Mike's
Corner
Lessons
Learned
Food Review
Recipes
Shelf
Reliance DENVER HOME |
|
In
general, I noticed that eating the fruit directly dry adds to
the flavor in a lot of cases. In particular, the sweetness is
reduced when reconstituting.
|
| Apple Chips |
|
| Apples
Slices |
Great
snack (cheapest of the fruits). Just eat them dry. Can't go
too wrong with dried apples. |
| Apricot |
Good
flavor. I was never a great apricot fan, but I'll eat these
apricot dices. Just eat them dry. Add to THRIVE Quick
Oats , THRIVE
Germade, THRIVE Yogurt, THRIVE 9 Grain Cracked Cereal. |
| Banana Chips |
I probably won't try these. They are deep fried
prior to processing. One of
the founders who is charge of the food items in the THRIVE line
is phasing these out because he feels this item is not up to
the standards of THRIVE. |
Banana Slices - Freeze Dried
|
I sampled these. Taste like bananas.
They are on my list now to buy. |
Blackberries - Freeze Dried
|
Eaten
dry, these are a little 'rugged' for me, due to their seeds,
but they do indeed taste like Blackberries. Add to THRIVE
Quick Oats ,
THRIVE Germade, THRIVE
Yogurt, THRIVE 9 Grain Cracked Cereal. |
| Blueberries
- Freeze Dried |
Needs
reconstitution. Others report they had blueberries with full
flavor but my experience is unlike all the other fruits I tried,
the flavor is average, and not full bandwidth as if they were
fresh blueberries. Add to THRIVE Quick
Oats , THRIVE
Germade, THRIVE Yogurt, THRIVE 9 Grain Cracked Cereal. |
| Mandarin Oranges - Freeze Dried |
Full
flavor of mandarin orange. A no-mess way to eat good oranges.
|
| Mango - Freeze Dried |
Tastes great.
Add to THRIVE Quick
Oats , THRIVE
Germade, THRIVE Yogurt, THRIVE 9 Grain Cracked Cereal
|
| Peach Slices - Freeze Dried |
Good
flavor. Eat dry. |
| Pears - Freeze Dried |
|
| Pineapple - Dehydrated |
I probably won't buy these on my own when there
is a Freeze-dried
choice of pineapples, which are my favorite ! |
| Pineapple Chunks - Freeze Dried |
My
favorite. I will continue to purchase this at high priority. |
| Raspberries - Freeze Dried |
Full
flavor. Eat dry. Add to THRIVE Quick
Oats , THRIVE
Germade, THRIVE Yogurt, THRIVE 9 Grain Cracked Cereal |
| Strawberries - Freeze Dried |
Full
flavor. Eat dry, or add directly to recipes. Used for strawberry
shortcake and it was good! See my
strawberry experiment picture. I will continue to purchase
this at increased priority than the other fruits. Add to THRIVE
Quick Oats ,
THRIVE Germade, THRIVE
Yogurt, THRIVE 9 Grain Cracked Cereal |
|
Difference between apple slices and chips?
Slices are better eaten directly. Chips are better for cooking
and baking.
|
| Broccoli
- Freeze Dried |
Tastes
great. I ate it straight. |
| Carrot
Dices |
Needs
reconstitution because they are not freeze-dried. Excellent
for sprinkling in various recipes. |
Cauliflower
- Freeze Dried
|
I
bought it, not tasted yet. |
| Celery
- Freeze Dried |
I
used it in the Chicken Salad and all family members thought
the chicken salad was the same or similar to my normal cooked
chicken recipe. |
| Chopped
Onions |
|
| Chopped
Onions - Freeze Dried |
Great
for cooking. Pay attention to the texture of the smell that
reminds me of Lipton Onion Soup because I have not used these
for raw onion recipes yet and I do not yet know how these are
raw. Stay Tuned.
