Food and Drink

Featured review by BigRed

About as good as instant coffee gets, at a reasonable price and lower weight-per-cup than the main alternative. A good choice for extended backcountry trips where real coffee isn't worth the extra weight and hassle.

Backcountry coffee is a perennial topic on the TS foums, with threads running on for weeks if not months, and many members weighing in with their own idiosyncratic preferences. Here’s another log for that long-burning fire. Here's the search image: And the backstory: A while back when my wife and I were planning a 10-day outing, we got into a little disagreement over what to do about coffee. We agreed that we had to have coffee, and that the weight and hassle of fresh brew wasn’t going to work for us this time—when you’re trying to get 10 days worth of food into two bear canisters and keep your starting weight reasonable, some things have to go.

Read more: Mount Hagen Organic Fairtrade Instant Coffee reviews (3)

Reviewed by Twig

This is the latest addition to a line-up of six Good To-Go "all natural, dehydrated gourmet" meals. I found the product to be a fresh, healthy, and tasty alternative to the ever-growing line of pre-packaged, dehydrated backpacker meals on the market. I would highly recommend this product for those looking specifically for an all-natural, gluten-free, pescatarian option. And since I'm a huge fan of Thai food, this is a well-received addition to my own outdoors pantry. The only downsides are the higher retail cost and the longer re-hydration times when compared to other similar products.

I tested the Good To-Go line of dehydrated foods two years ago when they were first introduced. At that time, only three options were offered. The company seems to be experiencing success and growth, having since added three more meals. This time around, I tested the Pad Thai and Indian Vegetable Korma meals, both in single and double serving sizes. This review is of the Pad Thai. Please see my other reviews of the Thai Curry, Smoked Three Bean Chili, Herbed Mushroom Risotto, and Indian Vegetable Korma on Trailspace.com.

Read more: Good To-Go Pad Thai review (1)

Featured review by Bigger Al

This is what backpacking food should taste like! Mountain House has hit a home run with the Biscuits and Gravy, packing in much more flavor than expected, and really getting the textures spot-on. We take this meal along on pack trips, motorcycle tours, and I usually have one in my work truck for long jobs in the mountains. Adding an egg, either fired or hard-boiled, extends the meal considerably, and really gives a boost of nice protein energy.

Let me start out by admitting that I am a big fan of Mountain House meals. Their foods have been a part of my work and travel mess kit for many years. The B&G meal is pretty much the perfect go-to for any time of the day, and can be made into really tasty, filling fare with the addition of whatever you think might go along. We are fond of doing a couple of over-easy eggs and some sausage in camp, or dicing up some hard boiled eggs and beef sticks if we're on the trail or moving light.   The B&G has staying power for long days, and tastes much better than any instant oatmeal.

Read more: Mountain House Biscuits and Gravy reviews (5)

Featured review by Second Gear

Often, dehydrated eggs are nasty. I found that OvaEasy eggs are quite tasty, easy to use, and stable. I have found them to have great bang for the buck in price, ease of use, and flavor.

I have tried other eggs before, and while other products are pretty good, I think this one is the best. I found it tastes and behaves most like real eggs of all the kinds I have tried. Since the eggs are crystals versus powder, the product cooks up more like real scrambled eggs. The caveat is that these eggs are not just add water. Since they have to be cooked, some users may not like the prep and cleanup.  In that, be careful to not overcook these eggs, because just like real eggs, scorching them leaves more clean up in the pan.

Read more: OvaEasy Whole Egg Crystals reviews (6)

Featured review by Horn Rimmed Hiker

BUY THIS. A comfort food staple, near-and-dear to me (my mom packed it in a thermos for my school lunches) that Mountain House nails. Whether or not you miss home on the trail, you do miss home-cooked meals, and if you tasted this one blindfolded, you'd swear you were at the family dining table. A simple combination of ground beef, red chili beans, and elbow macaroni is married well with a chili sauce that has a spicy kick. Widely reviewed as one of the best meals MH has to offer, I'd place myself in agreement with the majority and say this one knocks it out of the park.

PACKAGING Par for the Mountain House course: practically bulletproof, very lightweight for a two-portion meal (4.80 ounces), and the top flap folds down easily to minimize the volume this will take up in a pack.  I've read reviews ranking this among the top three Mountain House meals, and I wanted to see if it lived up to the hype, and try it for myself.  Here's a shot of the 2-serving bag: INGREDIENTS AND NUTRITION FACTS PREP AND COOKING All I need to cook this is a stove and small pot: boil 2 cups (or 16 ounces) of water, pour it inside the re-sealable pouch, and let it sit for 8-9 minutes.  Contents prior to re-hydration:   TIP: let this one rest inside the bag a little longer than the 8-9 minutes MH suggests.

