Long distance food planning

[whitefoot]

Im going to hike the Long Trail this summer and was wondering what other people eat while backpacking?
I've done several trips, I usually eat prepackaged dried meals and am getting real sick of them, so i want to make as much of my own for this trip as i can
I'm going to be out for 30 days or so and need some info on good food that will keep me going, any info would be very much appreciated.
Thanks.
Bryan

[redhawk]

If you want to invest in a dehydrator you will end up saving a lot of money on backpacking meals, not to mention better nutrition and taste.Almost anything can be dehydrated and reconstituded. it will also allow the purchase of fruits and vegtables when they are inexpensive (or free) for use at home later on.

Take it one step further and invest in one of the vacuum sealers ad you're really set to go.

If you do purchase a dehydrater, get extra trays and order some of the "leather" inserts as well. then you can dry sauces and stews.

[whitefoot]

Hi Redhawk,
I have just purchased both recently and have been experimenting, only luck ive had so far is with jerky,I need to figure out how and what to do with everything else i guess.

[redhawk]

I make homemade Beef Stew, Chili, Spaghetti Sauce, rice and beans, sausage, peppers and onions (slice the sausage thin and add a little spaghetti sauce), and then dehydrate it in leather trays. I seal it and when i get ready to eat it I hy=ust add hot water to hydrate it and then get it hot and serve. I also dehydrate my pasta (shells or elbows are best). I rehydrate that be soaking it in cold water for about 30 minutes and then heating it in some hot water. Saves wasting 20 minutes of fuel to cook it. I also make mushroom gravy and sauces and dehydrate them and put them on rice or pasta.

Just experiment. basically cook what youy lie at home and then dehydrate it. It takes a little experimenting as to the best way to rehydrate some of the stuff, but you'll get a feel for it before long.

Val does a lot of dehydrating as well and if youve eaten anything she and I have cooked you'll never have any doubts about what can be done and how good it can be!!

[Wldrns]

Im going to hike the Long Trail this summer and was wondering what other people eat while backpacking?
I've done several trips, I usually eat prepackaged dried meals and am getting real sick of them, so i want to make as much of my own for this trip as i can
I'm going to be out for 30 days or so and need some info on good food that will keep me going, any info would be very much appreciated.
Thanks.
Bryan

Attached is a simple text version of an article I wrote for home food dehydrating. If you don't want to get into this, check out TrailFoods.com as a very good source of home dehydrated-like vacuum packed trail food. It is very much like what you might prepare and dry at home, nothing like the usual awful freeze-dried backpacking food.

[dog]

Adk Forum Archives

There is a thread about this in Archives : Gear, Food ... # 46 " Dehydrating your own food 101 ".

Kevin started it , as a dehydrater - beginner . 2 years ago . I just do not know , what is 101 in the title . I reread it time to time , dreaming to do it .

[whitefoot]

Thanks for all the info so far guys, very helpful,
Wldrns, good article, lots of good info in there.
Bryan

[Edelweiss]

Bryan-
I've just finished cooking/dehydrating/vacuum-sealing 6 meals for our upcoming 6-day backpack into the Grand Canyon. I used recipes from "Backpack Gourmet" by Linda Yaffe. We rehydrated a Moroccan Stew meal by adding boiling water to the opened vacuum-sealed bag - worked well - food was just as delicious as the day I made it. This method of food preparation certainly saves hassle and time on the trail.
Joanne

[Wldrns]

I used recipes from "Backpack Gourmet" by Linda Yaffe. We rehydrated a Moroccan Stew meal by adding boiling water to the opened vacuum-sealed bag - worked well - food was just as delicious as the day I made it. This method of food preparation certainly saves hassle and time on the trail.
Joanne

That's the book. If you buy just one book geared toward dehydrating delicious home cooked food for backpacking, that's the one to get. Out many books I have on the subject, this is the only one worth keeping. Some of the recipes look a little strange at first, probably not anything you would think of, but give them a try.

[whitefoot]

I do have Mary Bell's complete dehydrator cookbook, ive learned some stuff there maybe ill get the other you guys suggested,

Thanks for the info folks.

Bryan