I'm preparing for a hunt that I will be truck camping and doing long day hikes to hunt. I'll be out past dark glassing. I thought packing an MRE would be a good idea for dinner in the field.

Any recommendations for who/what to buy MREs? I've at military issued MREs but not the civilian versions.

I've still got some military MRE's that a National Guard member sold me. They work, and, if you like them, use them. Or use the parts you like.
But for quick and easy, Mountain House Meals, assuming you pack a stove to boil water, are faster and simplier. Just make sure you are getting the calores you need. MRE's are great for providing plenty of calores. Freeze dried meals tend to be light on calores. E

My hunting group uses MREs. I usually pack one when I know I'm going to be out all day for lunch at some point.

If I'm backpacking in, I go the Mountain House route with a Jet Boil to shave the weight. The wet meals in the MRE add lots of weight when packing 2 meals a day for 3 days, or so. This is where the freeze dried meals come in handy.

Living in CO Springs with the abundant military population, it isn't too hard to find the right connections for your MRE needs.

Good luck!

I won't be packing a stove or the extra water. Otherwise, I'd just eat Mountain House.

Any recommendations on where to but MREs?

eBay unless you have military connections. Possibly Craigslist?

I don't need military issued MREs. I'm wondering about the civilian issued MREs. Who makes the best tasting, economical, etc. I can find vendors using google, I'm looking for recommendations from someone who has bought them previously.

Bueler?

http://beprepared.com/food-storage/mres.html

brymore:

Military MREs are heavy but very convenient and most of the items are actually edible. The weight is not a factor when they are carried for a day hike but they are too heavy for multi-night backpack trips.

I use to be able to get them from a retired military guy here in Colorado S[rings. They became hard to get when the army cracked down on soldiers taking them and selling them to local civilians. So I tried the civilian equivalent which I bought at a local army surplus store. They were disgusting and couldn't hold a candle to the military version. That was about 15 years ago. Haven't tried the civilian version since.

Last November, I went on a DIY Alaska hunt that lasted a week. One of the guys was active-duty military and he brought MREs for our lunches. They are still OK.

I would be very leery of the civilian copies. Maybe try them a little at a time before committing much $$$.

KC

Let me ask my old man. He's tried most of the commercial versions due to his multiple FEMA deployments.

That edible part is debatable on most of the ones I remember (spaghetti, BBQ pork patties omelette with ham,...). I was in abt 20yrs ago, they weren't very good then... Chicken ala King and Chicken Spaghetti were the only ones I would eat. The rest got traded or trashed.

I use them a lot but I just eat and buy only the main entrees. Just as good cold as hot. I supplement my meal with nuts, dried fruit(apricots, raisins, apples, banana chips, etc). ClifBar or granola bars are usually in my pack too.
I bought lots of them a few years ago for $1 each. The Army Surplus store here in IF sells complete MRE's and entrees only. The entrees are like $2.50. I could get some for you and bring them over if you want but our time is getting short!!!

My military experience was all C-rats. I've never eaten a military MRE. You wouldn't want a C-rat for a regular meal but they weren't bad if you were far enough from the road...but so was BBQ skunk.

Given the MRE bulk and the weight of the packaging, it's designed to last for years in storage and transit, there are better options out there IMHO.

The chief complaint on the civlian MREs, besides taste, is the heater unit. If the heater unit in the meal is crap, you are eating a cold meal anyway without a secondary heat source. If the heater is working right, and you have to Pack in/Pack out, it will produce heat and odor for quite a while after you have eaten the meal. Just a thought...

It doesn't sound like you plan on being out overnight, just late night. I'd take a Mountain House or similiar, and a small heat source like a JetBoil for water.

C-Rat spaghetti, now there's a memory...

Ham and [bleep] (lima beans) yuuuummmm....NOT!

Actually, the best meal I probably ever had was a B-2 unit, spaghetti/fruit/and John Wayne bars. That was because all I'd had for six days was a chicken and one handful of rice.

excellent suggestion, and they sell them stripped, so you can pick and choose what you want.
They also have about the best prices on Mountain House meals.

At $18 a copy through Cabelas, I say screw it and drive into town for a steak!

I use the Optimus and ramen with freeze dried beef or chicken. Sometimes just I re-hydrate Pappy Kershistine beef jerky with ramen noodles for a solid meal of carbs and protein. Soup starter works well too.

Most hikers rely on Knorr type dry meals with a can or foil pack of chicken or tuna.

And you know what "most hikers" eat how?

Because he's a tool.

I hate MRE's. There are so many other things that taste better, are better for you, and way less chemicals. Only the convenience pack is worth grabbing, and only if it has Tabasco sauce.

