 Hi Guys
Later on this year I'm looking to do a bit of wild camping. As opposed to having the car and a shower block nearby.
I was hoping someone could offer some advice as to "lightweight" foods. Some of the regular stuff that I'd have in the kitchen rather than having to spend a weeks wages on wayfairer foods.
I still have the scars from my childhood attempts of boiling baked beans in the tin and forgetting to pierce it first.
Oh and could someone recommend a stove. Preferably one that isn't canister mounted cos they just don't look stable.
Thanks in advance.
KJ
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 Coleman Alpine style stoves (with a separate rubber hose) are great. We replaced our old CA with a Thermotech though and found that it's better for simmering (the new Alpines are difficult to fine-tune) and also the pan rests are far more stable. It comes with a cute black sac with a lace-lock for clean storage, too. You can shake the can to mix the gases when the canister is getting empty to get a good flame going - bit tricky with a top-mounted one!
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 You are right, canister mounted stoves are not as stable as 'hose' stoves.
However if you use a couple of tent pegs stuck in the ground around it you can overcome that problem.
The advantage of bodging this way is that if you can go for the classic combination of a relatively heavyweight fuel stove and a lightweight gas stove then pick & choose which one goes on each trip.
As for food I almost live on Cous Cous when camping, I buy the sachets of flavoured stuff (lemon & herb, tomato etc).
Once you boil the water your cooking is finished, pour the water on the cous cous, stick a lid on the pot and wait 5 minutes.
I take the tiny tins of mackerel or tuna to stick in with it to add a bit of protein and the oil that cous cous requires.
Breakfasts I am a bit lazy, porridge and then those minging tins of 'All Day Breakfast' decanted into zip lock bags for boil in the bag convenience...
HTH
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Again, being new to this I was wondering how long a typical gas canister would last. A full weekends cooking maybe?
And how could I forget tins of mackerel. Mmmmm....spicy sauce.
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Depends on the size!
I am not the right person to advise on how long a cannister lasts, I always carry too much. I mark any canister on the base with a big 'S' for 'started' so I don't end up with lots of half empty ones.
Cooking cous cous I find I don't use much gas as it only needs the initial boil.
Canisters work really poorly in cool/cold temperatures so put them in a sock and have them in the sleeping bag with you overnight, stops them dying prematurely.
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 I second the advice on the thermotech stove. It's relatively cheap (£40 rrp but they were £20 at George Fisher's in January) and nicely stable. Plus it works in cold temperatures, unlike many gas stoves.
Food - couscous, packets of noodles etc. If you use noodles, then most supermarkets sell small sachets of various sauces for them (black bean, sweet and sour etc). I sometimes pop some beansprouts and bamboo shoots in a ziplock bag as well.
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Why does it work better in the cold Cara?
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It's got a sort of pre-heating thing, i.e. the gas passes through a loop of metal tube close to the flame before it goes out and gets ignited, so you are burning warmer gas.
It definitely works - I was using a bog standard camping gaz stove thing until Llangors in November, when it was -6C and I couldn't even boil water for a coffee. 2 weeks later I had this new stove, and no problems at all :)
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Yeah, I saw that but I was not convinced.
Surely it is the pressure in the cylinder that is the decisive factor?
The pre heat loop works for liquid stoves by turning already pressurised liquid fuel into a gas. The fuel pressure in a liquid stove is variable because of the pump, in a gas cylinder there is no control.
In the thermotech it is only going to increase the pressure from the one way valve in the canister to the output nozzle, so if gas is not leaving the canister because of reduced pressure due to temperature there is nothing for the pre heat loop to work on?
So pre heat loop or not it is still important to keep the cylinder warm.
Any scientists/stove designers want to comment? ;)
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Hmmm you have a point. But it still works, where the basic one didn't, and without storing the canisters in different conditions.
I've also seen it work fine when someone else's "standard" gas stove didn't work.
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That sounds sensible. I don't know much about stoves but i know a little about liquids/gases and I'd go along with the premise of a cold canister further condensing the contents therefor reducing the pressure. I think!
I'm starting to wish I didn't fall asleep during my hydraulics lectures.
Anyway keep the advice coming.
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Kevin , I cannot comment on the Karrimor model but it seems to work for C.
I use a MSR Pocket Rocket as it is light & cheap (not sure it is the best available though, seem to remember someone saying another model is better, maybe Primus?)
The temperature of the cannister is definitely a factor, in really cold conditions I have resorted to warming it over a night light candle or my trusty Karrimor mini lantern jobby. Moral of that story is if you see my tent on a campsite it's probably best to pitch a few hundred metres away! ;)
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For stability you can't beat a trangia. You can leave it outside without fear of it falling over and the windshield is great.
Having said that, most people aren't trangia fans (due to low heat output, slow cooking, difficulty getting fuel in certain countries). I don't see why people are in such a rush, and hate the noise of gas stoves, and have burnt myself several times (they are always so unstable, even the ones where the canister is attached via a tube-ground is uneven...). With trangia you get your pots and pans too. Last years. Nothing goes wrong. Huge fan of their kettles.
Foodwise, think cous cous, beanfeast, instant mash, pasta and sauce packets, porridge, cup a soups, angels delight etc.
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I think everyone has had a trangia at some point and they certainly have their merits, I would not use one now to be honest.
They are just too big, too slow and too much of a faff!
That is just MY opinion though so should probably be ignored!
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Anybody got an opinion on a Jetboil? Only My wife nearly bought me one for Christmas.
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 mini trangies are great but i got bored of waiting around with mine so on gas now.
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 Kevin,
over priced in this country at £70.
If the price was around £40 I'd say snap one up.
I got mine from the US last year for around the £40 mark.
I use it on walks to make hot drinks, instead of taking a flask most of the time.
But definitely over priced for what it is and does.
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Looks good but I am not paying for what looks like a limited use item, ie boil water & that's pretty much it! (mighty fast though apparently!)
I am a late adopter though, might start buying CD's instead of records soon!
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 I use a Coleman Max stove, as tested by Richard gear here:
http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/news/article/mps/UAN/55/SP/332413698821342346278/v/1
It's light, stable, powerful and excellent in cold weather. The fact that it is liquified gas means that it is supposed to stay pressurised until the end of the cannister.(although in practice it doesn't)
Only problem is that you have to use the Max cannisters, which are not stocked by all outdoors shops.
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When it's cold, keep the canister in your sleeping bag overnight and inside your duvet until the last minute outside at mealtimes - mind you, I'm talking January camping here....
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