Getting cheaper meals by the minute.... [Archive]

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Wise Old Owl

11-05-2009, 01:08

http://www.bettycrocker.com/NR/rdonlyres/11C2083D-3520-4163-AA97-F21044B8FB4C/0/New_potatoes_CasserolePotatoes.jpgI found a "Acme" version of this and divided the box into two servings and discovered dry Nido will work. The cook time is 15 minutes but that is on simmer. Add fake bacon bits or a dash of "season salt" (paprika based) and it is a true filler for the trail. Can easily be adapted to FBC.

Wise Old Owl

11-05-2009, 20:01

Egg Drop Soup well its not quite up to eating chinese but very close.

This packet is a full cheap dinner as it has protein in it if you take a egg with you. A hard boiled egg and this packet is very filling.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51S%2B2AZdHpL._SL500_AA280_.jpg loaded with veggies and dried mushrooms

shoe

11-05-2009, 20:03

I just bought about 20 boxes of those today for nothing with my coupons.

Do you think they would really work for freezer bag cooking? HOw would you do it?

sheepdog

11-05-2009, 20:06

modiyooch

11-05-2009, 20:09

what's the sodium content on these products?

Wise Old Owl

11-05-2009, 20:10

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51H32jvE7rL._SL500_AA280_PIbundle-6,TopRight,0,0_AA280_SH20_.jpg

An easy dish to make next to a cold stream, 1/2 cup of water mixed in your pot and and add 2 Tablespoons of of olive oil, stir to well blended. put pot into stream with rocks to hold it in place for chillin..... garnish with paprika salt and dip with broken pita breads.

wow....

Wise Old Owl

11-05-2009, 20:27

I just bought about 20 boxes of those today for nothing with my coupons.

Do you think they would really work for freezer bag cooking? How would you do it?

Divide the packets into two glad bags 50/50 as the 5.5 oz produces too much food for two people in one dinner. Go ahead and mix with the sauce and the potato. Add two tablespoons of Nido to the cheese powder to each bag and ignore the call for butter or marg. as it is all ready in there.

On the trail its 1 1/8 or a cup and a little more to boil then follow the directions 15 to 18 minutes on simmer.

Procras108r

11-05-2009, 20:33

I realize that these pre-mixed meals are convenient, but I wonder if there are better alternatives.

I think it would be cheaper, but would it be manageable to make your own. Bag your own noodles, rice, grains, etc. Add from your bags of dehydrated peas, corn, peppers, etc. Now add from your pack of powdered cheese, tomato paste, etc and spices. Either make these in advance or create on the trail. Now, less sodium, msg, etc. Flavored to your liking.

Instead of freezer bag waste / garbage, why not cook and eat from a tupperware container with a screwcap. [many kitchen kits could be placed inside the container when hiking] Plus, rehydrating items could be started in the container with a small amount of water in your container an hour before reaching camp. At camp, add rice, pasta, grains to the container along with hot water and cook as you would in a freezer bag.

I am planning for my hike and this is how I am hoping to make it.

hikingbear

11-05-2009, 20:37

Can I ask what is Nido?

Divide the packets into two glad bags 50/50 as the 5.5 oz produces too much food for two people in one dinner. Go ahead and mix with the sauce and the potato. Add two tablespoons of Nido to the cheese powder to each bag and ignore the call for butter or marg. as it is all ready in there.

On the trail its 1 1/8 or a cup and a little more to boil then follow the directions 15 to 18 minutes on simmer.

Wise Old Owl

11-05-2009, 20:52

Whwwwee, Sangio do you do this on a regular basis? There is a cost vs time situation here. Jerky yup do it at home $$$$ ... drying a single potato and cheese ... maybee not. cheaper to buy packets or boxes. There is no joy in making mac & cheese from scratch for the trail... This is mac & russet potatos, nothing going on other than the savings of avoiding freeze dried. If you feel the need to do at home from scratch... GO for it.

Wise Old Owl

11-05-2009, 20:53

Can I ask what is Nido?

Whole Dried Milk from Nestle sold only to mexican/spanish stores but found in Walmart Super Stores.

Montego

11-05-2009, 21:12

Hey hikingbear, how's it going? To answer your question, "Nido" is a powdered whole milk (as opposed to non-fat powdered milk one usually finds in the store). It's a product of Mexico and comes in several types and is most often used as a reconstituted milk for baby bottles.

Mixed with cold water from a stream or spring found along the trail, it's quite good (a lot better tasting than the typical non-fat powdered milk, IMHO) and adds those much needed calories from the fat content.

You should be able to find it in the hispanic section of Wal-Mart or a market that specializes in Mexican foods. Another source is on-line. Just google "Nido".

