Taste-testing a British Army ration pack – and here's what you'll find inside
A British Army ration pack has everything in it to keep a soldier going for 24 hours on operations and on exercise.
BFBS Forces News' Rosie Laydon has opened up a real British Army 24-hour ration pack to see what soldiers are eating on operations and exercise – and, more importantly, how it tastes.
Designed to keep personnel going in the field, each pack contains around 4,000 calories and includes a mix of main meals, snacks and drinks.
What type of food is in it?
On the menu is Kashmiri potato curry with rice and a beef stew with vegetables.
For dessert, there's chocolate pudding with chocolate sauce, plus vanilla-flavoured biscuits for snacking between meals.
There are also plenty of drinks to choose from – two hot chocolate sachets, grapefruit drink powder and a fortified peach iced tea.
The outer bag now comes with a zip-lock seal, an upgrade from the previous tear-open version.
Finally, there is the extra-long 'spork' to stop you getting food on your fingers when reaching into the pouch.
Let's cook!
To cook the food, we use the military-issued cooker - simple, reusable, and super lightweight.
The fuel is similar to alcohol hand gel, making it light and easy to pack.
The food can be eaten cold, if necessary, but heating improves both flavour and morale – especially after a long day in the field.
After warming the curry over the stove, the verdict was positive: "Very nice. I'd have that, especially if you've been out and about all day and you're really hungry."
It's a good idea to make sure there is some hot water left over because a teabag and coffee sachet are also included.
The British Army has 10 core menu options – we cooked menu number 4 – plus there are specialist options, including vegetarian and halal.
And one final touch.... there's an after-dinner mint.
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