Freeze dried meals

[Grant Lamontagne]

I've been meaning to do this for a while now- I've been trying to recall what meals I've eaten, what flavors I've liked, what brands I preferred etc.

I've had a lot of these things over the years and I remember a couple of really good ones and a couple of really bad ones.  Other than that, they just kind of all fade together.

Here is my first entry in the Official Bag Meal Cooking Show!   

As you can see, it is the Alpine Aire Three Cheese Chicken Pasta.  We heated the water to a boil with my go-to stove, the Bio Lite Camp Stove, which was a bit more challenging than expected as the wood was pretty wet.  We had gone out exploring in between rainstorms....   

The instructions said to wait 12 minutes once the water was in, but as we've eaten a lot of powder in the past, we waited 15 minutes, massaging the bag frequently.

Once we opened it up, everything looked good and so we tried it, and I have to say, this was one of the best freeze dried meals we have had so far.  It really didn't taste like something rehydrated in a bag on a camp stove.

I found it very cheesy (as you'd expect from the name!) and even the small cubes of chicken had rehydrated well.  I didn't taste and powder or crunchy pasta, and moreso, the flavor was actually quite good.

Def

I think this is very similar to our usual go to bag, the Mountain House Pasta Primavera, but with the added benefit of the chicken. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

I had another picture to add, so I needed to write a second post.   

I think that this one has definitely succeeded on becoming one of my favorite freeze dried meals, and I'd highly recommend it.

The only drawback, for me, was the zucchini.  It rehydrated well, and there was no actual problem with it, other than the fact that it was zucchini and I don't much care for zucchini.  For those that like (or at least tolerate) zucchini, I think this one would be a real winner.

I'd probably rate this one at a 9 out of ten- just about perfect, but with good sized chunks of something I don't like in it. 

Def

[RF52]

Cool topic

I don't have any pics, but my favourite som far is Real turmat reindeer stew

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[Barry Rowland]

Thanks Def!  We've been Mountain House diners for a long time.  I'm going to have to get some of these to try 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Cool topic

I don't have any pics, but my favourite som far is Real turmat reindeer stew

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I doubt that's available anywhere near here but I'll keep an eye out anyway!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Thanks Def!  We've been Mountain House diners for a long time.  I'm going to have to get some of these to try 

I tried an interesting one last year from a company called OMeals.  They are a bit pricey by comparison, but they heat themselves, which is really cool.  I had some kind of tortellini and it was really good.

I have meals from a few brands, which makes it even harder to keep up with what flavors and types I like!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Here's a sneak peek at upcoming flavors/brands.   

Def

[Sos24]

I forget what Alpine Aire I tried, but I think it was the Chicken Jambalaya.  It was pretty good with good size chunks of chicken.

Mountain House was my go-to for the longest time, but recently I decided to experiment with some of the others.  I have a couple Alpine Aire, as well as, Backpackers Pantry and Good To-Go that I am looking forward to trying.  I have the Thai Curry Good To-Go meal in my GSMRE for Saturday to try.

I’m looking forward to seeing your opinion on the ones you have.

[RF52]

I doubt that's available anywhere near here but I'll keep an eye out anyway!

Def

Probably not local stores, but you might find some online

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Probably not local stores, but you might find some online

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I have done some looking and found no distributor in Canada, but fortunately there is a dealer who ships internationally so I may give it shot!

Thanks for the heads up- I've never even heard of this brand before!

Def

[RF52]

It's a Norwegian company that makes freeze dried food for camping/hiking and the Norwegian Military field rations

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[Grant Lamontagne]

I have been reading the company website and it seems very cool!  I really am looking forward to trying it.  It has been many years since I have had reindeer meat.

Def

[Barry Rowland]

Perfect timing Def!  It's beginning to get warm again and I'm itching to do some kayak trips 🛶

[Grant Lamontagne]

Uh Oh, Barry said the K word!   



































Just a few pictures from a few of my kayak trips....   

Def

[Barry Rowland]

  . I can hardly wait Def!!

[BadMechanic]

You have  to become one with the paddle

Nice pics

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[Grant Lamontagne]

I had another one of these for lunch while at work the other day- this time from a company called Readywise, which I was previously unaware of.  I decided to try the Noodles and Beef flavor, despite being in a mushroom sauce- I don't much care for mushrooms. 

My observations before opening it up were that I like the packaging- the foil pack doesn't feel like it is easy to puncture (in fact, it has been riding around for months in my Jeep and hasn't suffered any because of it), the instructions on the back are clear, and it includes a little riddle on the back.  About the only thing it is missing is the measurement found on the side of some (like the Alpine Aire one posted above) which shows how much water to put in.  That measurement thing is very handy as you don't always have a measuring cup when you are out in the woods!

Fortunately for me, I did, in the form of this bowl from Decathlon, which has a handy graduation along the side.  If you have a Decathlon near you, these bowls are cheap, available in different sizes and shapes and are actually quite nice- I highly recommend them.

Opening the package the noodles and beef look like any other noodles and beef that you would get in any dehydrated bag meal- not that exciting, but at least it is unencumbered by vegetables! 