Happy hiking.
Montego

Blissful

11-05-2009, 21:22

Wow this is like watching hiker commercials...or the QVC holiday gourmet show :)
(I'm visual so I like pictures)

Good ideas.

Mango

11-05-2009, 21:35

I think Nido is made by Nestle, not Nabisco. And is it made in Mexico or is Mexico just the primary market? Anyway, it is "fat dry milk", as opposed to "nonfat dry milk."

Farr Away

11-06-2009, 13:08

Yes, Nido is a Nestle product. According to the can, it is distributed by Nestle USA, and is a product of Mexico.

Mrs Baggins

11-06-2009, 13:16

Yes, Nido is a Nestle product. According to the can, it is distributed by Nestle USA, and is a product of Mexico.

My husband loves Nido. He took a long a zip lock bag of it on our last backpacking trip and made himself cups of milk. He said it's like drinking cream.

Lucy Lulu

11-06-2009, 14:15

I love Nido also. I mixed it with chocolate and strawberry protein mixes on my longer hikes. They were great with breakfast, and gave me a boost when my weight began to get low.

Lucy Lulu

11-06-2009, 14:16

Oh yeah, and I got a great deal on a case of it from Amazon last year.

Wise Old Owl

11-06-2009, 17:42

Remove from box 5 oz! HOT&tangy noodles in 5 minutes.

Several different flavors I just tried Thai Kitchen Tangy Sweet & Sour rice noodles and sauce and it is a meal. needs a cozy and several stirs.

http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce/ExecMacro/simplyasia/shop.d2w/report

Some of the noodle meals can be vegan

http://www.worldpantry.com/thaikitchen/img/product/thk-117529.jpg

Nicksaari

11-07-2009, 12:39

ill second that Wise Old Owl! that stuff is great, but ive found i cheaper rice noodle concoction.
i dont know if you guys and gals get out to your asian grocers, i know they smell funny and not a lot of the stuff has English written on them. but if you know what you're looking for, you can get this great instant rice noodle, add half the seasoning pack (as the whole pack contains over 1000mg of sodium...yuck) some beef jerky, spicy peanuts, and fresh green onions. add some PB as a roux (thickener) and VIOLA!
TRAIL PAD THAI for under two bucks. this is one of my favorite meals on trail and easiest to prepare.

http://www.mama-ricenoodles.com/th/product2.html

Nicksaari

11-07-2009, 12:42

http://www.mama-ricenoodles.com/th/product2.html

$00.35 noodles x4
$00.50 planters spicy peanuts
$00.75 fresh green onions... and dont forget these green onions keep pretty well in non-sweltering weather, or if you've got the eye, pick some fresh green onions on trail, but do not deny the onions cause THEY SET THIS DISH OFF!!!

Bulldawg

11-07-2009, 12:44

Whole Dried Milk from Nestle sold only to mexican/spanish stores but found in Walmart Super Stores.

I found it in Ingles. Ingles is a regional southern supermarket.

Hey hikingbear, how's it going? To answer your question, "Nido" is a powdered whole milk (as opposed to non-fat powdered milk one usually finds in the store). It's a product of Mexico and comes in several types and is most often used as a reconstituted milk for baby bottles.

Mixed with cold water from a stream or spring found along the trail, it's quite good (a lot better tasting than the typical non-fat powdered milk, IMHO) and adds those much needed calories from the fat content.

You should be able to find it in the hispanic section of Wal-Mart or a market that specializes in Mexican foods. Another source is on-line. Just google "Nido".

Happy hiking.
Montego

Question about Nido??? I'm storing my container in the fridge, does it go bad after time? I assume not since someone bought a case.

Farr Away

11-09-2009, 14:07

...

Question about Nido??? I'm storing my container in the fridge, does it go bad after time? I assume not since someone bought a case.

I don't know about going bad, but by the time I got to the bottom of a can, it did a 'not-quite-curdle' when I stirred it into hot coffee. Tasted okay, just didn't look very appetizing.

There's nothing on the can that says refrigerate after opening, so I didn't. With the next can, I may.

WritinginCT

11-09-2009, 15:13

I found Nido on the shelf at Stop and Shop for the first time this week (and I've been keeping an eye out for it)- it was near the Goya foods section specifically. It's definitely more expensive than non-fat powdered milk.

Humidity is powdered milk's (of any type) worst enemy. I used to keep mine in the paper carton it came in but had a problem with lumps, not dissolving, et cetera- then I started keeping it in a recycled peanut butter jar. No more issues!

