How do you clean your mess kit?

13983 Views 51 Replies 42 Participants Last post by Wire Fox, Nov 7, 2015

Macumazahn

Discussion Starter · Jul 23, 2009

Hygiene is very important since you do not want to eat rotten food and get sick but without the convenience of a sink, running water, and copious dish soap cleaning your gear can be a little more tricky.

Wood ash is one suggestion. Also sand for abrading gunk off.

You could just use a wash cloth but that traps food particles and takes for ever to dry. I would rather not pack a wet wash cloth in my pack.

A Brillo Pad (or generic scrubbie) works. I used that last time but it trapped a lot of food I could not clean out and did not dry very fast either. One idea is just to cut the pad into small pieces and 'discard' (pack out your trash) each piece as it gets too yucky.

Mesh onion bags are anther option. I use these in my kitchen and they work. I think I will try them next and see if they clean up easily.

Someone suggested an old tooth brush. This seems like a good idea as you can scrape out most of the gunk with a thumbnail and use a little water to wash it. It will also dry quickly.

The ultimate way is to not make a mess. Boil water in your pot and pour it into your dehydrated/freeze dried food pouch and nothing needs to be cleaned; just pack out the used pouch. This is obviously only for those who want to sped a lot of money.

Any other suggestions?

How do you clean your mess kit, utensils, and cookware? Any hints on cleaning with as little water as possible?

TIA

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maddy

· #2 · Jul 23, 2009

Good topic! I must admit, I just use the one mug/pot and let gunk build up on it until the end of the trip unless I have oodles of water available to me, which is generally not the case.

Now, if I listened to my dog, then it would look sparkling clean!

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vicdotcom

· #3 · Jul 23, 2009

I always used wood ash and a chunck of charcoal to scour the stubborn parts. Figure charcoal will absorb more of the foodparticles and oils also. Always worked and very little water waste.

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BOBtheBUTCHER

· #4 · Jul 23, 2009

I read this before somewhere on the inter web as mr Letterman calls it.
I believe wood ash is the best way to do it, and makes sense to use after a fire.:thumb:

Reactions: 1

Macumazahn

Discussion Starter · #5 · Jul 23, 2009

A lot of parks and such have fire bans so it is good to have an alternative.

Also, sand or mud are not always available. IMO, you would not want to use dirt because of all the things growing in it.

shag

· #6 · Jul 23, 2009

Non stick cook set... just heat the water a little in the dirty pot with a drop of washing liquid and the problem is solved. Sometimes you don't even need to do that!

It's time to retire the old mess kit

:

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BOBtheBUTCHER

· #7 · Jul 23, 2009

How about making something so tasty to eat you can just lick it clean!
just like the 3 second rule when you drop food on the floor,,,,its ok right?
LOL

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matty86suk

· #8 · Jul 23, 2009

sand......

Reactions: 2

BOBtheBUTCHER

· #9 · Jul 23, 2009

I guess the region you are in will also dictate the materials at hand you can use.
Africa leave it for the hyeanas
Alaska leave it for the polar bears
SHTF leave it for me

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Trail Boss

· #10 · Jul 23, 2009

By one of those thin fairly heavy sheet plastic cutting boards, and cut a piece that is round at one end and square on the other, kind of like and ice scraper shape or paint Scraper.

This will remove 99 % of the stuck on stuff will not harm or scratch your pan or utensil, you can wipe it clean instantly, Germs will not grow on, etc etc, you could do the same with a fabric softener bottle, or other plastic bottle that had a flat side to cut a piece out of.

I use the scrapers here at home on good pans I do not want to scratch as well. It it sort like a harmless razor blade it is thin enough to get under food particles, and strong enough to hold it shape.

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LoneWolf93

· #11 · Jul 24, 2009

when i cook in my canteen cup instantly after im done eating i wash it so its easyer to wash. i just use a very small amount of dish soap, a bandana and if im near a creek i will use a lot of water but if im not i will use a the bare minimum and hope it gets the job done

(i would rater have a slightly dirty cup and be fine than dehydrate to death and have a perfectly clean one.)

Reactions: 2

ex-hunter

· #12 · Jul 24, 2009

Macumazahn said:
How do you clean your mess kit, utensils, and cookware? Any hints on cleaning with as little water as possible?
TIA

Good question Mac ... I was wondering that the last time I cooked out.

