OMeals – Southwest Style Chicken with Rice
Overall Rating:
Another long day of kayaking out on the lake again. Its peaceful and calm, but you sure work up an appetite after paddling for a few hours. Pulling up to the shore, it’s time for lunch. A self-heating, fully cooked meal is my go to option for the day.
Eating a package of Omeals Southwest Style Chicken means I can leave all the cooking gear at home and enjoy a few bites of healthy meat, veggies, and rice that have never even seen the dehydrator.
Preparation 
Taste
Weight 
Additional information
Specification: OMeals – Southwest Style Chicken with Rice
| Calories per Ounce | 32 |
|---|---|
| Calories per Package | 290 |
| Carbs per Package | 39g |
| Fat per Package | 7g |
| Protein per Package | 18g |
| Sodium per Package | 520mg |
| Sugar per Package | 4g |
| Vegetarian | No |
| Vegan | No |
| Gluten Free | No |
| Food Allergens | Soy |
| Pack Weight (oz) | 9 oz |
| Prep Time | 5 Minutes |
| Shelf Life | 3 Years |
Preparation
Preparation
Omeals is an all in one, fully inclusive meal system that includes not only the ability to heat itself, but also the spoon and napkin. Omeals uses the same heating system that the original MREs use, a powdered mixture of iron, magnesium, and table salt that uses water to activate an exothermic process.
When opening the Omeals bag, you will find and remove several smaller bags. These include the food pouch, heating element, and the spoon with a napkin. Remove the heating element from its packaging and place it in the bottom of the Omeals bag. Place the food pouch with the heating element inside the Omeals bag. Add 4-6 ounces of water to the Omeals bag. Close the Omeals bag, leaving it in the upright position, and wait 5 minutes. Stand back from the bag, as the steam will quickly leave a vent in the top of the bag and can potentially burn you, like it did me. After 5 minutes, carefully open the Omeals bag and let stand for an additional minute. After the minute of cooling, remove the food pouch, open, and enjoy.
We recommend kneading the food pouch beforehand to disperse the ingredients, and after heating, to disperse the temperature.
- No fuel, burner, or pot needed.
- High quality ingredients that have never been dehydrated.
- The bag itself did not have mark to indicate how much water to use, relying on the ability to estimate what 4-6 oz of water is.
- The instructions were a bit confusing (but have been updated on the newer bags)
- While cooking, the package lets off quite a bit of steam that can burn you if you aren’t careful.
- The food was only warm to luke warm and unevenly heated.
Taste
Taste
The large chunks of moist chicken were a refreshing change when compared to other camping meals. The textures of the rice and vegetables were spot real and felt fresh. In my opinion, the meal could have used some more seasonings and spices. The only real downside was the very small portion size.
- The ingredients tasted fresher compared to most dehydrated meals.
- Small portion size.
- The food wasn’t hot enough.
Weight
Weight
At Outdoor Food Lab, we list our weight ratings as such:
- 150+ calories/ounce:
/ Ultralight Hiking Food - 131-149 calories/ounce:
- 111-130 calories/ounce:
- 90-110 calories/ounce:
- Less than 90 calories/ounce:
