freeze dried brands?

[miyanc]

How are the big bucket/box brands? Wise? Mountain House( I have had there single packs are the bucket or box type the same)? Alpine? food health? Chefs banquet?

If it was post apocalyptic who would care, but if I buy 60 meals to brake down for backpacking i want to know they don't taste like Styrofoam.

At some point I will buy a dehydrator and a vacuum sealer so I can do my own version of terrible food, but for now it seams a cheap and easy way to do it is one of those packages. I am not looking for tips on ways to not use freeze dried meals.

[runfifty]

I've never been a big fan of backpacking meals like Richmoor, AlpineAire, Mountain House etc. A week of them at a time was about all I could take. But someone suggested I try Enertia Trail Food meals and I thought they were great. The meals were actually tasty and I was able to eat them happily for my entire thru hike. I'm planning on using them again on the PCT this year. I liked the pasta based meals best and I notice they've come out with some meals that reconstitute with cold water, which should save on the amount of fuel I will need.

[Grits]

I would check out these videos; pretty good stuff and you can take what you want. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKHnm...eature=related You can dehydrate in your oven also. Lots of good info here on whiteblaze
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/foru...oking-and-Food.

[Wise Old Owl]

I just read the above posts as Freeze dried goes it locks in the best flavor - the aroma in any backpacking experience disappears hence the disappointment. Dried has the same problems and issues with palette.

Hense they load it with salt and peppers and other things that hydrate well - main issue you need to drink more to compensate the food to aid digestion...

[miyanc]

I completely understand that I can do numerous things other then buying prepackaged freeze dried meals. That's why I said I only wanted info on those items. Thank you runfifty I will check on that brand. I appreciate the other advice, but I am not up to making my own yet. I am looking for a no nonsense way to get some food for a few small backpacking trips that I may not have time to prep for. I want to have my stuff packed and ready if I get the chance to get away I only need to grab the right amount meals and go.

[Astro]

I love Mountain House!

[grayfox]

These products have a long shelf life if they are not opened. Most taste the same given that they have the same stuff in them. I would say, don't buy a lot of them. Buy a few different brands in the flavors that you think you would like. Plan to suppliment them with a bit of fresh food like an onion or carrot.

When I am ready to pack my food for a trip, I take a two person package and divide it into two baggies adding rice or pasta and my favorite dry veggies to bulk out the meal and dilute the usual saltiness. I divide the four person packs into three baggies and that seems to work for serving portions for me.

Some brands are better than others but are usually more expensive. And there is no guarantee that you will like even the better ones.

If you just want to supply short trips, I would think that you would be happier with more fresh food than the freeze-dried stuff. But they are all better than they used to be and you can't beat the ease of prep. Try to take something to add to them though or you will get very tired of eating the same things all the time.

[sarbar]

For short term they can work but most people get sick of them. The meals tend to be more sauce than carbs and very salty. As for brands, read carefully. Wise uses fake meats (TVP).

The only commercial meals I truly love are Packitgourmet.
With all meals though if you buy bulk (cans) be wary in repackaging soyour food doesn't go bad in long term storage.
Also read the brands, many are VERY low in calories (it can be like 300 calories!!).

[Tuckahoe]

Foods a personal thing, and different people like different things. For me Mountain House isnt so bad one or two times, but goodness, I cant imagine having to live off their food for extended periods of time. On the other hand I am atleast impressed with their freeze ground beef and I intend to try it in some of my own dehydrated food.

You might want to check out Packit Gourmet (http://www.packitgourmet.com/) and Hawkvittles (htttp://hawkvittles.com/). Personally I like their offerings the best.

[Big Dawg]

Hawk Vittles is another great option.