Need Help With Alternatives to Dehydrated Meals (Looking at Smoked Cheese & Hard Salami)

[The Angelo Kid]

After a few years now I've come to the conclusion that dehydrated meals don't sit well with my gut. I've been looking at alternatives and am open to any suggestions but have some questions about smoked cheese and salami bagels specifically.

First off, not having any experience with these items I'm curious how long some of y'all have had them out in the field before eating them. My typical trips are about 8ish days so I'm wondering if everything lasts until that last day to be eating it then. My idea at least is to find some smoked cheese (possibly ordering online) and then some hard salami and vacuum seal it up in one package with the bagel but with parchment paper or something in between each item. It seems everything nowadays says to refrigerate it when it comes to meat but I know some things last a lot longer out of refrigeration than we think.

Any help from someone with some first hand experience taking cheese and salami or other meat into the backcountry would be much appreciated. Like I mentioned, I'm also open to other ideas.

Question I just had to add: does anyone take salami or something else from a store and smoke it or try to cook it in some way to then take out to the field?

 

[BBob]

Make your own dehydrated meals. That's what I and many others do. I take cheese, cheese sticks and my own homemade snack sticks on pack hunts. 7-10 days even in early season. I used to take hard salami but with my own snack sticks I don't buy the salami anymore. Cheese will be fine, it gets greasy but it's fine. My lunches are typically pre-cooked bacon (like the Hormel packaged and sealed), cheese stick, peanut butter, honey, tortilla. I get two days out of the bacon packs and haven't had an issue with it being open 24hrs.

 

[*zap*]

Walmart has good smoked cheese in the deli section. Salami and prosciutto also.

 

[Randle]

I have mixed cut up jerky, smoked cheese , almonds, raisons, shredded coconut .
For a couple meals

 

[V2Pnutrition]

After a few years now I've come to the conclusion that dehydrated meals don't sit well with my gut. I've been looking at alternatives and am open to any suggestions but have some questions about smoked cheese and salami bagels specifically.

First off, not having any experience with these items I'm curious how long some of y'all have had them out in the field before eating them. My typical trips are about 8ish days so I'm wondering if everything lasts until that last day to be eating it then. My idea at least is to find some smoked cheese (possibly ordering online) and then some hard salami and vacuum seal it up in one package with the bagel but with parchment paper or something in between each item. It seems everything nowadays says to refrigerate it when it comes to meat but I know some things last a lot longer out of refrigeration than we think.

Any help from someone with some first hand experience taking cheese and salami or other meat into the backcountry would be much appreciated. Like I mentioned, I'm also open to other ideas.

Question I just had to add: does anyone take salami or something else from a store and smoke it or try to cook it in some way to then take out to the field?

Creating your own is a spectacular suggestion. We have a dehydrate guide we wrote on the topic. Shoot me a message and I'll get it to you for free if you want to go down that rabbit hole. It's a hole worth going down too, by the way. It's FAR easier than it sounds and is really only limited by your imagination.

Another idea: we've taken a few items that require cooling for extended trips and just keep them submerged in a nearby creek. Have never had any issue with water/spoilage over 7-9 or more days. Store them in a ziplock + dry bag without any air in it. We've used rocks to keep it submerged/stationary vs finding it at the headwaters 9 days later, haha!

 

[The Angelo Kid]

Much obliged for all the feedback. I was just reading elsewhere about bagels, the fully cooked bacon and peanut butter with some people adding honey. That sounds like something I think would be easy enough and something I would enjoy as well.

Being from Texas and only making one trip a year I don't know if I'm up for going down the route of dehydrating my own meals but I do have a dehydrator so I'll reach out to @V2Pnutrition and look into that as well. I also like the creek idea. It's a thought I've had before but with moving around and not necessarily always being that close to I have shied away from it. However, I might have to give it a go this year.

Glad to hear @BBob that the cheese has lasted you a while as that was one of my concerns. Especially mixed in with other stuff in a sort of sandwich I'm sure the grease part wouldn't be as noticeable.

 

[wesfromky]

Maybe look into pemmican - you can add a few things other than fat and dehydrated meat. Won't be shelf stable quite as long, but probably fine for your needed.

