DIY Backpacking Meals, By Jake Lamphier

[Cooter49]

Thanks Jake for putting that article together. I have always wanted to do my own meals just did not know where to start. you make it look a lot then I had it in my mind.

 

[lamp_ak]

Thanks Jake for putting that article together. I have always wanted to do my own meals just did not know where to start. you make it look a lot then I had it in my mind

I’m glad you found it useful. It’s good way to kill some time in the off season

 

[cams]

Thanks for the article. lookin forward to try dehydrating my own meals.

 

[Cmb8316]

Appreciate the article. Breaking into the “backcountry” space after two decades of treestand whitetails and weekend warrior type hunting and food is certainly a new thing for me to worry about. Being 20 minutes from the truck and a box of little Debbie made it a non issue for a long time. Looking forward to working out some recipes this off-season .

 

[Gumtree801]

Good ideas, a few of those I would have never thought of. Sure like the idea of saving some $$$$ but also eating well.

 

[Kifaru_Kinda_Guy]

Great article

 

[CatskillDraht]

Great article and Great Idea, thank you! I already can but hadn't thought of this. Been looking for a way to have less sodium than the MH stuff. Just pulled out the dehydrator and put in some canned venison and canned chicken. Looking forward to experimenting!

 

[jg58]

Making your own DIY backpacking meals may seem complicated at first but Jake Lamphier (@lamp_ak) shows that it isn't as bad as you might think. He also shares a couple of his favorite recipes in his article DIY Backpacking Meals.

View attachment 272677

Jake lives in rural Alaska and for the last 15 years has been hunting and fishing all across the state. Jake’s obsession with hunting is rooted in the prize of a full freezer and the adventures which bring that meat home. As an Alaskan resident, Jake is blessed with the opportunity to hunt many of North America’s most iconic big game, spending 70+ days a year in the field, living out of his pack, and roaming the wilderness of Alaska. In addition to being a die-hard DIY hunter, he also guides for Hidden Alaska Outfitters, helping people have an Alaskan hunting experience of their dreams!

Give Jake a warm Rokslide welcome and let him know what you think of his article.

Great discussion

 

[Longlogger94]

Great article!

 

[Elite]

My family has been experimenting with DIY backpack meals. While I don't mind the meals you can purchase like Mountain House, they are too salty for me and usually lack enough veggies. We started dehydrating like recipes above in this thread. A huge game changer was purchasing bulk freeze dried ingredients from Thrive Life. They have all sorts of options for protein (which I never trusted my dehydrator with) like pulled pork, grilled chicken, sausage crumbles, etc. - https://www.thrivelife.com/shop

Last hunting season we backpacked and packed exclusively all our own meals. We bring along an extra silicone pouch or mountain house bag for the cooking. Makes it easy too to add up calories per meal.

Care to share any recipes ?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Alaska Gear Lab]

I've seen a few people comment about coozies for their dehydrated meal bags. There a few freeze dried meal coozies on the market now from Alaska Gear Company and Hyperlite. I know you can do DIY, but has anyone have any experience with coozies from outdoor gear brands?

 

[9.3koolaid]

I've seen a few people comment about coozies for their dehydrated meal bags. There a few freeze dried meal coozies on the market now from Alaska Gear Company and Hyperlite. I know you can do DIY, but has anyone have any experience with coozies from outdoor gear brands?

I usually just wrap it up in a jacket while it hydrates or zip it up in a pocket if I'm wearing my puffy.

 

[HighUintas]

Question: have you guys that make your own dehydrated meals been able to duplicate the weight per calorie of freeze dried meals?

I realize that's really being a gram weeny, but I typically pack camp around everywhere with me for 8+ days, so I cut all weight where I can.

 

[Gotcha_]

Making your own DIY backpacking meals may seem complicated at first but Jake Lamphier (@lamp_ak) shows that it isn't as bad as you might think. He also shares a couple of his favorite recipes in his article DIY Backpacking Meals.

View attachment 272677

Jake lives in rural Alaska and for the last 15 years has been hunting and fishing all across the state. Jake’s obsession with hunting is rooted in the prize of a full freezer and the adventures which bring that meat home. As an Alaskan resident, Jake is blessed with the opportunity to hunt many of North America’s most iconic big game, spending 70+ days a year in the field, living out of his pack, and roaming the wilderness of Alaska. In addition to being a die-hard DIY hunter, he also guides for Hidden Alaska Outfitters, helping people have an Alaskan hunting experience of their dreams!

