Food Ideas?

[happycamper]

Does anyone make their own food for backpacking? I don't have a dehydrator (I know I need one) but I would like to find out some food ideas that people like that they make themselves.

[blueeyes]

I am just getting started with backpacking and will watch this thread with interest. Wish I had something to add but I don't only two trips under my belt. :popcorn:

[DOSS]

It really depends on what you like as most things can be dehydrated (in the oven even if you don't have a dehydrator). Also how much work you want to do when you are out in the hills. I like my meals to be quick and simple.

mashed Potatoes with bacon bits is good - literally instant potatoes, bacon bits, a KFC butter packet, chives, Parmesan cheese (put them in a baggy and just add hot water)
Quesadillas - First day of trip only but some string cheese, a couple tortillas, some ham (store with a frozen water bottle wrapped in some clothes and it stays cold all day)

I have moved away from much cooked fare and will just eat dried fruits, nuts and chicken jerky for the most part. Even Oatmeal can be done non cook if you sleep with your water so that it is warm, put it in your oatmeal and wait a protractedly long time for it to absorb everything and then mow down (I like carbs in the morning).

honestly if there is something you think would be good there is probably a way to make it in the backcountry.

[BruteForce]

Any type of smoked meat (chicken, beef, etc), dehydrated fruit. For ease of packing though, I've been taking MRE's and/or Mountain House (http://www.mtnhse.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=M&Category_Code=MHDL) freeze dried packs with me. Sometimes its just too much work to smoke/dehydrate your own stuff, when for $6.xx/pack, you can get pretty decent prepackaged stuff.

[happycamper]

Thank you for the ideas! I do like the mashed potato meal, that one sounds good. I will have to give dehydrating in the oven a try, didn't know that could be done! I like being able to put time into the meals at home and then having them not take very much time while hiking and stuff. I have Jetboils that we use.

blueeyes if you don't have a jetboil I would get one they are AMAZING and very lightweight!

[blueeyes]

Actually just ordered one two days ago for our upcoming backpack trip. My jetboil should arrive tomorrow just in time for West Rim hike in Zion and then Havasupai the following weekend. Really I ordered the jetboil so I could have coffee in a timely manner.... using it for food will be a bonus.

[bigred72]

I bring tortillas, walmart sells dehydrated refried beans and knorr rice. I'll put some beans in one freezer bag, rice in another. Heat the water, pour it in the freezer bags, wrap in clothes or a cozy. 10 minutes later, bam. Bring some packets from taco bell or taco time. I also do the instant potatoes. I also have a jetboil. I'll buy bulk granola, add powdered milk into a freezer bag. Some times I'll bring a mtn house as well. I have the fry pan for the jetboil so I'll bring Krusteaz blueberry pancake mix and bacon bits for salad (not the crunchy kind). I'll even add the bacon to the pancakes. For simplicity mtn house is the way to go.

[brendans]

We do a lot of cous cous, quinoa, beans, pasta...

A couple great resources:
backpackinglight food forum (http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/display_forum.html?forum=24)

http://trailcooking.com

[bigred72]

We do a lot of cous cous, quinoa, beans, pasta...

A couple great resources:
backpackinglight food forum (http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/display_forum.html?forum=24)

http://trailcooking.com

I also use freezerbagcooking.com

[Jammer]

I'm a big fan of Mountain House and the other freeze-dried meals one can commonly find (always re-pack them before my hike to save space.)

HOWEVER... these can definitely get pricey for a longer trip. So... I've experimented with other items and one of my favorites is Zatarain's gumbo mixes (pasta or rice.) I add some slices of Slim Jim or other summer sausge to these and then add boiling water and let set for about 12 minutes... and it's pretty good (pasta can be a little al dente!) Some of the boxed pastas that require milk work OK with powdered milk too. I also really like cheese tortellini boiled for about 5 minutes and then add some oil and bacon bits and let set for another 3 minutes or so. Ramen and vaccum packed lemon-herb tuna is a favorite as well.

- Jamal

[hoffam19]

I'll second the zatarains. I like the jambalaya with some sliced up beef sticks. Another favorite is lipton chicken flavored rice and I'll add in a pack of precooked chicken, the kind that comes in the sealed packs like tuna. Neither of these are home prepared, but they sure taste great after a long day on the trail.

[Jammer]

I'll second the zatarains. I like the jambalaya with some sliced up beef sticks.

I meant Jambalaya! I bet the Gumbo is good as well, but yeah, the Jambalaya with beef sticks is great. Just make sure it's a camp where you have plenty of water because it can leave a strong taste in your mouth if you don't have enough to drink!

