The Wal-Mart MRE discussion reminded me of a question I've been wanting to ask...

What standard grocery store packaged food products would be best to stock up on for an emergency pantry?

My criteria would probably be low-cost, long shelf-life, and a minimum of preparation. "Real" survival food seems pretty pricey to me.

From my poor student days, I know it's cheap to stock up on ramen noodles and chicken noodle soup. I suspect the ramen noodles probably have a poor shelf life. My guess is the soup would do a lot better.

Any suggestions?