Meal question

[ekranoplan]

It looks like we'll be munching on cans and dry rations this next few days at the barracks. Some kitchen issues or something... anyway, I have this MRE with me here. Now, it's been some time since I've got it, so do these things go bad or something? Is there some period after which you shouldn't eat it? There's no date on the package or anything... Thanks in advance.

[gaijinsamurai]

It's probably okay. I wouldn't eat any MREs in dark brown packages, but what you have is almost definitely safe.

[ekranoplan]

What's wrong with dark brown packages?

[Robbee]

What's wrong with dark brown packages?

Pre 1995. Check this site out (http://www.mreinfo.com/mres-how-old.html).

(It looks like yours is from somewhere between 1998 & 2003 - yummy!)

[ekranoplan]

Thanks Robbee - looks like mine is 2001, 47th day of the year. woot

[jagermeister]

Its a MRE its going to be bad, i promise.p-)

[ekranoplan]

Its a MRE its going to be bad, i promise.p-)

I know, but after Croatian military CSO's (All-day dry meal) MRE should at least provide variety in my life.

[Canadian Sig]

Its a MRE its going to be bad, i promise.p-)

Still better than an IMP

[jagermeister]

Found some cans of water the other day that were from 1943. I wasnt really all that shocked when it tasted like i was drinking liquid tin.

[zonk]

turkey breast with potatoes is awesome, i love that one, next to the beef stew and the chicken tetrazini

[Robbee]

I guess someone should have warned ekranoplan about MRE farts...oh well, he'lll work it out himself. :|

[M_trace1187]

Still better than an IMP


I was wondering if the IMPs were bad.

[Canadian Sig]

I was wondering if the IMPs were bad.

Some of them are excellent. A few a really bad, but most are alright. I have served with multi-national forces and most other militaries seem to like IMPs. We just get sick of them after a while. They got smart and started including Tabasco in the packs and that helps to keep us happy..lol

[SBL]

Why don't they just, you know, print the date on there?

[D3ath]

Why don't they just, you know, print the date on there?

Because that makes too much sense!!


I can't wait for the next Hurricane...free boxes of MRE's from the NG..lol

[ekranoplan]

I guess someone should have warned ekranoplan about MRE farts...oh well, he'lll work it out himself. :|

Hehehe... I guess I'll have to compare, CSO farts are notorious too. Actually can't wait to use that flameless ration heater.


Why don't they just, you know, print the date on there?On the date issue - check out that link Robbee sent, there's explanation how to check the date.

[gaijinsamurai]

Perhaps they don't print the dates on the packages because they don't want soldiers losing their appetites when they read how old and well-preserved their meal is!

[lt tahoe]

Generally if the meal goes bad, the package swells up. In fact, I've seen them so bad that sometimes you can actually smell the nasty rotten food through the plastic!

[dave81]

I once had an MRE packaged with M&Ms that had some kind of contest going on ("Win a Free Bike!" or some such thing). The contest had ended about a year and a half prior.

PS: Turkey breast is my least favorite of the MRE meats. Human breast is my favorite.

[SBL]

Perhaps they don't print the dates on the packages because they don't want soldiers losing their appetites when they read how old and well-preserved their meal is!


lol. Perhaps.

[gaijinsamurai]

Also, remember to set aside at least an hour to take the MRE dump. Unless you supplement the meal with laxatives, you're going to need it!

[Herrmannek]

Also, remember to set aside at least an hour to take the MRE dump. Unless you supplement the meal with laxatives, you're going to need it!

I've read somewhere that fore some time now all meals rejected by Ethiopians are mixed with ingredients to ease postprocessing... But don't quote me on that.. I never had a pleasure to taste MRE.

[gaijinsamurai]

"postprocessing"-is that what it's called now?

[TacoDelRio]

Yeah, a big ol' hard mudpost maybe.

I think they got rid of my favorite, the hamburger patty one. :-( I always loved those, partly because people gave them away for stupidass jacrumba or whatever the hell that damn Cajun stuff is.

Edit: Jambalaya, not jacrumba.

