Self Dehydrated Meals

[mfllood3800]

I am dehydrating some chili the wife made for supper last night. I plan to steal some of the "dehydratable" type meals to utilize this fall in the mountains. Want to stay away from Mtn house etc.

I plan on things like stove top, scalloped potatoes, home made elk jerky (cause I like it), and meals I can dehydrate and then eat in the wild.

My issue is finding containers to hydrate them in the field with?

I don't want to use my Jet boil can and then have to clean up and waste the water.
Just wondering if any one uses the vacuum packed bag as the food container as well. ?
Will it hold boiling water w/o becoming damaged?
If so I will need to cut the bags a bit bigger and remember to carry a clip to keep it sealed while the food rehydrates
Thx for the help

 

[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

Don't know about vacuum bags but free baggies work.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[541hunter]

I read that using quart sized freezer bags work. And to take along a cleaned out mtn house bag. When time to rehydrate put the water in the freezer bag, seal it, then drop it in the cleaned mtn house bag to use as an insulating layer. I would think the same could be done with vacuum bags.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Live Montana]

I made the leap to go to all dehydrated meals this year. I bought my own mylar bags from Sorbent Systems (Impak). They can be used with a vacuum sealer on the bottom and they even have the tear off zip lock top like the MTN House does. They are super nice and easy to use. I got the vacuum sealer from them as well. Even with the bags and sealer it is still way cheaper than MTN House if you hunt alot.

I spent about 1,200 on MTN House last year.....

 

[Jmock97]

I have used quart size ziplock freezer bags before and last year I bought some cook in bags from packitgourmet that I really liked and worked great

 

[big timber]

I usually bring one mountain house and then reuse that bag to re-hydrate the other meals.
I also have seen insulated little flexible lunch box bags that you could put a zip-lock bag inside to let it re-hydrate longer and stay warmer.
Home made dehydrated food is the way to go.
I make big batches of food and dehydrate a bunch of meals for the whole season.

 

[Jmock97]

I used a few vacuum seal bag before they hold the boiling water fine but without the ability to seal them up very easily I ended up spilling hot water and half hydrated food on me. If you were going to use them I would make sure to leave extra bag length so you can roll them closed and secure with a clothes pin

 

[twall13]

I've been considering making the switch this year as well, thanks for the tips. Great info.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[live2huntelk]

I have used pouches similiar to these for dehyrdated meals....

Amazon.com: PackFreshUSA Silver & Clear Stand Up Pouches, 100pcs (Medium 5x8.5x3): Kitchen & Dining

 

[mfllood3800]

Thx guys
I was hoping to use regular vacuum type sealable bags, leaving them a bit longer, and bringing a clip or even rubber band to hold them tight once I added hot water and folded the top over.

 

[buffsmoker]

Last year was my first year going this route, so I'm still relatively new at it. But I just used quart sized ziploc freezer bags, then this to keep them warm while rehydrating:

Amazon.com : Big Sky International Insulite Cozy Food Pouch, Metallic Silver : Sports & Outdoors

Add hot water, in the bag for 10 minutes, stir, back in the bag for 10 minutes, then good to go.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[mfllood3800]

I discovered the vacuum bags I have are "boilable". So to avoid extra weight I'll just hydrate my food in these (see pic for brand I used)

I hydrated this elk chili for about 8 hrs @ 150*
Some of the trays were done before others so keep an eye out for that

Then I vacuum sealed them, labeled them and will be ready for hydrating.
I'll try one tomorrow, but have no doubt they will be killer, little sodium, full of everything I'll need to painfully haul out my elk next year.

 

[COlineman78]

I have had no problem with Ziploc Freezer bags. Make sure to get the freezer type or it will not go well. I do not put them in any sort of other bag and have not had issues with cooking, but have had issues with holding it in order to eat. If you do not use something like a clean mtn house bag or similar you will certainly need gloves. The other option is to carry a thermal mailer to make it cook more efficiently and give you something to hold onto.

Amazon.com : Foil Bubble Mailers, 11" W x 15" H - 5/Case : Envelope Mailers : Office Products

 

[mfllood3800]

Colineman.... gloves is already in the pack and what I figured I would utilize. An old clean Mtn House bag isn't a bad idea, and virtually weightless too.
Any ideas on meals?

I'm eyeing my elk chili, mac and cheese with elk burger in it, scalloped potatoes with ham in it, stove top stuffing with chicken in it, and some generic type of noodles with elk burger in it like a stroganoff.

I'm not big on breakfast or coffee so I just eat a breakfast bar and slam a mtn ops energy drink.

My thru the day snacks would be elk jerky, protein bars, nuts and fruit roll up type carbs and salami strips. Not a big fan of tuna as a snack w/o miracle whip


I'll be taking candy bars and raisins for deserts and snacks.

My big dilemma is the Tahr bag isn't as big as I really need for a full 7-10 days.
If I do get the AMR, I can take anything my body can haul.

 

[mfllood3800]

Buff
Just added that food pouch to Amazon cart- that's a slick set up and great price too- thx

 

[beachbunny]

i do the freezer bags with a cozy or a vargo titanium bot, hydrate about a half hour before cooking a i walk and nothing gets spilled

 

[mfllood3800]

live2hunt- those are cool, I imagine they get hot with the water in them?
Couldn't read of insulating feature built in?
Sure looks like a slick set up to the vacuum bags alternative too.

 

[mfllood3800]

Livemontana $1200 on Mtn House- your insides must be tough.
lol
that's a 150 or so meals. crazy amount of sodium and cholesterol

 

[couesbitten]

Thx guys
I was hoping to use regular vacuum type sealable bags, leaving them a bit longer, and bringing a clip or even rubber band to hold them tight once I added hot water and folded the top over.

The only meals the girlfriend and I ate last year were homemade dehydrated meals, and we do it exactly as you describe above. I bring along a couple of mini binder clips that I keep in my pullout of food, and after I add the water, I let it sit for 25 - 30 minutes. I use the heavy-duty bags from FoodSaver, and they work great, the standard bags work as well, but some of the dehydrated food will puncture a hole in the bag that will let air in over time.

 

[COlineman78]

Colineman.... gloves is already in the pack and what I figured I would utilize. An old clean Mtn House bag isn't a bad idea, and virtually weightless too.
Any ideas on meals?

I'm eyeing my elk chili, mac and cheese with elk burger in it, scalloped potatoes with ham in it, stove top stuffing with chicken in it, and some generic type of noodles with elk burger in it like a stroganoff.

My big dilemma is the Tahr bag isn't as big as I really need for a full 7-10 days.
If I do get the AMR, I can take anything my body can haul.

I haven't played around a ton with meals yet. I have dehydrated a bunch of stuff over the winter and plan to try it out. I'm not one to care a ton about eating the same thing every day, so my plan is to bring Ramen and add part of the flavor packet to season as needed and mix in the following dehydrated options:

- Canned Chicken (I've heard that this re-hydrates better than home cooked chicken)
- Canned Shredded Pork
- Canned Corned Beef Hash
- Hormel Chili
- Bacon Bits

I also attempted to dehydrate some chef boyrdee and the results don't look promising so I may try rehydrating that one at home. Idaho potatoes are a really good filling option as well as an alternative to Ramen.

Another good snack to do if you have a sweet tooth is get those flavored marshmallows and dehydrate them. Homemade lucky charms.

I pretty much stick to oatmeal in the mornings and sometimes do hot chocolate.

As far as a bag goes, you could pick up a Native or a large pod for added food capacity. I think that food for 7-10 days should fit inside a native.