Freezer bag cooking

[Litehiker]

GOOGLE Freezer Bag Cooking and find out how to use supermarket foods to make delicious meals at a much lower cost than freeze-dries meals - AND with a lot less sodium. Also go to <freezerbagcooking.com>

Sarah Krikconnell has written two books (that I know of) on this topic and they have great recipies.

Plus you can make your own, like my "THANKSGIVING DINNER"
It takes two 1 quart bags.

BAG 1.-> Put proper amount of boiling water into powdered gravy mix
then immediately add chicken from a foil envelope (or dehydrated chicken you have re-hydrated for one hour.) Let sit for 10 minutes in a cozy**.

BAG 2.-> mashed potatoes or Stove Top Stuffing (1 person portion you re-packaged at home)

OR-> you can put the Stove Top Stuffing portion in with the chicken and gravy and add the proper extra amount of water.

This is a delicious and VERY filling trail meal. Stove Top Stuffing is amazing when camping.

** COZY (or COZIE) is an insulating envelope for freeze-dried meals or freezer bag meals. It provides an insulated container to keep your meal warm so it "cooks" better and it protects your hand from hot bags.
Make them from sewing fleece, Refletex insulation & tape, etc. into an envelope. Be sure it is washable.
Try not to use a stocking cap or other clothing as a cozy if you are in bear country. A cozy is stored in a bear canister.

Eric B.

 

[Len Backus]

Hmmm, great idea.

 

[Jerry M]

The local Boy Scout Troop was using that method of cooking for backpacking trips 10 years ago.

 

[Mike 338]

I haven't done freezer bag cooking but I did buy a dehydrator and made a bunch of batches of various dinners in advance (mostly chili and spaghetti). I'd like to experiment with some Tia rice dishes. It was probably the best I've ever eaten because it was exactly how I like it. I found it was necessary to re-hydrated well in advance for best results. I would just add cold water to the bag the night before and hang it along with the rest of my food in a tree and let it sit and re-hydrate the whole next day while I was off hunting. When I got back, it was a heat and serve with no other waiting. It's sorta a project to do at home but I enjoyed it. It might take 20 hours to thoroughly dehydrate the food so it's a thing you do well in advance and store for when you need it. I'd vacuum seal the bags and put them in the freezer. I suppose for a trip, you could take them out of the vacuum bags and put in a freezer bag for compactness. Dehydrated takes up less space than freeze-dried. Experiment with foods in advance because not all foods dehydrate well (scrambled eggs for example). Not as easy as going to the store and laying down the money for Mountain House dinners and sticking them in your pack though.

I wonder how a dehydrated meal would reheat in a freezer bag submerged in boiling water? That would eliminate clean up. The restaurant industry makes soups in a bag. Just drop them in boiling water and heat that way.

 

[Litehiker]

Mike, In colder weather you can just take pre-cooked chicken slices in a freezer bag B/C it won't spoil. Just add the other ingredients when you make the dinner.

Adding a few raisins and "Crasins" (dried cranberries) to the stuffing also helps.

Eric B.