Meals in bags...

[TechnoWeenie]

So I touched on this topic like 5 years ago.... but didn't have the funding to really pursue it...

My goal is healthy-ish meals with no prep other than 'add (boiling) water'..

I realize with a lot of the stuff that has fats in it, like butter, and milk, that ultra long storage isn't going to be easy... So, I'm shooting for about a year of storage which would be easy to do. I also have oxygen absorbers to assist in trying to get as much as I can out of it.

So, I opted for something simple to start....

Basic pasta, rice, 'vegetarian chicken', 'vegetarian beef', cheese powder, freeze dried broccoli, parmesan sauce powder, beans, nonfat milk powder, butter powder, protein mix, coffee (decaf and regular), non-dairy sugarfree creamer, and no sugar added Nestle Quick...

I still need to get oatmeal, and possibly some powdered honey or something similar.

Plan is to basically vacuum seal EVERYTHING...

So far, what I'm thinking....


Breakfast - (I was considering granola but in research I'm seeing high fat content doesn't allow it to store well)

Oatmeal (Possibly with freeze dried fruits added)
Grits (with milk/butter powder)
Protein shake w/milk powder --┐
Coffee W/creamer-------------- | (in a (2?) cup sized vacuum bag with powder in it to drink straight from bag)
Protein shake w/coffee ---------┘
Probably a multi-vitamin powder or something similar mixed in with the protein shake.


Dinner -
Beans/rice w/beef
Beans/rice w/chicken
Rice w/chicken and broccoli (W/parmesan sauce?)
Rice w/beef and broccoli (asian, spicy)
Macaroni and cheese
Macaroni and cheese w/beef (beefaroni)
Macaroni and parmesan w/chicken & broccoli



But, what for lunch?! I was thinking maybe some baked rice or egg noodles or similar with sodium free broth (beef, or chicken), and I did get freeze dried cilantro leaves and green onion, and along with some red pepper flake so should make for a much healthier, and tasty option over store bought ramen... But ramen EVERY day?




I also looked at powdered eggs and it ends up being something like a dollar an egg when you break it down. Shit.




All the stuff I've chosen is relatively low fat, and low sodium, although it does tend to be a little carb heavy.

Thoughts?

[jackass]

My roomates do this, although they cook items either in the oven or in a pressure cooker and then put it in reusable containers for prepacked meals with specific quantities. Not Seal-a meal, but plastic containers. Stack in fridge.

[RocketScott]

A lot depends on what you’re going to be doing and personal preference

Most of the time I don’t like eating a big lunch. Right now I eat a few fig bars, some jerky, and dried fruit. Have to drink a lot of water with all that but I’m not eating that much

It would be great if you could set up a dehydrator so whatever meat or fruit you drive come across could be preserved

[Barfly]

This is something that I have really wanted to do as well. Make up soup mixes and the like, where all you need to do is dump in a pot and add water.

[catbird]

The YouTube channel Townsends does videos on living during the colonial era. He has lots of stuff on cooking and food preservation. It's worth checking out "portable soup". It's basically meat broth boiled down to taffy consistency. This can be stored and carried and combined with foraged vegetables. Or you could stock up on bullion.

[Barfly]

I actually stocked up on beef bullion via Thrive. I don't remember how much it was, but the #10 cans of beef bullion will last a bit. That and we have a hell of a pantry that includes quite a bit of canned bullion.

I will definitely check out that channel. I have been looking at ways to preserve meat. I did some jerky and then vacuum sealed and froze it. After thawing, it still tastes great, still has a good consistency and I will definitely do some more of that.

[TechnoWeenie]

I use herbox sodium free chicken/beef bullion.

Tastes great, and I can add a little salt/msg if I want.

[TechnoWeenie]

So, quick update.



I started with breakfast, since that's the easiest to do.



I standardized on a 28oz shaker bottle.





A half pint 5"x8" vacuum bag holds ---



1/2 cup milk powder

1/2 cup protein powder

1/4 cup slimfast OR 1/4 cup carnation instant breakfast



Low sugar, high protein, with lots of vitamins and minerals. I do take a multivitamin every day....



I bought chocolate, banana, and strawberry protein powder.

I bought Chocolate, and Strawberry slimfast and Carnation instant breakfast.



The flavors I made are...



Chocolate (W and W/out instant coffee, both decaf and caf, depending on what I want)

Chocolate/Banana (W and W/out instant coffee, both decaf and caf, depending on what I want)

Strawberry

Strawberry/Banana





The chocolate flavors lend themselves VERY well to the instant coffee...



The strawberry flavors and coffee? Not so much.









So far, it's fairly inexpensive...and this is COTS stuff, so no specialty stuff and I could probably lower the price if I bought in bulk instead of just random stuff to experiment with.



Bags were ~$12/100

Milk powder was ~14$/3lbs

Slimfast was ~5$ / 22 servings

Carnation instant breakfast was ~$30 / 90 servings

Protein powder was ~$50 for 5 lbs.



Considering the relatively small amounts in each bag... *crunches numbers*...



Protein powder - .71

Milk powder - .25

Bag - .12

Carnation - .33

Slimfast - .22







So, it's either...



For Carnation - .71+.25+.12+.33 = $1.41 / breakfast



OR



For Slimfast - .71 + .25 + .12 + .22 = $1.30 / breakfast



Virtually no sodium, very little sugar, MUCH more protein/vitamins/etc than prepackaged product.





I'll grab pics here shortly.

[TechnoWeenie]

There goes a month of breakfast... They need to be more flat, I think... I could probably use a slightly larger bag and get them near perfectly flat....Some are better than others. The slightly larger bag may also allow the bag itself to be used as the cup... Cut top off, toss water in, fold top over and shake....Something to think about on my end...

I just did the S = Strawberry, and SB = Strawberry-banana... Still working on the ones with chocolate... and oatmeal/grits will probably be worked on tomorrow.

Double sealed, just in case...

The sealing storage set (not sealed, just less prone to bugs/mice/etc) was purchased from Costco... I think it was ~$12 for the set of 4 - Dimensions ~11" x 16 1/2" x 6 1/2"

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[jukk0u]

"We protect the American people and uphold the Constitution..."

[NWGunner]

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Last edited by NWGunner on Sat May 06, 2023 5:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[ViniVidivici]

That actually sounds damn good, TW. Would be a good camping breakfast too.

Be advised alot of protein powders contain Acesulfame Potassium, and/or Aspartame, both known carcinogens, as well as Maltodextrin, a filler, not too useful for the body.

Those are some of the main reasons I quit protein powders all together, just using good old-fashioned meat, eggs, and milk.

There ARE powders out there that lack those 3, but they're hard to come by.

[jukk0u]

I get an unflavored pea protein powder. None of that stuff in it, but... it can add a chalky texture so you have to play with ingredients which will mask that if you find it distasteful. Gotta watch sodium content in the powders too.

I just had to switch brands 'cuz the stuff I was getting for the last 45+ years changed their ownership and ingredients to include sugars. I ofter/regularly made drinks with it using banana to mask the flavor and texture, but they have a tone of sugar in them... so. Good in chilis or red pasta sauces. Nothing you could get in a bag unless you use powdered ingredients.

Milk, a raw egg, a banana, pea-powder, and some brewers yeast and you'll feel full until lunch.

[jukk0u]

How about salad in a jar?