Pre packaged food

[GregVa]

Has anyone had any of the mountain house food, or alternatives?

I was going to pick up some samples, but wanted to know if anyone has tried these and can recommend whats better. going to use some camping, and to keep a small stock pile of back up food.

[ShotgunBlast]

I've had Mountain House before. Pick up what you'd normally eat and you should like it. Great for camping. Would get expensive to stockpile at home though. I'd look at alternatives (rice, canned goods, etc) for home stockpiling because you can save a lot of money and you can constantly rotate new product in as you eat the old so things don't go bad.

[trailrunner]

I eat Mountain House when I camp or am working in the field (which isn't too often nowadays) and I like it. Mary Jane Farms is good too and probably better tasting than Mountain House, but I don't think they have as great of a selection.

[VACoastie]

I've tried it out a few times myself and it's pretty darn good. I think for our next patrol I'm going to be buying a few of the pouches myself. We don't always eat the best, and let's be honest, the military aint Burger King so you can't "have it your way." I think the best of out of the 5 or 6 that I've tried is by far the Stroganauff.

Pro tip: Don't put as much water as the directions call for. It usually winds up pretty soupy if you use the full amount it tells ya too. Don't 1/2 it by any means either, but just a dab less. Typically it's the same for any manufacturer of the long-term storage food folks I've found out.

[Mindflayer]

We have a lot of Mountain Home - bought it in bulk on sale. My wife was reluctant and surprised by how tasty they are. Growing up with surplus C-Rations that my dad would pick up, I found them really good.

Buy the food buckets of them and they are reasonable.

[SHMIV]

Any time I suggest prepackaged food to W2B, I invoke a special kind of wrath.

The woman would sooner starve. At least, that's her opinion, now.

I may buy some, just to try it. I'm not quite as picky about food as she is.

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[ShotgunBlast]

Pro tip: Don't put as much water as the directions call for. It usually winds up pretty soupy if you use the full amount it tells ya too. Don't 1/2 it by any means either, but just a dab less. Typically it's the same for any manufacturer of the long-term storage food folks I've found out.

Obviously we have a graduate from the TLAR School of Weights and Measures in our midst. That Looks About Right! Go TLAR!!

[OakRidgeStars]

Just remember to stockpile lots of water if you plan on using freeze-dried foods like Mountain House, Wise, etc.

[Mindflayer]

And buy a water filter or lots of chemical pills.

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[GregVa]

Thanks for all the info, I am going to pick some up and give it a try.

[VACoastie]

LOL no doubt SB, just a little dab'll do ya. Yup, keep going. Right... About... Dang too much, pour some out.

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[Reverenddel]

Depends on the mountain house. I have eaten them, and the ones with the RICE require a dab MORE than suggested!

Any way you go with it? EXTEND THE TIME! They say some ridiculous short time, I leave it double, By the time I get to it, it's hot enough to eat, but not scald, and it's perfectly ready.

I like the Stroganoff, but the Chili Mac is my favorite.

[meadmkr]

I initially started with pre-packaged foods but quickly realized that this wasn't really the solution to the problems we were trying to address. I know a few households that only stock pre-packaged meals but our goals (and budgets) are different.

I had picked up several of cases of MH when Costco was selling them. I have them in our BoBs but have most of them stashed up at our cabin as a "just in case". For our normal food stores we have a well stocked primary and secondary pantry as well as long term storage including 5gal pails & #10 cans of other items. I found that I can combine/package items with spices I like for a LOT less than MH, Wise and such. I also started making my own jerky again and haven't bought any in about 10 years.