Backcountry Steak and Broccolini Pasta

Here at Tom’s Outdoors, we love learning new ways to jazz up meal time while backcountry camping. The lesson learnt from this overnighter was that the Snow Peak Heavy Duty Cook Set is aptly named and hauling it up a mountain is set to induce an equally heavy-duty appetite.

Ingredients

• Choice cut of steak
• Salt
• Pepper
• Butter
• Olive Oil
• Garlic Clove
• Broccolini
• Dried Herbs
• Dried Pasta
• Water

Method

Pasta

Get some water boiling and add plenty of salt. Italian chefs will tell you to cook pasta in water that tastes like the sea. We see no reason to question the Italians about pasta. Add your pasta of choice and leave at a rolling boil until al dente or firm to the bite. Drain water and set cooked pasta aside. The pasta may get cold, but it is easy to warm up later.

Steak

For best results, allow your steak to get to room temp. Coat steak in your preferential serving of salt and pepper. Add olive oil to a hot pan, followed by a generous wad of butter and diced garlic. Place your steak (away from you) into the pan, being mindful not to tip the pan off your burner. Continously baste your steak in the butter and oil. Cook for around 3-5 minutes on each side, depending on your preferred level of doneness.

Roughly chopped broccolini can be added to the pan to lightly steam while your steak finishes cooking.

Allow the steak to rest before slicing into bite-sized chunks. Add steak, broccolini and all the delicious garlic butter cooking liquid left in your pan to your pasta. You may also choose to stir in a few dried herbs. Finally, it is time to eat!

Tricks and Tips

Freeze your steak and butter the night before. When you’re only a few hours hike from camp this is a great way to keep your ingredients from spoiling. By the time I had arrived, the steak was nearly thawed and didn’t take long to reach room(hillside) temperature.

Spice/oil containers - Hiking containers like the Humangear GoToobs are the perfect solution for packing herbs, spices, oil etc. in your bag without worrying about covering your gear in condiments.

Weapons of choice - Although there is no denying it’s a little on the weighty side for anything more than an overnighter, I don’t regret taking the heavy-duty Snow Peak kit as it’s a dream to cook with. There are plenty of excellent lightweight alternatives from Snow Peak themselves, Trangia, Soto, MSR and Jetboil which are all available from Tom’s Outdoors.