MRE Expectation

[doc holiday13]

What exactly is peoples expectation for the .MIL style MRE's and Mtn.House, Peax, etc. type brands??
I can totally understand getting burnt out on a certain flavor OR a certain "meal" flavor might taste like beaver balls dipped in fish oil, but are people really soooo picky about their food that ~8-10 days of "just add water" meals that they want some gourmet 5 course meal??

Longest I've lived on MRE type foods was about 6 days. I did bring in some non MRE stuff and that got eaten first. BUT I knew in my mind that it'll never be home cooking like mama used to make. I just wanted something to make the rumbling go away and would give me some calorie replacement/energy. I also ALWAYS bring hot sauce to get the blandness out.

I also get that there are guys out there like Brian Call/Gritty who are spending 50ish days in the field and food can be a make or break mentally. Hence why I'll always tell people that they should get over their hangup on pack weight when going into the field if a large part of that weight gets lost when the food is all gone. FYI I'm the guy you want camping back country because I will be packing in 1 day worth of drinking and baby bell cheese

 

[EdP]

I find that the combination of freeze dried meat, dehydrated veggies, and rice or pasta makes a much better meal than the prepackaged "just add water" meals. There is a slight weight penalty, not in the weight of food but in the additional fuel needed.

 

[omt223]

Go watch steve1989MREinfo on youtube
Youll be super excited to eat any of them lol

 

[Hackleback]

Go check out all the food/meal ideas that through-hikers/backpackers use- most all will be cheap, easy to find items and not mre/freeze dried- type meals. Lots of blogs/YouTube videos on the subject.