Mountain House Yellow Curry with Chicken & Rice | Freeze-Dried Backpacking & Camping Food | 2 Servings |Gluten-Free

Great product.

This is fairly new and this was our first time trying this one, but Mountain House is our favorite, by far, prepared foods seller. Never any TVP or fillers. They don't use wads of salt and/or citric acid as cheap "flavor". No preservatives or any other crud. We liked this quite a bit. I'm more of the curry fan than my hubs, but he did like this. It's relatively mild in heat but full of flavor. As well as being a prepper in general, we live in the mountains. Being snowed in, often w/o power, is fairly normal and this is part of our preparation for it. They have a large range of meals, a decent range of sides and breakfasts, and you can't beat a 25+ yr shelf life. I have a love/hate thing going with MH's pouches. Most stuff we buy is #10 cans, but for BOBs and other times, we stick with pouches. They can be a bit deep for normal utensils, so a bit messy to get your hand in, but you can cut the bag down after it's finished 'cooking' and that helps. The corners of the bags can be a pain, to make sure you get the water in everywhere, but the corners are also what allows the bags to stand on their own. That is *very* handy, especially if you're by yourself, to be able to pour w/o having to hold the bag. Don't forget to use the Smile.Amazon.com address - It's an Amazon program where many everyday things you buy will generate a small donation from Amazon to the charity of your choice at no cost to you. Info here: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ref=smi_se_rspo_laas_aas

The Mountain House Yellow Curry with Chicken & Rice is a must-try for any camping enthusiast! This dish is bursting with flavor and truly brings a touch of home-cooked comfort to the great outdoors. Preparation is a cinch—just add hot water and wait a few minutes. The rich, aromatic curry paired with tender chicken and fluffy rice creates a satisfying meal that warms you up after a long day of exploring. With two servings, it’s perfect for sharing with a fellow adventurer or saving some for later. Plus, being gluten-free makes it a great option for those with dietary restrictions. If you’re looking for a delicious and hassle-free meal for your next outdoor adventure, Mountain House Yellow Curry with Chicken & Rice is an excellent choice!

