What to dehydrate and why?

Don't worry about couscous – it is "precooked" if you will. It just needs hot or cold water and a sitting time.

Where you save is in longer cooking "raw" items – quinoa, rice, large pasta, whole grain or whole wheat pasta, etc. Then you need only rehdyrate with hot water not cook for 10 to 20 minutes using a lot of fuel. So yes, you save weight – in fuel!

If you make meals in the FBC way (and no, you don't have to do it in a bag, you can use a mug or pot) you add near boiling water, cozy and come back 10 to 15 minutes later to a hot meal. Pretty easy!

FBC=freezer bag cooking :-)

Pasta is a personal taste thing. I like precooking my bigger pasta at home, then I don't have starchy water left over, unless I specifically use a recipe that uses that water. And I like my pasta to keep moving during the boiling – not just sitting, I find it lumps together. Where as if I cook and dry before, yes, soaking in hot water works great – no starchy water :-)

If you are not in a hurry, there is not a lot of advantage IMHO to cooking and dehydrating starches that are already dehydrated. So I personally save the dehydrator for wet/heavy foods and just cozy-cook grains. The exception for is whole grains and legumes such as brown rice and beans or chick peas which can't always be cozy cooked without significant pre-soaking. So I guess it depends on your menu. I also guess some people are happy to eat cold soaked meals, but I'm not one of those people!

I always cook and dehydrate lentils, beans, quinoa, and the like. I don't for couscous because of the reason Sarah mentioned earlier. I also use things like instant polenta.

I'm not of the same style as FBC although many of my meals can be rehydrated using the same methods. FBC uses home-dehydrated and store-bought dried ingredients and makes different combinations for the meals. Some of the foods are quite tasty.

I prefer an approach that is more like the food we'd eat at home. I quite often dry whole meals such as chili, Cuban Pork Stew quinoa & lentil stew, Moroccan chicken, hummus, roasted tomato dip, citrus lentil salad and so on. I find it creates a good flavor profile and it suits my palate better. Food is such a personal thing and you'll find what works for you.

I don't often dehydrate pasta… it does come back a little mushy, I find. But I'm an al dente pasta snob… lol.

I can't wait to hear about the trip when you return. I'm off the trail and only have one wilderness trip this summer (Mommy of a toddler woes – lol).