Mountain House Dinners

[Rightfoot]

Just curious... What is your favorite Mountain House Dinner? What was the least favorite?. Were the single servings enough after a full days hike. I've always been a DIY when it comes to meals and thought I would give a couple the try.

Thanks

[Almost There]

I only buy the freeze dried packs. Beef Stroganoff is my favorite...pasta primavera least favorite. These have always been plenty for me, and I'm a big guy (6ft, 250).

[Old Hiker]

Pasta primavera is my favorite. Can't stand the eggs. Coleman meals were better, I think, esp. the Max Patch mac and cheese and a few of the other pasta ones.

[TroutknuT]

Cheese in a meal sticks to spoons. Optimus makes a titanium spoon with a smooth end, better to get the cheese off. That said most of the MH meals are good, verriaty is good.

[ChuckBrown]

Turkey tetrazini, everything you need, turkey, pasta, asparagus and sauce. They also make a line called marine cuisine, you can get real chicken or beef patties. Good for a change once in a while. after a few months on the trail, no amount of food will be enough.

[Praha4]

Favorite MH dinners:
Spaghetti w/meat sauce
Pasta Primavera

Favorite MH breakfast:
Granola w/blueberries n' milk

[atmilkman]

I like em' all. Mountain House, Coleman, Backpackers Pantry, any of them. But if I had to pick a favorite MH Beef Stroganoff would be it. Coleman Mac & Cheese is really good. I just posted this yesterday over on the Walmart thread. Walmart I think may be discontinuing the Colemans because I was just at our local store and they were discounting the Colemans on an end display for $4.00 a piece and there were very few left. The Mountain Houses were where the Colemans used to be and with a very fair selection, ranging from $5.88 - $6.88.

[colorado_rob]

The "serving size" of these things always confuses me, they seem to change, I just look for the calorie content, and 550-650 cals in the pack seems right for me after a long day. I love the MH Lasagna, but it sure makes a mess out of my spoon, the cheese is so sticky. I guess Beef Stew is my favorite, anything with brocoli is my least. By the way: Costco sells 10-packs of MH dinners for just over 40 bucks, pretty good deal, I just bought two boxes to jump start my AT supply.

[atmilkman]

By the way: Costco sells 10-packs of MH dinners for just over 40 bucks, pretty good deal, I just bought two boxes to jump start my AT supply.

Are these all dinners or are these the ones with breakfasts and desserts included?

[colorado_rob]

Are these all dinners or are these the ones with breakfasts and desserts included?

Unfortunately, the 10-packs only include four dinner varieties, the Lasagna, chicken teriaki, Beef Stew and beef strogenhof. I use these 10-packs only as a "base" starting point. REI will have some freeze dried foods on sale here shortly, when the dividends come out in mid-march (or they always have in the past).

[atmilkman]

Unfortunately, the 10-packs only include four dinner varieties, the Lasagna, chicken teriaki, Beef Stew and beef strogenhof. I use these 10-packs only as a "base" starting point. REI will have some freeze dried foods on sale here shortly, when the dividends come out in mid-march (or they always have in the past).

$40.00 is still a pretty good deal for the bundle when you consider some places sell single dinners for up to $9.00. It's like getting all the other stuff free.

[Blackbeard30]

Chili Mac and beef

[wcgornto]

Coleman meals are Enertia Trail Foods relabeled. Not all Enertia products are sold s Coleman. You can't go wrong either way.

http://trailfoods.com/aboutus.html

Another great option is Hawk Vittles. These are dehydrated meals rather than freeze dried, so they have a shorter shelf life ( one year vs. thirty years). They provide a flavorful alternative to Mountain House and offer more variety.

hawkvittles.com

[Dogwood]

Coleman meals are Enertia Trail Foods relabeled. Not all Enertia products are sold s Coleman...

http://trailfoods.com/aboutus.html

Another great option is Hawk Vittles. These are dehydrated meals rather than freeze dried, so they have a shorter shelf life ( one year vs. thirty years). They provide a flavorful alternative to Mountain House and offer more variety.

hawkvittles.com

Thanks Wcgornto. I didn't know that. Hawk Vittles I've bought from before though. Definitely, as you say, offering GOOD variety.

The "serving size" of these things always confuses me, they seem to change, I just look for the calorie content, and 550-650 cals in the pack seems right for me after a long day.
- Colorado Rob

I do the same thing as CR. I'm looking at total cals and other nutritional info. I find it ridiculous FOR ME, after I hiked for 14 hrs, to assume a portion sized dinner is 400 cals. I'm not a 12 yr old girl who just came in off the playground.

[johnnybgood]

While the Mountain Meals can replenish lost carbs from hiking all day, they are truely too bulky to carry more than a few. The next time I buy some, (my Costco has the bundle for $44), the better solution is to take the meals from their MH package and try vacumn packing those suckers to a managable size.

Now to answer your question; The limited variety of meals I've actually tasted, I have found Chicken Dumplings and Teriaki(sp)Chicken to be my favorites.

[Kerosene]

Beef Stroganoff and the Turkey Tetrazzini are my favorites. I try to stay away from anything with rice, as pockets of it never seem to rehydrate regardless of my attempts.

[Mountain Mike]

Beef Stroganoff Or Lasagna. After a week on the trail their two person entree make a good serving size.

[colorado_rob]

While the Mountain Meals can replenish lost carbs from hiking all day, they are truely too bulky to carry more than a few. The next time I buy some, (my Costco has the bundle for $44), the better solution is to take the meals from their MH package and try vacumn packing those suckers to a managable size.

I take all my freeze dried meals out of their original packaging and put them in zip locks, makes for much less bulk plus saves about 3/4 ounces of wasted packaging per meal.

[k2basecamp]

I too vote for the beef stroganoff.

The worst is chili mac w/beef. I could only get it down by eating it cold and crunchy.

[Starchild]

I find that the dinners taste better then the breakfasts so I have used a single dinner MH as a breakfast and lunch meal, the package has a internal zip lock and I just pored 1/2 of on in my mug and rehydrate it there, saving the rest for later. As for the meals available, the best advice is go with what sounds good to you, foods and dishes you like already, and stay away from ones you don't like in their non-freeze dried form.


I plan to use this strategy for dinner to combine 1/2 a MH with some other supplement like instant mashed potatoes, and saving the other half for another meal. Helps keep the cost down and adds variety. When hiking with a another and sharing meals I have found that splitting a MH with another supplemental, usually cheaper, food is a good plan.