Field Test of Freeze Dried Food

Last weekend, I took the chance to get up into the local hills for an overnight snow camp and snowshoe hike. Most people think I’m nuts to forsake a perfectly good bed for the chance to curl up in a small tent pitched on top of several feet of snow, but I enjoy tremendously getting out in the backcountry, and as a side benefit, I get to practice skills that might someday be critical to know when it’s for real instead of for fun.

I also was able to test some of the freeze dried fruits and veggies we sell, including one that is a “coming attraction”.  Freeze dried works best for fruits and vegetables since it’s only one ingredient.

I took my trusty white gas stove, since the temps were  going to be frigid and we needed to melt snow for water. Trust me, it takes a lot of snow to get a quart of water, and that also made it so we needed to have food that was simple to prepare-as in, pour hot water on it and let it sit a minute.  Here was our kitchen setup, on a flat rock where the snow had melted off. I apologize that these are not great quality pictures, but they were taken under “field conditions”, with my phone, not in a studio with a fancy photo setup.

One thing that I enjoyed about preparing the freeze-dried fruits and veggies was that when we poured hot but not quite boiling water on them, they rehydrated almost instantly. That meant we were eating hot food, an important thing on a winter camp in the cold and snow.

Here’s  the green beans:

Again, not a fancy picture, but it’s dark, it’s cold, I’m hungry, and so I just want to eat!

The next morning for breakfast, we took some instant oatmeal, added some extra hot water and tossed diced apples in with it. Very tasty, and just like the night before, the apples absorbed the hot water almost instantly. Within a few seconds, we could dish out breakfast.

Of course, the view out of our “living room window” couldn’t be beat!

In short, adding some freeze dried fruits and vegetables to your emergency menu gives you variety and easy to prepare nutrition. Great for a fun campout any time of year, but also worth remembering when you are in a disaster situation as well.