- Jamal

[reverse_dyno]

The Walmart on 300W in SLC carries Mountain House freeze dried foods. They are way cheaper than buying them at REI. Walmart also sells knorr pasta (http://www.knorr.com/Products/Pasta-Sides.aspx) . There is not much pasta in a package, so you need one per person, but they are cheap. Mac-and-cheese is also good. When the recipes call for milk I just use powered milk, and I just leave out the butter.

[bigred72]

Winco bulk bin granola and powdered milk is my favorite for breakfast.

[jeremy1701]

Typically for breakfast I have either Nutella or peanut butter on a tortilla. If I'm feeling adventurous, I also add some salted peanuts. Lunch is generally granola with powdered milk. Dinner is either Lipton Noodles or tortilla soup with one of those chicken packets that don't require refrigeration and some (very crumbled up) blue corn tortilla chips. I've been searching for a breakfast replacement, but haven't had much success.

[misscakes]

Fantastic foods has some good stuff.. I'm a veggie.. But non veggies that I go with always think that they are the best meals :) Like someone said earlier.. Tortillas are great to bring. There's a taco mix by fantastic foods (you can get at smiths usually).. so I do tacos a lot (save my sauces from taco time).. Also, ive done falafel as well.. that's fun to bring pita bread and dried hummus mix with sundried tomatoes.. I also like to buy (though a little heavy, and usually use for my first meal..) the "tasty bite" indian food.. with cous cous (one of the best backpacking things ever!) ummmmm. dried chili mix with cornbread is good.. those simply asia boxes are good as well. i've also done sloppy joe mix from fantastic foods and make biscuits with that.. we also do breakfast burritos a lot with freezedried hashbrowns, tortillas, and dried sausage (mine veggie)..

another place that has good stuff is emergency essentials. you get a really big bang for your buck there. they have sooo many things. i recommend shopping there to stock up on stuff. you can get a shit ton (pardon my french) of food for ridiculously cheap!!! tons of things for like $10 in storage cans, and it tastes great! here's the link.. just check it out. you live kinda far away.. but when you visit slc you should go there or order stuff online.. just google emergency essentials (because i'm new it won't let me post the link).. it's be prepared dot com.. ;)
hope i gave you a few ideas..

oh and popcorn is always fun to do as well :)

[stefan]

there are some asian recipes at this link by harvey halpern for backpacking.
they are based on dehydrated foods, but they may also offer ideas too.

recipes (http://www.math.utah.edu/%7Esfolias/canyontales/bccooking/asian.php)

[PirateQueen]

Hi! I am a veteran day hiker and a new overnight backpacker...so I know I am way too heavy in the pack BUT, I just made homemade crabcakes that were AWESOME! I took mayo (best foods brand) packets, dijon mustard packets, dehydrated green onions (pack it gourmet), egg white, and panko (japanese bread crumbs) with old bay seasoning (mixed at home and put into a zip lock), and a can of lump crab meat. Mixed it together - put a packet of olive oil in my pot (MSR whisper lite stove, gsi pot), and fried the crab cake on each side for about a minute on each side (one can makes two nice sized cakes). Oh my, complete heaven after hiking all day! I serve it with instant garlic mashed potatoes and mix up a packet of mayo and chili pepper sauce for dipping... I find my packets at restaurants and minimus.biz. :crazy:

[Tango]

This website has a gigantic selection of on the trail meals. I particularly like the freezer bag cooking section; I refuse to 'do dishes' on the trail.

http://www.trailcooking.com/

Examples of Freezer Bag Recipes:
Bacon and Cheese Pasta, Veggie Beef Rice, Chicken Veggie Rice, Spicy Asian Style Noodles, Double Chocolate Trail Pudding Pie, Cherry Chicken Couscous, Cranberry Almond Tabouli.

Free site btw.

[blueeyes]

Last weekend on our Havasupai trip. Someone had an avocado that they mashed into a package of tuna. Yummmmmm! Think I will do that next time.

[goindeep]

the mashed potato recipe sounds good, im gonna try that one

[nefariousdeeds]

Weight is ultimately what you want to look at. I typically plan my backpack at 25% to 30% of my body weight. Which makes my pack about 50lbs (on just a normal 3 day ish pack trip) -- In order to accomplish this some things unfortunately are a must.

