food to carry - advice please

[william#]

foods never been my strong point when im out . i mean im pretty proficient with managing and cooking on an open fire and i can skin gut and prepare food for the fire too .
i generally go out for 3 to 4 days at a go pretty regular and most places i go open fires are not aloud .
also i more often than not use public transport and walk in so everything i want i have to carry .
ive been using rat packs for years as its just hassle free all in one everything yu need for a day so if i go for four days i take four packs .

i would though like to develop sets of menus that i can buy in supermarkets (which might be lighter than the rat packs , thats the only downside rat packs are heavy).

i have to think weight much more these days as i have a dickie back and knee now .

i generaly always camp near a water scource so thats is hardly an issue though if any one knows where i can buy millbank bags i would really appreciate it (gone into the local army surplus they didnt even know what i was talking about )
any how the advice im looking for is anything you find realitvly light and user friendly tasty and available in supermarkets thats great for taking out in your pack

 

[Pablo]

I have great trouble finding stuff in the supermarket but I have come across (or rather Mrs Pablo has come across) some mince sachets with sauce (3 flavours) made by Dolmio and pasta shells which cook very quickly:

http://www.dolmio.co.uk/DolmioNew/en-GB/our_larder/myDolmio_PastaTwists.htm

http://www.dolmio.co.uk/DolmioNew/en-GB/our_larder/myDolmio_meatballBolognese.htm

You could always rely on thick cup of soup type products. Failing that I'm stumped as well.

Pablo.

 

[william#]

i found another forum on the web and apparently in australia recently a supermarkey has been selling boil in the bag meals
i know it doesnt help us in the uk mybe email tescos and start applying pressure.
any how i am still looking forward to what people say here im sure there are som ingenius people out there who have come up with great ideas

 

[decorum]

Hi william#,

Have you tried dehydrated food (like Raven Meals etc) - you may need to add some herbs and spices though as they're not to everyones taste. At the moment Millbank Bags can be had through Genuine Army Surplus (certainly their ebay site) for £2.50 (+£1.25 p&p). Hope that helps.

 

[fred gordon]

It will all depend on your taste in food to some extent. I like to take some basics with me and work from there. For example some pasta and rice, some French or other sausage, flour for bannock or flat bread. Veg like brocolli travels well, stock cubes, for drinka as well as for inclusion in meals. Dried fruit is always good as it can also be added to food e.g. prunes, apricots, crushed nuts (no jokes please!). I have also tried small packets of various tomato sauces, the list is as long as your imagination. Personally I don't like ready meals as they seem to have lots of 'E' ' numbers preservatives etc. Best thing to do is have a leisurley stroll round the supermarket and note down things that fit the bill. Then sit down over a coffee and make menues out of them. Great fun.

 

[Fin]

Rice, cous cous and noodles as staples (light and dry, keeps well and a little goes a long way. (Chow Mein flavoured super noodles are a favorite when I can't be bothered to "cook" and are literally a meal in minutes)

Try going for really strong flavourings like tabasco, minced garlic, stock cubes, wasabi, dark soy sauce - again anything where a little goes a long way.

Dried pulses (lentils, split peas etc) are a good carry and for protein I generally either dry my own meat or take along a large chorizo (keeps forever and strong tasting).

Keep a tub of salt - you'll be amazed how it can transform a bland experimental dish.

My luxuries are decent coffee, cream if I'm not out too long in summer - coffee mate if I am and last, but not least - a full hip flask!

 

[fred gordon]

Rice, cous cous and noodles as staples (light and dry, keeps well and a little goes a long way. (Chow Mein flavoured super noodles are a favorite when I can't be bothered to "cook" and are literally a meal in minutes)

Try going for really strong flavourings like tabasco, minced garlic, stock cubes, wasabi, dark soy sauce - again anything where a little goes a long way.

Dried pulses (lentils, split peas etc) are a good carry and for protein I generally either dry my own meat or take along a large chorizo (keeps forever and strong tasting).

Keep a tub of salt - you'll be amazed how it can transform a bland experimental dish.

My luxuries are decent coffee, cream if I'm not out too long in summer - coffee mate if I am and last, but not least - a full hip flask!

Fin,
A person after my own heart. However a hip flask is far too small. Go for a 500ml sigg bottle and make sure its got a good malt whisky in it!

 

[Fin]

Fin,
A person after my own heart. However a hip flask is far too small. Go for a 500ml sigg bottle and make sure its got a good malt whisky in it!

Ta! Dah! (along with a church organ fanfare and multiple fireworks going off!)

I bought one of these in the summer:

http://www.simplyhike.co.uk/ProductDetails.aspx?StockID=37685&Affiliate=Froogle

Purely because it was shiny - and I'd yet to find a real use for it.

0.6l of Laphroaig - that should last a night or two!

Fred - you're a genius!

 

[windward]

For fresh meat check out your local butcher and see if they can vaccum pack it for you. Even without being refrigerated it'll easily last 4 to 5 days...if not more.

 

[Eric_Methven]

And don't forget to pick up a handful of condiment sachets every time you're in a motorway service station, transport cafe or even macdonnalds. Individual sachets of sauce, salad cream, salt, pepper and such like can transform a meal and take up very little space.

Eric

 

[StJon]

For years I've been taking a tube of condenced milk with me Doubles as milk and sugar in tea and also a quick energy hit as a sauce over sorn, banana bread etc.

