Reviews > Food > Packaged Meals > Cache Lake Foods > John Burnet > Cache Lake Foods test report

December 14, 2002

A single report on several Cache Lake Foods for BackpackGearTest.org by John Burnet.

Contents

• Product Information
• Field Test
  • Field Conditions
  • Minnesota Minestrone
  • Fryin' Pan Bread
  • Wild Rice Vegetable Soup
  • Cheesy Vegetable Chowder
  • Smoked Turkey Italian Sausage
• Summary and Overall Impression
• Biographical Information
  • Backpacking Background

My thanks to BackpackGearTest.org and Cache Lake Foods for the opportunity to test these products.

Manufacturer's values

Measured values

Packaging

Each item is packed in its own container. The soups and the fry-bread are in sealed plastic bags with a product information label stuck on one side. The sausages are in a cardboard box inside which is a pouch that appears to be vacuum-sealed.

Shipping

The products were shipped UPS Ground in one cardboard box that was just the right size to hold all five. Everything arrived in good condition.

• The Fryin' Pan Bread requires a frying pan (not really a surprise). The directions specify an eight to nine inch pan. Fughidabahdit! Sure, I've got one I use for car and group camping, but I'm not carrying a 24 oz./.68 kg frying pan to cook 8 oz./.23 kg of bread! So I took the larger pot lid/frying pan from my 5-piece GSI Hard Anodized Aluminum Cook set and used it, instead.
• Reading the directions, it seemed I would need something to flip the Fryin' Pan Bread, so I dug out my collapsible spatula from GSI.
• The Cheesy Vegetable Chowder called for a whisk, so I added the small steel one that came in my OR Outdoor Kitchen.

These foods were prepared and eaten on three different trips in North Georgia, all in November. Elevations ranged from just under 3,000'/914 m to just over 4,000'/1,219 m. Distance each day averaged just over four miles/6.4 kilometers. Temperatures ranged from a night-time low below freezing to around 60 F/15.5 C.

All foods were prepared on an MSR Whisperlite stove with stock reflector and windscreen.

Note: In each case below the 'Manufacturer's Directions' are taken directly from the product packaging. No changes have been made and no equivalent units of measure will be supplied.(If it helps 1 cup = 237 ml and 1 quart = 1 liter, in approximate terms.)

• Minnesota Minestrone
• Fryin' Pan Bread
• Wild Rice Vegetable Soup
• Cheesy Vegetable Chowder
• Smoked Turkey Italian Sausage

Manufacturer's Directions

1. Place three and a half (3 1/2) cups of water into 1 1/2-3 quart cooking pot.
2. Empty soup mix into water and stir.
3. Bring water to a boil.
4. Continue to cook soup at a low boil for 20 minutes for chewy rice. For fluffier rice extend the low boil for an additional 5-10 minutes for desired consistency.

Preparation

I didn't follow the directions. I felt the cooking time specified would use too much fuel. Instead, I put the ingredients into a Nalgene bottle with 24 oz./.71 liters of cool water and let it sit for an hour. Then I added the rest of the water and brought the soup to a boil on the stove. I let it boil for five minutes and then put it in a pot cozy to steep for another 15 minutes.

Taste Test

I think my alternate preparation worked out pretty well. The reconstituted ingredients were tender and had a surprising variety of consistencies. I haven't had minestrone before (or at least I don't remember if I have) so I don't know what it is supposed to taste like. I found the Cache Lake foods Minnesota Minestrone to be a spicy Mediterranean flavored soup. I liked it. For those who like cold soups, it might work well as a sort of gazpacho. Served that way, I don't think you would have to heat it at all, if you let it soak for a couple of hours. Just a thought, I didn't actually try it that way.

The Minnesota Minestrone was served in two portions and eaten with some sort of spicy turkey dish that was also supposed to feed two. Between the two dishes I had more food than I could eat. The Minestrone was better than the turkey stuff. I ate all the soup and only most of the turkey. Energy levels were fine. I slept warm and woke feeling ready for the next days hike.

