Freeze Dried Meals

[sdudzic]

So I just sampled the entire menu of Mountain House freeze dried meals. They are light and take up little room and taste more than adequate. The only requirement is about 2 cups of boiling/hot water. So traveling with them from the east coast will not be a problem. The only logistical issue is how to heat up the water. I figure my options are:
1) Leave a bottle in the sun and let nature take care of it
2) Use my need of a cook stove as a means of getting to know people

Any thoughts?

Steve

[maladroit]

Look up backpacking stoves. They have some that screw onto readily available propane canisters. They are very light and tiny, essentially just a burner and 3 or 4 arms to balance a pot. Also look into backpacking cookware, you can get a full cooking set that all nests together inside the cooking pot and locks down into a small portable package (maybe even with room for the stove inside). You'd stop in Reno and pick up your fuel canisters before heading up to the playa.

[Chowski]

I doubt a sun-warmed bottle would work, but Coleman sells a little single-burner that screws directly onto one of those small green propane tanks. With one small pot, you could heat things all week. Expecting to find a neighbor who will prepare boiling water for you for every meal, or even once a day, is not realistic.

Alternately, canned foods are shelf stable and totally decent warmed from the sun - I usually bring a selection of soups and chilis, always with a pop-top so I don't have to bring a can opener. Other foods that require no refrigeration or cooking are: dried fruits, nuts, beef jerky, canned fruits (mmm, peaches), pringles (bags of chips tend to get stale if not eaten right away), little packets of cheese and crackers, a few hard candies if you've got a sweet tooth, foil packets of tuna, and the like. A few bites of food and one real meal from a can is normally enough to get me through.

[sdudzic]

I was thinking that a propane canister would be a significant "no-no" on a plane and that Reno would be cleaned out of them when I arrive. I will plan on arriving a day early for random supplies, is there a good place in Reno you could recommend to stay and shop?

Thanks,
Steve

PS thanks for the other food item tips

[Ratty]

Rather than asking again....try this thread. viewtopic.php?f=276&t=67418 There are lots of people with no ice chest. (Or the ice chest is just for non-perishables.) the Food and Drink board is full of great suggestions.

[Sham]

You can NOT bring a propane canister on a plane--either in your carry-on or packed in your luggage.

There are lots of stores in Reno or on the way to the playa for you to buy anything you need. They are all fully stocked with everything that may be needed on the playa. You can stop at a grocery store or one of the evil big box stores and fill your wagon to the brim with supplies and food. Tents, bikes, chairs, air mattress, burners, stoves, propane tanks, camping shower bags are all in bottomless supply there. The stock rooms of these stores are filled with pallets of everything burner related. There are trailers in the parking lots with more back up supplies should the stockrooms run low.

What I have done for years is to scope out large chain stores local to me, and made my lists of things to pick up in Nevada. Then I just run through the stores with a shopping cart and fill it with my premade list.

You can do freeze dried meals if you want to, but personally, I wouldn't eat that shit for a week. The stomach distress scares the hell out of me.

[Dr Helix]

"You can do freeze dried meals if you want to, but personally, I wouldn't eat that shit for a week. The stomach distress scares the hell out of me." (Sham)

Amen Brother.

[AntiM]

Even the General Store in Empire does not run out of propane canisters.

[666isMONEY]

I prefer cans, lots of canned fruit, soups, chili, sardines, granola, nuts, don't even bother to heat them, lots of corn chips too.

No ice-chest either: mornings are cold so I insulate beer/wine with sleeping bag, blankets.

[mudpuppy000]

Freeze dried stuff is also pretty expensive for what you get. It's only really needed if you're going to be carrying it on your back, so canned would be cheaper/easier. Even certain types of fresh food will last quite a while out there if you take reasonable care of it. Hard cheese, salami, tortillas, bagels, etc will last a long time even without an ice chest.

[GreyCoyote]

On the playa, you need calories, especially in the form of fats and protein. Check the labels of the freeze dried rations you sampled and you'll see they are rather scant in these areas. Now understand you can easily double your caloric intake due to exercise and environmental factors. (We suggest 2400 calories a day as a good starting point for our Type 1 friends.)

I say this not to dissuade you from going in the direction of freeze dried foods, but rather to suggest you also bring some supplemental stuff too. Not necessarily even the "heat-and-eat" type, but the "good-enough-cold" type. Or mix it into your freeze dried stuff. Lots of good options in the canned aisle at your local grocery. Beef, tuna, chili... Etc. Calorie-dense soul food.

Or you could pay us a visit at Fish Out Of Water camp. Nobody EVER leaves hungry. Its a hard and fast rule.

[Drawingablank]

Or you could pay us a visit at Fish Out Of Water camp. Nobody EVER leaves hungry. Its a hard and fast rule.

We have a similar thing at Hungry Hungry Hookers camp - - nobody EVER leaves sober.

[Captain Goddammit]

Placement, are you reading this?
I think there could be some strategic planning here...

[jazz albert]

So I just sampled the entire menu of Mountain House freeze dried meals. They are light and take up little room and taste more than adequate. The only requirement is about 2 cups of boiling/hot water. So traveling with them from the east coast will not be a problem. The only logistical issue is how to heat up the water. I figure my options are:
1) Leave a bottle in the sun and let nature take care of it
2) Use my need of a cook stove as a means of getting to know people

Any thoughts?

Steve

I heard that freeze dried meal is not safe for diabetics. If it is true then how do they manage it?

[Savannah]

So I just sampled the entire menu of Mountain House freeze dried meals. They are light and take up little room and taste more than adequate. The only requirement is about 2 cups of boiling/hot water. So traveling with them from the east coast will not be a problem. The only logistical issue is how to heat up the water. I figure my options are:
1) Leave a bottle in the sun and let nature take care of it
2) Use my need of a cook stove as a means of getting to know people

Any thoughts?

Steve

I heard that freeze dried meal is not safe for diabetics. If it is true then how do they manage it?

If you google "diabetic eplaya" you get a really good 2-page thread with links to other threads about diabetics on the playa:

viewtopic.php?t=30817

(There's an amazing post by GreyCoyote on the first page).

Note: plenty of folks avoid freeze-dried meals. (I don't like the price). I eat canned, vacuum-sealed, dried, cooler-chilled foods, etc . . . . and I don't heat any of it (unless putting a can in the sun counts as "heating").

[FlyingMonkey]

I have done freeze dried camping food for the week & also taken a large cooler with some of my favorite meals that I put in food saver bags & froze/thawed to eat. What I have learned that the convenience of the camping food is off set by the boring entries that I get bored of after about 3 days.
While I often have to force myself to eat on the Playa I really enjoy a good meal every few days. Leftover Quinoa salad with chicken is awesome. I also like a smoked tenderloin on the Playa. The food saver bags make it so easy to thaw & heat in hot water.
So this year (assuming I snag a ticket) I will downsize my cooler & take some favorite frozen meals & some freeze dried camp food.
I always take some cans of fruit & ravioli because neither need heat & are a good "plan B".

[Various]

I forgot my Coleman stove last year and bought an old white gas one, plus half a can of gas, from some dude in the parking lot at the Nixon gas station. You have options, OP.

[VultureChow]

Or you could pay us a visit at Fish Out Of Water camp. Nobody EVER leaves hungry. Its a hard and fast rule.

We have a similar thing at Hungry Hungry Hookers camp - - nobody EVER leaves sober.

Hey now, I'm just as likely to feed them. Midnight steak, grilled asparagus for Eric, etc.