 

[Shewie]

When there`s no food to be gathered on the trail I usually take boil-a-bags with me containing pre cooked homemade curry / chilli etc. They were a great find, you can make up any meal you want and put it into these bags which just drop into a pan of water. No washing-up needed, and no paying £5 a throw for a Raven etc.


http://www.lakeland.co.uk/product.aspx/!1405

Rich

 

[FGYT]

the little Blue Dragon stir fry sauces 43p
Amoy straight to wok noodles teh pack has 4 smaller vac packed portions
Supermarket own brand Boil in the bag rice (unfortunatly its perforated bags so you cant make a brew )
Tilda Flavoured Rice bags is a microwave jobby but i tryed it as a boil in teh bag and it works (and you can make a brew )

Oh I do carry a small Steel wok a couple of £££ at your local chinese supermarket

if you like them you can get Dried mushrooms

stir fry needs Meat (any)
Onion a few other veg Beans settecorn etc cabbage leaf etc and a sauce plus the noodles or Rice
you can use the Domesic stuff or substitute Wild food as you find it

plus with a couple of spuds you can deep fry some Chips or Chrisps depending on the oil you carry


are VESTA meals still about ???? did most of wales on them and Kendle mint cake as a Scout

ATB

Duncan

PS Tabasco Green Rules for Eggs

 

[gregorach]

I've never seen the attraction of boil-in-bag stuff for camping - especially rice. I mean, you need water to boil it, so why carry something that's already absorbed its own weight in water when it was originally prepared? OK, maybe I can see an argument in a military situation (for speed), but for regular camping? Just take rice, or noodles - same food, half the weight.

TVP, whilst not the tastiest protein source, is very light. A tub of that Swiss vegetable bullion goes a long way, and dried onion flakes are always worth having.

 

[william#]

good thing about boil in a bag is no washing up and you only need to take a spoon with you - the water you boil can b decantered into a flask or my fave straight in for a brew

 

[Graham_S]

beanfeast flavoured TVP, cous-cous, dried onions, chorizo, mixed herbs, stock cubes, lentils.

other pulses can be carried but be careful, some need to be pre-soaked. (although you can soak them in a ziplock bag. put them in the bag with the water in the morning and they'll be ready for cooking at dinner time.)

another thing, you can buy marinaded vacum packed tuna steaks. tasty

 

[PJMCBear]

I love doing this before a trip. The planning is almost as good as getting out there, and SWMBO gets a good laugh out of it too. She keeps finding kit/food lists all over the house. I can be a bit obsessive about the planning.

Anyway, I digress. I usually cater for two and tend to be a little more elaborate, splitting the costs and weight with my Bush-buddy, but here’s a simpler menu I’d put together for a long, solo, weekend (3 nights 3 days).

Friday Evening – precooked meal in a bag, often a curry or chilli with rice. Just warm it through on the stove. I might even add a couple of mini naans as well.

Sat’day Breakfast – 4 sausage (pork and tomato for preference), on a couple of rolls with a slice of cheese and a few onion rings.

Sat’day Lunch – Tortilla wraps with salami, cheese and fruit.

Sat’day Dinner – Steak/2x boned lamb chops, sautéed half a tin of potatoes with onion and diced bacon.

Sunday Breakfast – Sautéed other half tin of potatoes, 2 sausage, 2 bacon, beans & sometimes black pudding.

Sunday Lunch – Fruit, wraps with tinned tuna & tomatoes.

Sunday Dinner – Stir fry 1 sliced pork loin chop or 1 sliced breast of chicken, onion, carrot, mushrooms, noodles, Tesco black bean sauce.

Monday Breakfast – 1 x rolled oats sachet, 2x bacon and cheese wraps.

Monday Lunch – 2x Sausage, onion, salami, pasta and a Tesco pesto sauce.

Shopping list – doesn’t include Fridays evening meal.

1 Small steak/2x lamb chops
1x 4 pack of bacon
8 pack of sausage
1 x small black pudding
Half a small salami
8 x cheese slices
4 x mini naans (freeze 2 for next time)
4 x bread rolls (freeze 2 for next time)
1 tin of new potatoes
1 small tin of beans
1 tin of tuna chunks
1 pork loin/chicken breast
Half a dozen cherry tomatoes
10 x Tortilla wraps
2 x onions
Half a dozen button mushrooms
1 x carrot
4 apples
1 pack of noodles
1 small pack of pasta
1 small Tesco pesto sauce
1 small Tesco black bean sauce
2 x sachet of rolled oats (comes in packs of 10)

Note that I also carry a small condiments bag with oil, herbs, spices and various other things to liven up a meal. I’ll also freeze things prior to the trip to keep them fresher for longer.

Not exactly lightweight and might weight more than 4 ration packs, but I enjoy eating outdoors and my foraging skills need some work

 

[benp1]

good list there mate. once you've frozen them how do you keep them chilled once you're out? do you use a cool bag etc?

 

[benp1]

I’ve actually bought a whole load of quick meals from sainsburys. You find them in the aisle with pasta and rice. They’re smallish microwave packets/sachets of rice/pasta and then something to go with it, like bolognaise/curry/chilli etc. They’re meant for the microwave but work ok if you boil them in water. I open the top and stir them every now and then. Its not quite as grand as having a proper meal but for lunches or quick meals they’re ideal. The huge benefit is they’re really cheap, less than £2 per meal.
I’ve also used microwave rice meal type thing, I bought egg fried rice and also vegetable buriyani, they were a quid each and were lovely. Really easy. Its not the same as doing a proper meal from scratch but sometimes its just what you need!

 

[PJMCBear]

It all goes in the same coolbag in the bergan and the frozen stuff keeps everything else cool so it doesn't spoil. You've got to think about it a bit and plan what you want defrosted when. I usually plan to eat the frozen stuff later in the trip.

You can also split the packs and freeze parts of them. Make sure it all goes in waterproof bags or you might end up with a soggy maggot.