Mess kit?

Like the idea actually. I would love to get something like this for the H but it doesn't look heavy duty enough (hes a welder, so anything plastic will more than likely get wrecked). I have something very similar in the car, though it is more for emergency rather than everyday carry. Everything I need is packed inside a small pan with lid, small cutting knife, a few sporks, a fold out bendy cutting board and some salt and pepper. It has a small gas stove in it with some dry food too.

From the two examples you have given, I can't tell if you're looking for something to cook in and eat from or something that you carry already prepared food and eat from it, perhaps heated in a microwave. What are you actually looking for?

The wife and I have the lmf kits. They are ok, microwave friendly and light. We both work in offices so its really just for nuking soups or oats, but for that they are fine.

If your looking for something plastic, leakproof-ish and microwavable, I have had really good luck with the thin plastic containers from glad and ziplock. These typically come in a four pack for about $12, have clear containers with see through blue lids. I carry my lunch in these everyday, and microwaved the food in them for a few years. Recently I have started listening to the anti-plastic voices, so transfer it onto a ceramic plate to heat it. Still on my original set. They can be dishwashered, but are honestly easier to just wash at work when I use them. Combine this with a LMF titanium spork and you are good to go.

I carry this in a reusable cotton canvas grocery bag (easy to wash) along with a Vapur water bottle that is frozen to use as an icepack. The bag insulates well enough to get me to lunch time.

Have considered moving to stainless steel mess kit or tiffin box, but haven't solved how to heat food in a metal container at work.

I liked this cause I do the same thing. I have 2 mess kits int he back of my truck and a small stove in one of them. Goes along with the EDC food rations I have. Carry some instant oatmeal, hot chocalte and coffee. AS well as some cliff bars and sugar, salt and pepper.
Of course the food goes with me cause it gets a bit cold leaving it out in the truck over the winter time.

I use a tiffin carrier for my lunch. It's stainless steel so it can take a beating, but it's not insulated and obviously un-microwaveable. I'll be getting one of the Sea to Summit collapsible bowls for heating soon. I usually just clip some camp cutlery and my water bottle to the handle.

I use either: One of these - it has a silicone or rubber o-ring, which means it's leak-proof. Single-wall, so if you put hot food in, that sucker heats up fast. Also, if you leave food inside, breaking the seal can be a royal pain. Otherwise, I like it.

In a pinch, while I'm not wild about hot food in plastic, I also use: Ziploc "twist-n-loc" containers.

What exactly will you be needing to do with it? purely as a plate to hold hot food? something to cook a basic meal in? A container to carry everything in?

A basic plastic camping set would probably be a good option if you only need a plate - lightweight, cheap, easy to get hold of. I have seen a few ones locally with a flat bottom and popup sides that sound like a good idea for storing flat in a pack.

For camping and cooking in on the go I just use a set of military mess tins (I believe my current set are Dutch surplus) - basically two rectangular tins with fold out handles that stack together - so I can pack them together with my stove and basics inside to keep everything safe and together, and for cooking you can just pop them on top of a stove and cook in them. The only downside is that perhaps a square shaped item isn't the most ideal for eating from, but they pack down well, hold up and work great for a small cooking set.

The LMF set looks interesting, and a cool way to hold all your plates and utensils in one, though I would really have to handle one to say any more - though everything else I have had from LMF has been decent.

In my car I have an esbit pocket stove, and a cup that can handle being over a direct flame. I usually also have an empty coffee can should I have a need to melt snow.

For the office, I bring in my lunch and concentrate on things that don't have to be heated. But if I wanted to heat something, I have some glass containers with a gasketed lid that can be removed for the microwave. I think mine were from Lock N Lock, but a web search for glass lock container will show you lots of options.

I have the Light my Fire container, and its big. Its a good man size, but too large for my smaller appetite.

Oh, and I always carry a spork. Nothing is worse than having food and no utensils to eat it with.

i used to use those rubbermaid divided food storage containers so i could transport a leftover meal (I hate when my food mixes on its own...) Lasts forever, microwavable, easy to wash/dishwasher wash and never really leaked.

Lock&Lock has some great food containers. If you want more of a serving apparatus that you can cook in but can't transport food, there is nothing so versatile as the Snow Peak Hybrid Trail kit.

Pretty nice european one out there. http://www.amazon.com/Light-Fire-6-...door-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1356125175&sr=1-4

My love of cooking and my tendency to wander off without planning ahead have let me to carry this kit around in my car at all times. It has come in quite useful a few times.

GADGET982, what are the coloured objects top left in your first picture? Also how do you find the Magnum folding cook knives?

Those are little spring forks that slip over the end of a stick for roasting things over a fire. The colored bits are the protective covers.

I got those Boker cook knives at my local knife shop for around $20 each iirc.

http://www.amazon.com/Magnum-Outdoo...3&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=folking kitchen knife

http://www.amazon.com/Magnum-Outdoor-Cuisine-Iv-Knife/dp/B0043PER5C/ref=pd_sim_sg_1