If you have acquired some MRE's for emergency food and have not yet tried one, I'd recommend you try it!

I just finished the "chopped steak with mushroom gravy" and was surprised to find that I like it! (Quick tip - the 'crackers' are superb with the grape jelly spread on 'em.)

I got to the hotel late and after checking in didn't feel like going back out to find a restaurant. I had about decided to settle for a bowl of oatmeal (yes, I carry oatmeal packets in my suitcase) when I thought about the MRE's in the trunk.

I've never dealt with one before, so it was a bit of a learning experience figuring out how to make it work. The instructions were pretty decent and everything came off without a major hitch.

Here's a couple suggestions, based on this one experience:

1 - You can eat everything from the packets the food comes in. You will need to rinse or wipe the hot food packet since the gunk from the heat pack gets all over it. It feels a bit more civilized if you have a separate plate, such as your mess tin, to dump the food in and eat. And a sharp knife goes a long way towards making package opening less of an adventure.

2. Make sure you've got some water ready to put into the heat pack. It only takes an ounce or so, but if you've run yourself out you're going to have a cold meal.

3. (I'm going to do this next weekend - ) If your family hasn't eaten an MRE yet, make it a family dinner occasion so that everyone knows how to set up and use these things. It ain't rocket science but in an already stressful situation, the last thing you need is frustration trying to prepare a meal. If everyone knows the drill and knows what to expect, emergency mealtime can be something to look forward to.

One little trick I found about using MREs, if you leave the entree pouch sitting on a picnic table in the sun at Mesa Verde Natl. Park in July it will get plenty hot enough to eat!
gino <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I'm glad this topic came up. I've been eating MRE's on and off for the past 3 1/2 years...only 4 months more to go! There's all kinds of tricks you can do. I'll list a few:

-If yours comes with coffee creamer and sugar: Mix the two in the creamer packet. And enough water to make a paste. Instant icing for your cake, cookie, or brownie.

-If you use your teeth to open the main food packets, the tear is a whole lot cleaner than just ripping it open.

-MRE Crackers can make some good entertainment. Dare or bet somebody to eat both crackers in 2 minutes without any water or help. 9 marines out of 10 can't do it.

-The Classic "MRE Bomb" aka "CS Gas": Take the little tabasco bottle and pour it into the heater. Throw it in somebody's tent or under there camp stool. It'll run em out.

-Contrary to popular belief the two peices of gum are NOT laxitive. They do however contain flouride for your teeth.

-Add more things to the heater bag to warm

-Put the activated heater + food back into the box the food came out of. It gets warmer quicker.

-The MRE bag itself makes for an excellent toilet

-The TP/Napkins in the MRE, do not throw them away. Many uses for it includes (besides TP and napkins): ear plugs, tender, nose plugs, dust filter, shaving knicks, add spit and remove rust, clean up anything.

-The boxes that the food come in can be torn open and provide lots of room for writing

-Cleanse the used foil packets that once contained food and they will now contain water

There's many more uses to this wonderful thing called an MRE. It takes up a lot of pack room but for 1-2 nights it is well worth packing. You're only limited by your imagination.

Now, for that application maybe you can use urine, to save your precious water ??? or better not ?? will this give off bad odors ? or any other unexpected outcome ?

I thought about this too, but I figure if I don't have enough water to spare 1 oz., then I'm probably better off not eating anyway. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Regards, Vince

And in case you hadn't seen it, here's an excellent link with lots of information you might not have known (or simply don't want to). <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

http://www.mreinfo.com/

Opening the main meal on the long edge makes it easier to get at and keeps your fingers out of the food.

Dave

Properly stored, they last one heck of a long time. I keep mine in a closet that rarely if ever gets above 70 degrees F. I have eaten 10 year old main entrees and they were edible and not as bad as you might think. I gave a couple of packs of 10 year old crackers to my Mother-In-Law (no, it was not an attempt to do away with her) - She thought they were excellent and said if I was ever going to toss out the old ones she would gladly take them.
Lastly, if they get so old that you don't like them, my guess is that they will make a well appreciated supply of reserve Pet food.

Do ya really want yer pee that close to yer chow???

Troy

Well, I know at least the old heaters released a lot of hydrogen gas, and that is was a salt reaction. Since, IIRC, all salts are compounds of clorine, adding ammonia might not be such a good idea.

Uh-oh - I feel an experiment coming on ...... <img src="/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

OK, that was not a good idea..... <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

and I didn't take time to translate the necessary volume of water needed, which seems very small.
And as s.o. said, if you don't have enough water for that.... don't eat.

OTOH, I never tried US MREs.
IIRC, the french "rations" I had the opportunity to use some 30 years ago, included a foldable stove and solid fuel (ESBIT like...), to heat the main course.


Anyway, I hope you all have something better for your New Year's eve diner.... <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Ironraven,

Sorry, but the chemist in me has to correct your statements about "all salts contain chlorine" and the stuff about ammonia. Technically, a "salt" is just the ionic reaction product of an acid and a base. This encompasses things from common table salt (sodium chloride) to organic substances like cesium acetate.

As for ammonia, are you thinking that comes from the urine? Actually, the main nitrogen-bearing substance in urine is urea, which won't have any hazardous reactions with the heater.

Third, even if ammonia was present in the urine there would still be no hazardous reactions with hydrogen gas (or chloride ions). Now, if you have chlorate or chlorite ions (chlorine bonded with different amounts of oxygen) present, ammonia will react to release chlorine gas. This often occurs when people mix ammonia and chlorox bleach to try and clean something.

Hey, if we can have technical discussions on EMP and trigonometry, why not chemistry? <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

-Blast (named by fellow chemistry majors after blowing a 10" hole through his dormroom desk)

(sigh) Looks like we're going to let facts get in the way here.

Urine contains no ammonia, unless you are REALLY REALLY seriously sick.

One of the by-products of the digestive systems of the bacteria that feed on urine residues is ammonia - hence the characteristic smell. The urine as it comes out is relatively sterile, and should be perfectly safe to use to spark off the heating pad.

That reminds me of an old survival skill of disinfecting a knifeblade by urinating on it prior to field expedient surgery. Fresh urine was also used to disinfect a wound. I think I got that from a couple Nam POWs. I've never given it a try, nor have I substituted urine for water in my MRE heaters EVER!!!

I've only had one MRE that I detested. It was the cheeseburger meal. What they called a meat patty and the two clunkers of bread were only edible if you grimaced hard while chewing. They can't make enough catsup and tabasco to fix that one. <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Ah, ok. Every salt I've ever been around, not just sodium cloride :P, had clorine in it. *shrugs* Computer major, almost failed chemistry.

As for the ammonia thing, shouldn't post after midnight. :P Getting urine and cleaning products confused.

Now if I could only find a place online that sells MREs (i.e. has them in stock) for a decent price on recently manufactured ones!!

If anyone has a lead, please share.

~thursty

^^^^ Yes, I'd like a line on where to find MRE's as well. I read a site that tells how to tell official US MRE's from those that try to pass as them....but I don't really fancy spending a boatload of cash on ebay for a whole CASE of them!

We *do* now have a local military surplus store, but the selection is a tad 'wanting.' No MRE's whatsoever...but maybe I could ask the ower about getting some in?

If not US Gov't MREs, what others out there would you guys suggest (tastiest, most food, best packing ect?)

Try Long Life Food Depot

I can vouch for them. I purchase all my MREs from them.

Thanks, I'll check 'em out!