I have a small stash of freeze dried foods. They are about 10 - 12 years old, which is fine given the advertised 30 year shelf life. Recently I decided to rotate the stock, eating the old stuff and replacing it with new stock. I also thought this would work out if there I are items I don't care for I can replace those with items I like.
I started this with a can of Mountain House Scrambled Eggs with Ham and Peppers.
I must say this stuff is pretty tasty. While I can't get it to look as appetizing as the picture on the can, my taste buds weren't complaining.
Here's how I make it up. I use an enamelled soup mug picked up on some long forgotten trip. I preheat the mug with hot water, dump that water, add 2/3 cup of the dehydrated mix and add enough boiling water to barely cover it. Give it a stir and check to see that the water is still just a tad above the mix. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Stir it again and then you can either start eating or drain off any excess water. I have done both. The first time I made some I used the can specified amount of water and drained off the excess. Next I tried the method above and had less excess water. I also put my mindset in a emergency situation where there might not be a lot of water so dumping the excess might not be the best. Yes, I ate the eggs and drank the water at the bottom. It had little bits of egg in it and tasted just like the meal, so it wasn't bad at all.
Here's how I make it up. I use an enamelled soup mug picked up on some long forgotten trip. I preheat the mug with hot water, dump that water, add 2/3 cup of the dehydrated mix and add enough boiling water to barely cover it. Give it a stir and check to see that the water is still just a tad above the mix. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Stir it again and then you can either start eating or drain off any excess water. I have done both. The first time I made some I used the can specified amount of water and drained off the excess. Next I tried the method above and had less excess water. I also put my mindset in a emergency situation where there might not be a lot of water so dumping the excess might not be the best. Yes, I ate the eggs and drank the water at the bottom. It had little bits of egg in it and tasted just like the meal, so it wasn't bad at all.
The serving size listing on the can seemed to me to bit a bit small, but I made it according to directions and it was surprisingly filling.
A few concerns I had were on the size of the can. There would most likely only be two of us eating the product. I tend to look at the "what if" as a worst case scenario. In this case, it would be a situation with no electricity and limited water in the heat of summer. The instructions on the can say unused portions can be stored for up to a week. Before I opened the can I contacted Mountain House and they said to treat it like any other food by refrigerating the unused portion for up to a week or freezing it. Right now that is not a problem. I placed the unused product in a zip-lock bag and it is in the freezer. In a situation as described above the unused portion might not be able to be properly stored.
Fortunately, there is an easy solution. This product is also available in a 2 serving pouch. The #10 can has 15 servings. The best price I've found is $33.49 with free shipping. That works out to $2.24 per serving. A case of 6 pouches is $29.59, also with free shipping. This is a little higher at $2.43 per serving, but the fact that 2 servings can be made at a time in the pouch, while the others are not exposed to air, makes it worthwhile to me.
I can give this product a wholehearted YES! I will be using it on some future trips, not just keeping it stored for an emergency.
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