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Unclegorb
01-10-2009, 18:10
Concerns:
Out of all the aspects of planning a thru-hike I find the food the most daunting. I've got me gear list "nailed down" but, I definitely need some help with my food choices. I'm not an expierienced cook and i'm used to choosing food for a weekend so, I will definitely need a little more variety.

So, my question is...What are your favorite meals or food on the trail? What online resources have you found to help you? (recipes, dehydrated food, etc.)

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Ideas:
I've been testing out some different recipes and food products already. Here are a few of my "oppinions" so far, maybe it will help someone out.

- I tried powdered milk with some dry cereal (cinnamon cheerios) and it was suprisingly good. I thought the milk might be gross but you couldn't taste the difference with the cinnamon flavored cereal.

- One Fresh Cup Coffee (http://www.onefreshcup.com/product.asp) this was pretty bad tasting, plus the whole setup was a little tricky. The filter is made for skinny mugs and was hard to keep in place.

- I've got some dehyrdated peas, corn and potatos that I bought from Harmony House Foods and tried them in a few different dishes with no luck. The vegetables seem to be very bland no matter how much spice you add...very different from the canned varieties. Anyone have any secrets?

- This place is cool (http://www.minimus.biz/foodmain.aspx). I ordered a bunch of stuff the other day bacon bits, parmesean cheese, peanut butter, drink mixes...

- These guys make great fruit leather, its organic too.(http://www.stretchislandfruit.com/)

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Any suggestions you guys/gals may have would be much appreciated :)

JAK
01-10-2009, 18:20
My breakfast staples are oats, to which I add stuff from one trip to the next, like milk, almonds, raisins, currants, various trail mixes, and even butter. Sometimes just oats. My supper staple is lentils and dried vegetables for making soup, to which again I might add stuff like olive oil and fresh greens and maybe tuna or chicken. I like beef jerky to chew on something between meals. I drink alot of different tea, with varying amounts of milk and honey, and lemon for vitamin C, and natural sources of vitamins and flavours along the trail. You needn't worry too much, as you don't need alot of variety on any single leg of a trip, but you can change what you eat between one leg and the next. My intention would be to try different things along the way. I don't think I would use mail drops. I like to leave food choices to the last minute.

Dogwood
01-10-2009, 18:34
U R on your way! Don't be afraid to scan through large grocery store shelves for food that can be eaten on the trail. Some of these food ideas will often be less expensive and even the same wt. as other mainstream higher priced dehydrated hiker style meals. For example cous cous can get old after a while, but it goes with so many other foods and it can be tweaked to add variety.

JAK
01-10-2009, 18:47
A fun thing to do while living vicariously up here through all you guys and gals hiking the AT or planning on doing so shortly, is to live a few days now and then as though I were on the trail. Yeah, I'm a sick puppy. Anyhow, while my wife is grocery shopping, which she seems to do a little of every day so she doesn't need help, I am usually scanning the shelves myself and buying a few items for my next hike, or pseudo-hike. I haven't fired up the old Kelly Kettle here at work yet, but I eat alot oats and soup and stuff and drink alot of tea. In the summer I used to hike 2km down to the river for lunch and fired up the Kelly Kettle but I haven't done that in winter yet. You don't have to hike to eat hiking food though. Start living. :)

TrippinBTM
01-10-2009, 18:53
I worried about this too before I set out; it turns out to not be a problem at all. You only have to plan for your next 3-7 days between townstops, really. You figure out how much food you need real quick (especially when you don't buy enough. that's a quick way to learn, let me tell you...)

Stick with simple, nothing tricky. I love coffee, and much as I cringe to say it, go with instant, or at least coffee bags (like tea bags).

Breakfast: granola, with or without milk, or powerbars/granola bars. Oatmeal packets were good too, get the flavored kind or you'll get REAL sick of oatmeal REAL quick.

Lunch: just snack all day, as needed. I went with Snickers (poor man's powerbar), hard cheese/crackers (or cream cheese for variety), summer sausage or pepperoni. Almonds are great too, or trailmix of some sort. Peanut butter is great. So is Nutella. Buy soft tortillas and you can make sandwiches.

Dinner: Knorr Sides (formerly Lipton Sides), or ramen (not very nourishing). Would sometimes add tuna, salmon, or chicken (from those foil packets. these are good for snacks too). Or check out Mary Janes (http://www.wildernessdining.com/shopbybrand-maryjanesfarm.html)backpacking food, a friend of mine used that, and I occasionally had some of his through trades and such. Good stuff. Buy in bulk (if you're doing maildrops). Or just go simple with instant rice. Make sure you have stuff to season it or mix in; i'd say not to instant rice all the time cuz it's pure starch, like ramen.

