Discover the Best Dehydrated Meals for Backpacking to Fuel Your Adventures

On average, you burn around 350kcal per hour when hiking with a heavy load. This number grows drastically when adding altitude, technical difficulty, and long distance, making backpacking dehydrated meals an essential part of your hiking gear.

To reach your goal proper nutrition and hydration is essential.

In today’s article I explain what dehydrated food is, crash the “unhealthy” myth and show you different options to choose best dehydrated meals for backpacking.

Freeze-Dried Meals – Beginnings

Canned food was a king of backpacking and hiking food in the 80’s. Spam, canned fish, strange rice mixtures created a typical mountain menu. Dry sausage and pickles were the cherry on the cake. The only unchanged classic is chocolate – all time favorite. Today, dehydrated camping food and dehydrated backpacking food have become the norm.

Food in a can was nothing strange back in the days – even well known Himalaya climbers were enjoying these type of meals. Everyone wanted to eat like back home. Who would have thought that the next century brings a revolution to outdoor meals in the shape of dehydrated camping meals and the backpacking meals in the form of lyophilized or sterilized food. This new technology of preparing food changed the world of backpacking and climbing forever.

Dehydrated (or lyophilized) meals, now popular as dehydrated backpacking meals and dehydrated food for camping, had their beginning in the US army – only later were they introduced to the general public. World War II battlefields were a testing ground for these meals. The US army pioneered in using the lyophilization technology on a mass scale. At the beginning, it wasn’t about the food – the main focus was blood plasma and its quick and easy transportation to the battlefield.

In the 60’s, the dehydration process was widely used to conserve food for astronauts. Pioneer testers were a crew of orbit station Skylab (May 1973 – June 1979). High costs of production were the reason why “civil” use took so long. After improving and optimizing the process in the 90’s, dehydrated meals for backpacking and the freeze dried meals were introduced to wide public consumption.

Dehydrated Food – Production Process

Most industry dehydrated food, including the best dehydrated meals, is made during the lyophilization process. This is quite a complex process of drying by sublimation – in other words, it’s freezing out the water out of the food.

To understand the whole thing let’s have a look into more details.

Firstly food is frozen in a temp. between -50C and -80C (-58F and -112F). Such low temperature freezes the food but, what’s more important, it kills any bacteria or mold which could destroy it. Then, to start the sublimation process, the surrounding pressure is gradually reduced allowing “frozen water in the material to sublimate directly from the solid phase to the gas phase“. Next stage is gradually providing heat and removing the excess of steam. The end effect is a powdered, non-chemically preserved product. The most important thing here is that it still contains all the nutrients. Lastly such food is packed in a airtight, durable pouch.

Unlike producing freeze dried food, preparing dehydrated food for backpacking takes little effort. It’s enough to cook some water, pour it into a pouch, seal it and wait for a given amount of time. Your dried, easy backpacking meals, which are also the best dehydrated food, can also be prepared in your pot. Just remember to use a lid and preferably a pot cozy to keep your food warm.

Dehydrated Meals for Backpacking – Stereotypes

The word, lyophilized or freeze dried doesn’t really sound encouraging – it kind of makes you want to think of a laboratory more than of a nice, outdoor meal. However, backpacking dehydrated meals have changed this perception.

Many people still believe that dried meals aren’t nutritious at all or that they’re unhealthy. Why is that? Freeze dried food for backpacking has been wrongly put in the same box as instant soups and all those crappy meals with lots of additives.

Let me clear some things up.

First of all, let’s answer one question – do the best dehydrated foods for backpacking taste as good as homemade food? Most definitely not – nothing can beat a freshly made, home-cooked dinner. The best dehydrated backpacking food, lyophilized meals, have their own specific taste to which you have to get used to but they have nothing to do with artificially boosted food. Each freeze-dried meal is prepared from fresh, quality ingredients and is preserved due to its preparation process, not chemicals. So let us not follow wide spread, untrue stereotypes.

Also there is nothing to be worried about when it comes to nutrients in the backpacking dehydrated meals. Dehydration prevents nutrients’ loss – 95% of food’s vitamins, protein, and minerals as well as color, shape, smell, and taste stays the same. Freezing and water removal kills all possible substances that could cause your food to turn bad. An additional advantage of this process is a really long shelf life – which is even more amazing when you think it’s been preserved using no chemicals.

Ready Freeze-Dried Food Alternative

The freeze dried backpacking food is a great option when it comes to eating in the outdoors. It’s easy to prepare, light, nutritious, and it tastes good. However, tastes differ and not everyone has to be a fan of the backpacking freeze dried meals.

