No refrigeration needed
- Thread starter INSAYN
- Start date
Ray Hyland
Expedition Leader
When we travelled in the malaysian jungles we would often bring rice, some dried vegetables like mushrooms, dried mung beans, dried fish (ikan-bilis, which is like anchovies but dried and salted) dried cuttle-fish (the chewing gum of the orient), some dried cereal, some powdered milk, some cooking oil, salt, curry, etc.
We always had lots of water in streams and springs where we were, and when you boil a big enough pot of water for long enough you can then drink it, cook with it, and wash with it, etc. We carried drinking water too but water for cooking and re-hydrating was plentiful.
Usually there were Orang-Asli villages in the jungles every couple of days where you could buy a live chicken and some eggs, and in a pinch it was pretty easy to catch a lizard for gecko-kebabs.
Anyways, for the purpose of this list I'd say dried fish, dried mushrooms, and dried beans would be a good addition. Plus enough spices and curries so that you can make different dishes out of the same dried stuff every day for a week and not get bored.
We always had lots of water in streams and springs where we were, and when you boil a big enough pot of water for long enough you can then drink it, cook with it, and wash with it, etc. We carried drinking water too but water for cooking and re-hydrating was plentiful.
Usually there were Orang-Asli villages in the jungles every couple of days where you could buy a live chicken and some eggs, and in a pinch it was pretty easy to catch a lizard for gecko-kebabs.
Anyways, for the purpose of this list I'd say dried fish, dried mushrooms, and dried beans would be a good addition. Plus enough spices and curries so that you can make different dishes out of the same dried stuff every day for a week and not get bored.
Ruined Adventures
Brenton Cooper
great suggestions so far...
this topic was also brought up on OVEXPO's "Overland Tech & Travel " page.
There's some really good ideas listed there too.
this topic was also brought up on OVEXPO's "Overland Tech & Travel " page.
There's some really good ideas listed there too.
ANZAC biscuits!
The iconic favorite of Australia and New Zealand. Kind of like a homemade granola bar -- it's a treat, it's nutritious, and reasonably shelf stable.
The story goes that, during the First World War, wives and girlfriends would bake ANZAC biscuits to send to their soldiers posted abroad. The biscuits had to be tough and non-perishable to survive the journey by ship with no refrigeration.
Everyone has their own variation of the recipe, but the primary components are: rolled oats, flour, sugar, and coconut -- which are all fairly stable, especially if kept sealed and airtight. The other ingredients (margarine, baking soda, and water) are more perishable but are used in small amounts. And, the biscuit is baked until it's pretty much dry (and I suppose sterilized). The texture can be made anywhere from soft(-ish) and chewy to hard as nails. The stiffer the biscuit, the longer they last. Sealed in a zip-lock bag they can stay good for weeks.
One special ingredient is required that might be unfamiliar here in the States: golden syrup (syrup from processed sugar cane, kind of akin to molasses). There are (arguments abound) satisfactory substitutes but, If at all possible, I recommend using real golden syrup -- it has a toasty/buttery aspect that really makes the flavor. Look for Lyle's Golden Syrup (in the can with the dead lion surrounded by insects, yum!) I have found it at Safeway, but Amazon carries it if all else fails.
ANZAC biscuits at wikipedia
Oh yeah, they call 'em biscuits but they're really cookies.
The iconic favorite of Australia and New Zealand. Kind of like a homemade granola bar -- it's a treat, it's nutritious, and reasonably shelf stable.
The story goes that, during the First World War, wives and girlfriends would bake ANZAC biscuits to send to their soldiers posted abroad. The biscuits had to be tough and non-perishable to survive the journey by ship with no refrigeration.
Everyone has their own variation of the recipe, but the primary components are: rolled oats, flour, sugar, and coconut -- which are all fairly stable, especially if kept sealed and airtight. The other ingredients (margarine, baking soda, and water) are more perishable but are used in small amounts. And, the biscuit is baked until it's pretty much dry (and I suppose sterilized). The texture can be made anywhere from soft(-ish) and chewy to hard as nails. The stiffer the biscuit, the longer they last. Sealed in a zip-lock bag they can stay good for weeks.
One special ingredient is required that might be unfamiliar here in the States: golden syrup (syrup from processed sugar cane, kind of akin to molasses). There are (arguments abound) satisfactory substitutes but, If at all possible, I recommend using real golden syrup -- it has a toasty/buttery aspect that really makes the flavor. Look for Lyle's Golden Syrup (in the can with the dead lion surrounded by insects, yum!) I have found it at Safeway, but Amazon carries it if all else fails.
ANZAC biscuits at wikipedia
Oh yeah, they call 'em biscuits but they're really cookies.