I don't, by the way, recomment mail drops. I do recommend packing out perishable food for your first night from town, for variety. We used to do quesadillas with tomatoes, jalapenos, onions, cheese, and chicken packets. Or pack out a steak and corn on the cob (make sure the weather's good for making a fire).

JAK
01-10-2009, 19:03
I often do 3-5 day hikes with as few as 6 different food items.
e.g. Oats, Honey, Raisins, Almonds, Skim Milk, Jerky.
You can make tea along the way, from sticks and stuff.
Could probably do it with just 3 or 4, including coffee, though it might be harder to keep it well balanced that way.

It's easier with 6 or 7, but in this way you can buy bulk or at least in 1/2 pound or 1 pound quanties, which is much cheaper, and mix and match and measure for each meal, so buying and packing food is much faster also. I can hit a grocert store on the way to the trailhead and be out of there in 5-10 minutes. You can add variety between one resupply and the next. You don't have to try everything on one hike. A simple limited variety can be comforting also, and still be a healthy balanced diet.

budforester
01-10-2009, 19:29
Evening meal is the main one for me, and I prefer one- pot soups, stews, or sauces. Lots of ideas and recipes here on the WB Forum's Cooking and Food; definitely visit Sarbar's (http://www.freezerbagcooking.com/trailcookingcom.htm) own site. Some of us prefer the Nido (http://www.mexgrocer.com/2575.html) milk powder, often it's on the Hispanic foods aisle. My personal preference is drip coffee, but I usually use the coffee bags (http://www.folgers.com/coffees/instant/singles.shtml). I never liked the bother of vegetable side- dishes, so veggies go into my one- pot concoctions. However, think about rehydrating vegetables in a seasoned broth or bouillon; maybe adding a dollop of butter, olive oil. Liven it up with grated cheese, croutons, bread crumbs, cracker crumbs. I experiment at home, so that I won't be forced to choke down any failed recipes

garlic08
01-10-2009, 19:32
The more I hike, the less important food becomes to me. I'm happy resupplying at convenience stores and thrilled when I get to a real grocery. I didn't do any maildrops on the AT. I can live most of the day on a mixture of oats, nuts, dried fruit and powdered milk, just like those above use. Tortillas and cheese or bread and peanut butter, with some crackers and cookies fills out the day for me. I don't even carry a stove anymore, it's that simple. Instead of stove and fuel, I carry as much fresh fruit and veg as I can. Then I eat the best meal I can when I get to town.

So it can be real simple. It's all what you make of it.

Serial 07
01-10-2009, 19:33
don't worry about it so much...you'll figure out what foods you like and you'll see what others are bringing...my advice is not to be shy with the spices...curry, garlic, onion powder all good items to freshen up any meal...

Tennessee Viking
01-10-2009, 20:24
Food wise you will be eating PB crackers, ramen, trail mix, Lipton packets, oatmeal, grits, and jerky. Then when your in a town with a good outfitter you can pickup the dehydrated meals.

Can goods can be good for preservation but heavy.

Blissful
01-10-2009, 21:22
You can do a search too for topics on this subject on WB. Lots of good ideas out there for menu options.

Compass
01-10-2009, 23:47
Concerns:
Out of all the aspects of planning a thru-hike I find the food the most daunting.

- I've got some dehyrdated peas, corn and potatos that I bought from Harmony House Foods and tried them in a few different dishes with no luck. The vegetables seem to be very bland no matter how much spice you add...very different from the canned varieties. Anyone have any secrets?


As Budforester was mentioning with broths, dried bulk vegtables are not salted like canned vegtables(because sodium will slow down and limit dehydration) but can be great to help a prepackageded meal that has to much sodium(Lipton).

Cool AT Breeze
01-11-2009, 00:03
Somthing nobody mentioned is Microwave Hamburger Helper. I always leave town with at least one box of these. And the MSR or GSI coffee makers rock. I also agree that on the trail you learn to eat what is fast and easy, then eat good in town.

TrippinBTM
01-11-2009, 11:59
Good call on the hamburger helper, CoolATBreeze. I also liked to pack out stuffing mixes, easy to make and tastes good.

Cool AT Breeze
01-11-2009, 12:16
Don't forget instant taters. Good alone or mixed with other BP foods. If you can make it by boiling water, it's most likely good to hike with.

budforester
01-11-2009, 12:35
Don't forget instant taters. Good alone or mixed with other BP foods. If you can make it by boiling water, it's most likely good to hike with.