Also, single serving sized pouches of tuna/jack mac/etc.

peanut butter and honey bagels.

They sell hard cured meats that are shelf stable, and there are cheeses that are shelf stable as well. Might just need to find smaller sized packages.

 

[LongWayAround]

I buy Boar's Head Bianco di Orro (sp?) salami, sliced thin. Layer the salami with smoked Gouda and roll it up in a tortilla. I have never had it for more than a few days unrefrigerated, but would have no concerns for several more.

On the bagel sandwiches, don't buy the pre-cooked stuff, just buy a few pounds of thick cut bacon and season it to your liking, lay it out on cookie sheets and put it in the oven at 400°.

I found one of the bagel/bacon sandwiches in my pack two weeks after a trip. It was fine.

 

[The Angelo Kid]

Maybe look into pemmican - you can add a few things other than fat and dehydrated meat. Won't be shelf stable quite as long, but probably fine for your needed.

Also, single serving sized pouches of tuna/jack mac/etc.

peanut butter and honey bagels.

They sell hard cured meats that are shelf stable, and there are cheeses that are shelf stable as well. Might just need to find smaller sized packages.

I'll look into the pemmican. I've almost taken tuna packets, which I enjoy eating, with me in the past but I always decide to leave them at home because of the low calorie content.

I'm really thinking some sort of bagel sandwich like you mentioned with the peanut butter and honey is going to be my best option.

I guess I need to do some more looking into meats and cheeses. Everything I seem to look at calls for it to be refrigerated, even things such as hard salami which is supposed to be shelf stable. However, like I mentioned earlier, I'm sure most of that stuff is fine and that is more of a CYA thing from the maker.

 

[The Angelo Kid]

I buy Boar's Head Bianco di Orro (sp?) salami, sliced thin. Layer the salami with smoked Gouda and roll it up in a tortilla. I have never had it for more than a few days unrefrigerated, but would have no concerns for several more.

On the bagel sandwiches, don't buy the pre-cooked stuff, just buy a few pounds of thick cut bacon and season it to your liking, lay it out on cookie sheets and put it in the oven at 400°.

I found one of the bagel/bacon sandwiches in my pack two weeks after a trip. It was fine.

Do you buy the Boar's Head from your deli and have them slice it?

I think my next step is to just go to the deli at H-E-B or Walmart and have them cut me some different ones and play around with them and see how they do. Left out, vacuum sealed, etc.

 

[wesfromky]

I'll look into the pemmican. I've almost taken tuna packets, which I enjoy eating, with me in the past but I always decide to leave them at home because of the low calorie content.

I'm really thinking some sort of bagel sandwich like you mentioned with the peanut butter and honey is going to be my best option.

I guess I need to do some more looking into meats and cheeses. Everything I seem to look at calls for it to be refrigerated, even things such as hard salami which is supposed to be shelf stable. However, like I mentioned earlier, I'm sure most of that stuff is fine and that is more of a CYA thing from the maker.

Make tuna salad with those single use mayo packs - that will up the calories and the fat content. I used to take the single serving kits climbing - just crush up the crackers and mix it all together. Bonus is to bring some taco bell hot sauce packs along as well.

The local whole foods has a big selection of hard cured meats and cheeses that are shelf stable. Maybe once you cut into them, the clock might start, but I would think that they would be good for at least a couple days.

 

[Drenalin]

I took pemmican on a backpacking trip recently...never again. The consistency and flavor evoked a dramatic gag response for me and it was hard to choke any of it down. I bought mine from Pure Traditions, who markets it as ancient survival food. If my options were to eat pemmican and live, or not eat pemmican and die, I choose death. Starving children in Africa would spew that garbage out of their mouths and probably murder you. Maybe there are some other brands that are better, but I won't be going back to that well.

 

[wesfromky]

I took pemmican on a backpacking trip recently...never again. The consistency and flavor evoked a dramatic gag response for me and it was hard to choke any of it down. I bought mine from Pure Traditions, who markets it as ancient survival food. If my options were to eat pemmican and live, or not eat pemmican and die, I choose death. Starving children in Africa would spew that garbage out of their mouths and probably murder you. Maybe there are some other brands that are better, but I won't be going back to that well.

