What is a food cozy?
A food cozy is an insulated pouch that you insert your meal pack into to speed up rehydration and keep your food hot for longer. It is especially handy when backpacking or camping in colder temperatures where your food can lose heat fast.
Is a food cozy really necessary?
I’ll be honest, when I first heard of food cozies, I brushed it off and thought it was an extra luxury item that I deemed not necessary in the backcountry. I mean, I’ll heat up my food and it’ll be hot for a good second, I’ll scarf it down, and I’ll be satisfied, right?
Then one chilly autumn backpacking trip, my food became cold and soggy within a couple minutes, and I realized, maybe a food cozy wouldn’t be a bad idea? After DIY-ing one from leftover Reflectix from our van build project, and taking it with me on another chilly autumn backpacking trip, I now bringing one with me on all cold-weather trips.
Do I think they are absolutely necessary? No, you can absolutely do without one. But they do improve the eating experience and add a sense of comfort while in the rugged outdoors. I’ve come to appreciate them.
Benefits of a food cozy on the trail
- Keeps your food hot longer: It’s highly efficient in trapping heat and keeping your food hot
- Rehydrates food faster: Related to #1, the heat retention and increased molecular motion facilitates quicker rehydration
- Saves fuel: You do not need to reheat food or water from it getting cold too fast
- Easier to handle hot items: It makes it easier to hold hot pouches while you’re eating them
Bonus, food cozies are small, light weight, and can easily be DIY-made at home.
Materials You Need To Make A Food Cozy
- Reflectix foil insulation
- Duct tape
- Scissors
- Ruler or measuring tape
- Marker
How to Make a Food Cozy
- Measure the length, width, and height of your food pouch. In this example, I will use my pouch measurements which is 8.5”L x 3”W x 6”H (For the height, I reduced it ¼” because the top flap will be torn off).
2. Make a mark for the top cover flap. Grab your Reflectix and mark 3” from the edge. This will be the top cover flap.
3. Measure the total height to make the cozy. Measure 6” ( height of your food pouch) from the 3” mark of the top cover flap and make a mark. Measure (3) 1” from that mark and make three new marks (a total of 3″; this will be your accordion fold, the folds to expand your cozy). Measure another 6” (the height of your food pouch again) one more time and make a final mark. The total length of the Reflectix is 18” (3” for the flap, 12” for double the height, 3” width for the accordion fold); however, I added one extra inch for additional width space in case I have a thicker food pouch, so my total is 19”.
4. Measure the total length to make the cozy. Add the length of your food pouch plus 1.5” for ¾” space on each side (for me, 8.5” length of the food pouch + 1.5” for the two spaces = 10”). Measure and mark 10” from the bottom of the Reflecix.
5. Cut your Reflectix. My rectangle to cut is 19”x10”. Make an outline of the cut with a marker to use as a guide when cutting out the shape.
6. Make the accordion fold. Fold the first accordion fold mark (those three 1” marks you made in step #3) in the direction toward you. Fold the second mark away from you, and fold the third mark towards you again. It should have created a pleated fan-like structure.
7. Tape your cozy on the sides. Keeping the according fold folded, secure your cozy by taping the sides of the cozy with duct tape.
8. Option: You can add velcro to the top of your flap to keep your cozy closed. Tucking the flap into the cozy also works in keeping your cozy closed.
Happy Trails!
