We've enjoyed the Mountain House freeze dried entrees as well when out camping. I can't recall the exact products off hand but we've had omelets and stroganoff. We both liked them and were surprised at the flavour. Just add boiling water to the bag and voila! I do recall they were a bit on the salty side for those who don't use a lot of salt; this could be a factor to get used to.

We have MRE's from Costco and TVP entrees, vegetables and fruit from Briden but have not yet tasted them. We're of the opinion that as adults who are starving; we'll eat what we have. Maybe I should crack something open for the upcoming AB meet?? Gotta think about it.

A preppers potluck could be a good future meeting if we did it in the Red Deer area... more central for everyone. I can't imagine what we'd have on the menu though 😯

I didn't actually cook the food in the package they came in but rather emptied the contents into a pot and added the hot water to it. Unfortunately Mountain House took longer to cook (rehydrate) than expected. In the end, I even had to "cook" the mac'n'cheese.

What are "MRE's and TVP's" from Costco?

The MRE's (which stands for meals ready to eat & are used by the military throughout the world) from Costco are actually very good. They come with their own heating pouch..you add some water to the pouch and it creates heat as a reaction and you can put in your entree, soup or whatever else needs heating. It gets hot enough to be a "real meal" and generally comes with some kind of dessert and beverage as well. They are available under their food and floral sub-heading/emergency food kits at $124.99 for 7 days worth of meals. TVP is a textured vegetable protein product. It does give you protein but isn't real meat protein as the freeze-dried products are. If you are a "meat" kind of diner, the freeze-dried is the real thing and for some people the TVP wouldn't be used except as stand-by for a short term solution. The TVP is a lot cheaper, but some people just don't like them and under stress it is nice to have something that you can actually look forward to and enjoy. TVP's would be better than starving, but if more real food is in your comfort zone, then it might be ok to have some of each and give yourself a treat of "real" when you need it. We used to motorcycle camp and we found the best way to use the Mountain House products (in the foil pouches) was to save the last of our boiled water in a thermos and add it to the pouch mid-afternoon and let it steep until dinner time or else they just don't cook enough.

Is there a big difference between "dehydrated food" and "feeze dried" food in terms of nutritional value and storing, etc?
I notice there is a difference of cost with dehydrated food being slightly cheaper than freeze dried food.

Mountaineer's Wife

Yes, there is a big difference.

Dehydrating uses heat to remove moisture. The lack of moisture makes the shelf life longer. The trade offs of this method of eliminating moisture are:

1. The food is "hard" and takes considerable energy and moisture to return it to its soft state. (If that is desired)
2. Because heat is used there is a degradation of nutritional quality, albeit probably less than in canning.
3. Dehydration does not eliminate all moisture, and as a result will usually have a limits to its shelf life- usually in the order of 5 to 10 years max.

Freeze dried foods are flash frozen anywhere from -50 to -80 degrees Celsius. The result is a process called sublimation. Sublimation means the moisture in the food goes from the liquid state to gas without the intermediary process of ice. The benefits are:
1. All nutrition is locked in, as there is no heat degradation. (And the nutritional value will not degrade during its shelf life)
2. The tissues of the food are left largely intact, since there is no ice damage or heat damage, and this makes re-hydration easier.-The resulting product looks more palatable too.
3. Freeze dried foods usually "melt in the mouth" and for the most part the hardness of dehydration is avoided.
4. For most part freeze dried meat, fruit and vegetables have a shelf life or 25-30 years.

My family stores and uses freeze dried foods as a part or our regular diet. Freeze dried means no preservatives or chemicals, and in the case of the "Thrive" products we use, many have a cost per serving that is as low in price as canned or frozen foods in the store. Recently milk and cheese became available in Canada and they are excellent. Freeze dried foods take a little adjusting in preparation, but there are cook books and youtube videos showing great ways to use freeze dried foods. My family cannot tell the difference between fresh and freeze dried in most applications.

Dehydrated still has value, and some of our food is dehydrated, I find the convenience and benefits of freeze dried outweighs the benefits of dehydrated in most applications.

Thanks for taking the time to explain the difference between dehydration and freeze dried Rob!

Mountaineer's Wife

FYI if you see a Shelf Reliance product sold at a retail store for less than an independent consultant is selling it, let them know. If the consultant sends a fax listing the price you found, Shelf Reliance will beat the cretail price, and that is with shipping included.