Manufacturer's Directions

1. Empty bread mix into small bowl or pot. Mix dry ingredients thoroughly with a fork.
2. Add 1/2 cup of water and mix well.
3. Place 1 tablespoon of oil or butter in 8"-9" fry pan.
4. Put batter into fry pan. Pat with a fork until batter fills the bottom of pan.
5. Fry bread over medium-high heat until oil sizzles. Decrease heat to medium-low. Fry approximately 3 minutes or until bread rises and top is set. (On open fire, use even heat.)
6. Flip bread over. Fry for approximately 2 minutes or until center is cooked and bottom is golden brown.

Preparation

Well, once again I deviated from the directions. I didn't want to carry my 9"/23 cm frying pan. Although the handle folds up and it claims to be for camping, it's still too heavy to carry hiking. I divided the ingredients in half to accommodate the 6 1/2"/16.5 'frying pan' I did carry. I did this at home since the ingredients needed to be mixed and I wanted to be precise in my split of the ingredients. Each half was put into a zip lock bag.

When the time came to prepare the bread, I added 1/4 cup of water to each bag, kneaded the ingredients in the bag, and cooked the resulting dough according to the directions.

I found it a little challenging to cook the bread without burning it on my Whisperlite stove. If the Whisperlite had labeled settings, there would only be two: Off and Inferno. I've never had good luck simmering or slow cooking anything on that stove. However, repeated flipping and the lowest possible flame made it possible to cook the bread with no more than a warm brown on the top and bottom. No doubt as a result of the high-heat stove, I found that the bread cooked much faster than the directions indicated.

Taste Test

What you have here, is your basic giant biscuit. The bread rises only a little and gets a mildly crunchy (or crisp crispy black if you over cook it) outer surface. The flavor is very 'biscuity'. I really wished I had thought to bring some honey! One batch of bread was prepared and eaten with breakfast. (This was where I missed the honey.) The other was prepared as accompaniment to chili at the evening meal. The bread was a great substitute for crackers with the chili and, because everyone used it to wipe up the last of the chili in their dishes, it made clean-up easier too.

The Fryin' Pan bread provided the nice, full tummy and energy boost one expects from a good carbohydrate. Portion size seemed to be as indicated on the packaging. It was easy, and quick to prepare and was the 'something different' that I frequently find myself wishing for when dining in the woods.

Manufacturer's Directions

1. Place 4 cups of water into 1 1/2-3 quart cooking pot.
2. Empty wild rice packet contents into water.
3. Bring water to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to a low boil. Five to ten minutes after beginning the low boil, add contents of vegetable/broth packet and stir.
5. Continue to cook soup at a low boil for 15 minutes for chewy rice. For fluffier rice extend the low boil for an additional 5-10 minutes or to desired consistency.
6. Serve in large bowls or multiple cupfuls. The soup is best served with a ladle to distribute all the vegetables and rice.

Preparation

I didn't follow the directions. I felt the cooking time specified would use too much fuel. Instead, I put the ingredients into a Nalgene bottle with 24 oz./.71 liters of cool water and let it sit for an hour. Then I added the rest of the water and brought the soup to a boil on the stove. I let it boil for five minutes and then put it in a pot cozy to steep for another 15 minutes.

Taste Test

The soup made a good meal (I ate both portions myself) and seemed to give me as much energy as I would have gotten from any normal dinner on the trail. The rice came out just slightly chewy, but no more so than I would expect from wild rice under any circumstances. When served with another dish, the portions are accurate as described in the packaging. There was ample soup for two. The Wild Rice Vegetable Soup was my meal for the evening. I ate all the vegetables but wound up pouring out some of the broth, there was just too much for me to eat!

Manufacturer's Directions

1. Place three and a half (3 1/2) cups of water into 1 1/2-3 quart cooking pot.
2. Bring water to a boil.
3. Add contents of soup mix packet and blend vigorously with a wire whip or fork.
4. Continue to cook soup at a low boil for 15-20 minutes.
5. If thicker soup is desired continue cooking until desired thickness is reached.

Preparation

Surprise! This time I did follow Cache Lake's directions. The chowder was prepared for lunch during an extended day hike in late November. I believe that the actual boil time was around seventeen minutes.

