Choices, choices..

First Strike Rations @ £19.99 - 1.3kg 2900 Kcal

Review - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHN5Et2PuUI



French RCIR Ration @ £12:99 - 1.5Kg - 3200 Kcal

Review part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7bQeHlQdMk
Review Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPv-_2q3NaY

Hmm.. I think I know which one.

Rabbit pate beats zapplesauce: Vive la France.

I've had goose but never tried rabbit.

Jeanette Isabelle

Sight unseen, I'll go with French rations every time.

I've had dinner in a French buffet style messhall in Djibouti and I've eaten in France from the Mediterranean to the English Channel and it was all good -- great food. I can't say the same about British food.

It certainly looks delicious and the French know cuisine, but the ration is rather heavy and somewhat expensive. How would these meals stack up against civilian offerings like "Compleats," super market-available precooked meals that only require heating, if that. The packaging for these offerings is not nearly as sturdy, but should be adequate for short term use

Where would you get one?.

Man, those are some very fish-centric rats. Salmon, salmon, salmon! And some tuna fish to wash down the...salmon!

British food is pretty poor, cheap ingredient, high prices, much of the good stuff exported to France and a population who generally know nothing about food and with far too many global fast food restaurants. The British Army Multiclimate Rations are generally quite good now but too sweet and sugary. I Don't care much for the all day breakfast either.



The French RCIR is only 200gm heavier for an extra 300 Kcal over the US First Strike Rations, which I find surprising and compares very well to even 2 MREs for weight saving and nutrition despite using conventional canning. Super market choices would be a good option but I would stick with a combination of canned meals and uncooked rice and pasta. Shelf life would be much greater than plastic container supermarket precooked meals i.e.

http://www.grantsfoods.com/category/products/gourmet-range/

Typically this would give a 1000 Kcal per meal when accompanying instant mash potato, rice or pasta for weight of around 500-600 grams



I can get them at this website in UK. US sources will probably be difficult and very expensive just as a US MRE is Very Expensive in the UK.

http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/shop/s...ck-1082687.html



I am going to swap out some of the canned fish from some of the French RCIR with some French Pate.

I'm guessing any fishy MRE is best avoided.

I was a little disappointed at the FSR rats though, consisting mainly of Bridgford sandwiches. I suspect these would get old very quickly if consumed for more than a couple of days at a time. The list of ingredients of the Bridgford products is way way to long as well.

I am also looking for a UK source for some 250ml cans of a decent Cabernet Sauvignon. http://www.wineinacan.com/

I bought some FSR-like rations from a private assembler / seller on the mreinfo.com forums, and I've been very pleased with them, especially compared to the MREs I've had. I haven't tried French or British military rations.

" looking for a UK source for some 250ml cans of a decent Cabernet Sauvignon"
I would need several of those before I tackled a can of haggis.
YMMV

The First Strike stuff is sorta like something you'd get out of a vending machine. That's probably right in line with the tastes of most of the folks that will be eating it.

How to make Homemade Haggis, a cheap and cost effective meal.

A trip down to the butcher today and you too could be eating haggis this evening.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVJQsdyl9eE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSfaJTlMUSM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCyuLyZOyJo

Why would you eat that!...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mallVNe8i2s

Am Fear Liath Mor wrote

> British food is pretty poor<

I spy a feeble excuse for some gratuitous humour.

http://www.michellehenry.fr/European.jpg

based on personal experience I'd say the cliche of the british, irish (that's me), finns, belgiums and danes is correct.
Dunno where the 'a german joke is no laughing matter' idea came from. They are a fun bunch.

qjs

Haggis are an endangered species and should be left alone!

qjs

I've had haggis just once - served in a restaurant in Contin. It was delicious! Much better than the stuff at McDonald's in Edinburgh....

The French RCIRs were ordered and were delivered a few days ago, so time for a quick partial review.

The location for the test; Bodin Point for some fishing yesterday.





Menu 3 HALAL Chili Con Carne, Pasta and Salmon Salad, Tuna Fish Pate, Soup, Biscuits, coffee, chocolate and caramels, nougat and fruit jelly, powder drink, chocolate bar, jam, tissues, reheating kit and water puri tablets.

