Meals Ready to Eat

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When I was in the US Army basic combat training program, unlike most of the other soldiers, I simply loved the taste of the MREs that were supplied to us, to the point of choosing it over lunch inside. Is this weird? I've seen all sorts of movies where the characters complain about it tasting disgusting, but I always found it delicious. The only thing I had to complain about was the lack of calories, cause I was always super hungry.

Comments?

i don't think it's weird. at least, no complaining about stuff like taste when that was the only thing you had to eat. did you have a favorite?

[moved from off the wall to random discussion]

Funny you should mention MREs; one of my classmates in my Psychology class is a veteran and brought in some of them from his tour of duty. I really liked the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

I've always wanted to try an MRE. The idea that you have an entire meal in a bag with a built-in heating mechanism just seems awesome to me.

Hey guys, thanks for the responses.

Kiprobalhato

As a matter of fact, my favorites were Beef Brisket, Chili with Beans, and Chicken Fajita. And also, the point is, sometimes there was other food available, but I would choose these over a cooked meal.

mr_bigmouth_502

I know, right? Apparently, you can make an explosive reaction by putting the little Tobasco bottle in the heater bag with a little water. That was a fun afternoon, until the DS caught us.

Is it true that some guys out on night patrol will take the instant coffee packets and eat them straight so they can stay awake?

I don't get the hate for MRE's, then again I'm not enlisted in the military. I do remember having these for a science experiment in high school. I believe the subject was chemical reactions, which is fitting considering how MRE work.

I like MREs, especially the "BBQ Pork & Rice" entree. I used to pay people a dollar each for the dried fruit. Then I'd throw about dozen of them into a bucket with a slice of bread, fill the bucket half-way with water, cover it, and have some pretty potent hooch ready in about two weeks.

Then I'd sell it for ten dollars a cup - twenty to fill a canteen ...

I thought they were tasty but totally unsatisfying of my ravenous hunger at the time.

The ravioli meal was highly coveted when I was in boot camp. People were actually bartering for it. My favorite was teriyaki.

showing my age, I found gustatory value in C and K rations as well

What are those?

K-rations were invented by physiologist ancel keys [he of the Mediterranean diet, hence the K in the name], more here-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K-ration
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-ration
C rations were more luxurious, more caloric, the K rations were 3200 calorie per day subsistence meals meant to serve in a pinch but there were many situations where soldiers were forced to subsist on them for far longer, resulting in malnutrition. my dad had boxes of both that we would eat when the power went out.