Oatmeal?

[MelatoninPenguin]

I've been add peanut powder, raisins, oat bran, coconut shreds, and chia seeds with cinnamon.

Anybody think I could just straight up live in this stuff? It never seems to spoil and it's so easy!!

[zelph]

Try it for next 7-10 days and see how you feel. Something Ventured Something Gained :-)

[swjohnsey]

I ate it every morning for 6 months, mostly cinnamon, brown sugar, raisins and some Nido.

[Slo-go'en]

Not a big fan of Oatmeal or other forms of breakfast cerials which resemble wall paper paste. But if you have to eat it, then doctoring it up with extras does make it more palatable.

[Heliotrope]

I've been add peanut powder, raisins, oat bran, coconut shreds, and chia seeds with cinnamon.

Anybody think I could just straight up live in this stuff? It never seems to spoil and it's so easy!!

You make It sound good. And I don't usually cook breakfast on trail.


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[Uncle Joe]

Great for cholesterol.

[DownEaster]

Great for cholesterol.
Even better with raspberries.

[Sarcasm the elf]

I've been add peanut powder, raisins, oat bran, coconut shreds, and chia seeds with cinnamon.

Anybody think I could just straight up live in this stuff? It never seems to spoil and it's so easy!!
I would suggest trying it on trail first to see if you still find it papatable. Oatmeal is staple in my diet, yet I can't get myself to eat it on multiday hikes.*


*Despite this I can still eat granola and museli while hiking...go figure.

[TTT]

Stick it all into a black pot, throw in a magic spell or two, maybe a newt, and you good to go

[garlic08]

Muesli has been my dietary staple, both on trail and at home, for many decades. Rolled oats are parboiled in processing so there's no need for further cooking. Add nuts and dried fruit, easy to do at any grocery in any trail town. I don't know what I'll do if I ever get tired of eating it. I used to add powdered milk, until a lactose-intolerant friend advised me it works well with plain water. That made town stops even easier, since it's often more difficult to find the powdered milk.

The weird thing is, I cannot stand cooked oats. It's a completely non-palatable dish to me, no matter what's in it.

Three or four cups of nut-rich muesli a day forms a good base, with whole-grain protein, more protein and fat from nuts, and quick sugar from the dried fruit (usually raisins). That's probably nearly a cup of oats, a lot of fiber which some people find hard to digest in a reasonable manner. It may require some experimentation to find your threshold of tolerance.

I did try a long resupply through the Sierra Nevada on the PCT with nothing but muesli and a couple jars of peanut butter for more fat. That was in the early days of stoveless hiking for me. I made it okay, but I haven't done that since. I needed a little more variety. I now carry cheese and tortillas, cookies and crackers, a little fresh veg and fruit, extra mixed nuts.

(By comparison, I met a hiker who attempted the JMT on nothing but Little Debbie brownies. He didn't make it. I think muesli is a better idea for a mono-diet.)

[SteelCut]

There is a reason why I chose the handle 'SteelCut' ... as steel-cut oats is my breakfast choice at home. But, impractical on the trail where I do rolled oats w/ water and nuts/dried fruit as suggested by garlic08.

[grubbster]

They are making an instant steel cut oatmeal now. I bought some but have not tried it yet.

[SteelCut]

They are making an instant steel cut oatmeal now. I bought some but have not tried it yet.

Thanks. I will need to look into that.

[JC13]

I do protein powder, rolled oats, and a fruit/veggie powder for 2 meals a day on 8-10 day hikes. Eat it everyday at home for 2 meals but add in 2 Tbsp of peanut butter.

Add water and go, if I know camp will be water-less, I will make one and drink it at the source and mix the next mornings as well.

[Grampie]

I do protein powder, rolled oats, and a fruit/veggie powder for 2 meals a day on 8-10 day hikes. Eat it everyday at home for 2 meals but add in 2 Tbsp of peanut butter.

Add water and go, if I know camp will be water-less, I will make one and drink it at the source and mix the next mornings as well.

I ate instant oat meal every morning, for the first three months, during my thru. When the weather got warm I switched to a dry cereal with powdered milk. Easy to make and a lot of verity.

[Tipi Walter]

Like others I have been eating oatmeal on backpacking trips since the beginning and it never gets old (for me). Advantages---
** It can be eaten hot or cold, cooked or raw (when soaked in cold water)
** Many things can be added to cooked oats for taste and variety---powdered coconut milk, (and nido of course), honey, salt, cream cheese and/or butter, nuts, peanut butter or almond butter etc, raisins, AND wild edibles like chickweed, lambs quarters or mustard greens, cheese---whatever.

** It is the universal backpacking food because it can be purchased at nearly any store.
** Oatmeal is a great appetite tester---If you're not hungry for oats you're just not hungry.