Taste Test

The Cheesy Vegetable Chowder made a surprisingly thick soup, even for a chowder. Much more so than either of the other two I tested. Interestingly, the aroma owes more to the vegetables than to the cheese. I guess I expected it to smell like Kraft macaroni and cheese or something. The flavor was not very strong. If I were to have this again (and I certainly might) I would add some seasoning to perk up the flavor a bit. The vegetables all reconstituted quite well. Even the potatoes had an almost crisp texture (that's a good thing in my book.) The chowder was split three ways and was part of a larger lunch. The packaging defined the serving size as '2'. Even split three ways the servings were good-sized and quite filling.

I would recommend to Cache Lake foods that they add a line to the directions suggesting that the Chowder be stirred throughout its boil time. Because it is such a thick soup, I had some trouble with the potatoes sticking to the bottom of the pot. Yes, it should have been obvious that I needed to stir it, but when I'm really hungry I'm not always firing on all cylinders and I didn't think of it until it had already happened.

Manufacturer's Directions

Stove Top:

1. Cut open the pouch. Remove one turkey sausage and place in a small saucepan of boiling water.
2. Heat for 5 minutes, or until hot. Serve.
3. Tightly wrap the remaining links in foil or plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. Use within days of opening the pouch.

Preparation

In this instance, I also followed Cache Lake's directions. Except that there were none left to wrap up and I didn't bother to bring a refrigerator. ;-)

Taste Test

I really liked the sausage. I had thought this would be my least favorite of the five foods but instead they are probably at the top of my list. They had a nice spicy flavor that put a little tingle on my tongue and palate without being super hot. The texture was more like a hot dog than a sausage and they were perhaps a little dry compared to your average greasy sausage, but I really enjoyed them. I think the 'dryness' is a result of their being made from turkey and being made to have a long shelf life. Most trail foods seem to have less fat than their at-home counterparts and the other products I have eaten that substituted turkey for other meats have been lower in fat. I ate them with grits and found the three sausages, along with two packs of grits to be filling and to provide more than enough energy to last until lunch. This is the only food where I have an issue with the listed serving size. Who only eats one sausage?

I settled on my cooking style and backcountry kitchen supplies long ago. I carry one aluminum 1-1/2 quart (1-1/2 liter) pot (of ancient but unknown lineage) with lid; two sierra cups, one 8 ounce (237 ml) and one 16 ounce (474 ml); and a spoon. I made a pot cozy form an old ground pad. The pot goes into the cozy, my Whisperlite stove goes into the pot, the big sierra cup sits in the top of the pot, the small sierra cup sits in the larger one, the pot lid goes on top of the small sierra cup and the whole she-bang goes in a stuff sack with my Outdoor Research Outdoor Kitchen. On the trail almost all of my cooking has been done by boiling water. I try really hard not to get the pot dirty. So I use oven bags for soups and things that have to be cooked 'in the pot'.

My hiking style can probably be best described as lightweight but not ultra-light. I have done a few ultra-light trips but the "ultra-light" part was achieved more by carrying a really minimal amount of gear rather than by reducing the weight of the gear.

Most of my trips are two or three days; with a couple of longer trips (five to seven days) each year. When nighttime temps are above 50 degrees F (10 degrees C), I sleep in a Hennessy Expedition hammock (no ground pad). In colder weather I sleep in a small tent (under 5 lbs./ 2.5 kg including ground sheet, et al). Once in a blue moon, I'll wind up in just a bivy sack.

I grew up camping, hunting, and fishing with my family. I started backpacking at 13. In the 26 years since, I have hiked, camped, canoed, rafted, and kayaked the mountains, rivers, seacoasts, and forests of the Southeastern United States, with occasional forays into other parts of the country. I have hiked with friends, with strangers, and alone. I have also been an outdoor leader for several outdoor organizations.

I have used a wide variety of gear under a wide variety of conditions. Although I'm not fanatically ultra-light, I like to keep the weight of the necessities as low as possible--so I can carry extra toys. I'm a catalog junkie. I love gear and gadgets and am intrigued by the function that can be extracted from even the cheapest, most utilitarian item. I take good care of my gear (more Felix than Oscar on the trail) and find that it, in turn, takes good care of me.

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