Light weight backpacking food

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JayDoc

JayDoc

boop/bop/beep
10 Year
Joined
Apr 12, 2012
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34
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589
Location
Somewhere between Manhattan and Lawrence.
Looking for your input in light weight camping/backpacking food.
There are so many options out there and I'm looking for your insight into what you've had that you'd actually eat on purpose.

The general situation is this: backpacking, carry in/carry out, oz = lbs kind of stuff.
We'll be bringing the MSR pocket stove, fuel, aluminum pot set, Ti cup.
Wood fires probably not allowed where we'll be.
Water will be readily available.

I've had mountain house products. It's nice stuff, eat in pouch is handy.
Taste wise; I've enjoyed the rice and chicken.
On the other had, my boy says the scrabbled eggs and bacon was soggy and not very tasty - operator error?

What have you guys had? Was it worth eating again?
 
We finally started making our own for several reasons. We have our own dehydrator and make almost all of our meals, though we do bring Kind bars for occasional use. Even though it is a little heavier, we have no problems going out for several days and most of the meals are the boil water, add to the zip lock, let it rehydrate in a stocking hat, type.
Seriously, 1600mgs of salt per serving? and we pack in Petrified, Death Valley and Mojave parks.
 
Semi Hex said:
Seriously, 1600mgs of salt per serving? and we pack in Petrified, Death Valley and Mojave parks.
Click to expand...

I agree, these things have a ton of unnecessary sodium. I'm willing to over look that for the few days at a time that I'd be using them though. I like the home sourced idea though.
 
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MREs > mountain house (or pretty much anything REI sells)
They are heavy at first, but you can strip them to lose about a quarter of the weight.
 
Bagels hold up well and beef jerky, I mix those in with my mountain house meals. I live near an Oberto's factory store which makes the jerky cheaper. Also I take all my mountain house out and put it into zip lock freezer bags (make sure you write the instructions on it), makes packing it back out much simpler.
 
The wife likes jerky and also the foil packs of tuna/albacore/salmon and eats them from the package. Some are pretty well seasoned already. She doesn't even like to pack a small stove/fuel (she only eats out of necessity). We also dehydrate chili, apples and some other stuff. I'll make jerky one of these days. I'll suffer the weight and bring actual food.
 
It's worth the effort of learning the local vegetation and foraging for part of your meals. Berries, wild greens, etc add a great fresh touch to food, probably not a great idea in heavily traveled areas but in remote areas it's okay.
 
Back in the old days we'd hike with a pepperoni sticking out the top of our pack and a knife on our pockets. When you get a little hungry on the trail (Appalachian) no need to stop, just reach up and grab that stick of cured spiced meat and start slicing and munching away as you walk. :pig:

Then again we smoked a lot back then too. :lol:
 
National Geographic makes some dehydrated backpacking meals that are pretty good.

If you're interested in DIY backpacking food check out Backpacking Food for the Soul
 
Meals:
Ramen noodles
Knorr/Lipton rice sides (can split one package up for multiple meals)
Canned chicken/tuna. Add to the above to make a more complete meal.
Beenie Weenies. Small cans that you can reuse if needed.
Oatmeal
Pop tarts
Dry cereal that you don't mind not having milk for.

Snacks:
Craisins/raisins
Other dried fruits.
Beef jerky
Protein/Clif bars
Nuts

Drinks:
Water of course
Drop in flavor packets (lemonade, etc). Squeeze in liquid like Mio. Breaks up the water monotony.

It's not the healthiest menu, but it is packable, meaning your backpack won't destroy it when you smash things in there.
 
Just had an MRE. A bit heavier and way more trash than the mountain house stuff.
It was beef ravioli and, like Mick Dundee says; you can live on it, but it taste like s***.
I think I'll stick to mountain house for my prepackaged stuff.
 
I really like most Mountain House products, with the exception of the scrambled eggs and bacon breakfast. Their blueberry and granola breakfast on the other hand is very tasty. My favorites are the Mexican chicken and rice, lasagna, and beef stroganoff. On a 4 day/3 night backpack trip, I will pack 3 Mountain house dinners, two breakfasts, and supplement with 1-2 cup of noodles for lunch, baby belle cheese with salami and crackers, and of course a few sweet treats like gummi bears and chocoloate bars. Almonds make a great snack too. I never go hungry on hiking/hunting backpack trips.
 
JayDoc said:
Just had an MRE. A bit heavier and way more trash than the mountain house stuff.
It was beef ravioli and, like Mick Dundee says; you can live on it, but it taste like s***.
I think I'll stick to mountain house for my prepackaged stuff.
Click to expand...

The newer military issue MREs have come a long ways and taste decent, but like you said, there is ton of individual packaging and they are a bit heavy.
 
For backpacking I wouldn't even consider the MRE option. They are designed for field troops that have mechanized support, air, sea or land.
If you plan on a re-supply every day they might be great, real world not so much.

Factors for backpacking meals:
Water
Duration
Distance

Water,
If water is in good supply carry dehydrated or naturally dry foods; noodles, rice, dry soups etc.
If you don't expect to find water add foods that are heavier in water; vac sealed tuna, chicken etc. the extra weight is offset by not having to use your water supply to re-hydrate.

Duration,
You can carry a heavy pack for a few days, and you can afford to carry lots of luxury items. On a long trek you want to go light and lean, cutting down on every ounce.

Distance,
The basic precept of ultra light is to cover more ground because you carry less. This means cutting out a lot of niceties like using a comforter instead of a full sleeping bag and eating very basic food. You trade comfort for miles traveled and sights seen.

I kind of like the ultra light concept which focuses more on the hike than the creature comforts. Sure it's cool to whip up a peach cobbler in your titanium pot on a $50 stove, but being able to comfortably cover 15 miles of trail in a day is also cool.
 
My latest few longer hikes have been near 100% dried fruits, nuts, beef jerky/pepperoni and candy. I used to go heavy on the Clif Bars, but I have to stay gluten free now. I'd carry a variety of them, and every so often eat one. That was my food intake. I wouldn't subject a partner or family to that, or there would be mutiny. The foil packs of tuna are great for shorter hikes, but require utensils and cleaning of them. I vacuum pack all my food into meal or snack sized portions. I leave a bit of extra pouch size so the food can easily be eaten right out of the vacuum pouch. No dishes needed.

I'm with Rusty on keeping the cooking simple, and comfortably enjoying nature. Even before getting struck with ME/CFS and FM I kept cooking minimal on hikes. The ME/CFS has forced me to evaluate what I bring very carefully. I wasn't paranoid about grams before, but now I am. It means I can still hike some. My limit is keeping my heart under 110bpm. As long as I do that and eat enough I can keep going.
 
My latest few longer hikes have been near 100% dried fruits, nuts, beef jerky/pepperoni and candy. I used to go heavy on the Clif Bars, but I have to stay gluten free now. I'd carry a variety of them, and eat then often enough to keep energy levels up. That was my food intake. I wouldn't subject a partner or family to that, or there would be mutiny. The foil packs of tuna are great for shorter hikes, but require utensils and cleaning of them. I vacuum pack all my food into meal or snack sized portions. I leave a bit of extra pouch size so the food can easily be eaten right out of the vacuum pouch. No dishes needed. I'd carry a ziplock bag to serve as my trash bag.

I'm with Rusty on keeping the cooking simple, and comfortably enjoying nature. Even before getting struck with ME/CFS and FM I kept cooking minimal on hikes. The ME/CFS has forced me to evaluate what I bring very carefully. I wasn't paranoid about grams before, but now I am. It means I can still hike some. My limit is keeping my heart under 120bpm. As long as I do that and eat enough I can keep going.
 
I don't get to backpack as much as before with a few small kids, but we've used a new company: Fireside Provisions - Delicious meals for the outdoors for recent car/tent camping after hearing good things. Food is great, may be a little heavier than typical pouches though (1.5-2lbs pp per day). Cost is reasonable, $30pp per day for meals and snacks. Depending on your trip, may be a good option.
 
For longer backpacking trips (3+ days) I like the variety of grocery story food and Backpacker's Pantry (or Mountain House) food. Dessert is always something to look forward to. Recently I've heard great things about the taste of "Good to Go" - started by a chef. Easy clean up and minimal prep always a plus.
 
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