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Bannunciato
03-13-2015, 10:05
Is it better to repackage food (dry and dehydrated) into zip lock bags with directions cut out and put in bag?

Tuckahoe
03-13-2015, 10:32
Since I am only hiking for a week at most, my preference is for food packaged as single servings and I will break bulk foods down and package them as individual or meal sized portions. I like to be able to keep track of my meal and snack portions plus pack each day's food together -- repackaging does that for me. On the other hand a friend of mine leaves his bulk foods like trail mix in their original packaging. I tend to have a higher proportion of wrappers and packaging as trash at the end.

Really though, I would say that it's an issue of preference rather than one better than the other.

Slo-go'en
03-13-2015, 11:01
Yes. By getting rid of as much packaging as possible you reduce the volume (takes up less space) and reduces the amount of garbage you have to carry out.

peakbagger
03-13-2015, 11:45
if its a simple recipe, I use a sharpie and write it on the outside of the bag.

Walkintom
03-13-2015, 11:53
We do move things into freezer bags if they don't come in resealable bags already. After we've eaten something a couple of times we don't really need to put directions on the bag.

Most things are pretty simple. Boil some water. Pour it in. Wait 10 minutes. Eat. While the water amount varies some it's not hard to remember or disastrous if you get it wrong.

colorado_rob
03-13-2015, 14:55
Yes. By getting rid of as much packaging as possible you reduce the volume (takes up less space) and reduces the amount of garbage you have to carry out.Yes, and It also reduces weight. One of those dehydrated meal packages weighs somewhere from 0.7 to a full ounce. A freezer bag zip-lock is around .25 ounces. Not a biggie, but it adds up, 2-3 ounces per 5 meals or so. I find I can usually get ALL the food out of a zip lock as well; when it is essentially gone, turn it inside out and lick it clean. This reduces weight as well, as in the original package, I wind up with lots of food leftover inside which you have to carry out.

In my experience, I've repackaged food and it seems to stay good for that summer, even without the little desiccant thing (which I pitch when I repackage). All I write on the ziplock is the amount of hot water to add, simple.

brancher
03-13-2015, 16:04
I like the zip-locs as well, and I use various dehydrated foods (beans, lentils, vegies, TVP) that I blend into meals. Those little ziplocs are great for that - They're called 'Portion Pacs' or something similar, and you can get 'em at walmart or target (or anywhere else, I guess).

colorado_rob
03-13-2015, 19:46
I like the zip-locs as well, and I use various dehydrated foods (beans, lentils, vegies, TVP) that I blend into meals. Those little ziplocs are great for that - They're called 'Portion Pacs' or something similar, and you can get 'em at walmart or target (or anywhere else, I guess). Make sure you get freezer bags if you plan on pouring boiling water into them.... regular zip-locks don't do as well.

Odd Man Out
03-13-2015, 19:49
I don't like the waste of freezer bags. I repackage in those little snack size bags and cook in the pot. No need for directions. All meals are add 2 cups water. Boil. Let set 15 min. Eat

Coffee
03-13-2015, 19:49
Although I do not freezer bag cook, I do repackage most foods into freezer bags to reduce weight and make the food more compact. Many foods have a ridiculous amount of packaging bulk which I'd rather not deal with. This is even more true when dealing with bear canisters. However, I am careful about not repackaging way before I expect to use the food. I have gone a month to six weeks between repackaging and consuming food and never had an issue. However, for the PCT this year, I am going to send my Sierra Nevada resupplies in their original packaging and will repackage into freezer bags when I sort my resupply. This is because otherwise I'd have to count on my repackaged foods staying good for a couple of months between when I leave home and consume those resupplies. So I'm just being extra careful.

Odd Man Out
03-13-2015, 22:28
Another trick I use on repackaging. I find a lot of dehydrated meals from the store are too big for one meal and too small for two meals (I ignore the package that says "serves six"!). Plus also of those meals have too much salt for my taste. So I add some plain rice to stretch it up to two meals. For example, I buy one box of Zatarain's Black Beans and Rice mix. The package says to mix with 2 1/2 cups water. So I dump the contents into a bowl. Add 3/4 cups of basmati rice (raw basmati rice cooks fast - tastes great - it doesn't need to be pre-cooked/par boiled). Then divide the mix into two samples. The extra rice stretches the recipe to 4 cups of water, divided into two samples, that 2 cups of water per meal. Bring a bottle of olive oil to give a flavor and calorie boost.

gravityfalls
03-14-2015, 06:53
Another trick I use on repackaging. I find a lot of dehydrated meals from the store are too big for one meal and too small for two meals (I ignore the package that says "serves six"!). Plus also of those meals have too much salt for my taste. So I add some plain rice to stretch it up to two meals. For example, I buy one box of Zatarain's Black Beans and Rice mix. The package says to mix with 2 1/2 cups water. So I dump the contents into a bowl. Add 3/4 cups of basmati rice (raw basmati rice cooks fast - tastes great - it doesn't need to be pre-cooked/par boiled). Then divide the mix into two samples. The extra rice stretches the recipe to 4 cups of water, divided into two samples, that 2 cups of water per meal. Bring a bottle of olive oil to give a flavor and calorie boost.
That's an excellent idea. That extra rice should also absorb songs of the salt making it taste better, too.

Odd Man Out
03-14-2015, 09:30
That's an excellent idea. That extra rice should also absorb songs of the salt making it taste better, too.

The package actually recommends this "for milder flavor". I adjust the amounts to get two servings using 2 cups of water. Another hint is you can use lentils too. I figure one part dry food (rice or lentils) for two parts water. Use the tiny lentils if you can get them. They are the fastest cooking dry legume.

Don H
03-14-2015, 10:03
Most of what I do is just add boiling water so I just write the amount of water needed along with the time needed to reconstitute on the bag.

Example: 1/3 box of Stove Top Stuffing takes 3/4 cup of boiling water and a 5 minute wait before serving (3/4 c - 5 min).
I have a spread sheet with amounts and times for the foods I typically take.