What do you guys do for food?

[Jjamesdean]

What do you guys use for food on back country hunts?

 

[husky390]

Fig newtons with a cup of Folgers instant coffee for breakfast, pb&j with nutella bagels (sometimes with bacon) for lunch and Mountain House for dinner. On occasion I'll do pb&j tortillas. Snacks consist of granola bars, trail mix, dehydrated fruit, and fruit gushers.

 

[the_bowhunter]

never thought of fig newtons for breakfast, may have to give that a shot!! Sounds delicious.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Mountain House, ProBars and Honey Stingers w/ Starbucks Via. Sometimes take bacon, hard boiled eggs and string cheese for a western BP omelette but only when running light or looking for a special meal the 1st day. Once took a frozen ribeye, it was wonderful! I take fishing gear on longer trips.

 

[Jjamesdean]

Mountain House, ProBars and Honey Stingers w/ Starbucks Via. Sometimes take bacon, hard boiled eggs and string cheese for a western BP omelette but only when running light or looking for a special meal the 1st day. Once took a frozen ribeye, it was wonderful! I take fishing gear on longer trips.

Do you catch alot of fish? This will be my first time going to Colorado so I haven't been sure how the fishing would be, but I considered taking some light tackle!

 

[Jjamesdean]

Also thanks for the advice everyone! I'll take all I can get!! Haha

 

[ffparamedic]

Mine last year consisted of a protein bad and Wilderness athlete drink for brkfst, I took clif bars,almonds and various other snacks. Lunch was either bacon, PB, honey on sandwich thins or PB&J. Supper was MH. I also took redhots as a treat.

 

[tttoadman]

Probars, stinger waffles, fruit and nut mixes, MH for dinner when it is cold. I am good for days with dry food and no stove.

 

[yak]

Breakfast: Probar w/ Starbucks instant coffee
Lunch: PB-honey-bacon on a bagel or breakfast burritos (frozen and heated)
Dinners: Homeade burritos (frozen and heated), Mtn House, Precooked hamburgers on tortilla shells...
Snacks: Almonds, trail mix, jerky

 

[Rucker61]

Breakfast: Probar w/ Starbucks instant coffee
Lunch: PB-honey-bacon on a bagel
Dinners: Mtn House,
Snacks: Almonds, trail mix, jerky, whisk(e)y

This is my menu.

 

[Finch]

I've never backpacked but I do have some ideas for my elk hunt this year.

Breakfast:
Instant coffee (Nescafe single serve packets - a lot cheaper than Starbucks)
Oatmeal
Ovaeasy eggs (real powdered eggs - this might be too much of a hassle but I'll take anyway)

Lunch options:
Bacon, PB, & honey bagel (BH sammich)
PB & jelly

Snacks:
Cliff bars
trail mix
jerky
energy gel packs
powdered drink mix for having something other than water (I bought a 1 liter platypus just for the purpose)
Honey stinger (I hear good things but have never tried them)

Dinner:
Mountain House

Other possible dinners I'm throwing around:
-stove top stuffing w/ foil pouch of chicken mixed in
-Idaho instant mashed potatoes
-ramen noodles and foil pouch of chicken
-chicken broth cubes and water (hot soup)

I like to eat

 

[Poser]

I've never backpacked but I do have some ideas for my elk hunt this year.

Breakfast:
Instant coffee (Nescafe single serve packets - a lot cheaper than Starbucks)
Oatmeal
Ovaeasy eggs (real powdered eggs - this might be too much of a hassle but I'll take anyway)

Lunch options:
Bacon, PB, & honey bagel (BH sammich)
PB & jelly

Snacks:
Cliff bars
trail mix
jerky
energy gel packs
powdered drink mix for having something other than water (I bought a 1 liter platypus just for the purpose)
Honey stinger (I hear good things but have never tried them)

Dinner:
Mountain House

Other possible dinners I'm throwing around:
-stove top stuffing w/ foil pouch of chicken mixed in
-Idaho instant mashed potatoes
-ramen noodles and foil pouch of chicken
-chicken broth cubes and water (hot soup)

I like to eat

What kind of stove are you using? If you plan to do the Stove Top meals, you need to be able to simmer. I have personally seen these types of meals go horribly wrong over stoves that only boil. Some of those meals need to simmer for 10,15,20 minutes and if you simply drop them in boiling water, you are going to end up with a very disappointing meal compared to what you could be eating for the same weight.

Powdered eggs aren't very good IMO. Have you actually tried them? You might be better off salt curing some eggs and then adding egg shavings to another breakfast. http://youhavetocookitright.blogspot.com/2014/04/salt-cured-egg-yolks.html

Personally, I'm not much a fan of the MH meals at all. I much prefer the Alpine Aire meals (though, I'm pretty selective about which ones because some of their offerings are barely palatable to semi terrible as well). For breakfast, I am a big fan of these Buckwheat breakfasts by Heather's Choice: http://www.heatherschoice.com/products/buckwheat-breakfast vs. Oatmeal as these contain more fat, though You can always add protein powder and beef gelatin to oatmeal to accomplish a similar ends.