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I fired up my Bio-Lite stove (my favorite!) and put my measured amount of water into the pot and it was boiling in no time- the Bio-Lite really heats up FAST!  Well, under the right conditions anyway, sometimes if the wood is wet it can take forever to fire up, but we are in a bit of a heat wave so everything is dry and begging to be set on fire.   

I poured the boiling water into the bag and sealed it up, setting a timer for 15 minutes.  The package says 12-15 minutes, but I have crunched my way through enough of these to know that it's always better to give them the maximum amount of time... and maybe another few minutes beyond that!  I also made sure to massage the bag (carefully, as it will burn your hands!   ) a few times during that period.

When the time was up I had a look inside and it honestly didn't look bad at all!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I mean, it looked mushy and not as appetizing as a juicy steak, but then it's not a juicy steak, it's ground beef and noodles in sauce- and as far as that goes, it looked good!

It also smelled pretty good, and while massaging the bag I didn't notice any chunky bits, but as I poured it into the bowl it looked like there may be some.  Not the end of the world, but a bit annoying.

Dipping my spork in I took my first bite carefully- it was still hotter than the Earth's core, but once I got past that, it was really quite good.  As I finished the bowl (and refilled it!) I didn't actually notice any crunchy bits- the clumps that fell out of the bag weren't even slightly crunchy, and both the ground beef and noodles seem to have absorbed the water perfectly.

I was also pleasantly surprised that there was no "processed" flavor that you get in a lot of dehydrated foods.  It didn't taste like it had been freshly made in a restaurant, but not as far away from that as you would expect. 

Since the taste was good, and the rehydration was good, I can see myself buying this brand and flavor again.  I don't recall the price, but I don't believe it was too different from any of the other, more common brands like Mountain House or Alpine Aire.  If it had been significantly cheaper or more expensive I am certain I would have remembered that!

I'd definitely buy this one again, even though it has a mushroom sauce! 

Def

[Sos24]

Glad you were able to enjoy it.  I had heard mixed reviews of Ready Wise, so it is good to know at least one that is pretty good.

[Grant Lamontagne]

I like the fact that they use actual ground beef in it.  Many of the ones that say they have beef in them are actually a beef substitute, made with...  well, no idea really.

This one actually had beef in it, and was even listed in the ingredients.

Def

[BadMechanic]

Awesome. Ive never had theirs. Im a picky eater and Mountain House only has a small handful of stuff Ill eat. But sure is good!

Im with you on the crunchy bits. Only had that happen with mac and cheese. But not the end of the world.

I may have to try this brand and stop being a MH snob.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Honestly, I am a real meat & potatoes guy myself.  I'm not a huge fan of vegetables or anything I deem to be "too fancy" which limits a lot of these kinds of things for me.

That makes it more important for me to find the good ones and remember which ones don't make the cut!

Def

[Sos24]

Some of the more modern ones really dip into the too fancy category.  I like variety; but good tasting, filling, and nutritious are the most important.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Agreed.  If I wanted a Himalayan tree nut salad with Guyanese mushroom souffle dressing I probably wouldn't want it dehydrated in a baggie.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Today's lunch consisted of BackPacker's Pantry Three Cheese Macaroni.

The packaging wasn't as fun as the ReadyWise as there were no jokes or trivia on the package, but it has been sitting around, begging to be eaten for some time now.  I do not remember the cost of it, and I am assuming it was somewhere in the neighborhood of the others- not significantly more expensive, not significant;y cheaper, as I would have likely remembered that!

I used the usual cooking method- the same lightweight aluminum pot over the same BioLite stove, lit with UCO Titan stormproof matches.... yadda yadda yadda.

And, as usual, the water boiled quickly because the BioLite is awesome (when the wood is dry!).

I poured the 480ml of water into the bag and the instructions said to wait 15-20 minutes.

During that time, a coworker stopped by and so I didn't actually get to it until after at least 25 minutes.   

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Fortunately it was still hot when I opened it up, which is really no surprise as these foil bags are designed to keep the heat in.

I was a bit concerned when I saw the orange clumps- is it real cheese melted in or is it clumps of flavor powder not properly rehydrated?  When I poured the first little bit out, I had my answer- I hadn't quite shaken it enough, but luckily that was cheese and not flavor powder.  The first helping I had was a bit on the dry side, but the last helping was very much on the runny side, so I think this one requires a lot more agitation.

But, there were no unnaturally crunchy bits, and the flavor itself was acceptable.  It wasn't a meal worth writing home about, but it was certainly adequate for what it was.  I wouldn't have an issue eating this one again, but I wouldn't make a special trip out to get it.  The smell when I opened the bag was actually very nice, and so maybe I was expecting more from it than what it was.  If I had to rate it, I'd probably give it a seven out of ten.

Def

[Sea Monster]

Here's my review of every Back Country Cuisine meal (that I've tried):

"It's okay"


https://backcountrycuisine.co.nz/

[zoidberg]

Here's my review of every Back Country Cuisine meal (that I've tried):

"It's okay"


https://backcountrycuisine.co.nz/

That is being pretty generous. I go with radix or real meals over back country.