Affirmative. Good source of potassium; no sodium: significant for some of us oldsters. And potato flakes re- hydrate... instantly.

garlic08
01-11-2009, 13:12
Don't forget instant taters. Good alone or mixed with other BP foods. If you can make it by boiling water, it's most likely good to hike with.

Not only that, they actually work with cold water, too. Better if you can let it soak for 5-10 minutes.

budforester
01-11-2009, 14:04
Not only that, they actually work with cold water, too. Better if you can let it soak for 5-10 minutes.

Yeah, then a few additions can turn it into "potato salad"... I like that for warm- weather lunches.

theinfamousj
01-11-2009, 17:03
Somthing nobody mentioned is Microwave Hamburger Helper. I always leave town with at least one box of these.

I call these, and similar Pasta-Roni foods "Meal in a Box". I've been eating them/sharing my terminology since my college days.

Meal in a Box is great, and if you get pink boxes, something in the ink that they used (I'm thinking it is copper) will create a green flame if you toss them in to a campfire.

Not to be confused with Meal in a Pouch (Knorr sides), of course. :)

Captain
01-11-2009, 17:09
Breakfast: granola, with or without milk, or powerbars/granola bars. Oatmeal packets were good too, get the flavored kind or you'll get REAL sick of oatmeal REAL quick.



Perhaps because unflavored un-sugared rolled oats tastes, looks like and has the same consistency of carpenters glue

TrippinBTM
01-11-2009, 20:27
Perhaps because unflavored un-sugared rolled oats tastes, looks like and has the same consistency of carpenters glue

Perhaps... :-?

tzbrown
01-11-2009, 20:46
Check out the salad toppings in the supermarket. They have real bacon bits in a 3 oz bag. Just drop the sealed bag in the coffee water to heat, eat with a spoon.

sarbar
01-14-2009, 13:13
I eat mashers often in the evening, the potassium is very important for me :) No leg cramps :D

As for why dried veggies taste bland....as was noted, they have no sodium added. Now, if you use the veggies in meals you will do OK. I use 2 to 4 Tbsp of dried vegetables normally when I create recipes. Bulks up the meal as well.

Kind of like eating plain real oatmeal - bland is the word :D (The majority of instant oatmeal on the market is salted, homemade oats have no salt unless you add it)

buckwheat
01-14-2009, 14:14
I can live most of the day on a mixture of oats, nuts, dried fruit and powdered milk ... I don't even carry a stove anymore.

I've considered going this way for breakfast and lunch ... just eating cold. Not sure I'd want to do this for dinner. Garlic, when you're hiking like this, sans stove, what's your "main meal" consist of? Do you rely on open-flame cooking, or never eat a hot meal?

Thanks again for the benefit of your experience.

Cheers,
Buckwheat

GGS2
01-14-2009, 15:21
On canoe trips, I carry a wide mouth thermos and fill it in the morning with my favourite dry food and boiling water. By the time I'm hungry again, it's usually done. With some dried foods, like brown lentils and brown rice, it may not be enough cooking. For those things, I par boil before putting them in the thermos.

On the trail, I leave out the thermos, but substitute a good watertight jar, choose your own based on weight, plastic or not, etc., and bury it in my pack, so it stays insulated. Works for soups, mac'n'cheese, most dried fruits, mashed potatoes, pro'lly grits, oatmeal and other cereals, most dehydrated meals, etc. If you're not certain the jar is watertight, put it in a zip bag for insurance. If you plan right, you can get away with one fire a day, or even cold camping without any fire. I hike slow and steady all day long, for as long as the light lasts, and then collapse into camp. In summer, I often don't cook at all.

And the taste you are missing is salt, as others have noted. Prepared foods are way too salty, so we get used to the taste, and this is not good for us, long term. It also spoils us for natural taste in food. If you can get real hungry hiking, the bland taste won't bother you, and after a week or two, the salt craving may fade somewhat. If you can't hack that, just add salt. Better to add a salt substitute, if you can acquire the taste for that instead of salt. Or add prepared food to your dehydrated stuff, instead of salt.

The old timers used to eat simple food on the trail, but would sometimes haul a special treat along until they just couldn't stand it any more, then haul it out and have a feast. Maybe it was fresh bread, a cake, pie, a can of peaches or some fancy main dish. On the AT, that's what town stops do for you. So try to stick to basics out on the trail, and binge in towns, if you need to. But do what works for you: everyone has their own way with food.