
Flipping clever ... now why didn't I think of the google voucher thingy. Hmmm next time.
Yes Bushy you are fairly close. I cook both the pasta and the sauce and then dry them seperately.
During the day I add water to the sauce, in a nalgene container and leave it to rehydrate, which takes an hour or so depending. (Longer for meat etc)
As the pasta is already cooked, you just need to boil a little water in the pan, chuck in the spag and wait for about 2-3 mins. It will be pretty close to ready by then.
Then add the sauce from the container and heat it through for about 5 mins. You may need to add more water, depending on absorbancy and how much you have over/under estimated it at the time.
I usually add some dried herbs and a chopped baby bell cheese for that final touch and that's it.
Darren - another tip I need to pass on, is that dried food will only absorb as much water as it needs to rehydrate. So if you put too much in, you could end up with a very runny sauce.
This is the reason I use the same nalgene pot to measure out the portions when I dry them, as on the hill. So I know exactly how much water is needed to bring it back to life.
I too tried Salmon jerky the other day and cod. The cod was great and lost its 'fishy' smell. I found the salmon one still a bit 'fishy' and oily even when bone dry. I have to say the best jerky is still the chilli and lime beef and red wine venison for me. I've yet to find a good fish recipee which has that 'wow' factor on the hill, so if you find one ....
Re the plastic bag question. I have a local large manufacturer near here, so I'm going to call in and see what they can do about food grade bags and boil in the bag material as well. I notice the Tchibo site doesn't have bags for sale, but there might be a contact inside the box so to speak.