backpacking foods

[albinotrout]

Anyone try the freeze dried stuff before? There are many brands out there and I am wondering which is good or I should say more flavorful than the others.
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[fishingutefan]

The freeze dried stuff is ok. I think you can do better for cheaper. That freeze dried stuff is spendy. My personal favorite for back packing is Zatarains Jambalya. I will occasionally bring some summer sausage to do in it.
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[albinotrout]

That's an idea thanks.
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[Vivid-Dawn]

[font "Courier New"][#0000BF][size 3]There is some [url "http://www.mountainhouse.com/"]Mountain House[/url] stuff at Winco in Roy. Yes, it's pricey ($5+ per bag, but usually more than 2 servings per bag for most of 'em), but WORTH IT!
Oh my stars that stuff is good! I had the Chicken & Rice Teryaki... doesn't last me 2 servings, I eat the whole thing at once!
I also tried the Blueberry Cheesecake. The flavor was good, but the texture wasn't quite right because I didn't have COLD water for the cheesecake part (my water had been sitting out in the sun and was more tepid). I also didn't let the blueberries really plump back up, because I was impatient...but the berry's sauce was wonderful!

Anyhoo, for less expensive hiking food, I bring stuff like pretzels, fruit leather, those "to go" tuna/crackers packs, fun-sized candy, etc. I'm not on a diet, so I can get more fatty stuff. Most people who want to lose weight take healthy junk like pop corn (already popped, of course!), veggies, fruit, whole wheat crackers and peanut butter.
I love hummus, so if you can bring a little lunch-box size cooler, that would be a good snack. Sabra makes a Roasted Pine Nut flavor that has a bit of a "kick" of spice to it, but is still wonderful! And only 80 calories per serving (so I eat it with tortilla chips that are 150 calories per serving and some whole milk)

....now I'm hungry!

P.S. Also, if you don't want to drink JUST water, you can flavor it with slices of real fruit, or a sugar-free KoolAid packet, or Crystal Light or something. Though be careful, as drinking water or drinks with very little nutrients like potassium and sugar can actually be as bad as not drinking at all. You need the electrolytes. I hate Gatorade, so I drink 100% fruit juice that's usually been fortified with extra stuff.
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[Troll]

For backpacking food I have done just about it all. Freeze dried is marginal at best and expensive. Fine to carry a meal or two for when your cold, wet and miserable and you just want to eat something hot in a hurry. I do just as well off the shelf and for 1/2 the price. If Dawn can eat a whole packet, count on a guy my or Tubedude's size to still be hungry after both servings.
I dehydrate most of my own food for backpacking. Potatoes, peas, corn, mixed vegtables, apples, pineapple, apricots, squash and hamburger.
Along wiht these foods I pack Raman noodles, rice, instant potatoes, pasta, cereals, Bisquick and flavoring packets like Knoor gravies and soups.
The bulk area of Smiths can also yeild some great backpacking food like beans, refried beans powder, hummus mix, dried tomatoes, papaya and other fruits.
Don't forget peanuts, hard candies mac and cheese and anything else that is not canned or refridgerated. (tuna envelopes).

Lastly, preperation and planning is important. I carry a couple of spare nalgene bottles to rehydrate in. If I want beans and rice for dinner, I put the beans in the Nalgene bottle 24 hours before cooking. Same with dehydrates vegtables I dried myself. Put them into water in the morning and they are ready to go at dinner time.

If you want more info read "The Complete Walker" by Colin Fletcher or get your hands on a NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) cookbook. Both are full of backpacking food information.
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[Vivid-Dawn]

[font "Courier New"][#0000BF][size 3]Yes, I ate the whole packet... but then I was miserable with a sore/stuffed tummy!
One packet should be plenty for a regular person (it's about 200 calories per serving, which is decent for hiking).
I just got greedy because of the flavor, and wanted to enjoy more of it, rather than quitting while I was ahead

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[Troll]

Dawn,
You know I love ya girl, so don't be offended if I say your mistaken on calories to intake. Yes I understand 400 calories may be enough for your sustinance, but times three that's 1200 calories per day IF you eat the whole thing, three times a day. I can eat 2 complete envelopes of Mountain house at a sitting and still be hungry.

When I backpack I figure about 2000 calories per day per person, winter camping, 3000 calories per day.

Summer 10% fat, 20% protein and 70% carbs. In winter up the fat to 20% lower the protein to 15% and lower the carbs to 65%.

Legumes will supply most of the protein, peas, chick peas (hummus), beans, lentils...
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[Vivid-Dawn]

[font "Courier New"][#0000BF][size 3]You got a point.
Although, I wouldn't rely on JUST a package of whatever for a full meal. You could eat a package of that, have 100% fruit juice (some can be as much as 140 for 8 oz, and I usually drink at least 10 ounces at once). If you've got a lunch-box size cooler, and like milk, you could have whole milk with some nutrient powder and that alone would be 200+ for just 8 ounces too.

