Is it still meat

Posted by: mugs

Is it still meat - 06/05/10 04:25 PM

Ok, I find that for me just buying freeze dried food (mountain house, backpaker pantry etc) and taking it has made my backpacking trips and preperation for them a lot more enjoyable. And less on the budget as well (I get a really good deal at WINCO).

But I am predominantly a vegitarian. I will have a burger or a chicken sandwich or something like that when I go out from time to time but for the moost part I try to be a vegitarian.

Now there are not a lot of veggie meals in said selection of freez dried meals so I just get the ones I want (spaghetti with meat sause is my fav) now when reconstituted it tastes and fel just likeit would if I was to cook it at home (to an extent).

But with the process if what it has to go through to become freez dried or what ever does that take out the bad stuff in what meat is (I am a veggie for health purposes) so like is all the fat and bad by products that can cause health issues in meat gone? Am I now just eating a hamburger flavered something that could almost be like TVP? Or is still meat and I am going to take the risk and eal with it? Just curious.
Thanks
Posted by: CamperMom

Re: Is it still meat - 06/05/10 04:56 PM

Mugs-

Try reading the packaging for fat and cholesterol info in the foods you choose. Freeze-drying should not remove these, but there really does not seem to me that there is a lot of meat in most of the Mountain House, etc., meals. Meat-flavored with soy or whatever added seems closer to the packages I've read in the past.

Regards,

CamperMom
Posted by: aimless

Re: Is it still meat - 06/05/10 06:00 PM

To answer your title question, meat that has been freeze dried and reconstituted is still meat. Freeze-drying doesn't remove anything but water, iirc.

However, if you are a vegetarian for health purposes, then small amounts of meat from time to time will not undermine the overall health effects of a vegetarian diet. Moreover, since fats become rancid, most freeze-dried meat will be chosen from among the less-fatty cuts, to help prolong shelf life. Lastly, as others have said, the amounts used are often quite minimal, to save expense.

If you are not religious in your observation of vegetarian diet, I'd say you can inclulde a few "meaty" freeze dried meals in your pack and still keep a clear conscience.
Posted by: Glenn

Re: Is it still meat - 06/05/10 08:37 PM

You might try Enertia brand meals. I'm sitting here surrounded by 16 of them, in 5 varieties (commissary for a Scout trip) and there's not a bit of meat in any of them. I used to prefer Mountain House, and I've now switched to Enertia - they're better flavor, and just as easy to prepare. (I'm not a vegetarian; I just prefer the taste.)
Posted by: mugs

Re: Is it still meat - 06/05/10 10:02 PM

Thanks for the replies thus far. To carify a few things. fat and cholesterol are not the only reasons I "do not eat meat" ther are so many other "bad" things about them. BUt I just can't help myself. I usd to be a strict vegitarion but that al ended a few years back...long story.

But I am glad to know that very little meat is used in the meat dishes. I will check the packaging next time.

Yes my religon plays into what I eat. Basically no pork pruducts, no fish with out scales and fins...that sort of thing.

I would have to buy ten packets of one meal of intertia food to fill me up. There porportions are super small, I find. But I will agree they seem to be more natural and taste better. Mountain House is about the only thing I can buy because of how less expensive it is at WINCO. I still have to augment other things with it though but that is a given in any meal situation.
Posted by: BrianLe

Re: Is it still meat - 06/05/10 10:38 PM

Mary Janes Farms is another brand to consider with mostly (or all?) vegetarian options. If in fact you want to go with expensive hiking meals.

I tend to go vegetarian for main meals now purely out of a combination of laziness and availability --- a Lipton Side (now "Knorr" brand) with TVP added for protein is a fine alternative to a much more expensive, and much harder to find Mountain House or the like. Or Idahoan brand potatoes, or just a simple Ramen meal with TVP added (and olive oil added to whatever).
Posted by: OregonMouse

Re: Is it still meat - 06/05/10 11:41 PM

Even if you put your own meals together or dehydrate, you can do vegetarian meals. I generally throw in TVP instead of protein, with plenty of stuff to flavor it (TVP takes on the taste of whatever it's cooked with). For instance, whether at home or on the trail, I use TVP in spaghetti sauce. Lots of Sarbar's recipes can be converted to vegetarian.

You can also cook up and then dehydrate dishes with various kinds of beans, lentils, etc.
Posted by: Jimshaw

Re: Is it still meat - 06/06/10 12:12 AM

Theres always matzah...
and NO it isn't meat cause it doesn't have any blood in it.
Jim
Posted by: mugs

Re: Is it still meat - 06/06/10 12:23 AM

Originally Posted By BrianLe
Mary Janes Farms is another brand to consider

I tend to go vegetarian for main meals now purely out of a combination of laziness and availability --- a Lipton Side (now "Knorr" brand) with TVP added for protein is a fine alternative to a much more expensive, and much harder to find Mountain House or the like. Or Idahoan brand potatoes, or just a simple Ramen meal with TVP added (and olive oil added to whatever).


