Hack: How I stopped wasting money on pricey backpacking meals

I used to buy those $12 freeze-dried backpacking meals for every trip. Then my buddy Jake showed me how to dehydrate my own chili and pasta sauce at home. I spent about $40 on a dehydrator from Goodwill and now a full meal costs me maybe $3. My spaghetti bolognese rehydrates way better than the store stuff too. Anyone else make their own trail meals or stick to the bought pouches?

3 comments

3 Comments

wells.christopher10d ago

Oh man, dehydrating your own meals is such a game changer. I got a dehydrator off Craigslist last year for like twenty bucks and started doing my own lentil soup and curry. The curry rehydrates surprisingly well, way better than the store bought stuff that always tastes like cardboard. It's also nice being able to control how much salt goes in, cause those pouches are loaded with it.

jenny19810d ago

My sister actually had a bad reaction to a store-bought backpacking meal once, ended up with a crazy headache from all the MSG in it. That was what pushed me to start dehydrating my own stuff. I do a big batch of chicken and rice soup every month, portion it out into ziplock bags, and it costs me about $1.50 per meal. The best part is I can add extra veggies and even some ginger for flavor, stuff you never see in those pre-made pouches. Plus I don't have to worry about what weird preservatives are sitting in there for years on end.

mileslane9d ago

Used to think freeze-dried was the only way but you guys totally changed my mind on that.