Backpacker's Pantry Organic Sicilian Lasagna

A flavorless, unsatisfying trail meal that left me wanting anything with a little bit of flavor. Certainly not worth the price!

Food always tastes better in the great outdoors. I will eat Clif Bars all day long in the woods, but they taste like sawdust as a snack at work. I even enjoy my Folger's coffee singles on the trail—stuff I refuse to drink back at home.  So it says a lot when I post, "This meal was terrible."

This was my first Backpacker's Pantry meal. I have used Mountain House meals a few times, but mostly I prepare my own food to take on trips. I purchased this meal because it was on clearance for $4 (discounted from the typical $9 price tag).

It's a typical "add boiling water" meal, in this case 1 1/4 cup of water. Instructions state to zip close and let sit 13 minutes. I find these meals normally need a longer cook time to absorb all the liquid. So I gave it a full 15 minutes.

Backpacker's Pantry lists the following ingredients on their website at http://www.backpackerspantry.com/organic-lasagna.html

Ingredients: ORGANIC SEMOLINA, ORGANIC PARMESAN CHEESE (CULTURED, PASTEURIZED ORGANIC PART-SKIM MILK, SALT, MICROBIAL ENZYMES, ORGANIC NONFAT DRY MILK, DISODIUM PHOSPHATE), ORGANIC TOMATO, ORGANIC GARLIC, ORGANIC TEXTURED SOY PROTEIN, ORGANIC EVAPORATED CANE JUICE, ORGANIC ONION, ORGANIC PAPRIKA, SEA SALT, ORGANIC FENNEL SEED, ORGANIC OREGANO, ORGANIC BASIL, ORGANIC CRUSHED RED CHILI PEPPER.

It smelled delicious and looked pretty good. The pasta was evenly coated in a red sauce, with flecks of herbs. The texture was just right. The cheese stuck to the spoon.

But it was absolutely flavorless. It tasted like cooked pasta without anything added to it. I could not taste the cheese. I could not taste the tomato sauce. There was no hint of garlic, onion, paprika, salt, or any of the other ingredients. Closing my eyes, I tasted nothing but plain pasta.

I am not a gourmet cook on the trail. To me, food is a function, not a centerpiece to camping. Many of my own recipes center around Ramen noodles, mixed with dehydrated vegetables and the Ramen flavor packet. So, I'm not a food snob. However, a bag of plain pasta is hard to finish. If not for the Ritz crackers I had to eat with my dinner, I'm not sure I could have finished this meal.

Picture I snapped at home for the long spoon review.