1977 Beef Hash Food Packet Long Range Patrol Review

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SentientTootsieRoll
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1977 Beef Hash Food Packet Long Range Patrol Review

Post by SentientTootsieRoll » Sat Oct 24, 2020 4:44 pm

Today I decided to dig into another 1977 LRP. This yet another freeze dried meal I haven't had before, Beef Hash packed by Island Supply Corporation.

Here's a look at the front and back of the ration, unopened.
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Here are the contents of the ration laid out on the tray.
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It includes Beef Hash, toilet paper, a spoon and an accessory packet. Let's take a look at what's in the accessory packet.
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Wow, this looks good already! The accessory packet includes cocoa beverage powder, fruit flavored corn flake bar class 1 orange flavor (what a mouthful of a description!) and the other standard components.

Here's what the beef hash looked like in its packaging and prior to adding boiling water.
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While the water was boiling, I decided to prepare a mocha by mixing the coffee, creamer, sugar, and cocoa together. As is often the case with these older rations, the creamer didn't make it.
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And here's the entirety of the ration, ready to eat!
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To begin with, I went for the beef hash while it was hot. It didn't taste much like any corned beef hash I'd had before, not even the MRE from the early 1990s. It simply tasted like shredded beef with potatoes with high sodium content, but with that slightly chemical-like Mountain House flavor some of you may be familiar with. Some the potatoes didn't hydrate quite well and the ones that did were a bit chewy. It smelled and tasted somewhat like the current production Beef Stroganoff meal that Mountain House / Oregon Freeze Dry currently produces. Overall, it wasn't bad but not quite as good as the corned beef hash MRE like I was hoping it would taste like.

The thing that intrigued me the most about this ration was the orange corn flake bar. I've seen pictures of similar desert items in the K-rations from WWII and this is the closest thing I'll probably ever have to a K-ration style food item. (I have a K-ration in my collection but I haven't convinced myself to open it yet.) Additionally, the Van Brode Milling Company was contracted to make similar items for the K rations as well!

When I first bit into it, it felt like eating finely grated rice krispies with granulated sugar and a subtle hint of an artificial orange drink powder like Tang. Realistically, you may be able to recreate something like this by finely crushing up some corn flakes, adding sugar and a bit of tang to it. I might need to experiment with that on a rainy day. And since the ingredients were printed on the wrapping, that gives me somewhere to start.

I think the bar was starting to turn a bit sour but it was edible and tasty enough that I really enjoyed and savored it since it was a rare experience that I likely won't have again, unless I were to open another Beef Hash LRP which I don't want to do. I know some folks like to crush these up and add creamer to it and turn it into a makeshift cereal but I didn't want to spoil the experience it by doing that. I've attached some closeup pictures of the cereal bar to this thread.

The mocha was a great way to finish off this meal. Actually, I finished it off after eating the beef hash and savored the cornflake bar for last. But as I've suggested in multiple reviews, a mocha is hard to go wrong with. ;)
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Tedster
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Re: 1977 Beef Hash Food Packet Long Range Patrol Review

Post by Tedster » Sun Oct 25, 2020 5:12 pm

Those combination knife sharpener/cornflake bars were pretty tasty. Van Brode had the contract for the oatmeal bars in later years, too.

Freeze dried meals definitely benefit from extended rehydration times! 10 minutes is not long enough by any stretch, if they contain beans/potatoes etc. Overnight wouldn't hurt anything.

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Amelieee1
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Re: 1977 Beef Hash Food Packet Long Range Patrol Review

Post by Amelieee1 » Sun Oct 25, 2020 5:23 pm

Tedster wrote:
Sun Oct 25, 2020 5:12 pm
Those combination knife sharpener/cornflake bars were pretty tasty. Van Brode had the contract for the oatmeal bars in later years, too.

Freeze dried meals definitely benefit from extended rehydration times! 10 minutes is not long enough by any stretch, if they contain beans/potatoes etc. Overnight wouldn't hurt anything.
FD beans always suck. Especially the kidney beans. F kidney beans.....
Check out my ORP menu spreadsheet: https://bit.ly/2NqUFRX | I have: | British 24HR Box Rations | French RCIRs | Type I EPA |Danish Rations

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Tedster
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Re: 1977 Beef Hash Food Packet Long Range Patrol Review

Post by Tedster » Tue Oct 27, 2020 2:30 pm

I think they are Pinto beans, actually? Rice and Pasta too benefit from extended soak or rehydration times. Hungry travellers will tolerate some crunchy bits, but. We used to carry a squeeze bottle of margarine, to boost the calories of the entree. Foods to be freeze-dried are prepared very lean to begin with, as fats interfere with the preservation process. It doesn't hurt the taste, as fats are very closely related to "flavor".

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