thedrifter
12-13-05, 12:32 PM
December 19, 2005
Eat, drink and be MRE
New field chow is coming — with meals you might even enjoy
By C. Mark Brinkley
Times staff writer
Meals, Ready-to-Eat aren’t considered fine dining. After all, they’re made to withstand dang near everything — like being shoved out of a C-130 or sitting on a shelf for three years. And they have to meet certain nutritional guidelines, so you’ll never get M&Ms in every meal.
But this year, enhancements to the military combat ration have made them more than your typical brown-bag lunch. New main meals, different beverages — even new candy and snacks — are rolling off the assembly line right now, headed to a supply clerk near you.
These culinary MRE-sterpieces have ditched the quartet of doom: Thai Chicken, Country Captain Chicken, Beef Teriyaki and Pasta with Vegetables in Tomato Sauce. In their place come new options, such as Spicy Penne Pasta and Chicken Fajita with soft tortillas.
It’s still not home cooking — not even close — but the troops we had try them gave us an overall nod of approval.
And no one begged for crackers.
Chow down
Generally, it’s not the meals themselves that drive people crazy, but the repetition.
“I don’t hate them,” said Cpl. Kevin Weyrauch, 30, an anti-tank missileman with Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, who participated in a Military Times taste test at Camp Lejeune, N.C. “The problem is, we’re still eating them from three years ago. It’s to the point now that we know what’s in Case A and what’s in Case B.”
Even so, the meals have come a long way since the 1991 Persian Gulf War, their last major rollout.
Since 1993, improvements to the meals have come from the ground up, based on feedback from the troops eating them.
More than 168 new items have been approved by the troops since then. Along the way, more than 50 of the worst items were dropped, vegetarian meals were added and the number of choices doubled, from 12 meals to the current 24.
When MREs started rolling out for combat operations after Sept. 11, 2001, food technicians braced for the worst.
“I think, because of the variety, we didn’t hear those complaints,” said Jeannette Kennedy, a food technologist for six years at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick, Mass., where new MRE options are developed and tested. “It kind of surprised us, too. We were pleased with that.”
But they know that folks get tired of the same old, same old.
“Everything that goes into the MRE and is taken out of the MRE is based on user feedback,” Kennedy said. “It is a continual improvement process. ... The entrées that score the lowest are the ones that go away.”
Sorry, Country Captain, whoever you were.
“It really was the curry flavor in that they didn’t like,” Kennedy said of the chicken dish, often upgraded with every condiment in the discard box imaginable by the unlucky recipient or simply left behind. “So, they truly generate the changes.”
Now for something different
That means new goodies for you — a veritable smorgasbord of meals and treats designed to raise morale and provide nutrition.
Among them, four new main meal options: penne pasta with spicy tomato sauce; chicken fajitas with soft tortillas; a sloppy Joe filling, perfect for wheat snack bread; and a cheese omelet, with vegetables and a side of hash browns with bacon.
“We look at the trends,” Kennedy said. “Mexican and ethnic foods are very popular.”
So is having a different option for early-morning meals.
“We were getting a lot of requests for breakfast items,” Kennedy said. “They wanted an egg item.”
Troops also want snack options — easy to eat, easy to carry, easy to trade.
New options for 2005 include: the Ranger Bar, an oat-based meal bar similar to commercial health snacks; Cheese Nips; raisins; white chocolate and raspberry cookies; smokehouse almonds; cinnamon scones; and blueberry-cherry cobbler. Also coming in the new batch of meals is a blast from the past: Walnettos.
Long forgotten, these walnut caramels were introduced in the United States in 1919 and were a top candy through the 1950s, even becoming a running gag on the classic TV comedy “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In.” The product line was retired in the 1960s.
“It was a submission from the company,” Kennedy said. “It held up well, so we field-tested them, and the soldiers loved them.”
Indeed, even Military Times’ volunteers had nothing bad to say about the taste of the walnut-flavored treats.
“These are the best ones,” said Army Sgt. Martha Arroyo, 40, logistics specialist for 18th Contracting Command at Fort Bragg, N.C., the site of another taste test. “I don’t like candy that’s too sweet, so this is just perfect.”
On the horizon
What else do you have to look forward to? Upcoming menus only get better — tuna, new chewing gum, chocolate peanut butter spread, chicken and dumplings, meatballs with marinara sauce and more.
But you still won’t get everything you want.
“They love beef jerky,” Kennedy said. “They want it in every meal. We can’t do that because the sodium level would be way too high. It’s a challenge to meet all the requirements.”
Still, many troops seem happy to take what they’re getting.
“I’ve always been satisfied with MREs,” said Spc. Marguerite Hunter, 29, a truck driver for 264th Corps Support Battalion at Fort Bragg. “The chicken fajita was great. They’re putting a little more effort into it, so it’s more like a home-cooked meal. It’s comforting.”
C. Mark Brinkley wants to find out who the Country Captain really is. When he’s not chowing down, he can be reached at (910) 455-8354 or via e-mail at cmark@atpco.com.
