dooger.org » Food

Dehydrated Meals

Nigel — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 04:34:34 +0000

On our recent TGO Challenge trip, Lynn and I ate our fair share of dehydrated meals. We picked up most of our dehydrated food in the US (Backpackers Pantry, Mountain House, etc) and took it over with us. During our trip, I was lucky enough to try two meals that we hadn’t had before, supplied by fellow Challengers Richard and Fiona. The Mountain House Apple and Custard was wonderful at the end of a long wet day. But the winner by a long stretch was the Chicken Tikka from Expedition Foods UK. This was enjoyed in the Scottish equivalent of the Brigadoon Bothy (Sheilin of Mark). I was in absolute heaven! Talk about tasty – nice and spicy too! I felt as if I’d just run around to the local Indian takeaway.

This got me thinking – why not take some of my own home Thai cooking with me on the trail? I already have a great dehydrator plus there are lots of great resources out there on how to dehydrate for backpacking. Andy Howell has a great set of postings on his blog to get me started.

I’ll report back with my findings…

Coffee on the trail…

Nigel — Sat, 02 May 2009 23:38:57 +0000

I’ve been wondering what to take for brewing coffee on our trip. I can attest that a good cup of coffee is a necessity for Lynn every morning. I was planning on taking instant coffee such as Nescafe Espresso or similar. While it has more than enough caffeine content, the flavor isn’t there.

So, what to do? While browsing my local REI for last minute goodies, I stumbled across the GSI Ultralight Javadrip. At a measly 0.5oz it definitely doesn’t add any significant weight. The price is great too at $10! No more instant coffee, no more filters – now that’s not bad We gave the gizmo a trail run on Sunday and it works pretty well.

What’s the coffee of choice for the trip? Deadman’s Reach by Raven’s brew in Alaska. The preferred brew to “jump start” your morning. Available from your local Whole Thief.

DIY Dehydrated Food

Nigel — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 15:54:50 +0000

I’ve been contemplating the meals for our forthcoming TGO Challenge in May and have been thinking about experimenting with de-hydrating some of our home cooking. Both Lynn and I are avid cooks – I like to make Thai/Indian and she likes the traditional stews, Italian, casseroles, etc.

I found some interesting articles on Andy Howell’s blog going over the basics of dehydrating along with some great recipes. Freezer Bag Cooking also has tons of information on everything you’d ever need to know. So it could be Thai Green Curry, Chicken Panang, Phai Thai Noodles for us!