Give Jake a warm Rokslide welcome and let him know what you think of his article.

@lamp_ak I add protein powder / Peanut butter powder / and coffee powder to breakfast.

 

[oliveradamx]

I love cooking on a camping trip. It has a special vibe

Jamie Oliver does it the best.

 

[christopher.scharer]

I do something similar for the breakfast, but I use Jocko Molk instead of dried milk powder. Tastes amazing and adds extra protein, plus it uses clean ingredients.

 

[7 rem mag]

Good article.

For guys out there that are just starting out making some diners, you can dehydrate a lot of what you eat at home for meals in the field.

Rice and pasta based diner options are a great start, cook some extra, portion and then dehydrate them. If you weigh them before and after you'll have a good idea of how much water they'll need when you dehydrate them. I've found dehydrated meals need a little extra seasoning when you cook them, so a little seasoning sprinkled on top helps with that as well.

 

[HighUintas]

I made up some pretty solid (no dehydration necessary) dried meals this year. They honestly didn't taste great, but were edible enough to get me through a week and the caloric density was awesome.

I'll have to post the specifics later, but it was something like:

- Ramen (not regular ramen but a specific brand that was, I think, supposed to be lo mein, and had the lowest sodium content I could find)
- several servings Kraft of grated Parmesan
- peanut butter
- mtn house diced chicken from bulk can
- dried chives
- dried red chili flakes

The carb/fat/protein ratio iss very good. Almost no veggies, but I wasn't too worried about that for only a week.

7oz including the Ziploc, 920 cal

It was a last minute decision to try this, so I didn't have enough time to source better ingredients and make one that tasted better including more veggies, but for the cost, ease of putting them together, and caloric density, it was a great choice.

 

[JR Greenhorn]

I've seen a few people comment about coozies for their dehydrated meal bags. There a few freeze dried meal coozies on the market now from Alaska Gear Company and Hyperlite. I know you can do DIY, but has anyone have any experience with coozies from outdoor gear brands?

I know your post is almost a year old, but this thread is getting some recent activity.


I've had a Big Sky International Insulite pouch cozy for around 10 years now. Simply put, it goes along on every trip that dehydrated or freeze dried food is brought. Even mid summer trips where you sit in the shade and sweat while waiting for food to reconstitute, I bring it and use it. Even in those conditions, it makes a noticeable difference compared to the same freeze dried meal pouch being reconstituted at the same time without a cozy.

It's not so much about minimizing the soak time for reconstitution. Instead, for any given time, when you check the food, more of the solids will have absorbed water, and the sauce will be thicker. The consistency of the food is so much more pleasant to eat when it's been reconstituted in a pouch cozy.

When it's cold out, keeping your food in the cozy while you eat it means it's still warm to the last bite.


I'm not familiar with the two brands you mentioned, but the Hyperlite looks similar to the Big Sky pouch cozy I have (although it doesn't look like it seals in the heat as well). The Alaska Gear one appears to be Reflectix with Cordura sewn to the outside.

I've camped many times with guys who have homemade Reflectix pouch cozies. They work just fine, but I like the softer style I have better. My Big Sky pouch seals in the heat better, and it is easier to pack. I can roll it up and stuff it in an exterior pack pocket (where my stove and small pot also are) so that we can stop for a meal while on the move without digging into my pack's main compartment.

The Reflectix ones are light and not difficult to pack, but they tend to be packed flat, which limits options just a bit--I haven't known anyone who rolls, folds or crumples theirs up. On the other hand, they sip between two MH pouches easily wherever space is found for those, but not quite so well with the smaller/softer bags/pouches DIY meals tend to be carried in.

One disadvantage to the soft pouch cozy like my Big Sky is it can be difficult to clean in the field. Once someone dropped mine from chest height with a freshly-watered pouch of chili Mac inside. Surprisingly little leaked out when it hit the ground, but the inside was a mess. Every meal for the rest of the trip smelled and tasted a bit like chili. For sure the Reflectix pouches are easier to clean.