Realistic non-cooler based menu planning

[theCryptofishist]

Cheese is a little dodgy to me to begin with. Paneer even more so. It makes a weird feeling when I bite it.

So weird, that I don't even really have the vocabulary to discuss it. So, you didn't want to add this to "realistic non-cooler"?

[theCryptofishist]

Woo-Hoo! That was magic!

[Savannah]

We live in a wonderland of food. But we are eating on a desert campground. One solution are cook in pouch foods, don't dirty a pan. You poke the seal, heat in boiling water or in a solar gain situation, open, eat, over something appearing cultured or out of the pouch if ravenous. I've eaten my share of. Here are some favorites. What are yours?

Me: from TJoes - palak paneer. From the place you get your carports - tuna in yellow coconut curry. Plus a few small local to us tuna packers seafare and local harvest, probably interwebs sourced.

Food technology put to use...

And, of course, nothing beats the Tuna Guys and Mamas for fresh off the boat!

Topics merged! Too useful to slip away, so I wanted to bind it to a relevant major thread.

I agree, Some Seeing Eye; Trader Joe's Palak Paneer is delicious (and way more delicious than I would expect from looking at the picture on the box, having never had the stuff before in my life). The first time I ever had it was at the Burn during the heavy Monday rainstorm of 2010, when a friend gifted me a plate of it as the rain fell. One of the best gifts I've ever received out there.

All the TJ's Indian food has been good. I can recommend their Pav Bhaji as well . . . ("potatoes, tomatoes, and diced vegetables in spicy aromatic sauce").

[theCryptofishist]

Oh muy goodness! The indians have made the spicy aromatic sauce breakthrough! Now their cuisine will roll through our hunger like a mac truck tank!

[McStrangle]

Over here we have long life / uht milk that you can store in the cupboard for when you require it
....are these a thing in the states? The closest thing I could find were those little one serve milk jiggers you get for coffee...

I mean obviously it's not some secret Southern Hemisphere only thing, but I could not for the life of me find what I needed....I just want endless cups of tea on playa damnit!

[theCryptofishist]

"Shelf Stable" (unless that's for horses) is the search term. If you have local confederates, I'd suggest *going into order on the web and have it shipped there* mode. The larger sizes may be out of fashion due to confusion with irradiated product.
You can get soy, rice, and almond milk in that packaging. For them, it's standard. And there's always sweetened condenced...

[McStrangle]

"Shelf Stable" (unless that's for horses) is the search term. If you have local confederates, I'd suggest *going into order on the web and have it shipped there* mode. The larger sizes may be out of fashion due to confusion with irradiated product.
You can get soy, rice, and almond milk in that packaging. For them, it's standard. And there's always sweetened condenced...

Is it not something that's just...IN the supermarket already? Or am I just blatantly not seeing them when they're right in front of me? (It's been known to happen)

[theCryptofishist]

You'll find soy, rice, and almond milk in that packaging in any store that carries such (and that's most of them, these days) but not cow.

This is so ubiquitous, that a corner of my brain is calling out all sorts of weird stuff upon your head for even asking. The little ones are small and moopy, but at least you don't have to worry about having the whole lot spoil...

[McStrangle]

You'll find soy, rice, and almond milk in that packaging in any store that carries such (and that's most of them, these days) but not cow.

This is so ubiquitous, that a corner of my brain is calling out all sorts of weird stuff upon your head for even asking. The little ones are small and moopy, but at least you don't have to worry about having the whole lot spoil...

Ahhhh and that's why I didn't get the small, moopy, horribly inefficient single serves. We DID however, one year, get a big ole' jug of regular ole' cow milk, decided not to use the RV fridge after all, promptly forgot it was in there, and had a fantastic explosion of sour milky goodness all over the fridge about 5 days in. It was tremendously exciting. By which I mean it was a shit show. By which I mean we cleaned it as best we could and left it for future Joe to deal with (joe being me).


Fair play though, it is a silly question, it's just been bugging me for years. Almond, rice et al would probably be a goer. They're just not something I actively go and buy. Thanks for the answer though!

Btw what sort of weird things? Like rain of toads / poltergeist / chupacabra weird or just regular old bad luck luck and bodily harm weird? :p

[FIGJAM]

Try some condensed canned milk and see if you like it.

For tea or coffee it should be fine.

[McStrangle]

Try some condensed canned milk and see if you like it.

For tea or coffee it should be fine.

...this is what I probably should've been doing all along. I don't know why the thought never crossed my mind.....my Serbian in laws love it...it's a bit sweet but goes alright if you don't add sugar.



.....ANYWAY enough inane milk chatter, apologies for hijacking this thread, and thanks for my first eplaya scolding!

[GreyCoyote]

FYI: evaporated milk is regular milk with half of the water (by volume) removed. Take a cup of evaporated milk, add a cup of plain water, and you have regular milk again. Bon apetit!

Condensed milk is nothing more than evaporated milk with sugar added. The sugar prevents the growth of a particular problematic bacteria.

Other than the added sugar, condensed milk and evaporated milk are interchangeable. Add water and you have milk, or sweetened milk as the case may be. Both have a shelf life of many months... even years if stored in a cool place.

Finally, UHT milk in quart boxes was available at the Reno WallyWart in the baking aisle. Of course, lots of other Burners know where to find it, so when its gone, its gone.

Edited to add: You may already be drinking evaporated milk and not know it. In parts of the US where milk has to be trucked over distance from farm to processor, the milk is evaporated by removing part of the water under vacuum. The resulting concentrate is pumped to the usual tanker for transport. At the processing facility it is then diluted with deionized water to regular strength. The result is about a 2:1 savings in diesel to transport any given amount of milk. Under the existing rules, this process need not be disclosed to the consumer.