NuggetHoarder
Adventurer
Here's a pdf with some great info. It comes from a couple who are full time cruisers and all of their advice regarding life without refrigeration can easily be applied to overland travel.
Living Without Refrigeration
http://www.bethandevans.com/pdf/Livingwithoutrefrigeration.pdf
They also have a "Provisioning List" pdf file. It lists their typical load for two people for three months on a sailboat. It's not a perfect correlation to overland travel, but this list is worth a look.
Provisioning List
http://www.bethandevans.com/pdf/Provisioninglist.pdf
Living Without Refrigeration
http://www.bethandevans.com/pdf/Livingwithoutrefrigeration.pdf
They also have a "Provisioning List" pdf file. It lists their typical load for two people for three months on a sailboat. It's not a perfect correlation to overland travel, but this list is worth a look.
Provisioning List
http://www.bethandevans.com/pdf/Provisioninglist.pdf
NuggetHoarder
Adventurer
For those of you in the USA, the equivalent to ANZAC is hardtack. You can find more about hardtack on wikipedia... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardtack
jeep-N-montero
Expedition Leader
So weird, just last night I was thinking about this very same topic, then I pop on here today and it was bumped up to the top for me to see. Some very good reading indeed, we grew up with food storage and learned a few things in the process. I always keep 4 MRE's in the Jeep for emergencies, this is enough to last 2 people 4 days if rationed correctly. The problem with things like jerky and dried fruits is that you have to keep it out of reach while driving, otherwise you tend to gobble it up as you are moving.
Photomike
White Turtle Adventures & Photography
GREAT idea for the MRE's in the vehicle. Even the daily driver vehicle can use one or two.
postalWagon
Adventurer
Butter and marge.
Recently in Morocco we noticed, sitting on the shelves with tinned stuff, normal looking packets of foil wrapped butter, and tubs of marge, just sitting on the shelves perfectly fine in 45 deg C heat! I don't know how its made differently, but if we put it in the fridge you really struggled to spread it, so we left it out. Yoghurts, mini Babybell, Laughing Cow cheese and local chocolate were all fine in the heat. UK bought chocolate kept as treats were not (knackered Dairy Milk nearly forced an early return
)
Ghee is fine too, and olive oil can be spread on bread instead of butter. Honey.
Olives, beer (a nice malt takes up less space but you might not want to share it if the nearest stockist is 1500 miles away), M&Ms, some fruit juices and UHT milk if the weights OK.
Recently in Morocco we noticed, sitting on the shelves with tinned stuff, normal looking packets of foil wrapped butter, and tubs of marge, just sitting on the shelves perfectly fine in 45 deg C heat! I don't know how its made differently, but if we put it in the fridge you really struggled to spread it, so we left it out. Yoghurts, mini Babybell, Laughing Cow cheese and local chocolate were all fine in the heat. UK bought chocolate kept as treats were not (knackered Dairy Milk nearly forced an early return
)Ghee is fine too, and olive oil can be spread on bread instead of butter. Honey.
Olives, beer (a nice malt takes up less space but you might not want to share it if the nearest stockist is 1500 miles away
), M&Ms, some fruit juices and UHT milk if the weights OK. NuggetHoarder
Adventurer
Many items have to be refrigerated once opened, like mayonnaise. Thus, the individual packets of items will help you live without refrigeration. Here are some sources for individual packets...
- minimus.biz - wide selection of individual packets of condiments
- beprepared.com - sells the little items from MRE meals like individual peanut butter, individual jam, individual cheese sauce, and drink mix. Also has good prices on lifeboat rations
- alltravelsizes.com - has a small selection of food items - and other non-food items similar to minimus.biz
- waldenfarms.com - lots of unique packetized food items - for instance chocolate syrup
- rvcampstuff.com - similar to minimus.biz but has many unique packetized items/brands that minimus doesn't carry
- wildernessdining.com - sells dehydrated fruit and fruit powder along with lots of other individual packetized items
- packitgourmet.com - lots of unique items like powdered wine, beef stock powder and powdered cheeses
Black Dog
Makin' Beer.
How long would processed cheese and Babybel last do you think? I'll probably never be out 3 weeks, but I am thinking of ways to do breakfast burritos out back packing. I'll do either freeze dried Backpackers Pantry egg scramble or Denver omelet type of thing or use dehydrated eggs and bacon bit or jerky, but I need a cheese.
Something else I found at the grocery store a while back too, they were dried hash browns. They come in a little milk carton and you open it up and add hot water and let it sit for a while to reconstitute, then dump them out in a pan and cook like fresh hash browns. I'm thinking about trying to split one little carton up into parts and maybe using that in the breakfast burrito, otherwise it will be potato flakes which will probably not be very good.