No cook dinner

[MJ H]

You need to average over the whole meal. Frosting appears to be about 135 calories per ounce, the walnut ever higher.

[Matthew / BPL]

rofl

[Cameron M]

I have three base dinner foods: Mary Jane mac n cheese, Whole Foods instant potatoes, and dehydrated pinto or black beans with “small grain” cous cous- not the “larger israeli stuff. In all cases I throw in a variety of items: fake baco bits, soy protein bits, dehy cheese, real gruyere, dried carrots, peppers, chili flakes, butter powder, olive oil, and other dehydrated or freeze dried vegetables I might have on hand like crushed green beans, broccoli, etc. Most of this can be obtained from Packitgourmet. Each is measured out for one meal, but I do add the gruyere and oil at dinner time. The mac n cheese does require hot water and 15 minutes, but the other two base groups work just fine hydrating with unheated water, without a lengthy hydration/carry factor. I mix them and eat them in a used Mountain House pouch. The gruyere does prefer hot water to really infuse taste to everything else. If I don’t have enough appetite to finish it, which is frequently, I just seal the pouch and have the remainder as a morning snack. Easy.

[Michael Ray]

My go to no cook dinners have been just pouches of chicken, tuna or salmon with ranch dressing. Last year I had also added raisins and/or sunflower seeds at times, since that is how I’d eaten some lunches previously but I discovered I tired of that pretty quickly so it was just the meat/dressing this past 7-dinner trip.

[DAN-Y/FANCEE FEEST]

On Monday of this week I picked up 3 cans of it. Just getting into taste testing various ways of making it taste good and increasing calories. Peanut butter really goes well with it. I need to get some crunchy peanut butter and a box of raisins to spice it up. The bread is the basis of a good meal in it’s infancy.

The 3 cans I got, I could shake and feel the bread moving around. It’s not stuck to the walls of the can. No need to open both ends and push it out. The shape of the loaf indicates a good possibility that it was baked while in the can.

[MJ H]

If canned bread is the answer, it appears that pilot crackers have about 120 calories/ounce. I have no idea what they taste like, but it has to be better than cold mashed potatoes.

[Rick Reno]

There’s one thing about pilot crackers that’s better than cold mashed potatoes: you can spread peanut butter on them. By themselves they taste like plywood. And they’re wicked expensive! Flour tortillas get my vote.

[Matthew / BPL]

I discovered that Parmesan cheese with dried mango on a tortilla is pretty tasty last weekend.

[HkNewman]

A PCT hiker showed me her no-cook system of a clean peanut butter jar she filled with rice + water to hydrate a couple hours before dinner. Add dehydrated beans and veggies (she used Harmony House) at the appropriate time, let it all hydrate, and then use crushed Doritos to line a tortilla shell. Scoop rice/bean mixture on said tortilla (the crushed Doritos should absorb excess moisture …and add flavor), then eat.

She said with 2 hrs, rice was a bit al dente, so not sure if more time or dry parboiled rice are solutions?

[David Thomas]

“pilot crackers . . . are wicked expensive!”

Maybe in the cans:

But all stores here in Alaska stock them in boxes for, I assume, a price/pound similar to soda crackers.  That’s what I find them most similar to: a very large, strong, soda cracker.  I’ll check prices later this week.

But if you’re not trying to recreate your WWII Navy experience (like my Scoutmaster in 1973 was), then why not repackage Triscuits or Wheat Thins or some Trader Joe’s yuppie version?  More salt, more oil, and tastier.

[Lester Moore]

A PCT hiker showed me her no-cook system of a clean peanut butter jar…

On several occasions I’ve tried something similar, but instead of using a jar it was a home-made version of the GG “Crotch Pot”. After 45 to 60 minutes of moderate heating in my crotch while sitting in camp, rice noodles and dehydrated veggies are slightly al dente but quite edible. Never tried crotch cooking while hiking, but that would be the most efficient use of this technique, due to less time cooking in camp and likely hotter crotch temperature while hiking.

So far, my favorite no cook “dinner” is a piece of naan half-rolled around generous portions of cheese and summer sausage with some raw garlic, eaten on the trail an hour or so before getting to camp. Tortillas work too and take less space than naan. Very filling and satisfying and feels like a real meal. In camp, some jerky before bed is all that’s needed to stoke the metabolic fires for sleeping.

[MJ H]

I really don’t see myself eating cold potatoes or anything that has been warmed by my crotch, but I’m thinking of trying a loaf of bread or two and a stick of butter for the first day or two.

[Matthew / BPL]

I have a friend that is a field biologist who says her preferred food while camping and backpacking is brie, avacados and baguette, eaten in various combinations all day long.

[David Thomas]

I checked prices on Pilot Biscuits. $6.49 for 2 pounds. They were the cheapest crackers in the warehouse store.

[MJ H]

Maybe back to Chicken in a Biskit then.  If trying for density of calories/salt per ounce, you should always pick things that sound southern over things that sound New Englandy.

[Ryan T]

Do you guys use powdered milk for instant pudding or are you just using water? It sounds like an interesting idea as I’ve tried a mountain house cold pudding before and it was good but I prefer to do my backpacking food shopping at the grocery store now : )

[Gary Dunckel]

Ryan, I’ve been playing with pudding mix lately, using Nido powdered milk. I’m using the sugar free pudding, and with the Nido it works out to around 110 calories at a packaged weight of ~ 30 grams. It tastes great. It does take a good amount of mixing, but I hate to carry a dedicated mini whisk. Maybe I’ll use the mixer ball that I made from titanium rod which I use for my afternoon latte and the morning Ensure. I’ve only tried it at home, but I’m thinking of taking a pouch or two on this week’s BP trip with my buddy and his daughter. I always do some ‘shock and awe’ things when we’re out together, and this might be a good one (assuming that they like pudding).

[Ken Thompson]

“If trying for density of calories/salt per ounce, you should always pick things that sound southern over things that sound New Englandy.”  Lol! True!

[JCH]

I use Nido whole dry milk.  Current favorite is the previously linked Simply Good and PB2.  Another fav is the Cheesecake flavor Jello instant pudding, Chocolate PB2 and mini chocolate chips.  I busted that one out on night 4 of a trip with 2 buddies last winter.

Speaking of shock and awe, Tunnock’s Wafers are guaranteed to make a lasting impression.  I love the quote on every bar “Over 5,000,000 of these biscuits made and sold every week”.  :)

[Emmanuel Romo]

If you like seafood, my favorite fat/protein dinner is sardines or oysters in olive oil with lime or chili, mix with coconut oil,  avocado, ghee, salt , pepper and crushed crackers for crunch. eat in a bowl or spread on a tortilla.

[Matthew / BPL]

My New Years resolution is to try sardines in 2018.

[William Kerber]

I prefer Cento skinless & boneless sardines. Good with crackers or in a tortilla shell. Others will just eat the skin & bones, but I prefer not to.

[Matthew / BPL]

Yeah I’m definitely not going to hit the bones and skins for my first try.

[Greg Mihalik]

 

Wild Planet Sardines

… and anchovies.  Do both in water, then add oil at camp (if desired) for easier mess management.

The difference between these and typical supermarket fare is amazing.

[Matthew / BPL]

Are sardines or the anchovies a better place to start? I’m not big on fish in general.

[Author]

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