And for a more thread related bit- if you have some of the packets of ranch or Parmesan salad dressing, add them in place of the butter/margarine in instant mashed potatoes. Add some chicken or turkey and some bacon bits for a great mashup. This also works well as filling in pita bread or on a wrap. You can also turn around and shape into patties and fry it if you're so inclined.

I'm trying to figure out how to modify a home cooked favorite for the trail, which is to take cooked white fish (something mild like cod or tilapia) and layer it with au gratin potatoes and bake. I came up with this one day while trying to deal with a bunch of leftovers and it is really good. But I've had mixed success with trying to dry the cooked fish in my dehydrator.

Nicksaari

11-09-2009, 19:36

what a great looking Boxer WritinginCT, check out my Bailey on my pics. best dogs for trail, best dog hands down.

but they taste horrible

Wise Old Owl

11-11-2009, 20:00

OK this thread discovered a different path... I was hoping others would post ideas about where dehydrated store bought packages could be converted to full meals. Nido is a additive to those meals to convert the ones that require whole milk instead of water.

seedog

11-12-2009, 09:17

As a treat I like any store bought stuffing mix, with mushrooms and oysters added in first night. After that it can be spruced up with chicken packs or TVP.

Connie

11-12-2009, 22:07

1/2 package (390 mg Na) yellow Miso vegetable soup in 8-ounces hot water, adding in an available wild green leafy vegetable (kale, lamb's quarters, purslane, etal.) cut in narrow ribbons, followed by 1/2 package of Nestle's Rich Cocoa in 16-ounces water with a Hazelnut flavor coffee package picked up in a gas station is good enough for supper before the sleeping bag.

I'd rather eat my dinner mid-day.

vamelungeon

11-13-2009, 14:29

what's the sodium content on these products?
I'd like to know too.

Wise Old Owl

11-15-2009, 13:33

Sorry guys - I have given up on the sodium issue. Here is why, sodium is present in all foods, even in unsalted unprocessed foods. I have maintained a very low sodium diet for ten years watching both iodine and sodium levels and ended up with a goiter that required removal of my thyroid this year.

I reached out to several companies that were making what I felt was (out of their minds) sodium levels and did not offer low sodium products. A freeze dried popular company, Boston Market, & Knorr - Their customer service responded over the phone with me. Their answers were remarkable, The US government has decided a level of salt & sodium is necessary for life, the government recommends that adults limit their daily intake of sodium to 2,300 milligrams, and that seniors and children consume no more than 1,500 milligrams a day. The companies took that number and ran with it, a typical Boston Market dinner is 1500 mg. http://www.bostonmarketfrozen.com/Product-View.aspx?ID=4 or 60 percent of the product. They maintained that sodium while hiking is healthy and not a negative issue.

So in future I will not be addressing this issue in the food forum.
I will copy this as a new thread separate from here as I am still looking for ideas on fast ways to take off the shelf products that work well for backpacking.

Read more: http://www.nrn.com/breakingNews.aspx?id=366690#ixzz0Wwxa7ERB (http://www.nrn.com/breakingNews.aspx?id=366690#ixzz0Wwxa7ERB)

Mountain House Pro Pak http://www.mountainhouse.com/nutrInfo.cfm?catagory=propak&productCode=50119

drastic_quench

11-15-2009, 13:45

Yeah, that boxed stuff is too salty for me to eat day-in-and-day-out.

I like using plain rice and pasta and using my own non-salty spices for the most part.

Wise Old Owl

11-15-2009, 13:48

As a treat I like any store bought stuffing mix, with mushrooms and oysters added in first night. After that it can be spruced up with chicken packs or TVP.

Thanks I had forgotton stuffing as a great thing to have on the trail - great post.....

Wise Old Owl

11-15-2009, 22:30

Doctari

11-16-2009, 07:42

http://www.med-diet.com/images/NE%20Cous%20BC.jpg

Back on track, welcome back posters & readers!

Turns out I am not a fan of Couscous..... eww by itself.....

On the back of the box is a mix for adding spinach or asparagus....
can be converted to FBC - I will experiment tomorrow.

Couscous is an acquired taste, for me it was the texture that I had to get past. I have found this product at Big Lots for less than $1.00 a box, I use as is, adding about 1 Tablespoon olive oil just as it finishes "cooking" in the freezer bag. Couscous "cooks" very fast, almost ready to eat before you are done pouring in the hot water. For this particular flavor, I have added a Tablespoon of Parmesan cheese, Yum!

mudhead

11-16-2009, 08:27

Farr Away

11-16-2009, 11:26

Different brands of couscous can be as different from one another as different brands of pasta.