Some items are missing though, the Fruit Jelly and Chocolate bar was eaten the previous night and they were excellent for sweets. The Chocolate bar was a 64% cocoa content so not milk chocolate. The Powder drink was ditched as was a source of phenylalanine (artificial sweetener)



Tuna pate and Biscuits. The Tuna Pate was excellent, the biscuits were not particularly seasoned. Some MacVita Wholewheat Crackers or Stockans Oatcakes from the Supermarket would be preferred.



Salmon Pasta. It doesn't get better for Military food. Big tasty chunks of quality Salmon and tender Fusilli pasta. Keep the tin you may need it later for the potato and leek soup. A nice glass of wine would have been preferred over the Lager Beer. Each can is 300 grams net - gross 328 grams so each can weighs around 28 grams compared to a flexible foil pouch at 15 grams.



Hot Beverage pack, Hot Chocolate and two black teas and two Coffee sachets.



Prunes to keep you regular with your digestive system. This might be useful as apposed to the US MREs with its weight saving toilet tissue specification.

I'm pretty sure the rest is of a high quality. The main canned main means are excellent and the hexamine tabs and stove allow you to make a hot cup of tea and coffee. Certainly an advantage over chemical heater bags.

Overall, a well thought out Military ration, even field stripping would allow all the main meals to be stacked efficiently for storage in a backpack side pouch. Excellent quality food for the price available in the UK. To bump the RCIR ration from 3200 to 4000+ Kcal (British 24hr MCR) would be easy with a couple of MET RX protein bars.

I have eaten several French RCIRs as well as several FSRs. If weight isn't an issue, I do like the RCIRs. The food is rather tastey and there is a lot of variety there. Plus the Esbit stove is a nice touch. I often put an unused one in my pack for emergency uses. I also love the biscuit sweet with a cup of coffee.

As for the FSR, it is light and is meant to be eaten with no real preperation. So, on a rainy day, it is usually easy to just grab one of the sandwiches. It does get "old" if that is all you are eating tho. This type of ration is also specified to not be eaten for any extended period of time.

So, there is really a place for both types, depending on what you want from them. A hot meal with variety, but heavier weight, or a light / convenient meal. I often supplement the FSRs with a Flameless Ration Heater and a hot beverage bag in order to have a quick cup of coffee.

I was in the Arbroath cages yesterday, the Esbit stove worked well with RCIR main entrées, it was a bright sunny blue sky day.

Bridgford Sandwiches and some Chemical heater bags might be more useful when fishing on a more blustery Winters day when trying to reel in a Cod.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXMNVtw-pDA

The image of a nation can change over time. Prior to WWI, we French were known for being hellbent for leather.

Jeanette Isabelle

I picked up a Trekmates Flameless cook flask for about $8 on sale last week. It should be handy for the occasional hot cup of hot chocolate/Soup etc in very difficult conditions. Flameless high heat packs still cost around a buck a piece though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPt35oJ5-kk

Remember, allied rats are usually for a full day, an MRE is one meal.

And it's a pretty poor grunt who doesn't carry hot sauce, garlic powder, onion flakes, pepper, salt, lemonade mix and some ramen to add to the meals. Oh, and packets of Italian dressing for the vinegar, which rumor says keeps mosquitoes and chiggers away.

Unfortunately you need 3 MREs to be equivalent to 1 French RCIR or British 24hr MCRs. MREs are available in the UK but the cost is ridiculously expensive (around $20 each). Typically the cost of 1 MRE is the same as 1 French RCIR or British MCR. The FSR for some reason appears to be similarly priced to US sources. i.e. around $30 a piece.

I have around another 12 RCIRs which is equivalent to around 36 MREs i.e. 3 cases of MREs. They are very tasty with at least another 3 years Best Before Date. I may actually purchase some more considering the quality of the rations (they can actually be considered good enough for everyday consumption) and what is currently going on in the world.

MREs are a mixed bag. Some are reasonably tasty, some are nauseating. Avoid the egg dishes!