Pre-made foil dinners

[Wish-I-Were-Fishn]

Where do you get MRE's?

[pureinsanity]

Where do you get MRE's?

Anywhere online, some military surplus stores have them. Maybe an REI or camping store would have them too.

The traditional old MRE's look like this:

unpackaged:

I actually have a couple in my desk at work. Never know when you might forget a lunch or even get hungry later in the afternoon!

I typically get all mine for free. A friends neighbor is in the military and he doesn't eat them. He brings them all home and gives them to us. Works great for camping trips, fishing on the river, and just a quick snack.

Now he has been bringing new ones back called "heater meals" Basically the same thing, but I actually like the MRE's a little better. These heater meals actually come with a can of juice so they might not be idea for a back packing journey.

http://www.heatermeals.com/

unpacked:

[bikeoutback]

I got a whole box of MREs also from someone in the military. They work good for camping, dayhiking or as meals/snacks stashed away in places. I use pieces of them for backpacking like the giant saltine crackers, peanut butter packets, cheese packets and occasionally the cookies. None of it in my opinion has tasted all that bad (probably cause I don't have to eat it every day). But as a meal itself for backpacking trips they are heavy in my opinion. When I take them they are usually planned as day 1 dinner to drop the weight quick. I may also attempt a foil dinner next trip as day 1 dinner. Freeze it and throw it in the pack and let it thaw as we hike day 1 should be good to go for dinner.

[pureinsanity]

I got a whole box of MREs also from someone in the military. They work good for camping, dayhiking or as meals/snacks stashed away in places. I use pieces of them for backpacking like the giant saltine crackers, peanut butter packets, cheese packets and occasionally the cookies. None of it in my opinion has tasted all that bad (probably cause I don't have to eat it every day). But as a meal itself for backpacking trips they are heavy in my opinion. When I take them they are usually planned as day 1 dinner to drop the weight quick. I may also attempt a foil dinner next trip as day 1 dinner. Freeze it and throw it in the pack and let it thaw as we hike day 1 should be good to go for dinner.

They are rather heavy. You can easily take out the things you do not need and pack them tighter and neater. For instance, I take out the coffee, the hot cocoa, the orange drink mix, the napkin and seasonings. If you really want to you can take the heater out and leave that at home. If you are having a fire you can put it over the fire.

Basically I end up with two packs (fruit pack and meat pack), then I will have the bread and or crackers, and than a sauce.

[SkunkedAgain]

There are TONS of foods at the common grocery store that only require adding water. These are generally as light as the freeze-dried stuff at the camping stores. You can get lots of pasta dishes, soups, beans and rice, stuff like Ramen, etc... Just take a stroll down the boxed dinner aisle. Lots of what you'll find just requires adding boiling water. Sometimes they ask for milk, but a baggie full of powdered milk will do the trick. Some of the boxed dinners may require butter or oil. You can use either one for any of those, as they are just adding some flavor to the dish.

[Redlantern]

I'm with Skunked, again. Grocery stores have most everything I need for a weeklong trip in the BWCA. Hamburger helper mixes are great, I dehydrate my own burger. Pretty simple. Bacon, now you can buy precooked stuff, getting rid of the weight and mess of the fat. Powdered egg whites are in the baking aisles of Cub Foods. If you have a dehydrator, there's a lot of stuff you can save weight on and make last longer without refridgeration. I'm finding foil pouches of a shrimp, tuna, salmon and chicken in stores now, too. They're precooked but not dried so they are a bit heavier. Plenty of pasta and rice dishes to choose from. I still take some frozen meat for my first night but the rest is good for a week. Of course I catch a meal or two of fresh fish. I ate enough MRE's when I was in the service, I'll pass on them now.