It was easy, and tasted great. :)
Disclaimer: This was prepared in a motel kitchenette, simulating the conditions of, but not actually in a vehicle.
During my early 2019 Epic Breakdown, while digging thru some tubs of shelf stable food, I came across two small Mountain House vegetable pouches: green peas, sweet corn.
It suddenly occurred to me that I could use both, together with an MRE Beef Patty and some potato flakes to make Shepherd's Pie, one of my all time favorite comfort foods! :)
For my first experiment, I made it "upside down", with a bed of mashed potatoes reconstituted from potato flakes:
It was easy, and tasted great. :)
Disclaimer: This was prepared in a motel kitchenette, simulating the conditions of, but not actually in a vehicle.
A few months later, after becoming a Fulltime Van Dweller, I decided to try it again, using a couple of #2 cans of the same veggies, and one can of Beef flavored TVP (i.e. "Textured Vegetable Protein").
Since I wouldn't have the seasoning in the Beef Patty MRE, I did some research and it appears there is no Magic Set of Spices/etc that are standard for Shepherd's Pie. :(
Decided to wing it, and used:
I placed the spices, the TVP, and both veggies in a regular bowl, added very hot water, and let sit for a while (first time was about half an hour, 2nd was about an hour, most other times it was 4-7 hours).
With dehydrated/freeze-dried stuff, soaking longer is always better.
The veggies are more succulent, and in this case, the spices provided all day "aroma therapy". :)
When I was ready to "cook" & eat it, I moved the TVP/etc into a pot, re-used the bowl to make mashed potatoes from flakes, then added those to the pot, and smoothed them out.
Partly to help me judge when it was "cooked" enough, I added some cheese (which added a small but nice flavor & protein boost).
Since none of the ingredients required cooking, I just warmed it (covered) until the cheese melted, about 2-5 minutes.
Ready to eat:
It tasted a lot better and was considerably easier than I expected. :)
I've made it several times since.
First time, I used just enough oil to coat the pot. All other times I've skipped the oil, and it's been very easy to clean the pot.
Esthetically & taste wise, it didn't have the nice baked crust you'd get from baking in an oven for half an hour, but I knew that upfront, and the total heating cost on a stove was much more affordable, as well as being insanely easy. :)
I'm still experimenting, and will update with suggested amounts (I've just been eye-balling the quantities, so far).
Summer of 2019, I found an open #2 can of diced carrots, and those have improved the flavor & nutrition even more than I expected. :)