Back Country Chocolate Brownie Pudding (2 Serve)
Dessert
Rating
| Rating: | 8 / 10 |
| Value for Money | 1.5 / 2.5 |
| Taste | 1.8 / 2.5 |
| Convenience | 2.2 / 2.5 |
| Weight | 2.5 / 2.5 |
Back Country Chocolate Brownie Pudding (2 Serve)
The Back Country Cuisine range of outdoor meals is one of the best known meal ranges in Australia. However for many people the range of desserts is not as well known with hikers often forgoing this luxury on the trail. While Back Country produces a range of six desserts it is rare to see the full range in any one store as most tend to pick the best two or three to sell.
The desserts come as twin serve sizings with no single serves available unlike the main course options. However, it is not hard to convince me to eat the lot after a really hard day particularly given the desserts are so tasty. These desserts are high in calories compared to the main courses and you feel liking eating the whole packet – 369 calories per serve or 738 calories if you’re not in to sharing.
These meals are very easy to prepare and as long as you can boil water then you are set. Preparation time is pretty easy, add water, wait and eat. Mind you, the recommendation on this meal is to add 125 mls water and let sit for 10-15 minutes. We ended up doing 12 minutes and in all honesty while the water was the correct amount, there were some hard lumpy pieces in the packet. In itself this wasn’t an issue but it you want a consistent texture then I recommend leaving the meal to sit for at least 15 minutes.
Taste-wise this dessert is what it says – pudding so the consistency is the thick chocolate paste you’d expect and yes it does taste like chocolate pudding – the Boysenberries are real and add to the flavour.
From my perspective, this was an overly sweet meal. Given I was tasting this meal at home I just found it to be a bit sugary. However, I suspect that on the trail at the end of the day when the weather is cold, this sugariness probably is the sort of dessert I would be looking for.
The meal comes in a bag that is well designed and the bottom opens out to provide a flat base for those minimalists who want to leave the bowl at home. The option exists to tear the top off the bag to allow easy access to the food but you if you have a long handled spoon you won’t need to tear the bag. My other reason for not tearing the top off the bag is that you minimise any mess after you’re done because you can re-zip the zip lock.
The normal price of this dessert sits around the AUD $16.99 RRP mark so if there’s two of you that comes in at $8.50 per person which isn’t cheap but this is a general issue of any freeze dried meals. Most of the larger chain stores offer member discounts or have regular sales so it’s worthwhile looking around. These products do have a long shelf life so you can stock up during the regular sales.
So what’s the final verdict? This is never going to replace my favourite Apple Pie option but I would be happy to eat this one particularly on a cold night. If you have a sweet tooth , this will definitely satisfy and if you are into gluten free, then this would be a great dessert option too.
We Like
- Who doesn’t like chocolate pudding?
- Three year warranty which means you can buy these when you see them discounted thereby reducing the price. You also know the desserts will always be edible
- Minimal preparation time. All you are doing is rehydrating these desserts so once you add boiling water there’s only a 10-15 minute wait
- If you eat from the bag there is only the spoon to clean up. In fact you may not even need to carry a bowl at all thereby limiting the weight you carry
- A variety of desserts in double serves from which to choose so it’s unlikely you will become bored unless you are on a really long hike
- Freeze dried. This takes much of the weight out of the meals and helps to limit the impact on your body
- Gluten free
We Don't Like
- The main negatives of any commercially preprepared dehydrated / freeze dried meals is the cost. The Back Country Chocolate Brownie Pudding works out at $8.50 per person
- Twin serve only. I hope you’re hungry!
- Needs at least 15 minutes to rehydrate to get all the lumps out
Best Uses
An easy to prepare dessert whether it be on a short or long trip for camping and hiking
Buy One
You can purchase the Back Country Chocolate Brownie Pudding (2 Serve) online from Snowys, Wild Earth, or from Wildfire Sports
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Investment
AUD $16.99 RRP
The dessert as purchased
Back Country Cusine Chocolate Brownie Pudding – nutrients and ingredient list
The bottom of the bag opens out to provide a flat surface. Opening out the base will allow the dessert to more evenly rehydrate. If you don’t open the base fully, you can get ‘dry pieces’ in the meal
Unrehydrated dessert in the now opened bag
The dessert ready to eat. The lumps that you can see are the brownies and the Boysenberries in the pudding mixture. I would allow 15-20 minutes to rehydrate to get a more hydrated consistency
Disclaimer
This review was done with product purchased from a retail store by Australian Hiker
Last updated
24 March 2024