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Tag: Microwave

  • Two Desserts for the Price of One: MRE Menu 24, Southwest Style Beef and Black Beans

    sealed mre in thick plastic bag

    A few nights ago, I dug into another of my MRE favorites–Menu 24: Southwest Style Beef and Black Beans from the B Case (packed 3/22 with 3/25 inspection date) that I opened recently. The entree has a mild spicy flavor and the beef, beans, corn, and sauce work well together. As I’ve noticed in some recent cases, the tortillas are stuck together. The trick to loosen them up is to heat them with the supplied water-activated heater or microwave them (removed from the pouch, of course) for 10 seconds or so. The reason that I titled this post two desserts for the price of one is that this MRE includes Cherry Blueberry Cobbler and Applesauce Pound Cake. All around, this is a very tasty meal!

    Menu 24 includes clockwise from the upper left:

    • Southwest Style Beef and Black Beans entree pouch
    • Cardboard sleeve
    • Cherry Blueberry Cobbler pouch
    • Applesauce Pound Cake
    • Hot Beverage Bag
    • Water-activated Heater
    • Beverage Base Lemonade
    • Spoon
    • Accessory Pack
    • Cheese Spread
    • Beef Stick
    • Tortilla, Chipotle

    The Accessory Pack included clockwise from the upper left:

    • Bill’s Brew Freeze Dried Coffee
    • Creamer, Nno-Dairy, Dry
    • Sugar
    • Zero Calorie Sweetener
    • Iodized Salt
    • Chewing Gum
    • Moist Towelette
    • TP

    To make my meal, I emptied the Southwest Style Beef and Black Beans into a bowl and microwaved it for 60 seconds.

    Then, I spooned it out onto the chipotle-flavored tortillas and added cheese on top of the beef.

    For dessert, I microwaved the cherry blueberry cobbler for 30 seconds in a bowl.

    I enjoyed the applesauce pound cake as is out of the pouch!

  • Mixing Spaghetti Noodles with MRE Menu 20, Italian Sausage with Pepper and Onions in Marinara Sauce

    brown plastic bag for mre menu 20

    In the waning days of December, I wanted to have spaghetti, but I didn’t have any sauce on-hand to a make it. So, I thought to open one of the Italian-themed MREs in the B Case (packed 3/22 with 3/25 inspection date) that I opened recently to mix with some noodles that I had in the cabinet. Here’s Menu 20: Italian Sausage with Pepper and Onions in Marinara Sauce.

    brown plastic bag for mre menu 20 next to a smaller clear plastic bag with mre food contents

    After opening the outer protective bag, all of the contents are tightly wrapped in a thinner plastic bag.

    individual plastic bags of food and accessories in mre

    The contents of the MRE included the following going clockwise from the upper left:

    • Italian Sausage with Peppers and Onions in Marinara Sauce
    • Cardboard entree info card/sleeve
    • Trail Mix, Recovery with Beef Jerky
    • Spoon
    • Accessory Pack
    • Beverage Base Orange Type III
    • Water-activated heater
    • Hot beverage drink pouch
    • Cheese Spread
    • Crackers
    • Dry Roasted Peanuts
    • Cranberries (Osmotic)
    mre accessory packets of coffee, sugar, tp, and other items

    The accessory pack included these items clockwise from the upper left:

    • Bill’s Brew Freeze Dried Coffee
    • Zero Calorie Sweetner
    • TP
    • Sugar
    • Iodized Salt
    • Chewing Gum
    • Moist Towelette
    • Creamer, Non-Dairy
    box of spaghetti noodles

    For dinner that night, I cooked a small pot of Barilla Whole Grain Spaghetti noodles for 7 minutes.

    bowl of italian sausage in sauce

    Then, I poured out the Italian sausage entree into a large bowl and microwaved it for 60 seconds.

    bowl of italian sausage in sauce with noodles

    And added the cooked noodles and some crushed red pepper to make it spicier (after tasting the sauce first).

