Rogue Preparedness: How to Make a Homemade MRE

Homemade MRE? What’s that?

That’s what I first said when I heard those words.

MRE stands for ‘meal ready to eat’.

We generally associate an MRE with a military meal that looks like this:

MRE
Standard MRE

These meals come with a variety of items including a main meal, a dessert, accessories, drink mixes, sides, etc. And they can last anywhere from 2-20 years.

You can easily make your own ‘meal ready to eat’ that can last anywhere from 2-5 years, or more, depending on what you put inside.

The great thing about making your own MRE is that you can pick and choose exactly what goes into it. When you make your own, I would suggest adding ready to eat items that don’t take any heating. Most standard military MRE’s would come with a heater and while you can buy those heaters and use them for a variety of purposes, it’s generally easier to simply have ready to eat items that require no heating.

Here are some ideas on what can go inside of a homemade MRE:

  1. Tuna/Salmon/Chicken Creations
  2. Granola bars
  3. Protein/energy bars
  4. Peanut butter bars
  5. Chips
  6. Gold fish
  7. Fruit snacks
  8. Pace Ready Meals (though it tastes better warm, it can be eaten cold)
  9. Compleats Meals (lasts a couple years after expiration)
  10. Coffee
  11. Tea
  12. Utensils
  13. Napkins
  14. Hard candy
  15. Mint
  16. Gum
  17. Individual spam packets
  18. Condiment packets
  19. Wet wipes
  20. Seasonings
  21. Cracker packets
  22. Dehydrated foods
  23. Individual packets of drink mixes such as gatorade or lemonade

Now that we have some examples of what could go into a homemade MRE, let’s give an example of what a homemade MRE might look like:

  • Tuna Creations packet
  • Compleats meal
  • Protein bar
  • Cracker packet
  • Caffeine gum
  • Dehydrated apples
  • Mayonnaise packet (for the tuna packet)
  • Utensils
  • Napkins
  • Gatorade powder packet
Homemade MRE
Homemade MRE

Continue reading, How to Make a Homemade MRE, from Rogue Preparedness here.

  • About Morgan Rogue

    Morgan lives in Texas with her husband, daughters and 2 dogs. She spends most of her time getting outdoors with her daughters, prepping for emergencies and disasters and teaching others how to be prepared. She also enjoys archery, hunting, fishing, firearms, hiking, camping, HAM, Jeeps and generally getting out and exploring life through epic adventures!