Homemade MRE's

[Patriotic Sheepdog]

Regular MRE's are okay, but can be expensive. They do last for several years if kept in the proper temp range. I found this at the grocery store and thought "why can't I make some homemade MRE's up"?

Well, with a little shopping I think you can and pick the foods you like. I wanted between 1600-2000 calories per day and wanted a breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, dessert as well as some flavored drinks. I placed a 3x5 card inside each with the contents and calories of each item. I made up three about 7 months ago and had them sitting in my BOB in the closet. I took them out today to see if they held vacuum and they had. I think I will keep these for a year and re-inspect (unless I get hungry :D) and see how long they will hold vacuum. Now, I also tried to pack into these items that will last a couple years. If they hold vacuum for at least a year, I think I'll make several up. They won't replace the long term storage capabilities of a MRE, but for camping, BOB (with rotation) or day trips may be an alternative.

[Lowdown3]

My first real "survival" outing I went out with a couple guys from Jacksonville. I had to lie about my age and tell them I was 16, I was actually 14 but pretty darn big for my age. I didn't have any MRE's but I made up some in ziplock bags with instant soups, gatorade mix, crackers, little bags of trail mix, etc. They still required water but they worked. I still keep some instant soup in my ruck for those really cold times when it's always nice to have some hot food to warm up your system.

Great post!