What's your favorite emergency / survival / quick camp food?

Ive tried and tried and tried... But I hate SPAM. One of the programs I guided for supplied that shit as the meat. It makes great bait for deadfalls. And I actually like the packrat better:D Instant eggs are a close second.

Does anyone else make pemmican? I like goose/pork fat, ground up jerky and ground up cranberries.

My absolute favorite is a hunk of salami.
 
I also am not a fan of the SPAM.
I often carry Clif Bars or some granola bar and/or trail mix (Peanuts, raisin, and milk chocolate chips)
Maybe hard Salomi and hard cheese with club crackers.
 
Don't forget pasta in all its many forms. Light, easy to cook with only water and salt, and high in cals.
 
Clif Mojo bars are pretty good, as are the rest of the Clif bars. I've never had any of the fancy-schmancy freeze-dried astronaut food, but then again, I never think to pick any up when I'm somewhere that sells them. One of these days..

Mtwarden had a good idea with the single-serving packs of Gatorade. I've seen companies that make similar tube packets of iced tea, lemonade, etc.

Can't go wrong with a "gorp"-style trail mix to put something good in your stomach. Pepperoni, cheese, salami and the like are also good choices for me.

Oh, and a flask of something brown, preferably single-malt. Yea. That sounds good.

Nice call on this thread, brother.

-Nadz
 
Even more than a decade out of college, I still like ramen noodles.

I am also a big instant oatmeal fan on the trail - little boiling water and you have a nice sugar / carb hit to get you moving. Combine that with good strong black coffee and it is time to get moving.
 
Beef jerky, albacore tuna packets, granola bars, dark chocolate, and dried apples. I remember the early days of freeze dried :barf: Hard to go back there even though I'm sure it has improved
 
Among other things posted here, I also like to bring tortillas. They're pretty compact and along with some cheese and some kind of smoked meat they make some tasty camp quesadillas. If I'm not bringing the cast iron, I'll pack some tin foil off the roll in it's place... A pretty good faux skillet over the coals for this task.

Alan
 
GoNadz said:
Clif Mojo bars are pretty good, as are the rest of the Clif bars. I've never had any of the fancy-schmancy freeze-dried astronaut food, but then again, I never think to pick any up when I'm somewhere that sells them. One of these days..

Mtwarden had a good idea with the single-serving packs of Gatorade. I've seen companies that make similar tube packets of iced tea, lemonade, etc.

Can't go wrong with a "gorp"-style trail mix to put something good in your stomach. Pepperoni, cheese, salami and the like are also good choices for me.

Oh, and a flask of something brown, preferably single-malt. Yea. That sounds good.

Nice call on this thread, brother.

-Nadz
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Oh hell yeah brother! I always have the big flask of my brandy mixture and the small flask of Glenlivet. No matter the occasion, I'm prepared. lol.
 
For backpacking trips, I like cooking up some quinoa or couscous. Mix in some dehydrated vegetables and a pouch of tuna or chicken and some spices & bullion (Trader Joe's sells a paste form that's nicer than cubes) and you've got a good meal. Smaller, lighter and cheaper than those freeze-dried meals, too.

Energy bars, protein bars, trail mix... hard cheese, crackers and a good sausage (I like landjager) is a nice lunch.
 
I'm in favor of either "no pot" or "one pot" meals.

Instant, flavored oat meal packets - just pour in hot water and you can either drink it or eat it with a spoon if you are feeling like you want to clean one dish.

I also used to bring the whole coffee press shebang, since i am a Joe fanatic; but now I "survive" on instant coffee for no fuss and much less bulk & weight. You can also make "cowboy coffee" by boiling pre ground coffee in your pot; if you have a canteen/or nalgene nested cup to filter it into through a bandana. This requires 2 vessels unless you want to filter the grounds out with your teeth :barf:

I love some sliced spam fried up golden brown, plus it provides it's own cooking oil. It tastes even better when sliced with a large, BK7 or equivelent knife or mora ;)

+1 on the Zatarains onebagnomad - If soloing I split one package in half (pouring the remainder in a ziplock baggie) to fit in a smaller pot; if you are feeling dangerous you can add some of that hard salami or anything else you have shot (usually pheasants or jackrabbits); for a tasty meal that is dirt cheap & delicious. I brown the meat first and just pour the rest in. You can eat Zatarains for around less than $1 a meal (counting .22LR ammunition) if you shop around. If you have a cooking fire set up all you need is patience ...

While I like Mountain House and MRE's; but I find them a bit expensive ... For MREs I strip them down to the components to shed all the extraneous packaging that adds bulk and weight. I think MRE entres are great if you want a warm supper, if you are going stoveless in the back country area where camp fires are not permitted (like much of SoCAL, IIRR) With MREs you need to be judicious about which ones you select.

Of course for lunch, it's on the fly as many of you stated: GORP, potted meat, hard cheese, crackers. A can of baked beans served cold (gets kind of heavy for multiday trips...)

I like to just bring stuff that I have already laying around if it's a one nighter or day hike & I don't have to worry about weight. so much.

I also like to bring only one small lidded pot, my 1 qt canteen cup, one spoon for a "mess kit" kit to save weight. If it were 2 people I would hazard a larger pot. Weight must be saved so a ridiculous amount of knives, guns, ammo and tomahawks/axes can be brought along in the back country... :thumbup:
 
I love SPAM myself.

most eaten on any trip I take has gotta be oatmeal. I've eaten oatmeal for any meal.
 
MrOverkill said:
I always keep a gallon bag of some mixture of peanuts, cashews, almonds (protein), and M&M's, dried cherries, dried cranberries, etc. (sugars) with me when I'm hiking. good mix for energy, and pretty lightweight
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I have created a ziplock bag with a similar mix. At the supermarkets here they have a bulk food section where you can buy as little or as much of each thing as you want. I go there and get some 'fruit & nuts' (peanuts & raisins), cashews, dried cranberries, dried apple, whatever else I like the look of. Then I grab a few chocolate bars and break them up and throw the pieces into the bag. This is a very high calorie food that tastes nice and provides good energy. The only preparation before eating is opening the bag - that has to count for a lot in an emergency when you might need to keep moving and don't want to spend the time to boil some water.

You guys call it trail mix but here we call it 'scroggin' and it is very popular amongst hikers & campers.

I like salted cashews, but they can be too salty. If I mix in some salted cashews with the unsalted nuts & raisins and other stuff then it is about right. The salt helps the body to take in the water (which you definitely should have with you as part of your emergency/survival/camp food.

I have a few packets of peanuts, cashews, fruit & nuts at all times - just in case I have to bug out or bug in. That stuff can keep me going for a few days!
 
I carry Ainsley Harriott apricot & honey cereal bars, Pepperami, cashew nuts and Reiter Travellunch main meals (the cereal bars, pepperami and cashews have a permanent place in my urban daysack too).

These are often supplemented with dried fruit & nut mix.

The cereal bars are addictive!
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dylan you just need to know how to make mre's lol. when i was in iraq for about the first 4 months that was all we had lol. chicken w/ noodles mre is my favorite. basically heat up the chicken w/ noodles and jalapeno cheese spread. mix them together. then take your crackers and crunch them up and mix in. then add the tobasco sauce. then you have a good old meal :)

other wise i agree mountain house is good stuff to. another option if you haven't tried is the winter mre's. just add hot water and they have stuff like omelet w/ bacon and lasagna they are super high in calories though. i can pretty much eat anything but i prefer it taste good
 
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