[HOLLiS]

WOW, and we though 20+ year old C's were bad. I am thinking, C's would have been heaven sent for the MRE crowd.

[Christophe]

WOW, and we though 20+ year old C's were bad. I am thinking, C's would have been heaven sent for the MRE crowd.

About three years ago I tried a Nam-era lurp rat. It looked weird (dried chunky vomit), but the taste wasn´t too bad.

[HOLLiS]

About three years ago I tried a Nam-era lurp rat. It looked weird (dried chunky vomit), but the taste wasn´t too bad.


Freezed dry (Lurrps..sp?) where considered a delicacy. The strangest thing about them, during the monsoons, it was a court martial to eat one. Maybe because technically we where not suppose to consume untreated water and during the monsoon there was no supply issue with water.

[Robbee]

Nobody else is concerned that ekranoplan hasn't come back since eating the MRE? :|

[franjokluz]

if my sources are right, he should be here in 2 days... I hope. if not, call the decontamination crew.

[Herrmannek]

Freezed dry (Lurrps..sp?) where considered a delicacy. The strangest thing about them, during the monsoons, it was a court martial to eat one. Maybe because technically we where not suppose to consume untreated water and during the monsoon there was no supply issue with water.

Explain yourself... Who would court martial you for eating military rations if you had clean water? Or I got something wrong.

[HOLLiS]

Explain yourself... Who would court martial you for eating military rations if you had clean water? Or I got something wrong.


The way word came down was it was a CM offense to eat Lurrps during monsoon time. I never heard of it happening to any one because for Marine Grunts Lurrps were extremely rare to come by. During monsoons, everything was wet, stayed wet, and we just lived in the mud and water. Getting dry was almost impossible at times. It sounded weird to us too.

Also clean water was rare. Probably 90+% of the water we consumed was untreated, some was bomb crater water that was pretty sluggy. The treated water tasted terrible. Guys would comment that the Docs where washing their socks in it.

[ekranoplan]

Nobody else is concerned that ekranoplan hasn't come back since eating the MRE? :|

Here I am.

I'm home for this afternoon, going back this evening. Noble Midas 07 (http://www.jfcnaples.nato.int/organization/CC_MAR_Naples/PressReleases/CC-MAR/pressreleases07/PR_16_07.htm) exercise starts at midnight, local time, so chances are this is going to be a long night. There's limited internet access at the barracks, so no possibility of posting or checking MP.net, that's why I was "gone".

I haven't tried my MRE, the thing with cooked food worked out for this week, but I still have it at the barracks, and will try it first day we are stuck on CSO rations.

I'll be more than happy to send here a comparison between MRE and our CSO.

Cheers

[EsoognomEhT]

Don't they have shelf lives? I think ours are 10 years, and the packaging date is printed on them so you can work it out

[zonk]

yeah they have a 3 year shelf life ut you didnt hear that from me lol. no but seriously their manufacture date is printed on the mre box it comes in so thats why it isnt on the package. i had the pleasure of hauling 50 pallets of expired mre's out of a warehouse on taji(had been there since the shock and awe campaign/initial push ) no one in my shop questioned the mre's we just started eatin them, well they sent medics out to get a sample from one case on each pallet to see if they were bad ...a few days later we get tasked to take them and the 50 other pallets of bottled water to the dump....and burn them....wonder why

150+ degree heat is not good for mre's but i have to admit frozen mre's are great. i had some in kosovo and chicken with noodles and ice is great(due to water rations)

[ekranoplan]

Here are the pics of new Croatian CSO package we got last week.







It is basically the old CSO with extra stuff like dried papaya and pineapple, tea and soup. Rambo cookie package is doubled etc...

After eating my MRE... I must say CSO is much, much tastier than MRE, but it does the job and I went through the day with just one MRE. I especially liked the peanut butter and isotonic drink. Turkey and gravy was OK... with that tabasco dose.

[Nod]

Looks like Christmas :)

[Albatross]

One day while at the range I grabbed an MRE, dark brown. Omelet with ham, opened it, spent 5 minutes puking from the sheer smell of it. The horror......