[theCryptofishist]

Edited to add: You may already be drinking evaporated milk and not know it. In parts of the US where milk has to be trucked over distance from farm to processor, the milk is evaporated by removing part of the water under vacuum. The resulting concentrate is pumped to the usual tanker for transport. At the processing facility it is then diluted with deionized water to regular strength. The result is about a 2:1 savings in diesel to transport any given amount of milk. Under the existing rules, this process need not be disclosed to the consumer.

You missed the part where he's in Australia... If he were in the states, he might already know this.

[theCryptofishist]

Btw what sort of weird things? Like rain of toads / poltergeist / chupacabra weird or just regular old bad luck luck and bodily harm weird? :p

You know, it's a sort of in the moment thing... I can't abstractly call things down upon your head to sort of test it.

Although, in a pinch chupacabra will do. Soviet chupacabra, perhaps...

[GreyCoyote]

Edited to add: You may already be drinking evaporated milk and not know it. In parts of the US where milk has to be trucked over distance from farm to processor, the milk is evaporated by removing part of the water under vacuum. The resulting concentrate is pumped to the usual tanker for transport. At the processing facility it is then diluted with deionized water to regular strength. The result is about a 2:1 savings in diesel to transport any given amount of milk. Under the existing rules, this process need not be disclosed to the consumer.

You missed the part where he's in Australia... If he were in the states, he might already know this.

I was writing for the bulk of the audience mostly, but Australia actually dehydrates more of its milk than the USA. Of the top five producing worldwide markets (EU, NZ, US, Aust, Argentina) only the EU requires labeling (under some circumstances) of rehydrated milk. Australia, at least outside of Victoria (65% of Aust production), sees most of its milk handled this way.

How does this apply to Burning Man? Ummm.... (Cryptofishist, help me here please. Hehehehe)

Wait! I got it! Larry drinks milk! There ya go!

[theCryptofishist]

Yeah, but Larry drinks fresh ass' milk, so no dehydrating/trucking is needed...

[GreyCoyote]

Yeah, but Larry drinks fresh ass' milk, so no dehydrating/trucking is needed...

See? THIS is why we love you. Intelligent. Witty. Serene. Caustic.

Speaking of which, where the hell is Isotopia? (Warning. Extreme thread drift)

[McStrangle]

Edited to add: You may already be drinking evaporated milk and not know it. In parts of the US where milk has to be trucked over distance from farm to processor, the milk is evaporated by removing part of the water under vacuum. The resulting concentrate is pumped to the usual tanker for transport. At the processing facility it is then diluted with deionized water to regular strength. The result is about a 2:1 savings in diesel to transport any given amount of milk. Under the existing rules, this process need not be disclosed to the consumer.

You missed the part where he's in Australia... If he were in the states, he might already know this.

Yep, Australia.

Our cows are pretty much the same down here, though like everything else in this country they ARE poisonous and actively trying to kill you.

[unjonharley]

For breakfast this morning.. Egg,butter, onion,cheese,salt,pepper and garlic.. All from dry stock.. Add 1/4 cup hot water stir.. Cook in a 4 inc fry pan, about one and a half min.

For cheese, I dry good shred cheese.. Then grind it to a power

[chuckularone]

For cheese, I dry good shred cheese.. Then grind it to a power

Hmmm.... I Never tried dehydrating cheese. That opens a whole new line of possibilities!

[unjonharley]

For cheese, I dry good shred cheese.. Then grind it to a power

Hmmm.... I Never tried dehydrating cheese. That opens a whole new line of possibilities!

Don't like the food industries idea of cheese sauce.. It is Valaeta with enough salt for two days diet..

Other uses for dried cheese.. Dry mash potato & cheese.. Mac & cheese..

[Savannah]

"Shelf Stable" (unless that's for horses) is the search term. If you have local confederates, I'd suggest *going into order on the web and have it shipped there* mode. The larger sizes may be out of fashion due to confusion with irradiated product.
You can get soy, rice, and almond milk in that packaging. For them, it's standard. And there's always sweetened condenced...

Is it not something that's just...IN the supermarket already? Or am I just blatantly not seeing them when they're right in front of me? (It's been known to happen)

I usually find the shelf-stable milk in the juice aisle (right next to the juice boxes). They're aiming it at parents who are shopping for their kids' lunches. It's not usually next to the soy and almond milk, which typically has its own section . . . and is also worth experimentation if you haven't tried it. (I never would have known how good chocolate flavored almond milk can be if a friend hadn't offered me some.)

Depending on the store, I also might also look for boxes of real milk in the "natural products" section, because my favorite brand happens to be organic. (These days organic items are less likely to be lumped off in an organic ghetto, however.)

[VultureChow]

I used almond milk in the chai-tinis at the M&G last year. I thought it worked well with the spices and made for a light and refreshing (and somewhat potent) drink.

[unjonharley]

I can not have cow.. I mix dry soy for milk.. It works well for cooking..
Its the sugar in raw milk.. Cheese is ok..

[Mojojita]

Shelf stable milk has been available at that horrible large martish place in quart boxes - brand name Parmalat. Also, I have been ordering cases of quart size shelf stable Borden milk online every year before we leave for the burn.

[unjonharley]

I was just in the Dollar Tree.. They have boxed milk with a wear date on Nov this year

[Ratty]

I love this thread. I don't bring perishables.

[Savannah]

I love this thread. I don't bring perishables.

Same here!

I was just in the Dollar Tree.. They have boxed milk with a wear date on Nov this year

Kroger/Fred Meyer is another good place to get shelf-stable boxed milk for $1/serving. Trader Joe's sometimes has it, and they also have shelf-stable boxed whipping cream.