    To supplement my meal, I ate the trail mix before thinking to take a picture of it. It was my first time having this particular kind of “recovery” trail mix in an MRE. It contained almonds, beef jerky chunks, and cranberries. It tasted good, but also a little interesting, perhaps due to the mixing of salty and sweet flavors.

    In the field, you can crush up your crackers and add them to the Italian sausage. For that matter, you can add the cheese spread, too. Since I had noodles and I wanted spaghetti, I went that direction instead of using only what was in the MRE. That’s the thing about enjoying MREs–you can mix-and-match them with what you have on-hand and what you find in between different menu pouches.

  • Christmas Breakfast with MRE Menu 17: Pork Sausage Patty, Maple Flavored

    mre plastic bag with contents inside.

    Yesterday, I wanted to enjoy an MRE meal for breakfast, so I dug into Menu 17: Pork Sausage Patty, Maple Flavored. It comes from a B case (menus 13-24) with an inspection date of 3/25 and a good Time and Temperature Indicator (TTI) sticker.

    cardboard case of mres, bound with plastic straps, on floor

    Each case has twelve meals tightly packed in its dense cardboard box. A case weighs about 20 pounds.

    open cardboard case of mres, 6 mres shown.
    12 mres on the floor with their cardboard case in the background

    This case included these menu options:

    • Menu 13: Cheese Tortellini in Tomato Sauce
    • Menu 14: Mexican Style Rice and Bean Bowl
    • Menu 15: Mexican Chicken
    • Menu 16: Chicken Burrito Bowl
    • Menu 17: Pork Sausage Patty, Maple Flavor
    • Menu 18: Beef Ravioli in Mat Sauce
    • Menu 19: Beef Patty, Jalapeno Pepper Jack
    • Menu 20: Italian Sausage with Pepper and Onions in Marinara Sauce
    • Menu 21: Tuna, Chunk, Light Water Packed, Lemon Pepper
    • Menu 22: Beef Goulash
    • Menu 23: Pizza Slice, Pepperoni
    • Menu 24: Southwest Style Beef and Black Beans
    mre plastic bag open with inner bag of contents next to it

    Opening the outer heavy-duty bag, reveals a more tightly packed thin plastic bag containing the MRE’s contents.

    mre contents spread out, an assortment of pouches and bags with different food items inside

    From the upper left to right, this MRE includes:

    • Water-activated heater bag
    • Mountain House Dehydrated Granola with Milk and Blueberries
    • Pork sausage patty
    • Hash brown potatoes with bacon, peppers, and onions
    • Table syrup
    • Entree and side nutrition info card (can be used as insulating sleeve, paper for writing, sending as a postcard–I have done this before, or kindling for fire)
    • Grape flavored carbohydrate electrolyte beverage powder in drinking pouch
    • Hot beverage bag (for coffee)
    • Dry roasted Peanuts
    • Maple muffin top
    • Accessory pack
    • Spoon
    mre accessory kit spread out

    The accessory pack included clockwise from the bottom left: chewing gum, instant coffee, TP, salt, zero calorie sweetener (dextrose and sucralose), sugar, non-dairy creamer, and moist towelette.

    muffin top, pork patty, and hashbrowns on a white ceramic plate with plastic spoon

    For breakfast, I prepared the patty, hash browns, and muffin top using the microwave. I warmed the patty and hash browns for 45 seconds, then added the muffin top, and microwaved for 15 more seconds. In general, I find MREs taste better by combining the individual elements in it. In this case, I would have a spoonful of patty, hash browns, and muffin together, which I thought was quite flavorful and enjoyable. For some folks, adding the syrup would improve the meal, but I don’t need the extra calories. Regardless, I recommend it.

    I saved the granola for breakfast on another day, and I had the peanuts for dessert with cookies at dinner later that night. I’ll save the other parts for consuming or using another day.