MaryJanes you have to cook. I just boil water and go.

The after mentioned requires meal planning and preperation...which is the part the that kills my trip and planning for one. Hence the ready made stuff.
Posted by: mugs

Re: Is it still meat - 06/06/10 12:26 AM

Originally Posted By OregonMouse
Even if you put your own meals together or dehydrate, you can do vegetarian meals. I generally throw in TVP instead of protein, with plenty of stuff to flavor it (TVP takes on the taste of whatever it's cooked with). For instance, whether at home or on the trail, I use TVP in spaghetti sauce. Lots of Sarbar's recipes can be converted to vegetarian.

You can also cook up and then dehydrate dishes with various kinds of beans, lentils, etc.


I love Sarbar's stuff and have been a advicate for her methodolgy for a long time now. But again for me I found it too stressfull to deal with. Which is why I took the gues work and planning out of things. Besides it used to cost me 50 bucks in food for a weekend trip now I can get away with about 25 for a weekend trip.
Posted by: CamperMom

Re: Is it still meat - 06/06/10 09:17 AM

Mugs-

STP has a package deal on some freeze-dried foods. If you buy now, there is an extra 20% off of the posted price. You may be able to use a half-package of each, as these are listed a 2-person meals. I'd want to add snacks and/or some protein to the lunches, I suspect. A packet of veggies just wouldn't cut it as a meal, but some TVP and bouillion, for example, could turn a handful of vegetables into soup.

Use the link at this site to help out.

<http://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/,1009V_Backpackers-Pantry-Vegetarian-Gourmet-Meal-Packs-Lightweight-2-Person-3-Day.html>

CM

Posted by: sarbar

Re: Is it still meat - 06/06/10 05:35 PM

Mugs...the Mary Jane ones you shouldn't have to cook, they are add water only and let sit.

Btw! MJ now has 3 meat meals out - with organic beef.
Posted by: CamelMan

Re: Is it still meat - 06/11/10 07:29 PM

I'm a whole-foods vegan for health reasons. I would not eat any product containing meat because of the remaining saturated fats, inferior fat composition, animal protein, and hormones/chemistry. IMHO it's still meat.

(Personally I subsist on instant rice, instant mashed potatoes, and home-dried veggies and lentils. If resupplying at a grocery, I will buy lentils and carry the extra fuel to cook them by the boil-and-soak-and-repeat method. IMO there's no reason to worry about protein on a short trip, and a very-low-fat vegan diet helps with fat loss and clears those arteries, especially combined with exercise.)

But, if ease of preparation is your guiding criterion, keep in mind that eating a bit of meat now and then won't be as bad for you as eating dairy, which has no redeeming nutritional qualities whatsoever (the calcium it contains is excreted because of the increased animal protein). As a disclaimer, I want to add that I am not a dietician, I just play one on message boards ;-)

Regards,
Camel Man
Posted by: finallyME

Re: Is it still meat - 06/15/10 01:55 PM

So, you eat instant rice and mashed potatoes but don't like dairy because it has no redeeming nutritional qualities. Sounds either uniformed, or hypocritical.
Posted by: CamelMan

Re: Is it still meat - 06/15/10 04:01 PM

Originally Posted By finallyME
So, you eat instant rice and mashed potatoes but don't like dairy because it has no redeeming nutritional qualities. Sounds either uniformed, or hypocritical.


My information comes from the USDA's SR22 database, which is available online or through the excellent Java program CRONometer, a free download, which I occasionally use to spot-check my diet. Assuming I'm on the wagon, of course ;-)

Instant brown rice is just parboiled brown rice (I stay away from white rice) and potatoes, though much maligned, are actually an excellent staple, especially if you need complex carbohydrates and aren't interested in consuming fat. They're also an excellent source of potassium. A researcher who developed a "satiety index" (can be googled) also showed that they are the most satisfying food per calorie, making them great for dieters as well. Although I've lost 50 lbs from my high of 240 a couple of years ago (while lowering my cholesterol from 220 to 170), this is a concern for me since i'd like to lose more (and hopefully get my total cholesterol <= 150).

I shouldn't have said "no redeeming nutritional qualities." But, whatever nutrition dairy does contain is better obtained elsewhere because of what comes with the whole package. Not to mention the intuitive absurdity of consuming the milk of another animal.

Maybe we disagree as to what constitutes a good diet? In which case I agree to disagree.

--CamelMan (Peter)
Posted by: Mike1239

Re: Is it still meat - 07/13/10 08:59 PM

I've been thinking about protein for backpacking and I haven't tried it yet but TVP is already dry and easy to hydrate so maybe just eat that. I eat it at home anyway. You Adventist or Jewish? I'm Adventist.

Pepper jack on top of beef tvp is pretty good. Add some garlic of some sort if you have it, or onions.