With no backpacking experience, I'd suggest keeping it as simply as possible in terms of cooked or dehydrated meals. Also, initial exposure to altitude can often leave you with a bit of nausea and lack of appetite the first couple of days, so make sure these are foods that you can choke down when you don't feel like eating. Think of it this way: you are starting to get sick. Certain foods sound comforting and certain foods sound absolutely disgusting. Your meal choices may be the difference between eating and not eating (or puking and not puking) during the first 2-3 days. Another consideration is your digestive tract and altitude. Those big changes in pressure can have an effect on your guts and you may very well find yourself grumbling, growling and blowing it up more than usual. As a result, foods that produce a lot of gasses may cause you additional problems. (Personally, I steer entirely clear of dehydrated beans in the backcountry )

 

[robtattoo]

I keep it simple.
Folgers coffee singles & instant oatmeal for breakfast.

Home made venison jerky, trail mix & snickers for lunch

Home dehydrated dinner (jambalaya, chicken risotto, corned beef hash & beans, Cajun white beans, venison spaghetti, turkey curry & rice....) heavy on the carbs & protein (with lots of spices & veg) I add a single serving of olive oil to all the meals just for a little fat.

The dehydrator has made my menu waaay more interesting! I dehydrated any leftovers I have. I eat fairly low fat food anyway, so that's not a problem.

 

[Jjamesdean]

Keep the ideas coming guys!! Big help here! Thanks alot.

 

[MuleyFever]

I take various meal bars and nuts/fruit. Ditched the stove.

 

[Finch]

What kind of stove are you using? If you plan to do the Stove Top meals, you need to be able to simmer. I have personally seen these types of meals go horribly wrong over stoves that only boil. Some of those meals need to simmer for 10,15,20 minutes and if you simply drop them in boiling water, you are going to end up with a very disappointing meal compared to what you could be eating for the same weight.

Powdered eggs aren't very good IMO. Have you actually tried them? You might be better off salt curing some eggs and then adding egg shavings to another breakfast. http://youhavetocookitright.blogspot.com/2014/04/salt-cured-egg-yolks.html

Personally, I'm not much a fan of the MH meals at all. I much prefer the Alpine Aire meals (though, I'm pretty selective about which ones because some of their offerings are barely palatable to semi terrible as well). For breakfast, I am a big fan of these Buckwheat breakfasts by Heather's Choice: http://www.heatherschoice.com/products/buckwheat-breakfast vs. Oatmeal as these contain more fat, though You can always add protein powder and beef gelatin to oatmeal to accomplish a similar ends.

With no backpacking experience, I'd suggest keeping it as simply as possible in terms of cooked or dehydrated meals. Also, initial exposure to altitude can often leave you with a bit of nausea and lack of appetite the first couple of days, so make sure these are foods that you can choke down when you don't feel like eating. Think of it this way: you are starting to get sick. Certain foods sound comforting and certain foods sound absolutely disgusting. Your meal choices may be the difference between eating and not eating (or puking and not puking) during the first 2-3 days. Another consideration is your digestive tract and altitude. Those big changes in pressure can have an effect on your guts and you may very well find yourself grumbling, growling and blowing it up more than usual. As a result, foods that produce a lot of gasses may cause you additional problems. (Personally, I steer entirely clear of dehydrated beans in the backcountry )

You're probably right about the stuffing idea. I didn't think that one through all the way. I have a primus eta express stove and an optimus pot and skillet combo for my cookset. Those OvaEasy eggs I listed are actually pretty good and have awesome reviews. They might be a bit of a hassle though and something I might reconsider.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[SixShooter14]

I keep it simple.
Folgers coffee singles & instant oatmeal for breakfast.

Home made venison jerky, trail mix & snickers for lunch

Home dehydrated dinner (jambalaya, chicken risotto, corned beef hash & beans, Cajun white beans, venison spaghetti, turkey curry & rice....) heavy on the carbs & protein (with lots of spices & veg) I add a single serving of olive oil to all the meals just for a little fat.

The dehydrator has made my menu waaay more interesting! I dehydrated any leftovers I have. I eat fairly low fat food anyway, so that's not a problem.

This sounds like my kind of plan...

How exactly do you "rehydrate" jambalaya or spaghetti?

 

[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

I did stove top and chicken and dehydrated veggies just like a MH with no issues. It was by far the best dinner out there as I had to force myself to eat most everything. No simmering needed. I'm gonna experiment with knorr noodles and chicken this year.

 

[robtattoo]

This sounds like my kind of plan...

How exactly do you "rehydrate" jambalaya or spaghetti?

Cook it, measure it into portions, smear it on a sheet in the dehydrator & give it 16 hours at 145°
It help to reduce your sauces as far as you can in the saucepan before you try to dry it.

 

[SixShooter14]

Cook it, measure it into portions, smear it on a sheet in the dehydrator & give it 16 hours at 145°
It help to reduce your sauces as far as you can in the saucepan before you try to dry it.

How about when you get ready to eat? Add hot water?