Breakfast - Oatmeal Packets, Dried cerial, Poptarts. (I don't don't eat a ton for breakfast). I always take one mtn home(freeze dried meal, even tho most of their breakfasts taste like crap). Starbucks VIA packets. (<-- these go on every trip) Its pre packaged, water mixable.

Lunches - Lunchables (anything over 2 days and these start being .. bad, still eatable but not so good). Jerky (places like Thompsons will cut and shrink wrap as much as you need. Fruit Leather (those bad ass thick fruit rollups). Apples.

Dinner - Uncle Bens Rice(orange package mixes with water), Soup (mix with water any kind but I take chicken noodle),A potato or 2, Mtn Home stroganoff (sp)? (OMG its good). Ill mix these up as they are all combine with each other in some form. Last but not least I will usually take one Heavy ass super duper awesome meal for the first day. I will either freeze a steak/chicken. Shrink wrap it whatever. This has to be eaten on the first day because it will thaw and go bad.

Some other things I take. Drink mix packets (hawaiian punch/MIO), One can of soda or a beer or something for that first night.

---- Again this is just the personal stuff I take. Much of it can be subbed out but the more cans and the more things with water weight that you bring, the heavier your pack will get. I have some rather nice backpacking equipment that the beginner might not have, so a lot of the time I find myself with about 6lbs give or take that I can sub out for that can of Raviollies or whatever. Having backpacked over 100 miles last year and 100 miles the year before. This type of setup always seems to work for me ----

P.S. Deep desert trips are different because you have to sub a lot of things out for water. Im sure there is more but im tired :)

[mtthwlw]

Last weekend on our Havasupai trip. Someone had an avocado that they mashed into a package of tuna. Yummmmmm! Think I will do that next time.

I don't know about mashing it up, but every time I bust out an avocado on a hiking trip everyone else is jealous. I don't mash it, I just eat it with a spoon.

If you get a dehydrator, I suggest par-boiling sweet potatoes and drying them in thin banana chip style slices. They are chewy and delicious.

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2

[goindeep]

I think I may have the tuna w/ avocado for lunch tomorrow. That sounds delicious. What else you guys got?

[scrappybts]

I second Emergency Essentials. Get on their mailing list if you're in Utah and watch for their "Scratch-n-dent" sales. Great deals on dehydrated food and other goods at a fraction of what you could find elsewhere. We recently bought a $120 dehydrator for $50 because the box had a barely noticeable dent in it! Coupled with the Food Saver we got for Christmas, we're in business!

We've been making jerky regularly. So much tastier and more cost-effective than store-bought. If you don't have a dehydrator but you happen to have a box fan, Alton Brown has a good jerky making tutorial you can look up. Thanks for the other links all.

[nhopkin]

I always make my own meals, and for a 3 day trip the weight is usually less than 2.5 pound including snacks. I do not use a dehydrator. I gave meals like Mt. House an honest try but i just can't stomach them one bit. Good thing there are many other options out there. Here is a short list of some of my staples while backpacking.


Cheese, hard cheeses like cheddar will last 7 or more days without refrigeration. (Think about it, it's already rotten). I bring it shredded to add to meals.
Summer Sausage. These come in small sizes and don't need refrigeration. You can just cut off chucks to eat or fry some up to go with other meals. I like sausage and instant potatoes as one example.
Couscous. This was already mentioned but it one of my favorites. You only have to add boiling water and let sit for 5 minutes. I combine it with a foil packet of Salmon.
Knorr, they make great rice and pasta mixes that don't require butter and take only 7 minutes to make. http://www.knorr.com/product/category/245879/rice-sides
Chicken and Tuna foil packets are great to combine with flat bread or tortillas. This can be nice when you don't feel like breaking out the stove. I like to add cheese to it.
Bear Creek Soups, come in large packets but you can easily divide out smaller portions. They take less time to cook in smaller portions but do still take around 8 minutes of constant boiling. Not bad but not the most fuel efficient. For me they are well worth the fuel because they taste great and contain a wide variety of foods in each mix. Here is a picture of the Bear Creak Wild Rice that I added sausage and cheese to. Bear Creek website (can be found in many grocery stores) http://www.bearcreekcountrykitchens.com/soups.php
https://sites.google.com/site/bigtrip2011/home/meals---besides-mt-house/wild%20rice.jpg?height=320&width=212

All of these meal ideas are one pot meals that i find much tastier and way less expensive than Mt House. Ironically they take up way less room in your pack and weight about the same.

http://trekkertrips.com/

[kd7kmp]

If I'm in an area where I can fish I will eat lots of fish. My fishing setup is only a few ounces. Otherwise I carry Cliff Bars, instant ramen (if I have my stove), nuts, dried fruit, beef jerky, etc. I like to go as simple as possible. I don't need to eat "gourmet" on the trail.

