After the basics, I think adding a small pot to your kit is a good idea. Cooking, carrying water and boiling water to drink. And after fire-starting, its easy to carry , but tough to improvise.

Wise counsel. I have a small backpacking cook kit in the car and when hiking I have my dog's titanium drinking cup. Couldn't boil a rabbit it in it but water, sure.

For what size kit are we talking about?

I tend to think that a small pot, or large metal cup, is mandatory gear. In my part of the world, the ability to melt snow and boil water extends my survivability by many days.

The car kits, of course, have a pot that is at least 2 quarts, and preferably a gallon. With a lid, and foodstuffs go inside.

For a personal kit, I have a bunch of pint-capacity Sierra cups kicking around. I'd like to build a kit that fits inside. Clip it onto your belt and go.

this is a subject that has driven me nuts for years.a metal container for the kit that can be used to heat water and cook in.
i have looked around for one that would fit my overboard vests survival kit and the best i could come up with was the Swiss Army canteens cup with a wire bale added.i'll be spending the winter looking for something with a tight fitting lid rather than the foil,duct tape and overlapping zip locks i'm using now



below is the food that go's into that canteen,mostly dry pea soup tabs.



and what it looks like sealed along with the "hurry up" fire making kit that sits on top of it in the zipped up PFD pocket.

I can recommend the stainless steel 16 oz cup that fits on the bottom of a nalgene bottle - less than $10, fold out handles, cooks a cup of soup just fine. Looks like this - http://www.campbound.com/Stainless-Steel-Bottle-Cup.aspx. Whenever I carry a nalgene, I have one of these on the bottom of it.

I've been pretty happy with the REI version of the Ti Snowpeak solo cookset. Light as a feather and fits an Esbit stove or my trangia burner with homemade stand. I throw it in the pack for long dayhikes.

I was reading an article very similar to this over at Woods Monkey. The guy does a Swiss Cateen PSK

Looked very cool, except I dont need 6 of them right now...

I generally carry the SS cup that fits Nalgene bottles. However. I do a lot of boiling water for meals and carry a 3C aluminum kettle, fits my White Box Stove perfectly.

For my cup I use an insulated travel mug that has a French Press with a lid you can drink from. No extra cups needed and coffee every morning

ALWAYS.

If you carry a Nalgene or Guyot, get one of the space saver cups or something larger, even if it is just a coffee can.

If you carry a USGI 1qt, get the cup.

If you carry a kit that is too big for your pocket, but too small to be all of a pack, put it in a mess tin or a coffee can. Or use that to protect things like your camera.

If you carry anything beyond what is in your pockets when you go in the woods, in my opinion it is unexcusable to NOT have a metal cup or pot with you. I can make fire without metal, if I really, really have to. I can make rope. But I can't make a good knife blade nor a metal pot- the cup is one of Raven's Top-15.