@shoshannahnz: Have you ever tried dehydrating your own meals? I promise, it’s not very hard and you absolutely can do it. If you can cook a meal you can dehydrate it! You can pick up a dehydrator secondhand on Marketplace, or buy one brand new. I don’t know if it matters what kind you get because I’m pretty sure they all do the same thing. Mine was a birthday present from my Mum over a decade ago and it’s still going strong. I have a @sunbeam_anz. There are SO many different things you can dehydrate, but this is the one I make the most. Have a go experimenting with different meals and see what you like best. Low or no fat is advised as it goes rancid (store high fat dehydrated meals in the freezer). I love this basic recipe because it can be spaghetti bolognese, shepherd’s pie (I just buy dehydrated mashed potato from the supermarket) or my favourite, nachos. For nachos I carry the cheese and corn chips separately and add them when I eat it. So why bother dehydrating your own meals? For an overnight trip it probably doesn’t really matter, but once you’re carrying food for multiple days, weight starts to matter. Dehydrating your own meals is also a great way to save money. Freeze dried meals can easily cost $16- $18 each, whereas you can make a big batch of something at home for a fraction of the price. I do a mixture of bought meals and my own dehydrated meals, and I reuse the Ziploc bags as much as I can. It’s not fancy but it’s cheap, easy and makes carrying food for several days a whole lot lighter. Have you tried dehydrating your own meals? What’s your favourite?

Shoshannah

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Region: NZ

Friday 02 October 2026 04:37:37 GMT