I am an avid wilderness backpacker, hiker, camper, and survival enthusiast. Emergency food or lightweight meals are thus a great part of my life, particularly when they can be stored for 30 or more years. Mountain House makes some of my FAVORITE, freeze-dried food. IN SHORT Like many Mountain House food, this Yellow Curry meal tastes excellent, is easy to prepare, and is packed with calories needed for survival or backpacking. As is true with freeze-dried food, they store for decades and make excellent emergency meals. The biggest downsides are the need for access to hot water and the expense: they are not cheap. Nonetheless, I love Mountain House food for on-the-go eating. WHAT IS FREEZE-DRIED FOOD? Whenever I introduce them to my friends, they immediately think of MRE's -- Meals Ready To Eat -- common with the military. I had my first taste of MRE's over 10 years ago and did not like them. The premise was great though: open the MRE and start eating. No cooking necessary. But they usually did not taste good. Perhaps things have changed, but I had never tried them again since. To preserve food without needing refrigeration, there are multiple options: Dehydrating (think beef jerky), baking, smoking, preserving, canning, etc. PROBLEM with those methods? They all change the way the food will taste. Too salty, too dry, too yucky, etc. Then there are some where the food could get warmed by a chemical reaction that you activate with the package, but those are heavy and difficult to dispose of while out in the wilderness. Freeze drying, on the other hand, is a long process whereby the food has its water removed, maintaining its natural composition and keeping its flavor, vitamins, and nutrients. I will cover what that process is like shortly, but the important part to remember is: the taste remains essentially unchanged AND the meal is much lighter to carry around. Have you heard of "Astronaut food"? NASA popularized freeze-dried food with the introduction of icecream that did not need refrigeration. Note: industrial freeze drying could date back as early as the 1800's, but the idea has been attributed as far back as the Incas of the 13th century. FREEZE DRYING PROCESS How does food get freeze-dried? The cooked meal is first frozen, then placed in a chamber where the atmospheric pressure is less than 1 ATM (lower than the natural pressure we experience at sea). Over the next 18-20 hours, the food is heated at a very low temperature, and because the pressure is less than normal, ice skips becoming a liquid and jumps straight to gas. That gas is then sucked out. It requires a lot of energy -- more than the other forms of preservation. The end result: we are left with food that has no water left, and as such, makes it much lighter to carry and more difficult for any micro organism to spoil. For that reason, freeze dried food can be kept for a minimum of 30 years when stored properly in an air-tight, dry, dark place (and a desiccant to absorb any moisture that might be trickling in). To eat (or drink), simply add back water. Now let's look at this Yellow Curry meal. PROS - Great taste and texture as if the meal was (somewhat) freshly made - Easy to prepare: just add hot water, wait up to 10 minutes, then eat straight from the pouch - Long shelf life of over 30 years - Light to carry - Eaten meal leaves only the pouch behind that you can easily carry back to civilization for proper disposal/recycling - Excellent item to have for survival/emergency use - Packs a LOT of calories, enough for 2 people - Gluten free CONS - Packs a LOT of calories and can be too much for a single person - Contains a LOT of salt (63% of daily value at 1,460 mg) --- When backpacking in the wilderness or when surviving, this is not an issue. Salt is actually good for you when working out hard - Needs access to water and fire (to boil it) - Relatively expensive SUMMARY Freeze-dried food is an EXCELLENT way to bring delicious meals on the go for camping, hiking, survival, or office snack. Packed full of calories, they are excellent for those types of activities (maybe not as an office snack if you are watching your weight or blood sugar level). They are long-lasting, easy to store, easy to prepare, and easy to dispose of. Environmentally, they may not be the best option as they take a lot of energy to make, and thus are also relatively costly. This Yellow Curry meal tastes great. OUR MOUNTAIN HOUSE RECOMMENDATIONS My friends and I have been backpacking for a long time and have tried many packable meals and brands. When it comes to freeze-dried food, Mountain House is unanimously our favorite. TIP: adding olive oil can further enhance the flavor! TASTY - Noodles and Chicken - Pasta with Meat Sauce - Chicken with Ribs and Mashed Potatoes (by far our most favorite) --- Tip: Save the mashed potatoes for breakfast or incorporate into another meal. Then add water to the chicken for a delicious pouch of chicken soup. - Chicken a la King - Mac and Cheese (Kraft is cheaper) - Chili Mac with Beef - Beef Stroganoff - Pasta Primavera - Beef Teriyaki with Rice - Chicken Teriyaki with Rice - Chicken Stew --- Contains cubes of potatoes, making this meal quite filling - Lasagna with Meat Sauce - Wheat and Wild Rice - Scrambled Eggs with Bacon - Granola with Milk & Blueberries - Neapolitan Icecream ACCEPTABLE - Lasagna with Meat Sauce - Mexican Style Rice and Beans and Chicken - Spaghetti with Meat Sauce (portion is skimpy)

My favorite of Mountain House meals so far, has a kick of spice but not too much and cooks up perfectly. I use just a little extra water than the directions say.

Amazing taste and this makes traveling with my gluten free daughter so much easier! My entire family loves this meal.

I purchased this one 4 years ago. The amount of protein at the time was 16 grams, so I added 1 small can of chicken in the bag before reconstituting. I added 2 cups of water that I double boiled piping hot, stirred really well, and kept it in my internal coat pocket for 15 minutes, instead of the recommended time. The water was enough to just about cover all the ingredients in the bag in case you don’t have a way to measure. It turns out it was the perfect amount of water and the perfect amount of time. My coat kept the food warm while reconstituting and the food kept me warm from the freezing cold. The food tasted amazing, after 4 years in storage. Not quite restaurant quality because the chicken was cut into small cubes, but it tasted like restaurant food, reheated the next day. To have this good of a dish on the trail was a treat!

I am very happy with the brand and have used it for many years. I love the flavor of this package. I use these in cooler weather on long motorcycle rides. Also for camping and back packing and have found them to be very useful even traveling in hotels