Re: [Paddlewise] dehydrating food for long trips

From: Ari Saarto <asaarto_at_lpt.fi>
Date: Mon, 20 Apr 1998 16:04:27 +0000
Ari  wrote:

> >Very healthy, light to 
> >carry & take with you.  It takes some 10 minutes to "rehydrrate" the 
> >food in boiling water, before actual cooking.  
> 
& Doug wrote:

> I prefer a longer soak of an hour or more in a sun-warmed container. One
> problem with improperly re-hydrated food (aside from the unappealing chewy
> texture) is the resultant incredibly smelly farts. If you're sharing a
> small tent, this can make for a disasturous evening.

Oh - this might mean the end of my relationship with Rita...

Well, seriously: since the power-food I made during the long trip 
last summer (rice and dried soup-powder added to the boiling water, 
looked like a colourful porridge..) nothing can break our 
relationship!  We had to leave the tent door QUITE OPEN sometimes 
during the nighttime... especially after I did add the Mexican soup 
to the boiling rice  ;-)  We went merrily farting along the southern 
coast of Finland...

Once we didnīt have possibilities to wash ourselves, it took four 
days to find fresh water...there was too much algae in the water.

It seems that the most advisable way to rehydrate the food is to soak 
it at least two hours!  [Check the hilarious methane dicussion 
between Doctors Inverbon and Pharr Horissons...]
 
> Have you ever eaten dried bananas? An interesting snack, but no way could
> you confuse it with the real thing. I've found that buying quality dried
> fruit is better than I can make it. DOing beef jerky, on the other hand, is
> *always* better if you do it yourself.

I think it would be even very dangerous to eat dried bananas - but to 
have dried-something to add in your soup or risotto which does not 
take very much space might make things very nice...like carrots, 
zucchini, eggplant, peas, beans, or shrimps.  Since Rita has spent 
her childhood at  the countryside, she is very familiar with various 
species of fungi.

> I wouldn't be throwing out the cans too quickly. If you spend a lot of time
> eating a lot of poorly dried food, you could probably work out the kinks in
> the system. Depends on how much free time and desire you have. On my last
> week long trip, I was drooling over the fresh cabbage salad that another
> member of our party was enjoying every evening. I'll never do a long trip
> without a cabbage again!
> 

Yup.  You can get odd addictions sometimes :-)

The reason why I am interested about dehydrating  food is that I am 
planning two long trips for the next summer:  paddling the whole 
southern coast of Finland.  That means one trip with Rita along the 
coast to west of Helsinki, to the most south-west part of the 
peninsula and back (some 220 miles). Then to the Russian border and 
back, solo (maybe 280 miles).

I am familiar with the places and have found last summer some 6 
village shops along the coastline - but I am not willing to go near 
the coast, except in an emergency situation, or if the weather turns  
bad because of the southern winds. [Fortunately, not very many long 
crossings, so I am able to keep myself relatively safe in the midst 
of the coastal islands] 

The water routes near the coast are filled with all kinds of boats - 
not to mention all kinds of people...

Cheers,

Ari Saarto

"Home of the Famous & Traditional Scandinavian Skinny-dipping [TM]"
Finland - Europe
GSM +358 - 50 - 526 5892
fax. +358 - 3 - 828 2815
e-mail: asaarto_at_lpt.fi
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Received on Mon Apr 20 1998 - 06:24:43 PDT

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