** It works great in the summer for dinner as you can cook it up with varied ingredients and let it cool so you don't have to eat a hot meal during a heatwave.

[Odd Man Out]

Cooked oatmeal was problematic for me on the trail. Hard to get the texture right. Took a lot of fuel. When it cooled, it set up like glue. Pot hart to clean. Then I used this trick to solve all these problems. Don't use instant oatmeal packages. Plain oatmeal with extras as in th OP (but use maple syrup or sugar, if not already suggesyed). Then add boiling water until you get the texture you like. The texture is quite different than when fully cooked, bit I like it and it's not too gooey. Plus it cleans up very easily.

[blw2]

thanks. I was wondering lately about just this twist...
As an oatmeal eater at home, I've gone over time from steel cut, to rolled (not quick), to instant just out of time and laziness.....it's pre- flavored and fast....
but it is a sticky mess. and I really don't like making it or eating it in the paper pouch.
I thought I might start experimenting with "not cooking" old fashioned, in place of instant

[TwoSpirits]

Cooked oatmeal was problematic for me on the trail. Hard to get the texture right. Took a lot of fuel. When it cooled, it set up like glue. Pot hart to clean. Then I used this trick to solve all these problems. Don't use instant oatmeal packages. Plain oatmeal with extras as in th OP (but use maple syrup or sugar, if not already suggesyed). Then add boiling water until you get the texture you like. The texture is quite different than when fully cooked, bit I like it and it's not too gooey. Plus it cleans up very easily.Exactly this.

I've never really gotten sick & tired of oatmeal, although I came very close when I thought that instant oatmeal was the only practical thing for hiking. As others have said, it can become a disgusting, gluey mess good only for chinking a log cabin.

But I finally figured out that I can make my own "instant" oatmeal that tastes the way I want it to taste, and has the texture that I like. I just boil water, and pour it slowly into a bowl of regular rolled oats. I pour just enough to see the water start to pool over the oats -- but it's really kind of a goldilocks thing that depends on your particular tastes. I typically add a handfull of chopped pecans and raisins. Perfect breakfast fuel.

I make it this way at home, too.

[Ethesis]

I've been add peanut powder, raisins, oat bran, coconut shreds, and chia seeds with cinnamon.

Anybody think I could just straight up live in this stuff? It never seems to spoil and it's so easy!!

On section hikes when I got tired of the Lipton sides I started eating it for dinner.

[DownEaster]

I get no satisfaction from instant oatmeal. On the trail I carry a mix of Quaker old fashioned rolled oats with Nido Fortificada whole milk powder. Half the time I include brown sugar and cinnamon; in the other half of the zipper bags I leave it plain. Cooking takes the same amount of fuel as the instant junk, but is a bit more time-consuming. Combine water and a zipper bag of oatmeal mix in your cookpot and stir while bringing it to a boil. Remove from the flame and put in a Reflectix cozy made for your pot; wait 8-10 minutes. Starting with uncooked oats and using milk rather than water yields a tasty, textured meal rather than gluey gruel.

For a treat, sweeten a hot plain oatmeal mix with Guittard dark chocolate chips; the chips melt and turn breakfast into dark chocolate indulgence.

[Venchka]

(By comparison, I met a hiker who attempted the JMT on nothing but Little Debbie brownies. He didn't make it. I think muesli is a better idea for a mono-diet.)
This should be a sticky in the "How not to hike" section.
Wayne


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[ldsailor]

Cooked oatmeal was problematic for me on the trail. Hard to get the texture right. Took a lot of fuel. When it cooled, it set up like glue. Pot hart to clean. Then I used this trick to solve all these problems. Don't use instant oatmeal packages. Plain oatmeal with extras as in th OP (but use maple syrup or sugar, if not already suggesyed). Then add boiling water until you get the texture you like. The texture is quite different than when fully cooked, bit I like it and it's not too gooey. Plus it cleans up very easily.

I ate instant Quaker Oatmeal on the trail for breakfast. It was easy to prepare. I bought a box of quart Zip-Lok freezer bags for my "bowl." Boil water in my pot, pour the oatmeal into the bag, pour the water into the bag, stir and eat. Fast, easy and no messy bowls or pots. Just throw away the Zip-Lok bag when you're finished.

I'm sure you can use the same approach with other oatmeal brands.

[DownEaster]

Just throw away the Zip-Lok bag when you're finished.
I've got to say, I find this approach hard to reconcile with a hobby that's supposed to be in harmony with nature. A nylon pot scraper can be used over and over without waste, and there's less weight of trash in your pack.

