What You Group Will Learn
After engaging in an activity designed to study meal planning, participants will be capable of:
Your group will compare two backpacks: one packed with one-pot meals and light weight snacks and the other packed with more complex meals and bulky snacks. Group members will use the weight of the packs and the amount of garbage created from the meals and snacks to determine the best preparation for meal/snack planning.
Materials:
A backpack packed with one-pot meals (see menus below) and snacks such as trail mix, fruit sticks, hard candies, and dried fruit. All meal items in this pack should be re aged into sealable bags to reduce bulk, secure food, and reduce garbage. For example, transfer items such as instant rice, cereal, and noodles from commercial packing into sealable bags. The bags can be packed out, washed and reused at home.
A backpack packed with more bulky meals such as hot-dogs, canned chili, canned soup, canned stew, bottled catsup, and snacks such as cans of pop, cans of fruit, and a jar of peanuts.
Preparation:
Read the entire lesson plan and Back ground Information thoroughly. This activity should take approximately 70 minutes to complete.
Prepare two backpacks prior to your group's arrival. (The one packed with one-pot meals and lightweight snacks should be con ably lighter and create less garbage than the one packed with more complex meals and bulky snacks.) Grabbing Your Group's Attention 10 minutes
Grabbing You Groups Attention - 10 Minutes
Preparing a menu and snacks ahead of time will help group members pack lightly with a minimal amount of garbage and will make the use of a stove more convenient, eliminating the need for a campfire.
Show students the two closed backpacks. Let each participant try on both packs. Take a vote to determine which pack is lighter and hopefully more comfortable. Without looking at the contents of the backpacks have your group list items that might be contributing to the weight of the heavier pack.
Steps for Teaching the Activity - 30 minutes
On The Lighter Side: Divide the participants into two groups. Give a pack to each group and have group members unpack the packs and categorize the food items.
Time Out for Discussion: How long does the group think it would take to prepare the meals from each pack? Focusing on the meal preparation items only, have the students com pare the items from each pack.
What characteristics of the meal and snack items from the heavier pack contribute to its weight? The answer to this question depends on your choice of items for each pack. Hopefully you have created a situation that allows everyone to see that planning for one pot meals, repackaging food and taking light snacks lightens the packs load.
What difference in litter would result from cooking meals and snacking from each pack? This answer also depends on your choice of items for each pack. Hopefully, you have created a situation that allows the group to see that planning for one pot meals, reheating food and taking light snacks reduces the amount of garbage.
Which pack would require the fewest utensils for cooking and the smallest fire? One-pot meals can be made with one pot which can be cooked on a small backing stove. Cooking hot-dogs and heating beans either requires the use of two pots or the use of a campfire.
Wrapping Up the Activity- 30 Minutes
Your campers are great backcountry planners! Your group knows how to have fun while preserving the naturalness of the back country for wildlife and visitors. How well has each person learned to plan meals and lightweight snacks?
Congratulations on conducting a well-prepared meeting for your group!
Examples of One Pot Meals
Couscous You Say: 1 cup of water, 1 cup of packaged couscous mix, 1 pkg. Dry Vegetable Soup Mix
Bring water to a boil. Add couscous (a quick grain dish available in supermarkets) and soup mix. Cook until water is absorbed and couscous is tender. Variation: add 1 beef bullion cube; add Vienna sauces. Bean Burritos: 1 package freeze dried refried beans tortillas cheese
Cook beans according to packaged directions. Heat tortilla over flame. Add refried beans and cheese.
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