Australian Hiker

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Back Country Cuisine Roast Beef and Vegetables Review

The Back Country Cuisine range of outdoor meals is probably the best known in Australia. These meals are stocked by the majority of outdoor stores and many people consider them the staple meal choice for outdoor activities. Back Country Cuisine has a huge range of meal choices and many stores seem to select a ‘top ten’ so you are unlikely to find the full range in any one store. In addition to the large variety of single serves (entrée size/single person), the company also has twin serves although the single serve options don’t seem to have as large a variety at least as far as the stores I visit. However the Roast Beef and Vegetable offering is one of those common meals you would expect to find in most stores.

The Back Country Cuisine Roast Beef and Vegetable meal tastes pretty much as you would expect. It’s a roast beef meal with peas, corn, carrot and potato mash. I personally find the ratio of vegetables to beef to be quite good but my wife Gill, who is not a corn fan, prefered that there was less corn. I don’t have much salt in my diet so my preference would have been for slightly less salt however I know this will suit most users just as it is. Texture wise the beef pieces are a bit chewy but that’s not unsurprising. I also prefer to add everything into a single bag and don’t separate the mash potato out but you may choose to do so. 

One thing to note is that this meal is in the newly released packaging and apart from the more modern look, the packaging is more than just a cosmetic change. The instructions on preparation are simple and easy to follow and Back Country Cuisine has increased the suggested dehydration time from what used to be around 10 minutes to 12-15 minutes which is more realistic. The other improvement is to the amount of suggested water to add with most freeze dried meals ending up a bit watery if you use the recommended amount of water. In this case the suggested water was spot on and created a decent consistency that wasn’t too wet or too dry but just right.

The normal price sits around the AUD$12.99 RRP mark for a single serve pack which works out to be more expensive than the twin serves that usually cost around AUD$19.99 RRP. Most of the larger chain stores offer member discounts or have regular sales so it’s worthwhile looking around. These products do have a three year best before shelf life so you can stock up at the sales in anticipation of an upcoming trip. I have used Back Country Cuisine meals after four years and they have been fine.

This 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 spork/fork 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 for clean disposal.

So what is the final verdict? I’m not a big fan of roast beef meals at any time prefreing chicken or lamb, fresh or freeze dried, but if you like your beef then this may be a good option for you.

We Like

• Tastes as you would expect, roast beef and vegetables
• Well set out and easy to follow instructions
• Three year warranty which means you can buy these when you see them discounted thereby reducing the price. You also know the meals will always be edible
• Minimal preparation time. All you are doing is rehydrating these meals so once you add boiling water, there’s only a 10-12 minute wait
• If you eat from the bag there is only your eating implement to clean up. In fact you may not even need to carry a bowl at all thereby limiting the weight you carry
• Single serve option provides just the right size for solo travellers on a short trip. Twin serves available for those big eaters or couples

We Don't Like

• A bit on the salty side (I don’t add much salt to my diet)
• The main negative of any commercially pre-prepared dehydrated/freeze dried meal is the cost.  These meals are cheaper per serve when bought in the twin serve size than the single serve entree size
• Single serves may be a bit small after a couple of weeks on the trail

Best Uses

• An easy to prepare meal whether it be on a short or long trip for camping and hiking. Also a good option for backup meals at home

Buy One

You can purchase the Back Country Cuisine Roast Beef and Vegetables meal online from Snowys, Wild Earth, or from Wildfire Sports

Disclosure:  We may earn a small commission, at no additional expense to you, if you click through and make a purchase. Please note that our affiliations do not influence, in any way, the independence of our reviews. If we don’t like a product, you’ll hear about it from us!

Other Versions

Back Country Cuisine makes a large range of meals with something for everyone. To see our top 5 go here

Investment

AUD$12.99 RRP

Back Country Cuisine Roast Beef and Vegetables meal as purchased

Roast Beef and Vegetable ingredient list

Package instructions are simple and easy to follow. There are also clearly marked tear line to open the pack and to tear the bag down into a bowl size once ready to eat

Back Country Cuisine meal bag with the base folded out

Back Country Cuisine Roast Beef and Vegetables meal before rehydration. I usually add the mashed potato into the main bag rather than rehydrating seperatly

Back Country Cuisine Roast Beef and Vegetables meal rehydrated and ready to eat with the bag torn down to bowl size

Disclaimer

This review was done with product provided for test by the Australian distributor of Back Country Cuisine

Last updated

3/12/2023

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