Travel Gear and Gadgets #4: Light My Fire outdoor meal kit review

This $20 outdoor meal kit was designed by Scandinavian designer Joachim Nordwall specifically for Light My Fire, a Swedish company, and we know how ingenious those Scandinavian designers can be. Photos may include a 12-ounce soda can and a 1-Liter Nalgene bottle for scale.

The kit weighs about 10.5 ounces, is 7.5 inches on its longest side, and less than 2.5 inches deep, so you can certainly pack this for travel into a backpack or carry-on. The durable polypropylene plastic is both dishwasher and microwave safe (and airport security safe), and each piece is positively buoyant (that means it floats). The top and bottom separate to become plates, with the bottom piece being deep enough to use as a bowl. A cup and its sip-through lid are tied together, and inside that is a smaller, watertight box. Both can be used as small cups or bowls on their own.

While the inside is not deep enough to hold a soda can, you can use it as an office lunch box to hold a sandwich or snacks. Salad is another good choice, as you can keep your dressing of choice segregated in the watertight box until consumption (that word doesn’t get used very often these days).

Two of the more clever aspects are the cutting board/colander combo plate and the special spork, which is a spoon and serrated fork at opposite ends. The serrated fork is a combination knife and fork, but if you have food that requires stability while cutting (i.e., cutting knife in one hand, fork to hold the victim down in the other), you may want to buy a second LMF spork, or just stash a cheap plastic fork or knife from the local deli. You can save money per unit by buying the 4-pack (great for families or group outings), or you can even buy an extra large LMF spork, but it is too large to fit into the kit. You also can’t get more than two LMF sporks in the kit and have it close tightly.

There are two types of people who may need to be wary: people with small mouths and/or who tend to close tightly around the fork, dragging the serrated edge along the corner of your mouth (you won’t tear your lips Joker-style, but you won’t like doing it repeatedly), and those who fist-grip utensils (and have a medium to large size hand).

You can find this product and its accessories in multiple color options (but no kit mix and matching) at your local REI or Amazon.

Previous Travel Gear and Gadgets:

1. Mini-laptops

2. Energizer Duo and mini-USB hub

3. Monster Outlets To Go Power Strip