I use protein bars, cliff bars, etc. combined with jerky dried fruit, tuna in foil bags, and Mountain House meals If going deep. I bring enough food for three days in my day pack. When leaving for longer, I carry enough meals for twice as long as planned. Freeze dried meals are light and way better than being hungry or rationing. I like the rice meals better than noodles for some reason. I've been considering making my own dehydrated meals in vac sealed envelopes but it would require time and ambition which are both at a premium lately.

I prefer the MRE for lunch while hunting. No boiling of water required, thus no need to carry stove. Use the MREs with the heater, just add some water and sit back and relax at a nice spot to watch for elk.

Pemmican easy to make high in calories

http://www.armygear.net/ag/store/00231.html

I bought the 12 pack from this place before. I usually don't bring a full MRE for a day hunt but I'll break up the contents and supplement it with things like salami and a block of hard cheese.

MRE's are great for when you're needing a meal far from camp. Packing 1 wouldn't be that big a deal and I do it on occasion myself. I stay away from the meals that have seafood in them for obvious reasons.

A John Wayne cracker with peanut butter makes an awesome snack when your needing a quick pick me up.

Depends on how picky one gets.

RE dehydrated... you need water. You don't need hot water though. Thats your call. Just FYI. Steri pen or an extra bottle of water doesn't take much..

A PBJ or two and a few Snickers bars.

MRE = Meals Rejected by Ethiopians. :-)

Or "three lies in one"

Uhh, I ask them, you dumb SOB.

I don't think there are dehydrated portions in any MRE's now.

I hump mountain house if backpacking; and MREs if day hunting.

Tasty enough. Some are damn good.

Was thinking the same, especially coming back to the truck each night.

Today's MREs are nothing like the rations most guys remember. I buy current issue MREs and the smaller TOTMs at my base commissary. (I'm a retiree and can shop there.) They're pretty good food.

The best source of such meals is at TheEpiCenter. You can buy individual entrees, side dishes and all the extras. Pick and choose. They also sell Mountain House and much, MUCH more.

Se their taste-test reviews on Youtube and peruse their offerings HERE

I can't believe it, a guy actually answered the OP's question, outstanding! I'm gonna look there myself.

KNow any wildland firefighters? Lots of them seem to have a stash of them around...

uhhh, you ask "most hikers?" How dat?

On the AT, bozo. I've hiked the GA and NC portions. Several of the stretches probably a dozen times. Also the Benton McCaye Trail. I typically don't sleep in the shelters but usually hang my hammock near them as that is most often where the water source is. AT hiking tends to have a social component in the warmer months.

So, most hikers hike the AT when you're there, they stop to be interviewed by you on their food choices, and you compare that to all the other hikers everywhere who also mysteriously give you input on their food choices.

Got it.

My bad.....

You stupid bastard. People tend to COOK SUPPER at the shelters, and yes food resupply is often a topic of discussion among hikers, along with keeping educated squirrels, shelter rats and bears away from same.

One of us is a stupid bastard, but it isn't me.

To the OP,

If you shop the The EpiCenter, some of the MRE entrees and side dishes that I can heartily recommend (having eaten them recently) are:

Chili with Beans
Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
Chicken with Egg Noodles
Rib-Shaped Pork Patty (think McRib)

Don't overlook the vegetarian options either. The Cheese Tortellini and the Ratatouille are great.

Great side dishes are the Black Beans, Cornbread, Garlic Potatoes, Mexican Rice, and Potatoes au gratin. Oh, and the Jalapeno Cheese spread is wonderful! Use it on the crackers, snack bread - or any of the entrees.

Other really good MRE items include the applesauce, snack breads, pudding, and the milkshakes (I swear, MILKSHAKES! Honest!)

Order 'em, eat 'em, love 'em!

Oh, and yet another great source of MRE info is...mreinfo.com

Also, MRE's are a superb source for hydrogenated fats. ENJOY!

When a guy like the OP asks a simple question such as where he can get MRE's, I pretty much figure he's eaten some, likes them well enough, can read the label, and is going to buy some to eat on his hunting trip.

So the only useful advice I could provide would be where to find them. In other words, an answer to the question he asked.

Lots of stuff people take on hunting or backpacking trips would not be good to eat regularly. Mountain House meals generally have enough sodium to kill a horse.

But so what, if you're only going to eat them for a few days.

I just scored 14 unopened cases of MRE's for me and my hunting partners. I don't mind most of the meals but the vegetarian get hard to like sometimes. Though they usually have the best candy in them. I never liked a steady diet of MRE's even if it is only one a day. Jerky/Salami/Summer Sausage, hard cheese, and GORP (good ol' raisins & peanuts) or GORPM (GORP + M&M's) are usually what I pack on a day trip besides an MRE and it usually goes uneaten.

