Grocery store backpacking food

[actionpocket]

One of my new favorites are packets of instant miso soup. It's a delicious and easy way to warm up while cooking a main meal, or to add to anything else you are cooking. Super light weight, and tasty. I also like to bring some dried mushrooms, and add them to quinoa with curry powder. Easy and nutritious meal.

The yellow "safron" (I dont think they are actually safron) plus tuna meal is a classic.

[randyg45]

Bear Creek soups

[Moose2001]

Alessi Soups. My favorite is Tuscan White Bean Soup. They come in 6 oz packages, much smaller than the equally good Bear Creek soups. Just the right size for a thru.

[keepinitsimple]

I love the smell of esbit in the morning too. I keep some in my nightstand as well, you never know.... Super great quote. Super great way to keep things ultra light too

[3_dogs]

For a sweet snack, Tootsie Rolls will not melt in the heat.

[cabbagehead]

bars containing a lot of oats
fish packets
protein bars
pills
cabbage (in or close to town so you don't have to carry it far)
The correct ratio of peanuts, wasabi peas, walnuts

[Wise Old Owl]

Here is the Huge problem with this thread. we are all talking about things that need to be reconstituted and reheated. And the original post laid the groundwork for not using dried foods in a dryer. Strange as Drying at home is tremendously CHEAPER than FD! But Hey so what. Something has to give... lets all try to get together a list of food that's over-the-counter and edible with huge calories and somewhat nutritious!

[Creek Dancer]

Are you the thread police? sheesh. This isn't a straight forward thread.

[WIAPilot]

Are you the thread police? sheesh. This isn't a straight forward thread.

Holy Cow! Let's lighten up! I think you really took Owl's comment the wrong way. He was making what I thought was a great suggestion - not speaking specifically about the thread, but suggesting over the counter edible and nutritious items.

[Creek Dancer]

LOL! Maybe you should lighten up! This is the food thread, for crissakes.

[WIAPilot]

LOL! Maybe you should lighten up! This is the food thread, for crissakes.

Good God woman! You ​are the only one coming off like the "thread police."

[Old Hiker]

Since dehydrated "backpacking" meals can be so expensive, my fellow hikers and I have decided to keep it on the cheap for food and go with things we can carry on the trail. Breakfast is easy with instant oatmeal, instant grits, pop tarts...

But what about lunches and dinners? We talked about the Knorr sides... What have you guy used and what should we avoid? We are going tomorrow to do a group shop for all the food...

Old El Paso microwave bags - fairly heavy, but I would eat one for lunch or dinner without warming it up. Put it into a tortilla or just straight from the bag. Almost as expensive as dehydrated meals, though.

Knorr - noodle sides tasted too blah or floury or something. Rice sides, esp. Spanish rice were good.

Mini-bagels and 8 oz tub of whipped cream cheese - 3 meals. Great for quick suppers when it was getting dark, tent was up and I was almost out.

Tortillas and cream cheese.

Pop-tarts for any meal - yes, they crumbled after a while, but just open the top and pour them down your throat.

$Store brand (Cloverdale) was good - I liked the cinnamon pop-tarts better than the name brand ones.

Small can of chicken into a Knorr rice side.

Oatmeal to Go breakfast bars - added one to the pop-tarts after a few weeks for the calories.

Hot choc/coffee/instant milk in a mayo jar - 3-4 tsps into my 20 oz mug and I was good to go for a few hours! I usually just got the water warm enough to have the mixture dissolve - saved fuel that way.

Cold days - esp. evenings, I would heat water and add a lemonade or raspberry packet to it. I carried 14 oz of brown sugar for a while (didn't want to give up most of it to a hiker box) to add for extra calories. I didn't want caffeine at night.

[Wise Old Owl]

Woooo... hey it was a suggestion. Creek Dancer, Wia Pilot read my thoughts... and you some how took a weird turn on the same post. I was looking forward to put the thread back on track to help folk. Lets try to be "innovative" as I would like to update a "no-cook" style of lunch. It really is the internet. Please do not take it personal - no I am not a "thread police" lets leave that for the ungrateful job of the mods - who I admire to an extent.

[Creek Dancer]

Well, I can't read anyone's thoughts, especially over the internet. And my comment was meant in jest, but evidently you and WIApilot can't read my thoughts either.

[Creek Dancer]

Anyway, one suggestion for a no-cook, nutritious meal is instant breakfast mixed with 2 tbls of Nido and instant coffee, plus some kind of breakfast "cookie". Lots of calories, hydration and caffeine to get you started down the trail. I was nervous about not having hot coffee in the morning, but I really didn't miss it. Just put all the ingredients in a water bottle and shake!

[cabbagehead]

LOL! Maybe you should lighten up! This is the food thread, for crissakes.

I eat crissakes all the time. If you don't want to cook, another good option is oatmeal.

[Creek Dancer]

LOL! Or....you could just carry a cabbagehead! No cooking necessary.

[Lyle]

By "group shop" I hope you don't mean everybody's going to throw some money in a pot and then you're going to buy one big pile of food that everybody will share. That's a terrible idea for several different reasons. But if you mean that everybody will go to the store together and everyone buys their own food separately I guess that's ok if you are into the social aspects of shopping.

I've done group shopping and group meals. It can work just fine. It is especially good for groups new to hiking. At least then, everyone learns together and when something goes wrong, you don't have to watch the others enjoying their perfect meal. Everyone suffers equally. :-)

[Wise Old Owl]

Ok this is what I was talking about add to this......



Quick Energy-packed
Brick Chocolate
Fudge Bar or Nuttella
Mint Cake
Gorp bars -
Snickers
In late summer use Hershey Kisses – less chance of melt
Hard ball Candy
Cliff energy bars.
Frito's (can start a fire)



Quick Foods
walnuts, cashews Seeds/nuts
Peanut butter
Block Cheese & String Cheese ind wrapped
Boxes of raisins.
Nido – not nonfat mik
Idahoan instant mashed potatoes
Fig newtons,
Wheat Thins & Cabot Cheese blocks (knife)
Beans/legumes
Jerky/sausage
Dried fish
Summer Sausage or Landsjager
Pepperoni / Salami – Long shelf life
Pemmican
Retort Tuna/chicken / Mayo Packs on Rye.
Retort Spam
Instant Breakfast Drink or Protein Drink
Olive oil
Hard Boild Eggs with Salt packets
Apples/Oranges (small)
Focaccia Bread with Vegetables


HIGH CARBOHYDRATE
Pudding mix (fix ahead with Nido and needs a bowl and cold mountain Stream)
Cereals
Home style Baked cookies/breads
Crackers/chips
Granola bars/PopTarts
Flour/baking mix
Dried vegetables
Plain bagel And other hard breads
PopTart
Cliff energy bar.
Tortilla's
Cracklin' Oat Bran
Natr. Valley G’ola
Pringles / Saltines
Granola bar (Many Flavors)
Pretzels
Fig bars
Graham crackers
Dried at the store
*Dried apples
*Prunes
*Dried apricots
*Dried figs
*Fruit leather
+Pemmican
Yogurt covered Rasins



Flavored Water
Gatorade powder
Propel Singles
Crystal Light
Korean Ginsing & Turbinado sugar
Instant Tea / Sugar packets
Instant Coffee & Creamer done cold
herbal and fruit teas Drink mix: cider, gatorade

[rocketsocks]

Carrots,I like carrots,If kept cool and out of the sun,a bag would last a few days,and many places along the trail might sell these in a convenient store.

Good list Woo,that would be hard to improve apon,as most of what I'd bring,is on your list.