MREs v. dehydrated meals

[LandCruisers4Life]

De nada, Homero. Anytime 

You can't really improve on government science when it comes to MREs 
They are actually designed for a certain level of caloric intake to keep you going. I have bought a lot of ammunition from cheaper than dirt for my old shotgun in the past, and several wool blankets. Good place to shop!

Today I opened up and prepared a mountain house meal for I and my group I was with as they had never experienced 'backpacker food' before. They were amazed that such a tasty meal could be carried in a light weight package, and prepared by merely adding hot water. They had never seen a backpacker stove before either..... I opened up a whole new world to them, it was pretty fun to share the knowledge and ideas with them.

Homero I owe you some pictures, so tomorrow morning I'll get out the camera and take some shots of my pack etc, and get you that list for the med kit.

[bdhawk133]

  Third question: Where do you get your MRE's or Mountain House stuff?

Homero,

Although you can get Mountain House at places like Academy and REI, they usually have a somewhat limited selection. I order mine directly from the Mountain House website, http://www.mountainhouse.com/ They are extremely friendly and ship immediately. Also, I agree with everyone else about the quality and taste!!! Excellent! One note.....STAY AWAY FROM BACKPACKERS PANTRY!!!!

[homerboy2u]

.....STAY AWAY FROM BACKPACKERS PANTRY!!!!

Ok..do share, your experience with them, please.

[bdhawk133]

.....STAY AWAY FROM BACKPACKERS PANTRY!!!!

Ok..do share, your experience with them, please.

Well, lets see.... given that

1) I have a stomach of iron, and
2) I am routinely exposed to horrific smells while in the lab,
I seem not to be bothered by things that would make any normal person a bit queezy.

But backpackers pantry takes the cake for making me gag almost by thought alone.

My first and last time to try those things was during a backpacking trip through Carson Natnl Forest, where I soon opted to survive with minimal food rather than suffer through another package of backpackers pantry.
I'm not quite sure what it is about them, but they taste extremely salty, extremely processed, and totally unnatural! 

[Peach]

I tried a meal from Backpacker's Pantry just once about two years ago....it was spagetti or something, we had it for dinner....I woke up at 2 AM with a full blown migraine...first and only one I've ever had, so I'm staying away from that stuff....might look at some of these others though....thanks!

[xseption]

In my book, Mountain's House has been the meal of choice for years. I even have some at work occasionally where I boil some water in the microwave and I am full most of the day ... I like the chicken meals best

I did try MRE's in the 90's and they weren't so bad. The tabasco was always traded for more dessert. The coolaid packets were decent as well.

~ edd

[homerboy2u]

O.K...so with Mountain House, you need to boil water and with the MRE's you just need to add water to get it boiling......it looks like they are starting to get appart from each other, on the home stretch.

  Keep your opinions coming people.

[bdhawk133]

Ok.... plain and simple.....

 - If weight is an issue (ie. backpacking) go with Mountain House.
all you have to do is add hot water, and wait 5-10 min. and presto...      nice hot meal!
 - If weight is not an issue, go with an MRE.
This is usually what you get with these:
Entree - the main course, such as Spaghetti or Beef Stew
Side dish - rice, corn, fruit, or mashed potatoes, etc.
Cracker or Bread
Spread - peanut butter, jelly, or cheese spread
Dessert - cookies or pound cakes
Candy - M&Ms, Skittles, or Tootsie Rolls
Beverages - Gatorade-like drink mixes, cocoa, dairy shakes, coffee, tea
Hot sauce or seasoning - in some MREs
Flameless Ration Heater - to heat up the entree
Accessories - spoon, matches, creamer, sugar, salt, chewing gum, toilet paper, etc.

[Tropic]

I haven't had much experience with Mountain House, but I have with MREs. There are differences between the military meals and civilian meals, two of the most notable being the absence of the Tabasco bottle and the lack of a heater in the latter (although there are civilian meals in which heaters are present--you just have to look for them).

For example, in the latest Sopakco case I received, the meals came equipped with:

Heater
Entree
Side dish
Cracker
Cracker spread
Dessert
Beverage powder
"Extra" pack: Spoon; Coffee packet; Cream/sugar packets; Salt and pepper packets; Napkin)

The heater is wonderful if you like a hot meal. I don't know how much water Mountain House foods require, but the amount necessary to facilitate heating with an MRE heater is negligable. Plus, most MREs have a decent taste now, with texture and appearance being the two largest turn-offs (not to mention the constipaton many report after eating several, but that's a different topic).

Two good sources for MREs are:

http://theepicenter.com/mre_military_meal_ready_to_eat.html
https://www.meyerscustomsupply.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=MCS&Category_Code=mre1

You may also find a lot of information regarding civilian MREs at: http://www.mreinfo.com/

Regarding the weight and bulk--many people separate the component items and only carry some of them. I know several people who forego things like heaters and accessory pack and desserts while in the field. It all varies according to your tastes. The individual item pouches also fit into a pack more easily when separated.