What I can’t figure out is WHY just plain old Folgers that has sat in the can since last hunting season tastes so dang good coming out of the camp coffee pot when it is barely tolerable in my drip coffee maker at home.

I call it the “Dinty Moore effect”. For those of you unfamiliar with Dinty Moore, it is the brand name of a stew that comes in cans. Just heat and serve. It is not fancy fare by any means, but ask any hunter who has been out in the rain and wind all day, and they will wolf down a hot plate of Dinty Moores stew, and appreciate every drop of it. From then on, Dinty Moore becomes a staple of the camping box, spoken of in hushed and reverent tones…

One time we had a late night on the ranch. No one had defrosted any beef or venison. The only choices were the Dinty Moore stew or send the kids to bed hungry. For some reason it didn’t have the palette of flavors that it seemed to have when we were batchin’ it in the mountains. Maybe I should have eaten it outside.

I’ve found that there is a definite correlation between good experiences and associating food with them. Some things taste best, and are best eaten in hunting camp. These include, but are not limited to:

• Coffee
• Chili
• Fried potatoes
• Mountain House Freeze Dried Meals
• Liver and onions

My best advice is to not fight it. Just let the camp food be camp food. If you want to expose your up and coming generations to the wonder of the “Dinty Moore Effect”, then do it in the outdoors, not at home.