I mainly pack the MRE incase something happens and I can't make it back to camp and have to sleep under the tarp. Extra calories are a good way to help stay warm. Plus then I have dry matches, toilet paper, and cardboard to start a quick fire if needed. A single MRE can save a guys life if caught in a quick storm and unable to get back to camp for a day or two.

Favorite MRE's are: Beef Stew, Chili Mac, and McRib

Biggest complaint with current MRE's: They removed the Tabasco that used to come in every one. Now it's hit or miss on Tabasco packets and sometimes it's just crushed red pepper.

Internet doctor...take his advice for what it is worth...eggspurt on every subject just follow his posts.. although no pics or proof of experience ever shown..

MRE-Meals Rejected by Ethiopians

You post a vid of yourself climbing a rope and I'll figure out how to post one of myself doing so.

This blew up nicely! I ate MREs in the Marine Corps. I know what I'm getting into.

Thanks for the info, Rocky.

Brymoore,

If you ever get over Tacoma way, there are a bunch of surplus stores off of the Madigan Hospital/Camp Murray exit off I-5 at Fort Lewis. Take that exit (122?), hang a right, then another right and there are three of four stores that sell them by the case or individually. $50-$70 a case depending on which store and how fresh.

PM me and I can get more info for you next time I'm out there to drill.

If you're ever in the TriCities in Washington, call me and I can hook you up.

Give me some warning and I'll try to provide you with the best choices based on Take-a-knee's extensive survey of hikers in Iraq and Afghanistan (infantry?).

Another source

http://www.munireusa.com/wornick-fo...with-heater-weekend-special-3-33-an-mre/

eh, did you miss this one?

Or are you currently setting up the Rope and Camera?

I was looking at milsurp MRE's on Amazon and found this description:

Important Information
Ingredients
FOOD

Sounds tasty, eh?

Thanks for the tips on mres guys. I have a bunch of main courses coming from epicenter to find out what I like before the season. Just FYI, I had a hard time finding any hydrogenated fats in mre main courses or sides. But they are in several mountain house dishes also. Also in a lot of cracker and cookies so you have to read the labels pretty closely.

Dunk the pouches in boiling water for a few minutes to heat. Do NOT microwave! And let us know what you think, willya?

Naw I didn't miss it I mostly just ignore the irritating little pissant. But when he gives "professional" advice on every subject under the sun it is irritating.He is the one that makes brash unproven claims all the time. STP is worse that lee24 if that is possible.

And Kenneth if you are just being a pot stirrer it won't work. If not my apologies for insinuating such.

So, disprove some of them. We're ALL waitin'..........

Waiting on you to prove all you have claimed dumbass..... you got multiple personalities is that why you said ALL?

Squats to pee you got nothing at all...but bullchit claims.

What about all this fugged up advice I offer? Show the WORLD what an ignoramus I am. Knock yo'self out.

You go girl. Prove what you spew. Let's see proof of your degree dietary medicine.

Her's one for ya and even you can do this as it is sooooooo easy. Name one member on here you have met in person;)

BTW You so the second sentence I your post above to a tee

Yep, just like in the EKG thread, where everybody who actually knew anything had to agree with me. Still waitin.......

And stp I hope you have medical malpractice insurance for all the free dietary advice you are giving out liability is a bitch.

Ed Tyanich. He doesn't come here much 'cause he got sick of the tards, like you.

There is a fairly short list of folks here that I do intend to look up. You ain't one of 'em, unless you wanna pony up on that 2K bet. Trav's a puss and he's sceered.

Ya Travis is a puss...that's rich! shows how little you actually know. You prove how ignorant you are minute by minute

Funny how you make up imaginary friends you have met here...let's see pictorial proof putz.

Hey Ghengis Kahn used to frequent this website too! Prove that wrong

Having a sale if you are interested at BePrepared.com

Sale Link

I took a Meal #15 along on my fishing kayak yesterday. It's Mexican Style Chicken Stew and comes with Santa Fe Rice and Beans side dish, plus jalapeno cheese and crackers, cheese-filled pretzel logs, drink mix, and M&Ms. WAY too much food for me at a sitting, so I had the pretzels as a snack, the chicken stew and drink for lunch, and the M&Ms later. For supper, I mixed some chicken chunks I had in the fridge with the rice and beans. Saved the cheese and crackers for some other time. Almost two full meals out of one MRE.

Oh, it tasted great.

I was out of town for two weeks and didn't have a chance to buy any MREs. I went the PB sandwich route.

Went on a hike in the mtns yesterday. The woman who was our host fixed up a big bag of really good BLTs. They were awesome.

And this was after stepping out the door and walking 50 yards for some early morning trout fishing, caught a half-dozen in a bout 40 minutes. Prince nymph, nothing fancy.

After that, a big ol' omelet.