Kevin

[UTJetdog]

Those are good suggestions. I am very much a freezerbagger and I keep things simple. But, I also often like to finish my meal with something sweet. Instant pudding is easy if you are in the mountains with a lake or stream nearby.

Get your favorite flavor and empty into a ziplock bag. Add the recommended amount of powdered milk (I like Nido that you can get at Walmart) and shake it all up. Divide that up into 4 or 5 servings in individual ziploc sandwich bags. Determine how much water per serving based on the milk/pudding recommendations divided by the number of portions.

As you begin to prepare your meal, add water to your pudding bag and shake vigorously. Put it in the nearby stream or lake to cool and set up and it will be ready by the time you finish dinner. I also often add crushed graham crackers to the cheesecake puddings for something a little different. The possibilities are only limited by your pallet and imagination.

Oh yeah, also Bear Creek Chili mix combined with Ramen makes a pretty good chilimac that is easily done as a freezerbag meal.

[Dice]

I am definitely a food camper. I HATE being hungry when camping and backpacking makes it difficult to bring filling foods. I don't eat a lot, but I cannot enjoy the wild if I am hungry!

So a few years ago I set out to find ways of making great food that was lightweight that I could take backpacking. I fell in love with freezer bag cooking! I actually happened upon a booklet that was put out by Utah State Univ that is entirely freezer bag meals. The book has tons of recipes in it to make up in freezer bags ahead of time. Also, I hate doing dishes while camping and the freezer bag idea is perfect for that. I too have, and swear by, a Jet Boil. My first trip after I got this amazing USU booklet (and every trip since), my Jet Boil never saw anything besides water! No cleaning at all. Boil the water, pour it directly into the freezer bags, hide them in a cozy or some clothes, ten minutes later... feast out of the bag! Some of my favorites:

Breakfast:
-Rice pudding - My favorite. Warm and filling, lots of cinnamon/raisin/brown sugary goodness!
-Cheesy potatoes with bacon - Good ol' potato pearls with some cheese powder (like Mac and Cheese) and a pack of pre-cooked bacon. Pre-cooked bacon does not have to be refrigerated before it's open. One pack is a lot for one person, but it's great for two. Open it up, tear it into pieces, throw it in with the potato pearls and add the hot water. Amazing!

Dinner:
Any combination of the following (again, seperate freezer bags, just add hot water!):
Sealed pack of chicken (like others have mentioned)
Mashed potatoes
Stuffing (almost weightless and tastes amazing!)
Gravy.

Add some of these together in the same bag, like stuffing and gravy, or potatoes and gravy. I added my chicken to my stuffing and added the gravy. It was fantastic, but it can get a little bit salty.

For dessert, I have to echo the instant pudding thing. I, however, think one small box is perfect for one big guy! Mix it up with some powdered milk, let it set, cut the tip off one corner of the bag and go to town!

I have also tried cheesy couscous, essentially mac n' cheese but packs smaller.

[mtthwlw]

I actually happened upon a booklet that was put out by Utah State Univ that is entirely freezer bag meals. The book has tons of recipes in it to make up in freezer bags ahead of time. Also, I hate doing dishes while camping and the freezer bag idea is perfect for that. I too have, and swear by, a Jet Boil. My first trip after I got this amazing USU booklet (and every trip since), my Jet Boil never saw anything besides water!

What's the name of the booklet, and who is the author? It sounds like a great book to have... if you can tell, I'll go to check out my local USU extension to see if I can get a copy.


Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2

[Dice]

What's the name of the booklet, and who is the author? It sounds like a great book to have... if you can tell, I'll go to check out my local USU extension to see if I can get a copy.

I'll just give you a copy! :)

I've scanned it and uploaded it to DropBox. Here is the link:
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/8289367/Freezer%20Bag%20Cooking.pdf

Don't worry, the booklet gives permission to copy and redistribute.

The funny thing is, I just noticed on the cover that it says that all the recipes came from freezerbagcooking.com! Ha!

Oh-well, it's nice to have it in a printable format.

The file is about 21 megs, so it's a bit large, but enjoy!

If you would rather contact USU, the booklet is called Freezer Bag Cooking: Outdoor Food Made Simple. It was done by the Juab County extension.

[mtthwlw]

Excellent. Thanks.

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2