What's in YOUR spice kit?

[jingle jangle]

spiCes &herbs : so light! so versatile! they can really change a meal in
just a PINCH!

I'm curious...
what's in YOUR spice kit?

are you the salt& pepper only type?
is garlic a necessity?
what can't you hit the trail without?


PEACE&
cheers

[Jack Tarlin]

Mine is unusual, but I like to cook:

*Garlic powder
*Onion powder
*Cajun mix (Seasoned salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and a few things I forget)
*Black pepper with lemon
*Mixed Italian (Mostly oregano and basil, with other stuff)
*Dill (mainly for tuna fish)
*Curry powder
*Crushed red pepper flakes

[staehpj1]

I have gone with a variety of options, but lately have mostly cut back to just salt and while not exactly a spice, I sometimes take hot sauce.

[Kumquat]

I usually carry garlic powder (because, garlic. It's magical!), either paprika or chili powder with a bit of cumin mixed in, and a mix of basil, oregano, and thyme. I sometimes carry some Lawry's seasoned salt also. AND last, but most certainly not least, a tiny little bottle of sriracha, spicy blessedness of the gods. My boyfriend thinks it's silly, but quite frankly, a few spices can totally transform a crappy, bland meal into one that's really tasty for only an ounce or so of pack weight. Well, well worth it!

What do you carry yours in? I usually use those little 1 1/2 in by 2 in plastic bags you find in the craft section of Walmart. They work pretty well, but have to be replaced every month or so on the trail which could be annoying if you weren't doing the occasional maildrop.

[Hikes in Rain]

Little Lexan pepper grinder, dehydrated onion and garlic. Packets of hot sauce. Packets of honey for my coffee.

[Serial 07]

curry for mash potatoes...

[Donde]

old bay, and straight MSG.

[garlic08]

Of course garlic is a necessity.

[staehpj1]

old bay
I have often thought of carrying old bay, but have not yet done so.

[staehpj1]

Of course garlic is a necessity.
I assume that means fresh garlic. Garlic powder is a very poor substitute IMO.

[budforester]

Tony Chachere's, the "More Spice" blend (lower sodium for me)
sometimes Basil
sometimes Cinnamon
sometimes Tabasco or Louisiana hot sauce

[CoffeeBager]

Garlic Salt and Curry Powder. Everything I want to salt is improved by garlic, so I don't carry regular salt anymore. May start carrying onion powder or flakes, too.

[smithcj06]

any and every type of packet i can find.

[Pringles]

Rum. It's a very tasty spice.

:-)

[Papa D]

This is the most amazing hot sauce in the world - I dilute it with a little balsamic vinegar and put it in a tiny vial - - I can go 300 miles in 15 days on about 1/4 ounce of this - I also carry curry powder and occasionally this stuff which I am known in some circles for: www.vitacost.com/modern-products-spike-original-magic-gourmet-natural-seasoning

[Another Kevin]

Mine is unusual, but I like to cook:

*Garlic powder
*Onion powder
*Cajun mix (Seasoned salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and a few things I forget)
*Black pepper with lemon
*Mixed Italian (Mostly oregano and basil, with other stuff)
*Dill (mainly for tuna fish)
*Curry powder
*Crushed red pepper flakes

I want to hike with you! :)

[Wise Old Owl]

Look up http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/lincolnshire/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8989000/8989721.stm


Watch the video and die laughing....

[DeerPath]

Cavender's is great on everything except eggs, Mrs Dash, Red Pepper Flakes, and Cholula Hot Sauce.

[DaveSail]

I usualy carry a bag of : " JANE'S Krazy Mixed - Up Salt "
Contains : Salt , Pepper , Dehydrated Onion , Dehydrated Garlic , and other Herbs and Spices .
Good for lots of dishes .

Used to be made in Marlton , New Jersey , and only available in local stores .

Now made by Flavor Delite, Inc. of Richburg, S.C. and in most grocery stores .

David V. Webber ; aka Ice Cream

[direwolf]

Currently carrying truffle oil and scotch bonnet hot sauce (the hotter the better - then you only need one drop), as well as a lemon garlic spice mix, an italian herb mix, and some salt! Covers all my favourite bases

[BigRing]

My spice rack depends upon what meals I have planned.
Salt, pepper, season-all, lemon/pepper, italian seasoning blend, dry lemon zest, dry orange zest, and sprigs of rosemary......which I love to toast on the fire and nibble.

[capehiker]

I just bought one of those GSI Missile spice bottles (carries 6 spices). I have: salt, pepper, garlic, onion, basil, and oregano.

[Sara]

I love Montreal steak spice.
It helps bland food taste delicious!

