Reviews > Food > Packaged Meals > Fantastic Foods > Owner Review by Thomas Vickers

Fantastic Foods Owner Review:
Instant Black Beans
Spinach Parmesan Hummus
Tabouli

September 13, 2005

Thomas Vickers
37 years old
Male
5 ft 11 in tall (1.8 m)
175 lb  (79 kg)
redroach@pobox.com
Southeast Texas, Houston Area

Tester Background:
I grew up in the piney woods of southeast Texas. Camping was a quick trip into the mosquito-infested woods behind the house. My style has evolved and over the last 4 or 5 years, I have begun to take a lighter weight approach to hiking gear (I still use sleeping bags and tents, just lighter versions). While I have flirted with lightweight hiking, I feel that I am more of a mid-weight hiker now. My philosophy is one of comfort, while carrying the lightest load possible.

Specifications from Manufacturer:

Testing Locations and Conditions:

South East and Central Texas:
Temperatures between 40 F and  95 F (7 C to 35 C).

North/Central California: 
This includes altitudes from 9,000 to 13,000  feet (2,700 to 3,200 meters) and temperatures between 35 F and 75 F (2 C and 24 C).

Activities:
· Day hikes and weekend trips
· Long hiking trips (5+ days)

Lunch, the easiest meal of the day:
Over the years I have grown dissatisfied with eating cheese and tortillas for lunch. It got old and I just can't take it anymore.  Last winter I went looking for easy to prepare, no cook lunches that could be enjoyed on the trail.  After several trips to different markets, I found the Fantastic Foods brand.  After a quick read I found that they called for boiling or hot water to make, so I bought the three meals that sounded best to me and decided to try them.  My goal was simple; divide each box of food into a single person serving in a resealable plastic bag, add water (as per the directions on the box) and see if it was edible within a few hours with no cooking or heating of water.  My experiments proved that the meals could be made this way and be ready by lunchtime.  These first experiments mainly took place on my day hikes.   Once I felt I was successful with this taste and preparation test, it was off on serious trips of two or more days with these foods.  All I can say is that I love these meals.  Each section below describes how I pre-trip prepped each meal, how large my portions are, and how I prepared each meal on the trail.  One last note on this food; it is not backpacking specific.  I don't think the company planned for them to be used this way, but they sure work well on the trail. 

Instant Black Beans:
This makes one tasty lunch.  Before each trip I divide the dry mix into two bags of approximately 101 g (3.56 oz) weight.  When I am preparing my breakfast for the day, I take one of the bags, add eight fl oz (237 ml) of cold water, and squish it around till the water and beans are well mixed.  Within an hour the black beans are ready to eat, but if I leave them in a spot in my pack that gets direct sun, they are usually warm by the time a few hours pass and lunchtime hits.  They are very tasty and don't require anything extra in the way of spice.  When I want variety I will add a bit of parmesan cheese to the bag, but it really isn't necessary.  The beans can be scooped out of their bag with a spoon and eaten or put on a tortilla and eaten.  Either way they are a tasty, easy to make meals that make lunch on the trail a great experience. Best of all, no boiling water is needed, they prepare quickly, and their trail packaging (resealable quart [0.95 l] sized plastic bag) serves as storage and bowl. 

Spinach Parmesan Hummus:
I love hummus of all sorts, but the Fantastic Brands Spinach Parmesan Hummus is a tasty treat and definitely a garlic lover's dream and that is really my one warning about this meal. If you don't like garlic, you won't like this food.  As with the other Fantastic Brands foods I use for trail lunches, I separate the mix into two helpings of approximately 116 g (4.09 oz) and put each serving into a resealable plastic lunch bag (quart [0.95 l] sized). Despite what the manufacturer preparation instructions, I have prepared this meal two ways.  The first is to add eight fl oz (237 ml) of cold water to the mix and squish it all together in the plastic bag I carry it in.  Within an hour the water is absorbed and the hummus is ready to eat. The second way is to add a small single serve container of olive oil  along with the water (Subway Sandwich Shops carry them). Either way the hummus is great on the trail. It is full of flavor and is easy to eat.  Adding more water makes it a bit less pasty (thinner) and is still a great way to experience this meal.  I have eaten it on tortillas or my favorite way, with Wassa bread, and I imagine there are other ways to get stuffed on hummus.

Tabouli:
I guess I am lucky because I also find good tabouli a great treat. When I first purchased this meal to try out for a no cook lunch, I was prepared for it to be my first failure.   The preparation instructions on the box included extra ingredients that I was not going to have on the trail and I was not sure how it was going to taste without them present.  My first experiment was simple, as usual, I divided the dry mix into two plastic lunch bags with approximately 87 g (3.07 oz) of mix in each bag.  The instructions on the box indicate that the bulgur wheat and spices are supposed to arrive in separate, individual packets, but my experience has always been that they are mixed into one packet by Fantastic Brands and is not something the consumer has to worry about.  In the morning I added five fl oz (148 ml) of cold water, squeezed the bag to mix, and waited for lunchtime. The result was more than tasty, at least to me, but I wasn't done there.  Before my next outing I added two slices of dehydrated tomato (chopped) to bag of mix.  The morning I prepared the meal, I added the same five oz (148 ml) of water, kneaded the bag to mix and when lunchtime came around I once again had a great tabouli lunch.  If I am really feeling fancy I add the dehydrated tomatoes in advance and a single serve pouch of lemon juice along with the water when on the trail.  While this is closer to what the manufacturer instructions call for, I think it is unnecessary for a tasty meal, but it does add a bit of zing to things.  Best of all, I eat the tabouli right out of the bag with a spoon and then the bag goes in the trash sack I carry.

Final thoughts:
These meals are great. They can be prepared with nothing more than cold water and they are ready by lunchtime.  I love the one use storage/preparation container (resealable plastic bag) that I use in conjunction with these meals as well.  It is so easy and convenient to prep my lunch while heating water for breakfast and when everyone else is cutting cheese and looking for sausages, I am sitting and eating a tasty meal.  Best of all they can be purchased in the health food sections of most local supermarkets as well as on the net. They will continue to be my no cook lunches for a long time.  I also have plans to test other Fantastic Brands foods in the near future, so stay tuned for a second report on more products in the line. 

Reviews > Food > Packaged Meals > Fantastic Foods > Owner Review by Thomas Vickers