The Best Survival Crackers Ever!

While researching for a hike through the U.S. of unspecified distance and unspecified time, I searched for foods that would keep for a long time in the bottom of my pack, provide lots of energy, and be fairly nutritious. I finally discovered the energy food from thousands of years ago in Central America: chia seeds. Yes, the little seeds you might have grown as a pet are the latest health food rage, as they are extremely high in Omega 3's and antioxidants. From a survival perspective, they are awesome. They have a five year (five year!!!) shelf life and EXTREMELY high nutritional density. They're tasty and really easy to make into crackers. Here's my recipe after much trial and error.

Step 1: Ingredients

1 cup Chia seeds
2 cups purified water
1 tbsp Bragg's Liquid Amino's
1 tbsp Garlic Powder
1 tbsp Tumeric
1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper

You can adjust the spices to your liking. I use garlic powder, tumeric, and cayenne pepper because the flavor is great and they offer many health benefits - prevent cancer, prevent inflammation and heart disease, antibacterial and antiviral, all kinds of good stuff. But you already know that. They also taste really good, so be generous.

Step 2: Mix Ingredients

Mix the ingredients, then let the mixture sit for about 30 minutes so the chia seeds can fully absorb the water.

Step 3: Dehydrate

I like square crackers, so I cut a small milk carton into strips to make square "molds" for my crackers. You could use cookie cutters, some other form, or nothing at all for blob shaped crackers. You'll need to put down some wax or parchment paper, then fill the mold (if you're using one) with the chia goo. Set the temperature to low, and let it go for a couple days! As with all dehydrated foods, don't forget to rotate the trays every once and a while. You'll want to flip the crackers after about 4 or 5 hours (once they are dry enough to flip over). You can flip them a few times if they're taking a long time to dry. The thicker you make the crackers, the longer they will take to dry out. You want them to be totally dry so there's no chance of spoilage.

You could also dehydrate these in the oven if you don't have a dehydrator. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and then fill it with the chia goo. Cut it into squares after it starts to dry a little bit. You'll have to put the oven on the LOWEST setting and leave the door cracked. I tried this and still burned the crackers - the dehydrator is much easier because you can turn it on and forget about it for the most part.

Step 4: Enjoy!

Enjoy your delicious and healthy chia survival crackers! You can seal them in a plastic bag and save them for a while, or eat them right away. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Comments

[SparkySolar]

I love this instructable thank you so much

[Battlespeed]

I wonder if you could add some honey to your recipe and what that would do to the texture, shelf life, etc.

[bandaidqueen]

Honey IS a "forever" food, but I don't know how it would affect the mixture. I've had honey on my crackers, but never tried mixing it in. I don't think they would dry as well with honey. If you try it, let me know how it works!

[ibasigner]

How many crackers did you get from a batch?

[bandaidqueen]

Usually 18-24, but depends on how thick and large you make them. Mine are usually thick because I'm missing some trays for my dehydrator... I think thinner would be better though.

[kouker]

Thank you! Going to give it a try!

[stubbsonic]

Ok. I've never drank frog eyes.

[stubbsonic]

Thanks for the great recipe! It sounds delicious. I've been putting the chia seeds in my oatmeal, but was looking for something else to try. We have that dehydrator as well, and there is a special tray/sheet available that lets you put more liquid things on it (like to make fruit leathers and stuff) I think it would work for this. Probably after it is solid enough to remove from that tray insert, it could be dried more.

Also your spice selection sounds delish. I might try adding some caraway seeds, or a little cumin.

[bandaidqueen]

That sounds delicious! The fruit leather insert should work fine, although it will take longer to try - I lost mine when I moved, but I started out using a solid sheet of parchment paper. I found cutting the parchment paper to size so the air can flow around the crackers better really helps with drying time.

[stubbsonic]

Thanks, BAQ. I'll keep all that in mind. Now, I've got a bunch of organically grown chia seeds from my local hippy store-- off to experiment.

[bandaidqueen]

You can also put your chia seeds into any drink. There's an expensive drink called ChiaStar which is basically flavored water and chia seeds - it's pretty good, but you can do the same thing by pouring in the seeds yourself (and not pay five bucks per serving). My sister adds them to the water bottle she carries everywhere.

[stubbsonic]

I think I may have tried that before. Is it like drinking frog eyes?

[Teachable]

You mean like chia pet chia seeds?

[bandaidqueen]

Yup! The same ones! Recently chia seeds have become very popular as we've learned of their many health benefits. I was mostly excited about the long shelf life and high energy they provide, which makes them great for the trail. You can pick them up at most grocery stores and health food stores. Fortunately, you don't need to buy a chia pet to get them. :-)

[Cekpi7]

how long can you store it?

[bandaidqueen]

You can store these for up to five years, as long as they are completely dehydrated. Just be sure the critters can't get into it.

[CaptainZ]

Sounds great. just one thing if you vacuum pack them they will be almost as indestructible as Twinkies

[Schmidty16]

Hey try this its called hard tac it some what nutritious but u coud make it more nutritious