Mashed potato flakes with cheese and real bacon bits - great, quick, light, tasty backpacking meal. Can also throw in some kind of veggies (freeze dried, dehydrated, even frozen for a first night out). Without the veggies, it's ready basically as soon as you pour the water in the bag.

Connie

11-16-2009, 16:27

I have a low-fat low-salt medical diet order. I manage very well.

It involved selecting foods off the 5 mg Na food list, that add up.

I did not use 1850 mg Na Campbell's soup and all the rest of prepared foods at the grocery store.

Simple, no? Not.

I had been the weekend "special diet" cook at Children's Orthopedic Hospital, in Seattle, during college. When I got a medical diet order, I asked the Registered Dieticians at that hospital for a xerox copy of their "food lists".

I got it.

As it turns out, I had to learn "how to cook" ethnic food, because most ethnic cultures still know food.

I was so inspired by two YouTube videos, I have added to my website, and this thread I decided to look at "convenience food" I would never look at after I got that medical diet order.

I went to the Grocery Outlet nearby.

I found: Veetee, Jeera Rice "Aromatic indian rice with cumin seeds" from the Curry Collection. It says boil for 5 minutes. .99

I found: Hungry Jack Easy Mashed Chipotle Mashed Potatoes .69

I found: Hormel Mary Kitchen Single Sausage Hash. .79

I found: Mr Udon Malaysian Beef Flavor Oriental Udon Noodle .79

I found: Mr Udon Malaysian Chicken Flavor Oriental Udon Noodle .79

I spent $4.05

I love couscous.

There are different couscous.

My experience of couscous is that the texture matters, because, generally, couscous takes on the flavor of what else is in the recipe.

I also have tried all the different colors and textures of quinoa I can find.

Google: for recipes.

For other interesting food items, you may never have thought about, see my food pages. I am not a business. I accept no ads. This is good stuff.

Food videos (http://www.ultralightbackpackingonline.info/morevideo2.html)
Food (http://www.ultralightbackpackingonline.info/food1.html)
Extra food (http://www.ultralightbackpackingonline.info/emergencyfood1.html)
Specialized food (http://www.ultralightbackpackingonline.info/specializedfood1.html)
Scones (http://www.ultralightbackpackingonline.info/scones1.html)

off-site:
Bannock (http://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/recipe/bannock-1819.asp)
Biscuits (http://www.joyofbaking.com/Biscuits.html)
Focaccia (http://www.seriouseats.com/2009/03/focaccia-the-easiest-homemade-bread.html)

I hope it isn't OT to not list Bisquick.

Wise Old Owl

11-27-2009, 22:14

Well Connie you are going to keep me occupied for a few hours as I read the sites you have posted here.

In the mean time

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:9elqpVRyngBUPM:http://gecatalogimages.meijer.com/000/48001/0004800170365.jpg (http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://gecatalogimages.meijer.com/000/48001/0004800170365.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.meijergroceryexpress.com/catalog/ProductDetail.aspx%3Fpid%3D4800170365&usg=__MbrvwQejyH-QRyvatpcjE4BZod4=&h=170&w=205&sz=8&hl=en&start=6&itbs=1&tbnid=9elqpVRyngBUPM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=105&prev=/images%3Fq%3DKNORR%2BPARMA%2BROSA%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3 Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DX)Knorr Parma Rosa with Butter buds & Nido thicken and add to noodles ! what a difference from Mac & cheese

brooklynkayak

12-02-2009, 09:18

A recent discovery, Manischewitz potato pancake mix. Freezer bag with just enough hot water to soften it. Can be added to soups. Contains matza meal and onion and has a nice roasted potato flavor. No seasoning needed. The packages are small and very dense so you can fit more in a pack or bear canister.

I have used combined with cheese and once with corned beef.

Instant mash potatoes, stuffing mix and most other sides aren't as dense so take up more space.

WinterWarlock

12-02-2009, 09:21

More than one type of couscous at a good heath food store, in bulk.

If you are put off by the sawdust factor, look at the larger "pearl" type. I want to call it an ethnic difference, but it might be marketing.

The local grocer here has larger pearl couscous, but calls it Israeli couscous and keeps it in the kosher section...

brooklynkayak

12-02-2009, 11:13

Question about Nido??? I'm storing my container in the fridge, does it go bad after time? I assume not since someone bought a case.

The one thing that makes Nido superior to non-fat dry milk is that it is real whole milk. I know fat does not keep near as well as carbs or protien, so I would suspect Nido would have a shorter shelf life than non-fat powder milk.
I'd keep it sealed up in the fridge if you buy in bulk and want it to last. Add a desiccant packet as moisture is bad any for powder milk.