2002 Meatloaf with Gravy MRE Review
Posted: Sat Aug 11, 2018 7:06 pm
Here's a 2002 Meatloaf with Gravy MRE I had a few days ago. Let's get right to the pictures!
I really didn't know what to expect given I don't recall eating this one as a kid and I haven't had it in recent times because it's no longer produced. After preparing everything, the meatloaf was the first thing I wanted to try. It tasted just like you'd expect any cafeteria style meatloaf to taste like. It was a bit on the salty side and the meat was very soft. The brown gravy complimented it very well. The mashed potatoes were also salty and had a small hint of butter taste. All that to say I really enjoyed this! I decided to mix the gravy and potatoes and that went very nicely together. The meatloaf and potatoes began to cool off quickly (the FRH did its job, but it took a while to heat it up and it didn't get that hot to began with) so I wanted to finish it before it got cold.
Then I went after the toaster pastry. It was still fine, I just wish I had a way to put it into a toaster at the time. I suppose it would have been wiser to put it into the FRH, but was there really any room left after having both of the retort pouches in there? Not really. But it's such a minute issue that I didn't really care. The Tootsie Rolls held up very well, they were chewy, chocolaty and delicious all at the same time! Can anyone argue with that?
The crackers were just about as standard as you can get. Unfortunately, in the early 1990s or maybe late 1980s, MRE crackers really become generic, boring and bland. Before that, they were commonly baked to perfection and even had salt during first few years of production. The grape jelly really went nice with them and it's an item you can still expect in a new 2018 MRE. I do wish MREs came with apple butter or orange marmalade. That would instantly make up for all the disappointment the crackers have become.
I mixed the cocoa powder with cold water again. As I've said in previous reviews, the cocoa from this time period simply wasn't very good. But when I add cold water, it tastes considerably better. I also just realized that I didn't open the accessory packet in this review. I ordinarily set that aside unless I'm in need of coffee, but I figured it was probably crystallized anyway.
Then I went after the toaster pastry. It was still fine, I just wish I had a way to put it into a toaster at the time. I suppose it would have been wiser to put it into the FRH, but was there really any room left after having both of the retort pouches in there? Not really. But it's such a minute issue that I didn't really care. The Tootsie Rolls held up very well, they were chewy, chocolaty and delicious all at the same time! Can anyone argue with that?
The crackers were just about as standard as you can get. Unfortunately, in the early 1990s or maybe late 1980s, MRE crackers really become generic, boring and bland. Before that, they were commonly baked to perfection and even had salt during first few years of production. The grape jelly really went nice with them and it's an item you can still expect in a new 2018 MRE. I do wish MREs came with apple butter or orange marmalade. That would instantly make up for all the disappointment the crackers have become.
I mixed the cocoa powder with cold water again. As I've said in previous reviews, the cocoa from this time period simply wasn't very good. But when I add cold water, it tastes considerably better. I also just realized that I didn't open the accessory packet in this review. I ordinarily set that aside unless I'm in need of coffee, but I figured it was probably crystallized anyway.
