Hi Paul810,

Lightweight food means either de-hydrated, freeze dried or very fatty foods (extra calories for same weight).

Lightweight food may also require additional cooking time, preparation and utensil cleaning. This means you may have to carry additional equipment and fuel to offset the weight savings you have made from carrying lightweight food in the first place.

Lightweight food is essentially only lightweight because the water content of the food has been removed. Therefore carrying lightweight food in hot arid desert conditions for example doesn't really make any sense.

I Generally just use British Army 24hr Operational Ration Packs (can source them very cheaply for about £5) but will supplement them with retort pouch Gourmet meals from

http://www.lookwhatwefound.co.uk/store/i...k7dh4dn7e3tu4i3

The West Highland Venison Sausages with Maris Piper Potatoes in a Ruby Port & Redcurrant Sauce is my favourite. And best of all there is no washing up to do!

There are lots of lightweight meals and food, which can be had from the local supermarket if you are not to bothered about cooking preparation rather than just the re-heating and re-hydrating process. The supermarkets are full of instant sauces and accompaniments to pasta, rice, meat, fish etc

e.g. http://www.schwartz.co.uk/productdetail.cfm?id=5044 excellent accompaniment to a freshly caught wild salmon or brown trout.

An example a very lightweight and very low cost meal which requires little preparation and cooking time would be Stovies.

Ingredients

1 Pkt of Smash instant mashed potato.
1 Tin of Corned beef.
1 Pkt Paxo Sage and Onion stuffing mix.
with Butter (or Gee) salt and pepper to taste.

Other meals can be based around Couscous (Much more preferable to noodles).

Example - Whole grain Wild Mushroom, Garlic & Herb Couscous Salad can be made almost purely from de-hydrated ingredients from the local gourmet and health food shops.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/mushroomandherbcousc_84770.shtml

And yes you can even even get individual Gin and Tonics in a lighweight aluminium beverage can. Just don't forget the slice of lemon. wink
(which also helps with cleaning your cooking pots and pans as well)

Here you can an example of the modern British polar Arctic explorer with Gin and Tonic in hand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au3lPNc-lGU&feature=related


And not all fruit cake is created the same, home made Dundee cake is hard to beat.

http://www.rampantscotland.com/recipes/blrecipe_dundee.htm

McVities Chocolate Digestive biscuits are pretty much unsurpassable when consumed with a big hot cup of tea.