And you don't need to just pause and sit to eat. If you got big enough pockets, and not full of other stuff, you could do snacking along the way on granola, or candy or somethin'. "Grazing" is actually a better way to eat than the 3 solid meals a day.

I think my thinking is off, because I don't really hike - that's mostly because of my back. Hiking would actually be good for my heart, if I didn't over-do it. Most of my outdoor activity is a little bit of walking, then just sitting around and enjoying fishing or bird watching or something sedentary like that.
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[joshomaru]

I've had Mountain House when I worked at Sportsman's, and I can echo Troll's sentiments: use it as a back up. They don't taste bad, but they don't taste good.
And they are super loaded with sodium. I'm getting kidney stones just thinking about it....
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[Troll]

If you do find yourself doing the freeze dried route, don't be afraid to reinforce the meals. A Chicken & rice meal can have an envelope of minute rice thrown into it to bulk it up and thin the sodium out some. There will still be the same milligrams of sodium in the meal, but the meal will weigh more so the percentage of daily intake will be less. If you have a couple of ounces of mixed vegtables or peas to throw in too, all the better.

Hiking in the summer may require a little more sodium in the diet due to the heat and activity level, throw in some altitude and you need twice as much water and have to retain what you drink. But do watch the milligrams of salt.

When I think of backpacking food I want nutrition, low weight and easy cooking.
Other foods I take are cooked bacon, it will last the first 3 or so days. It's good for fat and flavor. Margarine in a screw top plastic bottle, it may melt to liquid, but it's still fine to use. Shake it up and pour it on. Jam, Peanut butter, raisins...
Like I said, anything that won't go bad and is light weight. I don't think I do any meal that takes more than 1 pan, just to keep it simple.
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[cpierce]

You have had a lot of great suggestions already. I usually dry my own stuff, but there is a lot that you can get at the regular stores. Look for some of the quick fix meals or ingredients. Minute Rice, instant mashed potatoes, cous cous, and even angle hair pasta work great to make meals with. Also look in the soup and sauce packet departments for things that you can add to rice and other things. I have used things like Knorrs Sun Dried Tomato Pesto etc to mix with other stuff.

Winco up here in Idaho has some great ingredients in their bulk foods department such as dehydrated refried beans and dried vegetables for soup bases. I know that there are some Wincos in Utah now, but I don't know if they all carry the same things.

There are some good videos on youtube on things like baking muffins with steam.

Also look up freezer bag cooking and trail food. There are lots of good recipes out there.

Whatever you do try things out at home first!
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[cpierce]

Here is the site I was thinking of:

http://www.trailcooking.com/
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[joshomaru]

Cous Cous.....brilliant! I never even thought of that!
I love cous cous anyway, and cooking it is so freakin easy.
Heck ya! Some dried veggies, one of those dried sauce packets and some cous cous, forget backpacking, I'm going home tonight and making that for dinner!
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[Troll]

Don't forget fuel rationing. Fuel is heavy, expensive and hard to get once you run out.

I boil most pasta's and cereals for 1/2 the normal time, then let them just finish in the hot water. Do not drain. Let the excess water be soaked up by some dried tomatoe base, dried peppers, dried onions, a touch of garlic powder,a handful of my dried hamburger and in 10 more minutes, supper.
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[albinotrout]

I have had the mountain house and think they are rather nasty tasting at best. I have tried other brads that taste better such as natural high and backpackers pantry.
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[albinotrout]

I appreciate all the responses and like all the ideas. This is the meal plan that we went with this trip.

made some tin foil dinners and froze them. Were perfect to cook with in the evening after arrival.

Breakfast was grits

lunches were trailmix and beef jerky

second day dinner was freeze dried. Tried mountain house in the past and found they were nasty tasting at best, went with Natural HIgh this time and found flavor. Added mountain house corn (better taste) and backpackers pantry mashed potatos (lots of flavor) . Picked up a package of Marie Calendars buiscut mix and cooked those over the fire on a stick.

When I plan the meals I have to think of allergies for my family: no wheat glutin for the wife, no eggs and milk for my daughter, and no soy for my son. It gets interesting.
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[albinotrout]

I also looked at the bear creek soup veggie soup mix. Would work great as a stew too!
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[cpierce]

Some other things that pack well, but are a bit more weight, are things like crackers, bagels, tortillas, cheese sticks and salami. They work best for lunch on the trail or first meals so you don't have the added weight for long.

With your family's dietary needs you might consider doing individual or personal meals for some of your dinners. That is easy to do if you go with something like the freezer bag cooking route. Then it is just a case of adding hot water to each bag or bowl and letting things rehydrate.
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[Troll]

Those bear creek products are some that make me flatuant, I mean really flatuant.
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[albinotrout]

That would be the mountain house products for me.
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