(T)
I use it in chicken salad and soups, and it was wonderful. I
put it in hamburger without rehydrating it and it was way too
crunchy. Needs to be rehydrated. |
| Chopped
Spinach - Freeze Dried |
Tastes
like Spinach. Dark green. |
| Green
Beans - Freeze Dried |
(T)
Tastes just like a fresh green bean when cooked. Wonderful!!
|
| Green
Peas - Freeze Dried |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. |
| Potato
Beads |
|
| Potato
Chunks |
I
bought it, not tasted yet except I put it in a casserole type
dish but I can't distinguish it from a straight potatoe. |
| Potato
Dices - Freeze Dried |
|
| Red
& Green Bell Peppers |
Full
of flavor, perhaps more spicy that 'fresh' peppers from the
supermarket. Needs reconstitution because they are too rugged
to eat dry. I used them in Chili. |
| Split
Green Peas |
|
| Sweet
Corn - Freeze Dried |
Tastes
great, can eat straight or add to soups, etc. |
| Sweet
Potatoes |
|
| Tomato
Powder |
Very
concentrated. A little goes a long way. Great flavor for chili,
stews, and other types of soup-like dishes. |
| Bacon
TVP |
I
have it but probably won't be tasting it. |
| Beef
TVP |
I have
it but probably won't be tasting it. |
| Black
Bean |
|
| Chicken
TVP |
I have
it but probably won't be tasting it. Although, it is in the
Creamy Chicken noodle soup which I have tried, but I can't tell
enough what it tastes like on its own. |
| Chopped
Chicken - Freeze Dried |
These
white chicken dices are great for chicken salad. No heating
required. Just add water. (see my recipe
page) |
| Ground
Beef - Freeze Dried |
Excellent.
I used it in my Chili Recipe - no difference from ground beef
cooked yourself. (see my recipe
page) |
| Ham
Dices - Freeze Dried |
(T)
I added these to a cold pasta salad, and they tasted good, but
they took about 30 minutes to rehydrate which was longer than
what was on the instructions. |
| Ham
TVP |
|
| Instant
Black Beans |
Par-boiled
so you don't need to waste your fuel for only a minimal increase
in price. I don't like the term 'instant'. It gives the wrong
impression. I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Instant
Pinto Beans |
Par-boiled
so you don't need to waste your fuel for only a minimal increase
in price. I don't like the term 'instant'. It gives the wrong
impression. I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Instant
Red Beans |
Par-boiled
so you don't need to waste your fuel for only a minimal increase
in price. I don't like the term 'instant'. It gives the wrong
impression. I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Kidney
Beans |
Own
them but I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Lentils |
Own
them but I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Lima
Beans |
I
don't like Lima beans, so I didn't buy or try these. |
| Pinto
Beans |
Own
them but I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Roast
Beef - Freeze Dried |
Own
them but I didn't try it. |
| Sausage
Crumbles - Freeze Dried |
(T)
These
are by far my favorite item! I rehydrate them and add them to
scrambled eggs. I’ve added them to lasagna when I needed
just a bit more meat. I want to try them on pizza, but knowing
how I love them so far, they will be great on it. |
| Sausage
TVP |
|
| Sloppy
Joe TVP |
|
| Small
Red Beans |
Own
them but I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Small
White Navy Beans |
Own
them but I didn't try it, but beans can't be screwed up too
much. It is a storage food. |
| Taco
TVP |
I have
it but probably won't be tasting it. |
| Turkey
Dices - Freeze Dried |
|
| Whole
Egg Powder |
I tried
to compare this to fresh eggs but my backcountry friend said
don't do that, it has never been perfected and some brands of
freeze-dried eggs can get very disgusting. With that, the eggs
are good straight up scrambled but I can indeed tell a difference.
When used in recipes, they are not noticeable, or only noticable
because I mentally know the powered eggs are in the recipe.
Very convenient and recommended. Use a Food Saver technique
for longer open storage life. (see my lessons
learned page) |
| 6
Grain Pancake Mix |
|
| 9
Grain Cracked Cereal |
|
| Cornmeal |
(T)
I made the best cornmeal I have ever made using this.
Mike Note: I think they meant cornbread. :-) |
| Egg
Noodle Pasta |
|
| Elbow
Macaroni |
Own
them but I didn't try it, but pasta can't be screwed up too
much. |
| Germade
(Wheat Cereal) |
|
| Hard
White Winter Wheat |
I
grinded up flour in the Shelf Reliance hand mill (<$100).
