Are MRE's as bad as i have heard?

yaahoo_really_sucks

It varies - some of them are downright horrible, but many are very good, because they use the same ingredients as what you'd find on a supermarket shelf. In fact, some of the items in an MRE *are* the same manufacturers as you'll find in the supermarket.

On the other hand, if you've never had eggs that at one time were either powdered or freeze-dried...then you'll think they're just nasty. Spaghetti and meatballs from an MRE is a little different from your Olive Garden variety.

If you're hungry, and in the field, though - they're fine. They have a good balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat, and despite the concept of "MRE: three lies in one (Meal, Ready to Eat)" they really are fairly good, especially in comparison to their predecessors. Remember, they also get dropped by the ton into disaster areas as well as war zones.

Would I eat them every day? Not by choice. If I had no choice? Absolutely.

lisab

Anything taste good when you are hungry.

The old dark brown MRE's where pretty nasty the newer ones aren't so bad. Beef stew, beef patty and grilled chicken are some of the better ones. Don't worry you will learn many ways to spice them up and make a pretty damn good meal out of them.

CHECKSIXX

If its all you got, you'll love every cold or hot bite.

Ghost of Tom Joad

I wouldn't want to live on them for any length of time, but they aren't that bad. The earlier generations of MRE's were suppose to be terrible from what I've heard, but there is nothing wrong with the latest MRE's. Certainly the Tabasco sauce helps alot though.

RUESTER

I personaly liked the C-rats better than the MRE. At least with the C-rat in the can, you could actually heat, mix and match a lot easier than you can the MRE. When I was a Squad Leader and Platoon Sergeant, I assigned certain people to bring certain items to doctor up the food. "Jones, and Simpson - Tobasco, Williams, Brown - Garlic Powder, James, Franklin- Onion Powder," etc.

gunplumber_462

None were ever "terrible" but some weren't all that good. The omelet always reminded me of some kind of soft plastic and the hash smelled like intestines, but if you can't eat any MRE you're issued, you're not truly hungry.

oldmarine08

Actually they are pretty good, I found them to be tasty. They sure bet the old C rats and K rats we had!

USMC 68 Vietnam

YouAgain

It depends on the kind you eat. If you're hungry enough, they're very good : )

My personal favorite would be the fettucini alfredo, or any that don't have tomato based sauces in them, but since tomato sauces preserve well, most of them usually have something with tomatoes in them.

The newer MRE's that they're coming out with are a lot better than what they used to have because they're actually starting to consider whether or not people think they taste good, lol. Also, once you've been around them enough, you start to learn how you can mix and match to create some pretty tasty meals.

Hjaduk

Some are good some are bad. They start out pretty cool, but after eating a lot of them you'd prefer almost any alternative.

Wedge_Antilles_72

Some were'nt bad, so were just outright nasty( the pork chow mein was just disgusting). Me personally, I was kinda partial to the escalloped potatoes with ham. The Canadian MRE I had was pretty damn good though. Some guys in my unit swapped a case of US ones for Canadian ones, that kinda set back US/Canadian relations back a bit. I used to take them to school with me too, just so I had something to eat in a pinch.

porthos44

Its been a while but in the civilian world most of the food is tasteless but when you are starving or out in the field its great good. I liked the cakes and we fought for the cheese and crackers. My buddies used to bring their own food out on the field or during combat training but I never did because I wanted to get used to eating the MRE during battle.

AniMeyhem!

Depends on which ones you get. Some are actually quite tasty; others you have trouble choking down no matter how hungry you are.

Wayner

Some are good...I think they are a lot better than in the mid 1980s when they first started getting used. Dehydrated pork patty? Yuck!

I LIKED C rations. That John Wayne cookie was awesome!

Drock

it depends on which flavor. some are good like chili mac and then there's veggie burger...omg puke. they are actually pretty good tho overall. get sick of em real quick tho. in bootcamp many ppl traded like pokemon cards

Robert S

Some are good - some are not. I keep a few case on hand for emergency supplies. There are actually civilian versions of MREs that are sold for camping and such.

If you go to a decent Army/Navy store or even an outdoor supplier, you can probably find some to try for yourself.

When you have a choice between an MRE and whatever you can forage for yourself, an MRE will be pretty tasty.

It does help if you can spice them up with Tobasco or other spices.

SSE3

You'll learn to appreciate whatever you eat if you become a Marine grunt. If you wanna eat them as a civilian...there's just no point.
I trust them and they do give you alot of energy. I know Marines that made it through SOI eating only half of their MREs in the field.

ME m

They're not as bad as the old C rations. We used to eat them during operations. Some of them were dated in the 1950's . At least they had smokes in them but, they were so old they were rusty! I still have my P-38 can opener so it wasn't a total loss.

Baxter

They don't taste horrible at all! Beef stew, mmm.... comes with carrots and other veggies... Warm it up, or even eat it cold, it's my favorite. MREs aren't bad, and some are even something to look forward to, but I wouldn't eat them over a regular meal.

Josh C

I grew up off of old WWII MREs and NO, they're not that bad. They've actually become a LOT better too.
Now, granted, they're no home-cooked meal, but taste-wise, they're really not that bad.

Manderz

Some people like them. Some are them are good, some of them are nasty like the vegetarian ones. But I have had the meatloaf one and it wasn't to bad. My husband said he actually likes them cold. But they give you bad gas. lol

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