hmmmm - MREs

I've been hearing good things about the MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) that they've been handing out at FEMA PODs (Points of Distribution), so I went to get me a box yesterday. The POD I went to is in a Mall, and all I had to do was to pull up, pop the trunk, and the team of volunteers automatically deposited a big box of MRES and three bags of ices. The whole process took less than ten seconds. If only the rest of FEMA were so efficient.

Anyway, I was planning on grabbing at most two bags of these MREs for novelty's sake, since I already have power and can buy groceries, but the box they gave me contained twelve. Each bag contains the following: a vacuum-sealed pouch containing the entree, a nutrition bar, two large (3x3) crackers, a pack of jelly, a pack of peanut butter, a napkin, a spoon, a packet of coffee with condiments, a packet of vitamin water additive, and last but not least, a bag containing a chemical heater.

The MREs were designed for astronauts who're tired of sucking food out of a toothpaste. Since starting a fire to cook your food may not be possible in outer space, the NASA engineers developed a chemical water heater. What you do is put the pouch containing the main course into the pouch containing the heater, then add about two tablespoons of water into the second pouch. The water will heat up almost instantly so you have to fold the top half of the bag over the food pouch, then lean the heater pouch at 30 degrees angle on a rock or something like that. In five minutes your food will be ready to eat.

I was hoping that I can get a mixture of different flavors, but all I can find in my box are Beef Pot Roasts. In terms of taste it's about the same as what you would find in an 8 oz can of Campbell Soup of the same flavor.