The Backpacking Kit - 18Ct Premium Lightweight Meals in 1 Cup Resealable Pouches by Harmony House Foods, Single Set White

My wife uses this when camping and these are fantastic.

This product is excellent. I first saw it hiking the Application Trail going thru Franklin, North Carolina at a Hiking Hostel. While I didn't buy it then, after dehydrated my own veggies and fruits, I thought for this year's hike I would try this out. My wife was shocked at the amount and variety of commonly used kitchen items in this box. I had to get her to pledge a "hands off" while I was out hiking so these products would make it me in bounce boxes via USPS. This box comes with recipes and you can make your own meals. I soak them in my cup for a while before boiling water. I then put the veggies into a Ziploc Freezer bag with the boiling water and wait 10-minutes. They are acceptably reconstituted. I made a square ziploc cozie out of an old window shade and 100-mile-an-hour tape to fit the bags. This allows me to stand up the bags and have some insulation for both reheating once the water is inside and to hold it without getting burned. I would highly recommend Harmony House Foods for backpacking, camping or home use. Make your own recipies. I bought number 10 cans of freeze dried beef and chicken (avail on Amazon), and make my meals. I put everything in the freezer until needed for hiking and then mail out 10-days before arrival at a destination. Best thing to do is put it in a Freezer Ziploc, and the Vaccum Seal it with the heavy duty plastic to get a good seal. Also put little packets for freshness like you find in other commercially available foods like beef jerkies, freeze dried meals, etc. Happy Trails

Overall, I rate this backpacking kit with 4 stars because there are a few veggies that take a very long time to hydrate. The peas would be a good example. The green beans don't seem to get too soft either. But overall everything taste fine in soup or whatever you're making. I definitely agree with the other reviewer who said the cabbage taste great alone. Actually, the cabbage is so good I plan to purchase a gallon size container of it from harmony house's website. I purchased the sample kit so I would know what I could order in larger quantities later on. As of right now, I love the cabbage, mixed peppers, carrots, celery, onions, northern beans, and tomatoes the best, and will order all of these in larger containers next time. The most simpliest way to use these samples is by adding any of them to chicken or beef broth or even use bouillon cubes, and that's all you really need. Taste just fine. And I make my own salad dressing so I take the onions and mixed peppers and hydrate them in oil, vinegar, water and seasoning, and it makes some really tasty salad dressing.UPDATE: During the holidays, I travelled via plane to several cities and I included some of these veggie packets in my carry-on. I ended up staying in a hotel that had a small kitchenette and making soup was a breeze using these dehydrated veggies. I'm on my way on another trip and I already have a few of these stashed in my carry-on. If you're a backpacker or not, these veggies/beans go great with rice. If you carry along some rice in your backpack and a few of these pouches, you can add the rice and red beans in a pot with water and seasonings and simmer and have a great lunch.

I got these because I was tired of buying whole bunches of celery, etc., when we ordinarily only need a little bit. Even when buying canned foods, we'd end up throwing out expired foods, when we just needed smaller amounts on hand for longer term storage to use in soups, casseroles, recipes, etc. For us, this solution is perfect. These are pricey, but for us, no more expensive than driving back and forth to the store, having to purchase more than we can use, then throwing it out.

I bought this package for a 5-night backpacking trip and was extremely pleased with the quality and quantity. I'm a health-conscious foodie and outdoors enthusiast, and I refuse to sacrifice eating delicious, healthy meals just because I'm in the backcountry.The veggies were extremely fragrant and tasted wonderful, my trip mates with their factory-produced, pre-packaged meals were super jealous.I mixed and matched the items in this package (plus some additional outside ingredients as noted) to create the following meals:-Mexican-style bean and veggie blend: black and pinto beans, potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, corn, and onions. (Outside ingredients: corn tortillas, fresh avocados, herbs and spices, and dehydrated egg mix for a tortilla breakfast soup)-Italian white bean and vegetable soup: white beans, green beans, onions, celery, carrots, bell peppers, peas, and cabbage. (Outside ingredients: dry pesto sauce mix packet from Safeway, sun dried tomatoes, herbs & spices.)-Creole red beans and rice: red beans, bell peppers, celery, onion, corn, tomatoes. (Outside ingredients: minute brown rice, herbs & spices)-Deluxe vegetable ramen: cabbage, peas, green beans, carrots. (Outside ingredients: instant ramen package, dried shiitake mushrooms, dried nori, wakame, kombu, and dulse seaweeds)-Indian-style curried veggies and lentils: lentils, carrots, potatoes, green beans, peas. (Outside ingredients: curry powder, minute brown rice.)I really enjoyed mixing and matching the ingredients to make my meal plan for the week and the package included enough for 2 people (breakfasts and dinners, that is) for a 5-night trip like mine. Would definitely order again and recommend to all vegetable loving backpackers.