Read more: Mountain House Chili Mac with Beef reviews (11)

Featured review by PhilNC

Excellent flavor and easy instructions offset the long wait time. This was my personal favorite of the two Good To-Go samples I tried, but had similar hydration issues (no more than other meals of its kind).

Note:  Some of the text below is similar to my review of Good To-Go’s Smoked Three Bean Chili but most of the detail is specific to this meal. I did this review to supplement Lah’s excellent review of the meal and to give another non-biased account of experience with it. No offense to other reviewers, but several seem to be related to the company in some way and I felt they might not carry the same weight as non-affiliated reviews.  I do appreciate the fairness of these reviewers admitting their relationships to the company.First off, when evaluating food choices I think it is a good baseline to describe my eating habits on the trail: Lots of fresh stuff on short trips especially first day or so Meals are usually a base (rice, pasta,...

Read more: Good To-Go Thai Curry reviews (11)

Featured review by Bigger Al

I'm a recovering coffee snob who, in previous years, would have rather drank mud from a puddle than instant coffee of any brand. Those days are over.

Alright, I'll admit it. I'm a coffee snob. My grounds of choice come from Peet's Coffee, and I take great pride in brewing a full-bodied cuppa Joe, whether I'm at home or out in the wilderness. Over the years I've used espresso makers for backpacking, drip filter holders of all shapes and sizes, the Aero Press system (still a great way to brew, BTW) and good old Cowboy coffee. I will also admit to an aversion to anything from Starbuck's. All of that has changed since I tried the Via instant coffees.  My youngest daughter brought some home one evening, and hounded me for an hour to give one of them a go, and I did so just to get her to ease up.

Read more: Starbucks VIA Ready Brew reviews (18)

Reviewed by Patman

A tasty curry dish that surprised me with its freshness; this one doesn’t taste rehydrated. I’ve never knowingly had a Nepalese-style curry, but if this is representative, I’m a fan. I just wish there was more in the package. As I’ll mention in all the Nomad reviews: I consider this the best brand of dehydrated, prepackaged food I’ve tried to date. It’s an expensive but high quality product.

Prologue: When I was messaging back and forth with Alicia (Trailspace Co-Founder and Editor) about testing some food items, I mentioned that I would only be interested in vegetarian options (I’m not actually vegetarian or vegan, I just rarely eat meat). For those excluding meat altogether, the pre-packaged choices are understandably limited in the backpacking/dehydrated food genre. I was quite intrigued when Alicia came back with this brand as I had never heard of them before. As I read about the company and product my interest was piqued further; you can check out their story here but I’ll relate that all products are plant-based, possibly non-GMO /organic (they don’t claim to be fully non-GMO/ organic but state that they “do their...

Read more: Nomad Nutrition Kathmandu Curry review (1)

Reviewed by Patman

A tasty Indian stew that reminds me of a classic (but slightly less spicy) Dal. As I’ve written with the other Nomad reviews: this is my new favorite brand of dehydrated backpacking food.

Ingredients: Potatoes, Carrots, Red Lentils*, Coconut Milk*, Onions, Peas, Sundried Tomatoes*, Olive Oil*, Garlic*, Spices*, Sea Salt*.   *Certified Organic Ingredient. Nutrition: (for the 100-gram package) Calories 680, Carbs 93g, Sugars (10 g), Protein 24g Prologue: When I was messaging back and forth with Alicia (Trailspace Co-Founder and Editor) about testing some food items, I mentioned that I would only be interested in vegetarian options (I’m not actually vegetarian or vegan, I just rarely eat meat).

Read more: Nomad Nutrition Indian Red Lentil Stew review (1)

Reviewed by Twig

This is the latest addition to a line-up of six Good To-Go "all natural, dehydrated gourmet" meals. I found the product to be a fresh, healthy, and tasty alternative to the ever-growing line of pre-packaged, dehydrated backpacker meals on the market. I would highly recommend this product for those specifically looking for an all-natural, gluten-free, vegetarian option. It works well as both a stand-alone meal and as a side dish. The downsides are the higher retail cost and longer re-hydration time when compared to other similar products. I also found that some ingredients did not rehydrate fully, even given the full recommended prep time.

I tested the Good To-Go line of dehydrated foods two years ago when they were first introduced. At that time, only three options were offered. The company seems to be experiencing success and growth, having since added three more meals. This time around, I tested the Pad Thai and Indian Vegetable Korma meals, both in single and double serving sizes. This review is of the Indian Vegetable Korma. Please see my other reviews of the Thai Curry, Smoked Three Bean Chili, Herbed Mushroom Risotto, and Pad Thai on Trailspace.com.

Read more: Good To-Go Indian Vegetable Korma review (1)