Canadian IMP - Menu No. 4 - Indian Chicken Breast

[keystone]

This is the second of the two IMPs I received in a trade with Ntfd_3. The review of the first one, Veal Cutlet / Mushroom Sauce, also appears in this section.

My comments about the packaging in the other review holds true here, and I won't repeat it. The meal was very good, but could have been better if I hadn't made a few mistakes. I ate it on a cold day and it was very satisfying. I started the meal with the applesauce as I waited for the entree and bread to heat in the pot of boiling water. The applesauce was about the same as the applesauce in MREs. Next I added boiling water to the cream of mushroom soup mix. I found the soup bland, but it was a little better when I added the packet of black pepper. I added boiling water to the rice and set it aside for the eight minute soaking time.The bread was as described in my other review. It was good but seemed a little stale. This meal came with two packs of honey. The bread with honey on top was quite a treat.

The entree, Indian Chicken, was quite good. There was a lot of thin sauce and I spilled some of it opening the package. The chicken was in a vegetable and curry sauce. I felt the taste needed something more. I tried added some salt from the included packet, but that wasn't quite right. The rice was seasoned with vegetables added, and the taste was good though a little bland. I tried adding some rice to the chicken mixture and I enjoyed that taste.

I reached for my second packet of honey to eat with the bread. As I spread a little on the bread, I noticed that the color of this honey was darker than the first one. When I took a bite of the bread, I had quite a surprise. It was a taste I had first enjoyed on a tropical British isle. Instead of the honey, I had picket up the third packet, and it contained mango chutney. Realizing this was intended for the chicken, I added it to what was left of the chicken envelope. That was the taste the chicken needed. The combination of curry chicken and mango chutney was excellent. I only wish I had discovered the chutney when I had started eating the chicken.

I drank the included peach beverage with my meal. It tasted very, very good. The peach flavor was very apparent. After the meal, I had strawberry pudding for desert. Following the directions, I added cold water to the powder, shook and mixed, and let it sit for the recommended two minutes. I ended up with a good though slightly thin strawberry pudding. I still haven't gotten to the coffee, herbal apricot tea, or chocolate mint.

This was a big and very satisfying meal on a cold day. I thoroughly enjoyed it. My biggest complaint about the meal was the same as with the veal. This is not a very portable item. It was messy to prepare, and required a pot of boiling water to heat. Even if I would have used a FHR to heat it, I would still have needed boiling water to reconstitute the dried rice and dehydrated soup. Holding all the packets upright as they sat with boiling water inside for several minutes would have been most difficult outside of a kitchen. This is not an MRE by any means. MREs are far easier to prepare in the field. The IMP is quite tasty but requires considerable effort to prepare.

This meal was packed by Wornick, who also manufactures MREs. It's too bad these recipes don't find their way into MREs. Perhaps some of these dishes will eventually do so. MREs taste very good, but these are very good too. Perhaps cultural differences will keep the menus separate. Each ration has its strong points, and I am grateful for the opportunity to try some IMPs. Thanks. Ntfd_3. I hope you enjoy the MREs as much as I have enjoyed the IMPs.

[biscuits brown]

that was a really good review! Sometimes you dont need pictures, the words make up for it.