Dry Vegetable Cheese Chowder Mix {Meal in a Jar}

One of my all time favorite soups is now available as a shelf stable dry mix.  Aside from the convenience of having these lining your pantry shelves for a quick and delicious dinner any time, recipes like these also make for the perfect gift.  Not to mention the convenience factor for camping / backpacking / hunting / 72 hour kit food options.  No refrigeration, light weight, nutritious and great tasting.  Just switch out the glass jar for a ziplock bag if you plan to hit the hills.

To make this even more backpacker friendly, you can buy resealable mylar bags, add the jar contents along with boiling water to the bag, seal it up, and let it cook on its own.  This takes about twice as long as boiling on the stovetop, but it is another option.

Shelf life on these jars are 1 year.  If you have a food saver with the ability to seal a mason jar lid on dry goods, it will last much longer (upwards of 15 years if kept in a cool, dry place).

You can use any brand of freeze dried or dehydrated food here, but I've included links to the products that I use personally.  Click here to find out more about how you can earn these products for free or half off.

Dry Vegetable Cheese Chowder Mix

Menu Managed Original

1/4 c. mashed potato flakes
1/3 c. cheese blend powder
1/4 c. powdered milk
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. chicken bouillon
1/2 c. dehydrated potato chunks
1/2 c. dehydrated carrot dices
1/2. c. freeze dried onions
3/4 c. freeze dried broccoli
3/4 c. freeze dried cauliflower
3/4 c. freeze dried celery

Add all contents to a wide mouth quart jar, in the order listed above.  You will have to push down on the celery to get it all to fit.

To make the soup:
Add 7 cups of water to a pot and turn heat to high.
Dump contents of jar into water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer for 30 minutes, until potatoes are fully cooked, stirring occasionally.
Soup will thicken up quiet a bit near the end of cooking time, so don't worry if it looks too thin.
Add up to 1 more cup of water if soup seems too thick for your liking.
Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if desired.