Cold Soaking Ideas and Techniques
 

If anyone has any other ideas or links, please post.

Here is one:

"dehydrated black beans, instant brown rice with some taco seasoning cold soaks really well and rocks a tortilla nicely with some cheese"

(from the comments section for the above video)

Avocado would be good in it also.

Cold soaking adds many new possibilities for stoveless meals. Some recipes seem a little stretchy, but there are some good possibilities too.

Couscous can be cold soaked.

I've only scratched the surface of this world. There seems to be much, much more to it.

Instant mashed potatoes. The Idahoan brand comes in many different flavors.

Ramen are already cooked and can be eaten cold, with your favorite spread or not.

Most important for me, rolled oats are parboiled in processing and do not have to be cooked any further. Soak them or not, it's a matter of taste and time.

I've been a stoveless hiker and bike tourist for 15 years now and am sold on the travel style.

what, cold tea or coffee!??
Bah Humbug!

I cannot fathom the idea of riding 60-100km, just to have a cold meal at the end of it.

Must admit that I am in your camp but still open minded as to the idea of going stoveless. Might give it a shot on a weekender.

Of course. I have gone stoveless, but with food items meant to be served cold. Cold cuts, cheese, caprese, gazpacho. I guess I've become less adventurous with age.
I used to do week long backpacking trips and lunch usually involved PB&J or hard salami, but dinner was always a treat with a well made, hot meal. I attempted ultra-light with the freeze dried, but :cry:

I grew up in an Italian family. Enough said

I'm stoveless, and I don't even bother to soak anything. I just mix up a batch of nuts, raisins, cranberries, dried-anything, oats, dark chocolate chips pumpkin seeds...whatever I feel like - and hit the road. I big ziplock bag of my chow goes a long way. With the exception of the chocolate chips, its very Paleo. Lots of nutrient density in the nuts, and vitamins and fiber in the fruits and berries. Top this off with some quality beef jerky or biltong (not that crap at the supermarket checkouts), and you've got some serious sustenance. When I eat this way I think of Ötzi.

This.

I have a friend who does long multi week hikes and has gone the no stove route. I get the reduce the weight thing, but for me, there are things that make a difference on a long trip, and I like a hot drink in the morning, even if I eat bread and tuna and bananas and avocado, so like having my simple trangia set up.

In warmer weather, sprouted lentils could work. Use a plastic jar etc to soak for a few hours & then ~a day to sprout. Haven't tried this for camping myself but have read of others doing so. Not quite as convenient as instant foods but it saves money & the sprouting process adds nutrients.

Exclusively eating cold meals for a couple-of-days or once-in-awhile is fine. But day-after-day on a long tour, I gladly carry an extra 1-2 lbs (pot/stove/fuel) for hot oatmeal, soups, stews, stir-fry, and coffee.

and this is where we get to the whole issue of there being no right or wrong way to (in this case) travel by bike. It all comes down to what one is comfortable with and putting an emphasis on X or Y, and balancing bike+load weight with what one prefers, and having the right gearing etc for that choice and the type of riding style you are doing.

If you have to lift your bike over stuff often, or want to be really fast, then light is going to have obvious advantages.

You got it right, DJ. Its all about what you are a tourist wish to do with your spare time. I like to read, write in my journal, and relax. I hate cooking meals where its difficult to clean up afterwards. The older I get, the more-valuable every minute becomes, and I danged-sure don't want to be spending it cooking or cleaning or worrying about where to buy my next canister, or whether or not my stove will get confiscated at the airport. For me, its also a matter of simplicity. Fewer material things = less to worry about. Tyler Durden says, "The things you own, end up owning you." I say the less you take with you, the lesser you'll be responsible for them. This works for me. A spartan lifestyle isn't for everyone. There's purity in simplicity.

I used to cold-soak my breakfasts. Steel cut oats was a fave. Really strengthens the jaw muscles. It has to be a cereal that doesn't turn to mush overnight.

Totally agree that there's no right or wrong way. Just get on a bike pedal somewhere one day and then pedal somewhere the next day.

BUT I do lift my bike a good bit because I wild camp and do lotsa backcountry, AND a hot meal is my reward :)

Not a concern for me.

control, I have to admit, I carried my trangia on the trip last year and never used it for cooking, I too couldnt be bothered but then we did have access nearly always to small road side eateries.

but I do love a hot drink in the morning....

I've got a friend whom I like to tour with who simply loves to cook "in the wild" and of course I let him : )
For him, it's a chance to be creative, "what can I create out here with so little?" and I'm not sure it isn't one of the main reasons he likes to tour.
For me, if I want a hot meal, I generally find a local diner or cafe at least once a day.
Nice video above, and some good information.

+1. Love a hot meal, especially when it's chilly out. Even during my 7 day guided backpack trip in Glacier we cooked at ate well every night. Often cooked breakfast, too.


And my dad was Italian-American.

Didn't realize you had actually taken a tour.

Since May last year I have been eating dry oatmeal, even while riding. Just transfer it to an old 1 liter pop bottle and then I can pour it right into my mouth and eat it dry. Why cold soak it when you can warm soak it in your mouth.

Avoid cold soaking and switch up to veggies/fruits instead that take no soaking.

Um. Yes? :foo: Are you calling me a poseur? I took three 3-day tours this past summer, and a week-long tour in October. Before I got back into bikes, I hiked the AT from South-to-North, and did a lot of hiking/fishing in Western Newfoundland. Prior to all that, I spent seven years in Europe, specifically Germany, Italy, and Spain, in the USAF, protecting your sorry arse, and hiking the German and Italian Alps. I feel like I'm qualified to offer opinion on the subject matter. Perhaps you should take this cue to actually offer some intelligent input instead of trolling.

This^ +1 Forget it man, I want HOT in the morning, every morning. Even if in the backwoods, I want coffee. I have stopped brewing though. Nothing like a "backwoods mocha" to get you going and out of your sleeping bag on a cold frosty morning. (1 Starbucks VIA and 1 pack Swiss Miss instant cocoa. Good stuff)

Those packets of instant oatmeal, especially the Apple Cinnamon that has little dehydrated apples can be eaten right out of the packet & makes a nice snack. They can also be dumped in with trail mix.

Just getting started bike touring so my experience is backpacking and pack-in hunts in Idaho.

What I carried on backpack hunts for all day in the mountains, Hard cheese, it can be kept without refrigeration. A summer sausage or good jerky (I make my own venison jerky), a bag of raw almonds, some tortillas and some peanut butter(or Nutella, or almond butter) Sometimes would carry dried apricots. Out of that you can make a decent lunch and several varieties. You can live pretty nice without cooking. However, that was for during the day when active. I always wanted something hot in the evenings after a long day hiking the mountains
Oh, and that hot coffee in the morning.

+1

Come on, Indy. Let’s keep the discussion going without insults please!

Foragers might appreciate a stove since some wild foods need to be cooked.