Ellie
Eat, drink and be MRE
New field chow is coming — with meals you might even enjoy
By C. Mark Brinkley
Times staff writer
Meals, Ready-to-Eat aren’t considered fine dining. After all, they’re made to withstand dang near everything — like being shoved out of a C-130 or sitting on a shelf for three years. And they have to meet certain nutritional guidelines, so you’ll never get M&Ms in every meal.
But this year, enhancements to the military combat ration have made them more than your typical brown-bag lunch. New main meals, different beverages — even new candy and snacks — are rolling off the assembly line right now, headed to a supply clerk near you.
These culinary MRE-sterpieces have ditched the quartet of doom: Thai Chicken, Country Captain Chicken, Beef Teriyaki and Pasta with Vegetables in Tomato Sauce. In their place come new options, such as Spicy Penne Pasta and Chicken Fajita with soft tortillas.
It’s still not home cooking — not even close — but the troops we had try them gave us an overall nod of approval.
And no one begged for crackers.
Chow down
Generally, it’s not the meals themselves that drive people crazy, but the repetition.
“I don’t hate them,” said Cpl. Kevin Weyrauch, 30, an anti-tank missileman with Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, who participated in a Military Times taste test at Camp Lejeune, N.C. “The problem is, we’re still eating them from three years ago. It’s to the point now that we know what’s in Case A and what’s in Case B.”
Even so, the meals have come a long way since the 1991 Persian Gulf War, their last major rollout.
Since 1993, improvements to the meals have come from the ground up, based on feedback from the troops eating them.
More than 168 new items have been approved by the troops since then. Along the way, more than 50 of the worst items were dropped, vegetarian meals were added and the number of choices doubled, from 12 meals to the current 24.
When MREs started rolling out for combat operations after Sept. 11, 2001, food technicians braced for the worst.
“I think, because of the variety, we didn’t hear those complaints,” said Jeannette Kennedy, a food technologist for six years at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick, Mass., where new MRE options are developed and tested. “It kind of surprised us, too. We were pleased with that.”
But they know that folks get tired of the same old, same old.
“Everything that goes into the MRE and is taken out of the MRE is based on user feedback,” Kennedy said. “It is a continual improvement process. ... The entrées that score the lowest are the ones that go away.”
Sorry, Country Captain, whoever you were.
“It really was the curry flavor in that they didn’t like,” Kennedy said of the chicken dish, often upgraded with every condiment in the discard box imaginable by the unlucky recipient or simply left behind. “So, they truly generate the changes.”
Now for something different
That means new goodies for you — a veritable smorgasbord of meals and treats designed to raise morale and provide nutrition.
Among them, four new main meal options: penne pasta with spicy tomato sauce; chicken fajitas with soft tortillas; a sloppy Joe filling, perfect for wheat snack bread; and a cheese omelet, with vegetables and a side of hash browns with bacon.
“We look at the trends,” Kennedy said. “Mexican and ethnic foods are very popular.”
So is having a different option for early-morning meals.
“We were getting a lot of requests for breakfast items,” Kennedy said. “They wanted an egg item.”
Troops also want snack options — easy to eat, easy to carry, easy to trade.
New options for 2005 include: the Ranger Bar, an oat-based meal bar similar to commercial health snacks; Cheese Nips; raisins; white chocolate and raspberry cookies; smokehouse almonds; cinnamon scones; and blueberry-cherry cobbler. Also coming in the new batch of meals is a blast from the past: Walnettos.
Long forgotten, these walnut caramels were introduced in the United States in 1919 and were a top candy through the 1950s, even becoming a running gag on the classic TV comedy “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In.” The product line was retired in the 1960s.
“It was a submission from the company,” Kennedy said. “It held up well, so we field-tested them, and the soldiers loved them.”
Indeed, even Military Times’ volunteers had nothing bad to say about the taste of the walnut-flavored treats.
“These are the best ones,” said Army Sgt. Martha Arroyo, 40, logistics specialist for 18th Contracting Command at Fort Bragg, N.C., the site of another taste test. “I don’t like candy that’s too sweet, so this is just perfect.”
On the horizon
What else do you have to look forward to? Upcoming menus only get better — tuna, new chewing gum, chocolate peanut butter spread, chicken and dumplings, meatballs with marinara sauce and more.
But you still won’t get everything you want.
“They love beef jerky,” Kennedy said. “They want it in every meal. We can’t do that because the sodium level would be way too high. It’s a challenge to meet all the requirements.”
Still, many troops seem happy to take what they’re getting.
“I’ve always been satisfied with MREs,” said Spc. Marguerite Hunter, 29, a truck driver for 264th Corps Support Battalion at Fort Bragg. “The chicken fajita was great. They’re putting a little more effort into it, so it’s more like a home-cooked meal. It’s comforting.”
C. Mark Brinkley wants to find out who the Country Captain really is. When he’s not chowing down, he can be reached at (910) 455-8354 or via e-mail at cmark@atpco.com.
Ellie