Ready Meals
Self-heating meal packs give you hot meals without a stove. Developed by the US military for battlefield use, these 1,200 calorie food packages, known as Meals Ready to Eat (MRE), are also widely used by firefighters and emergency workers out in the field. In theory you could live off two per day.
Each meal comes in a complete package of two appetizers, main course, powdered drink, and desert. The main course is contained in a sealed pouch that you insert into another pouch that chemically reacts to produce an intense heat. The meal inside gets steaming hot, surprisingly hot.
There are 6 standard menus, like spaghetti or beef stew. The taste is okay. If you were hungry enough you might think it good. We've never had trouble finishing a meal. Sometimes just the fact they are steaming hot hits the spot. The other stuff in the meal pack is pretty much generic and always edible. Each of the seven parts in each meal is individually vacuum packed so there is a pile of litter generated. Also, all the food is ready-to-eat and hydrated; together with massive packaging, these are heavy dudes. Not ideal for backpacking, but one overnight wouldn't hurt.
Self-heating meals are great as easy car camping food. We've used them when we arrive late and are too lazy to set a stove up. Or at events like Burning Man when cooking is the last thing you want to do. I've used them canoeing, too, where weight is not an issue.
These self-heating MREs have an official shelf life of 3 years so that can be stockpiled in your pantry and rotated out as backup emergency rations. I have stuffed two meals for each person in our household into our go-bag.
Until recently all MREs were manufactured solely for military use. You could find wayward MREs on eBay; they may have been past their expiration date, or resold through gray markets, or missing their heater envelopes. Now the makers of MREs are selling directly to the public. The minimum order is a carton of 12, two units of each 6 varieties. The go for about $5 per meal. The brands are pretty indistinguishable. I've been using the A-Pack Ready Meals and am a happy camper.
-- KK
Ready Meals
$55 per 12
Manufactured by A-Pack
(Because of hurricane disasters they seem to be out of stock at the moment.)
Or $85 per 12 from Amazon
Here's a great informational site on MREs run by a dedicated enthusiast
Favorite (15)
Joel
If you are looking for a little more variety in your MRE's or want some other items that fit the long term storage bill, go to mredepot dot c. I've heard the local radio station review their stuff and I referred my favorite bacon blog (bsbrewing dot c) to them and they gave the canned bacon a very favorable review.
Kerim Satirli
I tried my first _real_ MRE this summer ( see: http://tinyurl.com/mre6chickenfajita - no affiliate link!); got the package from eBay, for a mere $4 (S&H included) and it tasted great.
I liked it so much so that I bought a whole case of official, government-issued MREs and I enjoyed them all (with the exception of the cheese omelet)
It takes some trial-and-error, but once you figure out the whole technique on how to prepare steak vs. for example rice, then you have great, healthy (?) instant-meals.
For a huge compendium on information, you might want to check out http://mreinfo.com/
Larry
I'm curious...can you use these self-heating meals on an airplane? I e-mailed TSA 2 years ago and never got a reply.
joshua schwarz
what are the bags made from? i'd be concerned about eating anything that was heated in a plastic bag. many plastics leach endocrine disruptors when heated. these chemicals are linked to a number of health problems.
govtdrone
As someone who had to eat more than their fair share of MREs in 2005 and this year with Gustav I have to say the best ones I have ever eaten were the British ones I received at a distribution center. The lamb and potatoes was the best one, plus the meat spread and biscuits were fantastic.
Jeff
FYI: the heating elements are (albeit tiny) explosives; in Iraq, it's considered fun to rig one hanging down in a latrine...
Kevin Kelly
@Larry: According to the TSA website, MRE are allowed through security if they are unopened:
Flameless Ration Heater (FRH) - A product most commonly found in MRE's, used to heat food packages. There is no limit on the number of MREs an individual may possess in checked or carry-on baggage, but the MRE(s) containing FRH(s) must be unopened (original factory seal is unbroken)
Art Kagel
Sometime between the end of November 2008 and the end of April 2009 the link referred to be Kevin Kelly above (http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm) was modified by the TSA and no longer contains the entire section dealing with permitted and prohibited foods. I have emailed the TSA asking for clarification and once got a terse "See our web site for details of what is and is not permitted." I'm trying again. If many interested users ask the TSA about MRE's and FRH's maybe they will post a definitive policy.
To date, my experiences with TSA inspectors and supervisors has been mixed. From "Oh, MRE's these are OK." to "What are these? ... You're sure they're OK? .... OK, go on." to "Oh, no you can't bring anything that produces heat! I'll call the airline and ask them..... The airline says 'No way in hell!'" I carry the original Permitted & Prohibited items pages printout with me when I travel now.
Art