[susiecruise]

Currently carrying truffle oil and scotch bonnet hot sauce (the hotter the better - then you only need one drop), as well as a lemon garlic spice mix, an italian herb mix, and some salt! Covers all my favourite bases

WOW, Truffle oil!! I think I'm going to bring truffle salt on my next trip. Thanks for the truffle idea. I much prefer the white truffle by the way. Also I like to include instant Miso soup in a packet. I either have it as a hot salty drink at the end of the day before dinner or use it as seasoning in a noodle dish.

[macdaddy]

Got one of those cheap double shakers, Mrs. Dash in one side, cayenne pepper in the other.

[rocketsocks]

Dried Wasabi peas add a nice kick to any dish, and how!

[4Bears]

Garlic Pepper. If the mood strikes then maybe go look for some wild onion or chives in the woods.

[macdaddy]

Dried Wasabi peas add a nice kick to any dish, and how!

Love Wasabi Peas, never thought about adding them to anything. They'll be in my next bowl of ramen!

[Austin_Knott]

Fennel seed and Spanish paprika add some interesting flavors, but nothing beats garlic, cumin, or cayenne pepper. Salt/pepper of course too.

[Dogwood]

No spice kit. I enjoy pre-making my meals by adding my own dried spices and mailing resupply boxes or when buying along the way will pick up some fresh parsley, cilantro, basil, clove of garlic, small bunch of green onions(or one small Vidalia(sweet onion)), a small Himalayan salt rock(which I scrape into trail dishes), No MSG low salt Soy Sauce Packets(free at Chinese food or sushi places, if I ask nicely sushi places will often freely give me Wasabi and pickled ginger too!, Wasabi and mashed potatoes equals YUMMY, Wasabi can also commonly be purchased as a dried powder), dried Miso soup packets which can be eaten as soup or used to flavor foods such as Ramen(I trash the MSG/salt laden packets that come in Ramen) or mashed potatoes, dried seaweeds(Nori sheets are commonly found even in places like Walmart, CHEAP!), Dried red Pepper Flakes(free at Pizzerias and those selling Italian foods, I also pick up dried Parmesan Cheese Packets and Dried Basil for free in the same places), and perhaps a few packets of pepper(everywhere). Nice to have packets, a squeeze tube, or small screw cap container for EVOO too for both flavor and the extra cals or nut butters(peanut, almond, hazelnut, cashew, macadamia, etc). Also in small squeeze tubes in the produce section are herb blends.

The same way I bring flavor and variety to dinners through spices and these additions I do to reg quick cook oatmeal, millet, and amaranth for a hot b-fast on cold weather treks. It's amazing how different oatmeal can taste by different additions. Cinnamon, dried fruits, nuts, seeds(sesame, flax, hemp, chia(saba), sunflower, pumpkin, etc), coconut flakes(I picked up some dried coconut milk(Hydro Coco) and put it with some dried fruits and nuts in my oatmeal and it's so scrumptious!), crystallized ginger, protein powders, dried milks, Butter Buds, nut butters, powdered dried chocolates(I like sweetened cacao nibs), etc can REALLY LIVEN UP plain old oatmeal! Since my bro orders in bulk at a STEEP wholesale discount I've lately been experimenting with oatmeal and other dishes by adding dried powders such as Acai, Camu, Flax, Goji, Hemp, Maca, Maqui, Mesquite, and Pomegranate offered by Navitas Naturals. You might try these too!

[Tom Murphy]

Tabasco....

[Dogwood]

WOW, Truffle oil!! I think I'm going to bring truffle salt on my next trip. Thanks for the truffle idea. I much prefer the white truffle by the way. Also I like to include instant Miso soup in a packet. I either have it as a hot salty drink at the end of the day before dinner or use it as seasoning in a noodle dish.

My ex was the Chief Executive Officer in the Savory Flavors Division of a Fortune 500 multi-national food and fragrance conglomerate - International Flavors and Fragrances. Truffles, and hence REAL 100% TRUFFLE OIL, are rather rare and VERY pricey stuff - upwards of $60 per ounce! Only a few companies actually offer the BEST REAL 100 % Truffle Oil. Most of what is offered as Truffle Oil are LABORATORY CHEMICALS that taste and smell like REAL Truffle Oil infused into Olive Oil or in a few rare cases actual Truffles are infused into Olive Oil. DO NOT expect to find REAL 100% Truffle Oil in your local grocery store. Between her, my brother who has a PHd in Nutrition, my other brother who has worked with two of the world class Nutritionists who advise Olympic athletes, and what I've learned through my own nutritional and food related research you would be COMPLETELY ASTONISHED with what goes on with food particularly in the industrial agriculture and consumer driven capitalist country food sectors. All is not as it seems!

