In this quick review, I have a look (and a taste!) at the Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff wilderness meal.
Now, I’ll say upfront that I’m a huge fan of Peak Refuel. I’ve tested several of their other meals before (like the Biscuits and Sausage Gravy and the Breakfast Skillet). I’ve always come away with a full stomach and an enjoyable dining experience. This is true whether I crack one of these meals open in the wilderness or if I do so at home for a quick bite.
As usual, you can see the complete review in the video above and catch everything from a discussion of the ingredients to the process of making the meal to diving in with a fork and giving it a thorough taste test. Go ahead and click the play button to check it out!
For your convenience, I’ve outlined the main points I make in the video below, that way, you have a quick reference guide for determining if the Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff is worthy of your hard-earned cash.
Let’s get to it!
Table of Contents
- Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: Preparation & Cooking
- Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: How Does It Taste?
- Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: Benefits
- Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: Final Thoughts
Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: Preparation & Cooking
As is the case with other Peak Refuel meals, the preparation and cooking aspect of the process couldn’t be any simpler. Just crack open the pouch, remove the oxygen absorber, and add water.
In this case, you need 3/4 of a cup of boiling water, which I like to add to the pouch in two rounds. Doing so allows me to stir the ingredients up nicely with half the water, and then I can add the remaining water and stir it again, more thoroughly this time.
If you’ve had freeze-dried meals before, you know the importance of this process – you have to stir the meal thoroughly, otherwise you’ll end up with big clumps of dry ingredients, which, as you can imagine, is not appetizing.
Anyway, once you’ve stirred everything up, simply close the pouch and let it do its thing for 10 minutes!
Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: How Does It Taste?
I love a good beef stroganoff, and this one hits the mark in the flavor department. There are nice, big chunks of beef and mushrooms, and that, combined with the abundance of spices and flavor, makes for a tasty dish.
But the large pieces of meat and mushrooms aren’t the only thing that makes this meal a nice treat. The creamy sauce is packed full of flavor and really gets your tastebuds going. The sauce includes sour cream, which gives it a tangy flavor that really hits the spot for me. Other ingredients include the following:
- Onion
- Garlic
- Salt
- Beef bouillon
- Paprika
- Celery powder
- Carrot powder
So, Peak Refuel certainly doesn’t skimp on the flavor! I will say this, though – when I first opened the package, there really wasn’t much in the way of smells to get your tastebuds going. Once I added water, the onion, garlic, paprika, and other spices really came through. But, once the meal was cooked, that packs-a-punch smell went away again.
This meal, though tasty, isn’t much to look at, if I’m honest. It doesn’t look bad by any means, but there’s no variation of color, which would make it more visually appealing.
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Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: Benefits
This is a two-serving meal, and since I ate the whole thing, I consumed 810 calories and a whopping 41 grams of protein. All that protein is a huge benefit when you’re camping, off-roading, and whatnot, because it will help you refuel your body for the next adventure.
This meal also provides a good amount of calcium and iron, with 25% and 30% of daily values, respectively.
As usual, Peak Refuel used real ingredients to craft this wilderness meal – there are no TVPs, or textured vegetable proteins to take the place of real beef. This makes for a tastier meal with a very nice texture between the pasta, mushrooms, and beef.
Of course, the biggest benefit with a meal like this is that there is virtually no prep required. And the fact that it only takes 10 minutes to cook is certainly a bonus as well. As I noted earlier, I typically eat these meals when I’m camping, but occasionally I’ll have one of these for dinner if I’m crunched for time. I can do so knowing that I get a good-tasting meal without worrying about eating something that’s overly processed and full of junk ingredients.
Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff Review: Final Thoughts
On the plus side, the Peak Refuel Beef Stroganoff tastes great, cooks fast, is super convenient, and has a great shelf life. It’s a hearty meal, too, and will leave you full and fuel your body for whatever your next adventure is.
On the other hand, I would strongly suggest adding more water than what’s recommended. With just 3/4 of a cup (which is what’s recommended), the cream sauce wasn’t very saucy. Another 1/8 cup or even 1/4 cup would do the trick for getting a much more robust sauce.
Beef stroganoff isn’t in everyone’s wheelhouse, but if you’re a fan, the Peak Refuel version is worth a shot. Sure, it isn’t overly visually stimulating, but at the end of the day, it does what it’s supposed to do – taste great without much effort! What’s not to like?!