Here's a couple backpacking meals that I like as alternatives to Mountain House freeze dried:
Beans & Rice with Fritos and cheddar cheese 675 cal
Instant refried beans 2.0 oz 112 cal/oz
Instant rice 1.5 103
Cheese 1.0 110
Fritos 1.0 160
Taco seasoning 0.2 93
Spices
Water 10 – 12 oz
Total 5.7
When solo, I do one of two things. If I plan to have this meal several times on the same trip (or the same leg of a thru-hike), I have a pre-spiced snack bag of beans and rice for each meal, and my supply of Fritos and cheese is kept together but preferably somehow delineated so that I don’t steal tomorrow’s calories for tonight’s dinner, e.g. divide the block of cheese equally but keep it all together. If I plan to have this meal just once, I will use up to three bags (beans/rice, cheese, Fritos) but I’ve also combined everything into one bag before. It works out okay since the ingredients are fairly easy to separate in the field.
For many reasons,
I make all of my meals soupy. This simplifies some the cooking:
- Add at least 12 oz of water to my stove pot.
- Pour in beans, rice, taco seasoning, and any other spices at anytime.
- Cook, ideally to a simmer for about 60 seconds, stirring to avoid boil-over.
- Cut cheese into dice-sized pieces and add to meal.
- Add Fritos just before consumption. If added too early, they will soften.
For perfect at-home consistency, use 10 oz (300 ml) of water. To prevent burning, do not add beans, rice, and taco seasoning until water is boiling.
Thai peanut sauce & noodles
Recommended meal weight: 5.7 oz. Total calories: 810 Caloric density: 142 calories/ounce
Ramen noodles 3.0 oz 127 cal/oz
Peanuts 0.7 154
Peanut butter 1.1 175
Olive oil 0.4 240
Soy sauce 0.2 30
Honey 0.3 88
Garlic 0.05 60
Spices – salt, pepper, red pepper
Water, 1 ¼ cup or more, up to 2
Total 5.75
Ramen noodles have their own packaging, and I normally leave them that way. The exception is a short solo trip, when at home I may crush up the noodles and re-bag them with the raisins or crushed peanuts. One package of Ramen per meal per person.
The raisins or crushed peanuts are bagged separately and divided in the field.
The sauce should be made at home. Mix all of the listed ingredients (minus the noodles and peanuts) together. I recommend making big batches with a kitchen mixer, unless you want an arm workout.
Carry the sauce into the field in a 4- or 8-oz
Nalgene HDPE Container or a 16- or 32-oz
Nalgene Wide-Mouth Bottle. Even if you only need one serving, do not attempt to use a 2-oz bottle to save a few grams over the 4-oz or 8-oz size — you will struggle to pour the sauce into it and to clean it later.
Cooking instructions
- If you prefer smaller noodle pieces to long, stringy ones, crush the noodles before opening the package. Be careful — the package can rip open.
- Remove the MSG-filled “flavor” packet.
- Bring to a boil at least 1.25 cups (10 oz, 300ml) of water. I prefer soupy meals, however, so I normally use at least 2 cups.
- Add the Ramen and the peanuts, turn off the stove or let it burn out, and let the noodles sit for 5 minutes.
- Add the sauce.
If you use more than the minimum 1.25 cups of water, everything can be added at the very beginning, since the extra water will prevent scorching the ingredients.
Another meal I tried last year uses one of those packages of Idaho instant mashed potatoes as the base. One envelope is too much for me, so I split it in two and put each half into a zip lock sandwich bag into which I add some of those steak strips that come in a bag at Costco. I cut the steak strips into smaller chunks so that they rehydrate quicker, since the potatoes are ready in a minute after adding boiling water. You can also throw in some dehydrated carrots, leeks, onion, and whatever else strikes your fancy. It worked well for me last summer on the trail, very light, low bulk, and plenty filling.