[Nytro]

I went to a beer and bourbon convention in Maryland and bought this seasoning called Bayou Todd's Dirt. Its like oldbay but for steak and chicken.

[susiecruise]

My ex was the Chief Executive Officer in the Savory Flavors Division of a Fortune 500 multi-national food and fragrance conglomerate - International Flavors and Fragrances. Truffles, and hence REAL 100% TRUFFLE OIL, are rather rare and VERY pricey stuff - upwards of $60 per ounce! Only a few companies actually offer the BEST REAL 100 % Truffle Oil. Most of what is offered as Truffle Oil are LABORATORY CHEMICALS that taste and smell like REAL Truffle Oil infused into Olive Oil or in a few rare cases actual Truffles are infused into Olive Oil. DO NOT expect to find REAL 100% Truffle Oil in your local grocery store. Between her, my brother who has a PHd in Nutrition, my other brother who has worked with two of the world class Nutritionists who advise Olympic athletes, and what I've learned through my own nutritional and food related research you would be COMPLETELY ASTONISHED with what goes on with food particularly in the industrial agriculture and consumer driven capitalist country food sectors. All is not as it seems!

Very true, always trust your sources when it comes to pricey goods. Urbani's of NY offer real truffles, oils and salts. Beware of the black truffle as most are raised in China. Saltworks offer a very tasty white truffle salt that as one seasoning, adds a lot of savory flavor.

[SouthernPride]

Slap-Yo-Mama

[aclawrence]

I've been putting Bad Byron's Butt Rub on just about everything I've been cooking lately. I'm not sure if it's sold everywhere or not. May just be a southern thing.

[hikerhobs]

red pepper flakes, black pepper, garlic powder, all mixed-up in a spice container.

[Dogwood]

LOL. Bad Byron's Butt Rub......that can stand for a lot of things!

[carophil]

just some salt. makes anything i could eat at least tolerable. sometimes i'll pick up some pepper packets from gas stations, etc.

[Tri-Pod Bob]

Little salt, more black pepper, Adobo, hot sauce, garlic powder, good brandy

[Pedaling Fool]

According to Nevada researchers, many imported hot sauces being sold in the United States exceed FDA standards for safe levels of lead.

http://news.msn.com/science-technology/hot-sauces-may-contain-dangerous-levels-of-lead

[snifur]

the one thing i counted on to mask my food and you ruined it. thanks. why does every country except the US insert lead and other metals into the food and ship to the US?

[Odd Man Out]

Tobasco - made in the USA since 1868. They are giving away a gallon jug every year.

http://www.tabasco.com/mcilhenny-company/coupons-promotions/

[Drybones]

The only additional flavoring my food gets is when I drop it on the ground before eating it, never carried any spices to this point but do plan to add a little spice to my life next time out.

[rocketsocks]

Tobasco - made in the USA since 1868. They are giving away a gallon jug every year.

http://www.tabasco.com/mcilhenny-company/coupons-promotions/
Cool, a 50 cent coupon too....on any size bottle...I like the mini bottle for for the back country kitchen, green sauce.

thanks Odd Man Out

[Wise Old Owl]

After a few hikes I guessing that folks are not cook'in much.

[Shady Bill]

Mrs. Dash some hot sauce and that’s about it.

[Greenlight]

I have like, a dozen spices, in these stupid little plastic screw-top-lid pill pods. I thought it would be great to have the option to spice things up. Carried them on a couple section hikes and regretted the weight and space. Why, oh why, didn't I go to a Hobby Lobby and get a pack of those little tiny ziplock bags? They weigh nothing and take up no space. I'm going out tonight to get some. Thanks for the inspiration!

BTW:

black pepper
ancho pepper
garlic powder
onion powder
red pepper flakes
cinnamon
curry
five spice
oregano
basil
paprika
mustard powder


spiCes &herbs : so light! so versatile! they can really change a meal in
just a PINCH!

I'm curious...
what's in YOUR spice kit?

are you the salt& pepper only type?
is garlic a necessity?
what can't you hit the trail without?


PEACE&
cheers

[Dogwood]

Spices are added as fresh ingredients on trail or added to prepackaged foods and mailed. I prefer fresh ginger, green onions or shallot, a garlic clove, turmeric, fresh ginseng(whenever I can legally get it), a small piece of whole Himalayan pink rock salt a bit smaller than a golf ball which is rasped into food, maybe some non MSG soy sauce, and perhaps some fresh parsley, cilantro, and dill on trail bought along the way. Dried or freeze dried parsley, even if it's Italian flat leaf, cilantro, and dill has much less flavor.