[cneill13]

I've got to say, I find this approach hard to reconcile with a hobby that's supposed to be in harmony with nature. A nylon pot scraper can be used over and over without waste, and there's less weight of trash in your pack.
Seriously? Like a couple of ziplocks makes a difference. Where is silicon valley? California of course. Land of fruits and nuts.

[egilbe]

Seriously? Like a couple of ziplocks makes a difference. Where is silicon valley? California of course. Land of fruits and nuts.
Its more than a couple ziplocks. I reuse my ziplocks. I found, after FBC, that I throw them out. To me, it makes more sense to clean my cook pot.

[Traveler]

Seriously? Like a couple of ziplocks makes a difference. Where is silicon valley? California of course. Land of fruits and nuts.
Grams lead to ounces, ounces to pounds. Packing ziplock bags not only adds to weight and bulk, but also adds to the solid waste stream that does seem to be in conflict with overarching LNT concepts. Some people are serious about every gram and their refuse footprint. And, as you demonstrate, some are not. Nor are some folks able to support a position absent domicile ad hominem apparently.

[BuckeyeBill]

The only plastic bags I use are Locsak Opsak bags that are odor free. Loose food into individual small bags. Those go into larger like food Locsak Opsak bags and finally everything into one extra large Locsak Opsak bag. I put this into my Ursack bag. Never had a problem. You can usually go for a long time with bags, if you don't try to overload them or just shove them into larger bags. The whole idea of this system is to prevent odors from getting out. I also pack any garbage out the same way. And by the way I can eat oatmeal year round for breakfast along with my morning coffee. I do simple meals on the trail and load up with pork, beef, and poultry when I am in town.

[QiWiz]

You could live on oatmeal with additions, but you may grow to hate it (or not). Try it and see. I have a hiking friend who has cheddar broccoli pasta with tuna every night for weeks and is very happy with that meal night after night. I'd be unhappy.

[ldsailor]

I've got to say, I find this approach hard to reconcile with a hobby that's supposed to be in harmony with nature. A nylon pot scraper can be used over and over without waste, and there's less weight of trash in your pack.

I thought about using a scraper, but it is an imperfect solution to my way of thinking. There is always some residue left in the pot and that can lead to bacteria forming. I did cook in and then clean the pot for awhile before I started using ziplocks, but then I'm introducing bits and pieces of uneaten food into the environment. Ziplocks seemed to be the best way. Absolutely no chance of trail environment contamination (of course I pack the used bags out) and the pot only gets boiling water. And ziplocks don't weigh all that much - 5 weigh about an ounce.

BTW. You can recycle ziplock bags. They just need to be rinsed out and dropped off at a participating grocery store. Not ideal while on the trail, but a hiker's environmental impact is small when using the bags on the trail in comparison to homeowners who have the ability to recycle the bags.

[DownEaster]

I thought about using a scraper, but it is an imperfect solution to my way of thinking. There is always some residue left in the pot and that can lead to bacteria forming.
I didn't mean to suggest that you only use a scraper; I apologize if that's the impression you got. Washing things clean is always a healthy practice. If you use the scraper, the washing up is much easier.

[evyck da fleet]

I liked eating oatmeal for breakfast because it made cleaning my pot easier. I could live with a little grease from having added pepperoni to Ramen or a rice side because I knew it would be absorbed by the oatmeal in the morning. No ziplocks needed or extra soap to remove grease. I'd rather spend the extra 30 seconds cleaning the pot after oatmeal in the morning than contribute to additional plastic consumption.

Now off trail I don't eat the stuff.

[rocketsocks]

I like my groats thin and in a coffee cup...drank em down.

[cmoulder]

I liked eating oatmeal for breakfast because it made cleaning my pot easier. I could live with a little grease from having added pepperoni to Ramen or a rice side because I knew it would be absorbed by the oatmeal in the morning. No ziplocks needed or extra soap to remove grease. I'd rather spend the extra 30 seconds cleaning the pot after oatmeal in the morning than contribute to additional plastic consumption.

Now off trail I don't eat the stuff.

Reminded me of a lesson I once learned: You can eat lasagne after oatmeal but not oatmeal after lasagne. :o I'm pretty sure that tomato paste is not good with oatmeal.

I've eaten a lot of instant oatmeal over the years — I could eat Quaker Peaches n Cream every day — but I must admit it leaves me hungry less than an hour later. This spring and summer I started using Bob's Red Mill European Style Muesli with a couple tablespoons of Nido, and I add some raisins or craisins. It "sticks with me" for 2-3 hours. I eat it at home with some cut up fruit such as strawberries or nectarines and greek style yogurt.

[egilbe]

I mix and match chia seeds, walnuts, dried fruit, almonds, brown sugar, nido, shredded coconut and anything else I can thinkof, to my oatmeal when I'm hiking. I have even added hot cocoa and/or instant coffee if I wanted a quick energy burst in the morning.

