# Still Tasty After All These Years



## pakrat (Nov 18, 2012)

Ever wonder if the freeze-dried foods you bought six or seven years ago are still good? Well, we’ve wondered for a couple years now, if our aging freeze-dried food stores are going to be edible if we need to survive on them. My wife pulled a package of 7 y/o Mountain House Turkey Tetrazzini off the shelf… the oldest of our MH meals. It was one package of eight or so with the same 2013 date stamp. We opened it and had it for dinner… only way to know, right? We were really happy to find that it reconstituted in just a few minutes and tasted great. There was no indication at all that it had been stored so long.

We store the meals in sealed plastic containers, on shelves, in a dry and cool part of the basement. Our test helped us have a little more confidence that we can rely on those, and other more recently packaged meals… MH and other manufacturers. 

Just thought I’d share the results of our little experiment. And, no, I don’t work for or have any connection what so ever with Mountain House or any other provider of freeze-dried food products.


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## Joe (Nov 1, 2016)

pakrat said:


> Ever wonder if the freeze-dried foods you bought six or seven years ago are still good? Well, we've wondered for a couple years now, if our aging freeze-dried food stores are going to be edible if we need to survive on them. My wife pulled a package of 7 y/o Mountain House Turkey Tetrazzini off the shelf&#8230; the oldest of our MH meals. It was one package of eight or so with the same 2013 date stamp. We opened it and had it for dinner&#8230; only way to know, right? We were really happy to find that it reconstituted in just a few minutes and tasted great. There was no indication at all that it had been stored so long.
> 
> We store the meals in sealed plastic containers, on shelves, in a dry and cool part of the basement. Our test helped us have a little more confidence that we can rely on those, and other more recently packaged meals&#8230; MH and other manufacturers.
> 
> Just thought I'd share the results of our little experiment. And, no, I don't work for or have any connection what so ever with Mountain House or any other provider of freeze-dried food products.


 @pakrat great to hear your storage is working out for you! Thanks for sharing the results of your experiment/experience. Did your wife have you eat first before she tried it? LOL


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## paraquack (Mar 1, 2013)

Thanks for the taste test.


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## Back Pack Hack (Sep 15, 2016)

Kudos for taking one for the team.


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Yesterday the wife was cleaning out the under counter kitchen cabinets and found a box of Orville Rickenbacker microwave popcorn with a Best By date in 2011.
I was going to try it, but then decided it just wasn't worth any potential side effects.


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## MountainGirl (Oct 29, 2017)

rice paddy daddy said:


> Yesterday the wife was cleaning out the under counter kitchen cabinets and found a box of Orville Rickenbacker microwave popcorn with a Best By date in 2011.
> I was going to try it, but then decided it just wasn't worth any potential side effects.


Probably would have been okay; there's no actual food product in it. :vs_laugh:


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

MountainGirl said:


> Probably would have been okay; there's no actual food product in it. :vs_laugh:


i was concerned that the oil might be rancid.
It probably was 6 months after purchase, anyway.


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

Excellent @pakrat

We are all learning how well our preparations are doing!


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## izzy95 (Apr 19, 2020)

That's great to hear!


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

rice paddy daddy said:


> Yesterday the wife was cleaning out the under counter kitchen cabinets and found a box of Orville Rickenbacker microwave popcorn with a Best By date in 2011.
> I was going to try it, but then decided it just wasn't worth any potential side effects.


Good, don't, I did try some that was out of date by 3 years, was rancid.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

If you really want to see some long term testing of stored foods . Try Watching Eat History.


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## Back Pack Hack (Sep 15, 2016)

Smitty901 said:


> If you really want to see some long term testing of stored foods . Try Watching Eat History.


Or watch this guy:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2I6Et1JkidnnbWgJFiMeHA


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Back Pack Hack said:


> Or watch this guy:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2I6Et1JkidnnbWgJFiMeHA


 Eating History they find thing like a 40 year old can of Pringles Regular foods that have some how turned up and old foods made to be stored.


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## Gunn (Jan 1, 2016)

My food storage is called Perma-Pak. It has a 25 year shelf life, It has been 32 years and every once in awhile I pull something out and try it. On News Years Eve I tried Beef TVP, I think. Anyway, it tasted fairly good and no side effects.


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## csi-tech (Apr 13, 2013)

MREs with an older inspection date are fine. I have a case of 2017 inspection dates. The Chicken Tetrazzini was great. The skittles were clumped together but still skittle flavored!


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

This is the Eating History show . What is amazing is some of the products they acquire. Streaming and preview is on the sight If you have the right provider.

https://www.history.com/shows/eating-history


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## Aquilius (Apr 22, 2020)

That's good to know thanks, I am about to sort out some long term food (other than the cans I have already)


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## Prepared One (Nov 5, 2014)

Looking at my stored food items I have plenty of the staples, beans, oats, rice, pasta, etc., but I am wishing now I had invested more in the Mountain House type products. I have 2 or 3 buckets full but that's it. When this passes I will put more emphasis on freeze dried products


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