Food???

[MNFury]

so for a week long trip what kind of food should i pack? I want my pack much lighter than my last trip which i very uh *cough* very thoroughly packed for *cough cough*. I was thinking Ramen dried fruits peanuts and such, but i thought that i would ask you guys for some advice.

[Atkins72]

I try to avoid ramen because of the high sodium content.
The foil packs of spam are good, tuna, pita bread and condiment packets from a gas station don't weigh much.

I like to take bis quick with me as well. You can do a lot with it and different ingredients to add like rasins, brown sugar, or nuts and other dried fruit.




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[GreyOne]

Freeze dried foods are good, lightweight, and expensive. They do offer a more normal menu though.

I tend to like dried beef jerky, pinole ( ground parched corn) , some bannock mix, and some dried vegetables ( my dehydrator).
Add a jar of peanut butter, some oil and spices, and a large bag of trail mix (raisins, nuts, M&M's for me) , and you can eat pretty well.
Catch a few fish, shoot a rabbit or squirrel in season, you can have some fine meals. Jerky and dried vegetables can make a pretty good
hot beef stew.

Eating well on the trail is important, but it does not mean bringing the whole kitchen.

[jimmyt]

I have had good luck with Lipton sides, dried fruit, oatmeal and box pastas.

[statikpunk]

Bullets! haha couldnt resist

but seriously the instant mashed potatoes are always a staple of my camping trips.

[JPAZ357]

so for a week long trip what kind of food should i pack? I want my pack much lighter than my last trip which i very uh *cough* very thoroughly packed for *cough cough*. I was thinking Ramen dried fruits peanuts and such, but i thought that i would ask you guys for some advice.

Ramen is good if you like it. Mountain house meals cost a bit less per meal than eating out at a fast food joint, usually - and are pretty tasty and lightweight. You may even be able to make two meals per 1 packet.

One thing I like to do is take ramen noodles and beef jerky. Do not use all of the seasoning that comes with the ramen, just a bit for flavor, and add the jerkey to it in small chunks. It'll rehydrate a bit and makes for a quick tasty noodle dish. You might try your own seasoning mix too from the spice cabinet instead of the supplied seasonings with the ramen. OR -- if you like a lot of salt, use the whole packet with your jerky.

I've also added spam to ramen before. Frying it over the fire or in a pan before adding it to the noodles.

I try to avoid ramen because of the high sodium content.
The foil packs of spam are good

Spam has just as much sodium in it, I think, unless you get the low sodium kind.

[JOttum]

one thing I have had success with is premaking Zatarains box dinners into individual sized servings. Brown your meat and season it to taste,then dehydrate it. divy the box contents into containers and add the dried meat. dump into a cup of boiling water and enjoy.

I would say take a long slow walk through your grocer and brainstorm. I would love to use bisquick and such but personally having never done so I would reccomend using it at home first before you get out in the bush and decide it's not for you. Good tips though all around here!

[Bearpaw]

I would bring a few freeze-dried dinners for the last 2-3 nights and go with simpler dehydrated dinners the rest of the time, like instant potatoes, stuffing mixes, macaroni with cheese, or liptons. I offer add foil packed chicken or some bacon bits and Parmesan cheese.

For lunches I will often bring pita bread (less of an issue with flattening) and stuff it with peanut butter, cheese, spam singles, foil pack tuna or chicken or pre-cooked bacon.

Breakfasts could be grits or oatmeal in cooler weather or snickers or pop tarts or breakfast bars in warmer conditions.

For snacks, I go with little packs of cheese and crackers, mixed nuts, M & Ms, and fig newtons in hotter weather. In cooler weather (where chocolate won't melt), I bring Reese's Cups or Snickers. In cold weather, I bring a Little Debbie fried pie for each evening. The big bump in saturated fat is quickly burned keeping me warm through the cold night.

[PineMartyn]

MNFury,
The key to lightweight and good, satisfying meals for longer outings is to dehydrate your own meals. It's much easier than people imagine. The commercial freeze-dried meals are sometimes good (sometimes not), tend to be on the small size when it comes to serving sizes, are packed full of air, and they are expensive.

If you're planning on making camping a regular thing, a food dehydrator is a wise investment. You just make your own foods (like what you'd eat at home) dehydrate it, and rehydrate it when you're at camp. It's easy, it's fast, it's clean, it won't spoil, and it's blessedly light and compact, so you can bring satisfying meals without having to buy a huge pack. My wife and I have made a couple of instructional videos for people who are just getting started out at camping and want to know how to eat better and pack lighter and smaller.




Here are some examples of the sorts of foods we pack for our outings.
For day trips: we usually just bring water, instant coffee, pepperette meat sticks, gorp, granola bars, some dehydrated fruits or fruit leather. It's all light, except for the meat sticks and doesn't need cooking. When wild edibles are available, we gather what we feel like eating if we've not eaten already.

For backpacking and canoe camping trips we bring all of the above plus an assortment of homemade dehydrated meals such as:
pasta and meat sauces,
beef chile with lentils,
beef stroganoff,
couscous and veggies,
shepherd's pie,
jerky,
chicken fajitas,
etc.
We also bring premixed ingredients to bake bannock, bread, cakes, and panzerotti.

For fresh food we bring steak (for the first night or two) and eggs and partially cooked bacon to prepare the first morning or two.

I can't eat fish because I'm allergic, but my wife eats what we catch and we fish only for food, not for sport, so one small fish per day is plenty.

Hope this helps,
- Martin

[rdec]

Look up Freezer Bag Cooking. Sarah has lots of recipes on the site and sells very nice cozies. The idea is to make up meals carried dry in strong freezer bags. Push the bag into a cozy, open the bag, pour in requisite amount of hot water, stir, let sit for a few minutes to rehydrate and eat. Clean up involves stuffing empty bag into garbage bag.

The recipes involve instant noodles, rice, potatoes; dry vegetables and/or meats some type of sauce/gravy, and seasonings.

My kit for this type of meal prep is:

Ultralight Solo cook set: sil-nylon stuff sack (8" x 4" dia. - 10.6 oz.
Ultra-light solo water heating for beverage and freezer bag meals
Heiniken keg can with silicone lip protector, fiberglass wick wrapping, pot stand, lid,
6” aluminum windscreen, FBC Minimalist cozy, BPL titanium long spoon, Sea to Summit X-Cup
Sil-nylon inner bag: MBD Mini-Atomic stove fitted with knurled head filler screw, tea/coffee steeper,
Nalgene 1 oz. dropper bottle, 1 oz. measure cup, GSI UL-salt&pepper shaker,
strike-anywhere pocket matches, sponge-cloth, Mini-pot lifter.

Added gear: fuel bottle of a size appropriate to the trip.