Fortunately there are couple of other options to consider:

Sterilized food has a secret to its long shelf life – the production process. In order for food to be sterilized it is exposed to very high temperatures exceeding 100C (~212F). Leaving food in such a hot environment kills all possible microorganisms. The next step is rapid cooling which serves to preserve as many vitamins and minerals as possible. Treated like this, your meal, maybe even a risotto, is packed into an airtight and durable pouch. Sterilized food looks and tastes very similar to your home-cooked dinner. With a shelf life of around 3 years, it’s a good alternative for freeze-dried meals. The only downside is that this type of food is heavier than the dehydrated option and less packable.

‘Niche’ food are the small companies producing easy backpacking meals, maybe even with ingredients like salami or couscous. They’re worth mentioning for they produce food quite different from the big, mainstream options. Their meals are interesting and diverse. They’re really worth trying especially if you like your outdoor meals to be of a better quality.

How to Make Dehydrated Backpacking Meals

When it comes to making dehydrated backpacking meals, there are a few key steps that you should follow in order to ensure a successful and enjoyable outdoor dining experience. First and foremost, it is crucial to carefully plan your food choices. Take into consideration the specific type of meals that you want to have during your trip, whether it be the savory taste of beef jerky or the convenience of easy dehydrated meals. By determining the specific meals you want to enjoy, you can then proceed to identify the necessary ingredients that you will need to purchase and the appropriate quantities to dehydrate.

Once you have established your meal plan, the next step is to prepare your food. This involves cooking the ingredients and subsequently dehydrating them. There are various methods that you can employ to achieve this, such as utilizing a dehydrator or an oven set to a low temperature. Whichever method you choose, it is important to ensure that the food is thoroughly cooked before proceeding with the dehydration process. This will not only enhance the flavor and texture of the final product but also contribute to its overall safety and longevity.

After successfully dehydrating your food, the next step is to portion it out into individual servings. This step is crucial for ensuring that you have the appropriate amount of food for each meal and that it is conveniently packed for your backpacking adventure. By dividing your dehydrated meals into individual servings, you can easily access and enjoy them without the need for additional measuring or guesswork.

Finally, when the time comes to indulge in your delectable backpacking meal, all that is left to do is rehydrate it. This can be accomplished by simply adding hot water to the meal and allowing it to sit for a few minutes. The hot water will gradually restore the moisture to the dehydrated ingredients, resulting in a flavorful and satisfying meal that is ready to be enjoyed amidst the beauty of nature.

How to Choose Best Freeze Dried Meals for Backpacking?

After you know what freeze dried food is and how to prepare it, perhaps with a jetboil or pocket rocket, the next step is to choose your favorite, easy backpacking meal. This can be a little intimidating as there are really quite a few options out there.

Below, I prepared a small table to give a quick and easy look into the existing offer:

Name	Most Popular Meal	Rating	Price (pouch)
Mountain House	Beef Stroganoff with Noodles		from ~$6
Good To Go	T hai Curry		from ~$7
Campfire Meals	BBQ Beef & Rice		from ~$8
Backpacker’s Pantry	Pad Thai		from ~$4
Paleo Meals To Go	Summit Savory Chicken		from ~$11
AlpineAire	Leonardo da Fettuccine		from ~$8
OMEALS	Mexican Style Chicken Stew		from ~$8
Wise Company	Cheesy Lasagna with Meat		from ~$7
Bannock Outdoors	Savory Beef Stroganoff		from ~$8

Freeze dried meals, like those from Peak Refuel, are a great option for your outdoor food. With so many available variations and options you will definitely find something for yourself. A nutritious, good tasting meal is one of the best things you can give yourself at the end of a hard hiking day. Whether self-made or bought, a hearty backpacking meal will keep you powered up for your adventures.

In summary, freeze-dried meals are a practical and delicious solution for backpackers seeking convenient and nutritious food options during their outdoor adventures. The freeze-drying process preserves the nutritional value and flavor of the ingredients, making these meals a reliable source of sustenance. With their lightweight and compact nature, freeze-dried meals are easy to pack and carry, providing backpackers with a convenient and satisfying meal after a long day of hiking. Whether homemade or store-bought, freeze-dried meals offer a wide range of options to suit different taste preferences and dietary needs. So, next time you embark on a backpacking trip, consider the benefits of freeze-dried meals and enjoy a hearty meal that will keep you energized and ready for your outdoor pursuits.