I was working on our truck’s emergency ammo can. The one that has a stove, fuel, utensils, a pot and a couple freeze-dried meals. As I was digging through the meals I noted something….first, the expiration dates were getting closer – this meal had actually “expired” back in March. Oops. And that the packaging had changed since I picked those up. (And it was fine…the meals don’t expire magically on the date stamped on them, as long as the mylar bag is intact.)
Backpacker’s Pantry Fettuccini Alfredo with Chicken.
The version I have is in the older larger mylar bag, where it called for 2 cups boiled water, and served 2 people. Each serving had 270 calories, 6 grams fat, 850 mg sodium, 18 grams protein and 2 grams fiber. The dry weight is 7.5 ounces (212 grams) for the bag, with the half the package being 106 grams.
Unfortunately, I do not remember how much I paid for it – or where I even picked it up. Oh well. But it was after we moved here, so it is 5 years or less of time.
The website says 10 years from manufacture now, but I know I didn’t buy the old version 10 years ago…..apparently I wasn’t checking dates as good as I should.
It currently retails for $12.99. I would view this meal as a 1 person meal however. Price wise it isn’t bad for commercial meals currently.
The newer packaging. It is 2.5 ounces smaller, but has more calories (by 10 that is) and has 4 grams more protein. It dropped the sodium by 240 mg less for the bag as well. That is a good thing. The only huge change I can see is the pasta contains egg now. Overall the ingredient list is the same otherwise. The new version calls for 1.5 cups water. The new packaging is smaller, so less waste.
But beware…the alfredo sauce loves to blow up when you open the package. It poofed on me, and of course I had dark colors on….
It was easy to make: Just add boiling water, stir very well and seal up. Let sit for at least 13 minutes, if at altitude give longer.
Give it a good stir before eating as well. It ensures the sauce and pasta are combined.
Overall I enjoyed this meal. It’s pleasant tasting, not overly saucy (covers the pasta and isn’t pasty). The chicken is in very small pieces, so it rehydrates well. It’s middle of the road pasta – not too rich, not a bowl of sauce, and if kids eat red bell peppers, they will like this one.
It was a pleasant lunch in the outdoors. I enjoyed sampling it, and ate a portion. It wasn’t overly salty tasting either.
My only complaint was it didn’t feel like it had enough chicken in the meal. But for people who like their food to be similar in size or texture, this will work well.
~Sarah
FTC Disclaimer: This product was purchased by us for review.