I always bring the set in and wash in HOT sudsy water after a trip, so it's always ready to go
... but what about an extended hike (with more than one meal) or in a bug-out situation?

The first thought is, use as few pots/dishes as possible and choose those with smooth sides (the reason I use a Foster's can for the cook pot instead of the Heiniken.)
Be scrupulous about getting every scrap of food out of the pot/dish. Scrape with your spoon and maybe use your tongue.

Then, rinse well with water ... and drink the water.

That's usually as far as I go in the field.
If I was putting the cookset away to be used again on that trip, I might dry rub with a paper towel and rinse again.

If it was particularly gunky, a drop of Joy (the only soap I carry in my pack) in hot water and a scrub might be necessary.
Plan ahead and wash everything at the same time to conserve soap/water and the fuel to heat the water.

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fulminated

· #13 · Jul 24, 2009

why do people still use dish liquid in streams and rivers?

at least carry some doc bronner's soap, people. beyond that, I put some water in the pot and boil it. it loosens everything up.

Reactions: 2

Macumazahn

Discussion Starter · #14 · Jul 24, 2009

A no stick pot sounds great. I have my Nalgene bottles and GSI bottle cups; kind of a yuppie version of the GI canteen and canteen cup. They have been working well for me so far. The hold two cups so they are perfect for preparing MH meals. They also balance on top of my little alcohol stove well. I am still very much a tourist in this whole camping thing so I will wait a while before spending too much more money.

Gene Simmons could not lick the bottom of the bottle cup. Pouring in a little water to rinse out the last bits is a good idea. I will have to try that. And boiling out the leavings does work. We have done that with the pots and pans when we were too lazy to clean up right away. If I was doing a real interiour camping trip I would not want to spark up the stove and use more fuel if I could help it.

I have a Lexan utensil thing with a spoon on one end and kind of forky thing on the other end. It was $2 so I bought it. I will see if it can be used as a scraper. Maybe a little modification will be needed. The bottle cup has flat sides so scraping them clean should be quite easy. I might also use one folded up square of TP to scrape out the bottom. Well buried it would not be major pollution.

I use Camp Suds soap. It is highly concentrated, so only a tiny drop is needed, and it rinses clean. Biodegradable to boot.

Thanks for all your input, folks.

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Hairball

· #15 · Jul 25, 2009

Gee-whiz, we never washed our stuff as kids ... maybe it grows on us and that's how we get 'crusty'?

Seriously though, horsetails work great as scrubbies.

Reactions: 1

BOBtheBUTCHER

· #16 · Jul 27, 2009

how do you get the horse to sit still long enough to use its tail??:thumb:

Reactions: 2

Macumazahn

Discussion Starter · #17 · Jul 28, 2009

2

Field trial.

I tried out the onion bag scrubbie on the weekend and it worked out really well once I worked out the kinks. I first tried balling up the bags but they came undone too quickly and were a pain to use. Next I turned them half inside out and made a little bundle kind of the shape of a garlic clove and held it together with a cable tie.

Food Dish Cuisine Recipe Ingredient

Yellow Dish Cuisine Food Noodle

It did not trap a lot of food or water. It was also very squishy so it could easily be jammed into a cook pot or mess kit for transport.

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raglan

· #18 · Jul 28, 2009

boil water in it to loosen up the gunk. Then scub it with any abrasive and scour it with wood ash. It'll be nice and shiny when your done.

Reactions: 1

twyggy

· #19 · Jul 28, 2009

Macumazahn said:
I tried out the onion bag scrubbie on the weekend and it worked out really well once I worked out the kinks. I first tried balling up the bags but they came undone too quickly and were a pain to use. Next I turned them half inside out and made a little bundle kind of the shape of a garlic clove and held it together with a cable tie.

View attachment 18131 View attachment 18132

It did not trap a lot of food or water. It was also very squishy so it could easily be jammed into a cook pot or mess kit for transport.

I tried sand and wood ash, but neither seemed to work very well without water. I wonder how many uses the onion bag is good for? Do you have any insight?

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jnr0104

· #20 · Jul 28, 2009

My Black Lab !

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