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canteen cup cooking

8K views 16 replies 10 participants last post by  SLCXCR 
#1 ·
For all those that served, remember all the things you used to do to bring a little bit of sanity to the pouched meal? We're not talking "Ranger pudding", but an actual combining of ingredients that actually made something quite palatable.

My favorite was "Apple Pie". Requires MRE meal #13, Cheese Tortellini and is something you'd do back at the FOB or somewhere stable because you'll use the heater. After you heat the entree throw the applesauce in there while you're eating. Locate the spiced cider drink and crackers then crunch them up in the packet. Dump it all in the hot applesauce and mix it up. Delicious.
 
#3 ·
My old flight (platoon to the non-AF speakers :D ) made up an actual list. It had inventories of what every meal included and then the "recipes" we came up with. I wish I would've kept it, it had some neat concoctions. Other than the apple pie the one that sticks out was my buddy Pat's "F--- it, I'm hungry" snack mix. It was just some odds and ends he had left in his day ruck; peanuts, creamer and some other stuff. One of the troops asked him how all that junk could taste any good and that was his answer. Instant classic.
 
#4 ·
We had gone through a number of different things over the years for food while caving. The (current) MRE's are good on the longer trips, especially wet ones. The pouch was tough enough to usually stay sealed in the pack, and the heater was nice since you could eat a little something warm then stick it up under your wetsuit for a few minutes. Very nice after being in the water all day. I've taken the crackers and peanut butter and just mashed it into the entree with some hot sauce.

In trying to go the lightweight route (this was years before all the current sports energy stuff came out) my friend decided he just wanted a quick sugar shot. So he carried tubes of cake icing on a couple of trips. That didn't last very long.

When the first MRE's came out, I really felt sorry for the guys that were having to eat that stuff. I tried a few, I still remember the ground beef patty. It reminded me of soundproofing wall board. Except that it probably tasted worse.
 
#12 ·
I used to like the beef patty. Some of the others were absolutely disgusting.

Rehydrate the patty in the beef bullion, put it on those bricks they called crackers, put the cheese curds (spread) on there, a touch of salt... I can't say enjoy, but at least you weren't trying to gag down that turkey al a crap they had.

I always considered myself lucky if the dried fruit hadn't busted the seal and turned into a dark, grotesque mat of nasty.
I'd throw the PB in my cargo pocket and hit it on a hump. The rocket fuel (instant coffee) was a open-pour in mouth-hit swig from the canteen. My stomach would never tolerate that crap now.
 
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#5 ·
Me and two buddies were camping at Big Bend and one of them kept getting boned in the dessert department. Finally one meal he saw the dessert packet and went, "HAHA! Eff you guys! I got a...." He went to read what delicious dessert he finally scored but the package prevented the completion of the title and he ended up yelling out, "CHOCOLATE COVERED WHAT?!?!?!?"
 
#6 ·
Kinda off topic but in the same vein. During Operation Anaconda, we were issued LRP/Cold Weather rations. I guess some of them were supposed to be pretty good, but I never ate one of those. The worst one was Lasagna. It looked like a used air sick bag. It smelled like a spaghetti fart, and it tasted like that powder the put on Pringles to make them taste like pizza.
 
#13 ·
I read your first sentence, and thought "four fingers of death and turkey a-la puke".

The freeze-dried peaches though, those were great, just on their own.
Even if "rehydrated" in the mouth, for at least a couple of seconds, with iodine tab water.
 
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#14 ·
Freeze dried pears are the cat's back. I really used to like Spicy Beef, whatever the hell that was? Hot chocolate, creamer, sugar and a little water mixed together as was mentioned earlier--but they forgot to mention it was called "Ranger Pudding".
 
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#15 ·
I'd say at least 25% of the meals had failed fruit packs. Like Bravo, I would just break off a chunk and swig.
And I completely forgot about the Vienna sausage pack. Most guys didn't like the beef patty, so I always had a standing trade offer. I'd swap pretty much any of the other meals for the patty, though it was virtually inedible unless re-hydrated.

Ranger pudding must of been an Army thing, as I don't recall that phrase. We did on occasion make field stew, a general hodge-podge of MRE content mixed and heated in a steel helmet. Funny, they literally told us not to do that when we got Kevlar. The steel pots had been heated so many times they were fully annealed and wouldn't stop a bee-bee.
 
#16 ·
Funny thing about that ranger pudding.....

Did you get ever make it when you weren't in the field?
I can't say what made the difference, but as good as it tasted in the field, it was too sweet and kinda nasty "at home".

My standing trade was for those freeze dried peaches. Since I didn't care for the brownie like most guys, I could trade 2 or even sometimes 3 peaches for a brownie LOL!
 
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#17 ·
It was all pointless without tabasco. I'm talking about the real bottle you humped yourself. Those little 4 shot ones where a tease. I hate coffee. But to this day I'll still use instant coffee as chewing Tabaco to stay awake.


Paul
 
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