below!