I baked bread with it. Hearty bread and the family enjoyed it
but I think I will keep the Country Living Grain Mill ($400)
on my list to get fine flour and try more. |
| Instant
White Rice |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. I don't think there will be any issues. |
| Pearled
Barley |
|
| Quick
Oats |
|
| Spaghetti |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. I don't think there will be any issues. |
| White
Flour |
|
| White
Rice |
|
| Whole
Wheat Flour |
|
| Corn |
Good
to eat dry, or add directly to soups |
| Germade |
Same
as Farina or Cream of Wheat cereal. Hard to screw it up. |
| Blueberry Yogurt Bites |
Yum! |
| Butter |
Shelf
Reliance Doesn't categorize butter in dairy - review is in the
MISC section |
| Cheese Blend |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. |
| Chocolate Drink Mix |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. |
| Instant Milk |
Surprisingly
good, especially when compared to Carnation instant milk from
when I was a kid. It's come a long way and not very different
from 'regular' milk. Another pleasent surprise to provide comfort
in owning large amounts of this brand of food. |
| Mac & Cheese Powder |
|
| Non-fat Powdered Milk |
|
| Orange Yogurt Bites |
It's good!
I probably wouldn't like normal orange yogurt, but the freeze-dried
texture typically changes the equivalent food for me to something
better. |
| Passionfruit Yogurt Bites |
Yum! I just wish it wasn't
so sweet. |
| Pomegranate Yogurt Bites |
(T)
This is the best one I’ve had. I like the orange, but
this is way better. |
| Shredded Cheddar Cheese - Freeze
Dried |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. |
| Shredded Colby Cheese - Freeze
Dried |
|
| Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese -
Freeze Dried |
Excellent. I used it in a Tex-Mex Recipie,
and also in breakfast burritos and tacos. |
| Shredded Mozzarella Cheese - Freeze
Dried |
|
| Sour Cream Powder |
I
bought it, not tasted yet. |
Strawberry Yogurt Bites
|
|
| Vanilla Yogurt Bites |
It's very good!
Disclaimer, I am a vanilla yogurt person, so I think this is
the best of the flavors I tried so far. I am a little disappointed
that it is too sweet for me to eat straight with full enjoyment. |
| Apple Drink |
Very good, 'fresh' tasting |
| Baking Powder |
|
| Baking Soda |
|
| Beef Bouillon |
|
| Brown Sugar |
|
| Butter Powder |
Tastes
like butter! Recommended. Use less water than the directions
suggest or it will be too runny. Basically use your judgment
to get the consistency you desire. The bad news is that you
can't fry with it, as in put it in a pan to make things
you would normally fry in butter. |
| Chicken Bouillon |
|
| Iodized Salt |
|
| Orange Drink |
|
| Peach Drink |
|
| Powdered Sugar |
|
| Shortening Powder |
|
| White Sugar |
|
| Double Chocolate Chip Ice Cream |
|
| Fudge Brownies |
(T) Excellent. Moist and
tasted wonderful! |
| Ice Cream Sandwiches |
Good dry right out of can. I heard you can
spritz it with water for the real thing. Kids live it. Some
'bad' ingredients, but it's comfort
junk food after all. Comfort food is important for morale
in bad times.
|
| Macaroon Cookies |
|
| Baked Potato Cheese Soup |
Have it, didn't try it yet. |
| Beefy Chili with Beans |
(T) Tasted great. Had to
let it set about 30 minutes before eating to fully rehydrate
the beans and meat. |
| Broccoli Cheese Soup |
Have it, didn't try it yet. |
| Cheesy Potatoes with Chives |
Have it, didn't try it yet. |
| Creamy Tomato Pasta with Chicken |
|
| Curry Rice with Chicken |
|
| Dijon Rice with Chicken |
|
| Mesquite BBQ Flavored Rice &
Beans with Chicken |
|
| Rice with Sweet Pepper Beef Steak |
|
| Vegetable Risotto |
|
| Creamy
Chicken Noodle Soup |
Yeeha!
Not oversalted like other brands of "just add water"
soups. Tastes great. Not very bulky which is a plus because
as long as the base is great, adding THRIVE corn, chicken, potatoes,
noodles, etc, will add more flexibility and convenience to your
recipe without paying for fillers in the soup product itself. |
T = Feedback from a teammate.
|