[JJ505]

Walnuts (or some other nuts), pumpkin seeds, crasins (I like the orange flavored ones).

[AllDownhillFromHere]

Oatmeal cold-soaks well. Double or triple the water, and when you stop for second breakfast, you can drink it like a smoothie.

[Ruck]

Great choice. Adding dried fruit picked up in town is helpful to add variety. I like to add boiled water to the instant oatmeal packet and use that as a waterproof bowl. That leaves the remainder of the boiled water in my evernew 550 for instant coffee or tea.

[Slow Trek]

The easy way on instant oatmeal is to pour a cup of hot water into the pouch the oatmeal comes in. Eat from the pouch,no pot to clean. Probably not gourmet oatmeal,but quick,easy and can get the stuff anywhere.

[LazyLightning]

I like my oatmeal unusually dry, like 2 tablespoons of water tops in one of the little instant packets. It's almost like an apple crisp topping texture. I would like to just bring a big thing and add stuff myself but if I have to cook it in water that will be way to soggy for me.

[JJ505]

Oatmeal cold-soaks well. Double or triple the water, and when you stop for second breakfast, you can drink it like a smoothie.

I used to do this years ago, not for hiking-- everyday , but because I didn't seem to tolerate eating early in the morning (something I apparently have gotten over). It worked very well, go figure that I couldn't eat it but could drink it.
Might work for folks who have trouble eating early in the morning but need the nutrients.

[Which Way]

I do protein powder, rolled oats, and a fruit/veggie powder for 2 meals a day on 8-10 day hikes. Eat it everyday at home for 2 meals but add in 2 Tbsp of peanut butter.

Add water and go, if I know camp will be water-less, I will make one and drink it at the source and mix the next mornings as well.

Hey JC! Which Way from Mount Olive here. We use a Barley max and carrot powder, but was curious were you get a fruit powder, and what kind/brand? Thanks and RTR

[Which Way]

I do protein powder, rolled oats, and a fruit/veggie powder for 2 meals a day on 8-10 day hikes. Eat it everyday at home for 2 meals but add in 2 Tbsp of peanut butter.

Add water and go, if I know camp will be water-less, I will make one and drink it at the source and mix the next mornings as well.

Hey JC! Which Way from Mount Olive here. We use a Barley max and carrot powder, but was curious were you get a fruit powder, and what kind/brand? Thanks and RTR

[Which Way]

My wife came up with a great concoction. She puts regular oats, PB2 powder, mini chocolate chips, honey crystals, cinnamon,, ground flax seed, chia seed and pecans in a zip lock freezer bag. We add hot water to the bag in a home-made cozy, let it sit for 5-10 minutes and enjoy! It can be kind of thick, so you may adjust the amount of water you use, you can leave out the flax seed, or add raisins and walnuts. When we're through, there is no mess to clean up, just pack out the freezer bag to discard in town. Oat Power!

[squeezebox]

Oatmeal with peanut butter and jelly mixed in.

[Bronk]

Every hiker box I've ever seen is full of oatmeal. If you can live on it you'd eat for free. But there's a reason everybody throws it away.

[Elaikases]

Every hiker box I've ever seen is full of oatmeal. If you can live on it you'd eat for free. But there's a reason everybody throws it away.

Don't I wish we had found more on our section hikes ... I will note that often there isn't enough sugar in the hiker box oatmeal I've eaten.

On the other hand, I've added pop tarts to hiker boxes and eaten some I've found there (donated more than I've taken). Sometimes I've felt like pop tarts, sometimes I haven't.

[JC13]

Hey JC! Which Way from Mount Olive here. We use a Barley max and carrot powder, but was curious were you get a fruit powder, and what kind/brand? Thanks and RTRBetter Body Foods - Livfit Superfood blend with protein. We get it at Costco, its actually a fruit and veggie blend.

[JJ505]

Powered peanut butter in oatmeal sounds good. Years ago, I had a recipe for a peanut butter flour (which might be the same thing?) based cereal. It was not a backpacker recipe, but was very good. Super high in protein.

[Elaikases]

Better Body Foods - Livfit Superfood blend with protein. We get it at Costco, its actually a fruit and veggie blend.

Thanks for the pointer.

[jj dont play]

Brown sugar cinnamon oatmeal was a staple on my thru...and I was no cool so I'd just toss half packet in my mouth and then take a big swig of water..man I still eat it that way off the trail hahaha.


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[double d]

Oatmeal with peanut butter and jelly mixed in.
Yes! You beat me to this comment, but its great and healthy-easy to make as well.

[middle to middle]

Ya and I love it too. Plus it now reminds me of hike.