I made my own and it was pretty good. Mixed in some powdered blueberries and honey, and used a bit of bacon fat along with the beef tallow. It is pretty easy to make at home if you have a dehydrator.

 

[Drenalin]

I made my own and it was pretty good. Mixed in some powdered blueberries and honey, and used a bit of bacon fat along with the beef tallow. It is pretty easy to make at home if you have a dehydrator.

I’m doing carnivore so couldn’t have the sugars; your version sounds better

 

[LongWayAround]

Do you buy the Boar's Head from your deli and have them slice it?

I think my next step is to just go to the deli at H-E-B or Walmart and have them cut me some different ones and play around with them and see how they do. Left out, vacuum sealed, etc.

Yea, I go to a Kroger store fwiw. For the tortilla wraps, I use Press and Seal.

The bagels go in quart freezer bags that I suck the air out of and freeze.

Definitely play with it a bit. You can also use your puffy, fleece, etcetera in your pack to keep them more temperature stable.

 

[wesfromky]

I’m doing carnivore so couldn’t have the sugars; your version sounds better

Honey is carnivore, though I know that is maybe debated some. It is an animal product though...

 

[TaperPin]

Half of my life hunting involved brining along a good amount of summer sausage, jerky, and pepperoni sticks - and any of the hard cheeses with low moisture and high salt survive room temps for extended periods. Just made my mouth water thinking about taking a bite out of a big chunk of Parmesan. Lol

The downside, for me, of both of those things is the salt content. I enjoy eating out and that amount of salt in most meals, but when I get into a lot of salty meat and cheese (or a big pepperoni pizza with extra sauce) for just one day my weight goes up 6-8 lbs from water retention and takes 3 to 4 days to work out of my system. Packing that extra water weight doesn’t bother me all that much, but being full of salt makes me pee twice as much during the night and I don’t care for the salty feeling in my mouth all day and night.

I still pack a small summer sausage, and enjoy a jerky/meat stick or two each day. A small baggie each day with a big pinch of Parmesan chips (Costco) makes a flavorful snack without overloading on salt.

With all the shelf stable at room temperature small packets of jelly, peanut butter, meat spreads and other stuff, there are more alternatives to dehydrated meals now than ever - the downside to most of it is we typically eat them in small amounts occasionally and having larger quantities isn’t as fun as it sounded at first.

I love breads and eat bagels regularly, but for some reason on the mountain I can barely stand them. I’ve packed a dozen bagels for a week long trip thinking I’d easily eat a few each day just for snacks - 10 of them were fed to the coyotes. I do enjoy crackers, especially the Chicken-in-a-biscuit, but the salt content is quite high in large amounts. A dense banana bread with a ton of walnuts is my go to - I can easily eat half my needed calories in banana bread each day, but it gets squished and whatnot easily, so I may limit it to one full loaf and snack on it the first few days. One year I packed a dozen donuts, but the bulk of a box to keep them from being squished was way too much of a hassle so that was a one time thing. Lol

 

[TaperPin]

This just reminded me of a story from an uppity/very proper kitchen remodel client. She started taking Ambien to help get a good nights sleep, but kept waking up with a funny taste in her mouth. Ew. It was concerning, but nothing made sense as to what was causing it. Later that week was pasta night and as she gathered all the stuff, was shocked to see the block of Parmesan in the fridge had her teeth marks on it! She had been sleep walking down to the fridge and chewing on the cheese block. Lol

 

[Jason Snyder]

Smoke your own cheddar. It’s easy. I do it in the winter when temps are cooler, but you could do it anytime. Get a smoke tube for your pellets and smoke it about an hour with some hickory or apple.

You can vacuum seal it and freeze it for later use. I just watch for sales on cheese and pick up a bunch at a time, then do one big batch.

Trader Joe’s has good hard salami. Summer sausage keeps well too so long as you use the full amount of curing salt n

 

[Haro450]

You might think about buying a pork belly. Season and salt then smoke it. In my experience it should last 8 days. It also would supply a lot of energy and good flavor.