My ultralight backpacking freezer bag cooking innovation

For years now, on backpacking trips, I used "freezer bag" cooking as a way to simplify mealtime. It means you package your meal in a ziplock quart size bag at home, pour boiling water in the bag at your campsite, and let it sit for 5 minutes or so while it rehydrates/cooks. 

This approach works great, but you do need something to hold your dinner bag with, both so you don't burn your hands and also to insulate it. Previously, I used a knit hat. It seemed like a good multi-purpose device - I could use it for warmth as well as for insulating my dinner bag.

However, there was a problem with using it to insulate my dinner bag. A knit hat has no structure at all, and flops all over the place. I almost never got through dinner without getting some of my dinner on my knit hat. And once I had spilled food on it, I really didn't want to use it as a knit hat until I was able to wash it.

So I was looking for an alternative, and thought about taping together some bubble wrap. The bubble wrap area at my local Walmart was right next to the bubble wrap mailer envelopes, though, and they looked like they might be the right size.

After some trimming at home, it turns out a 6 by 9.25 inch plastic bubble mailer is a great for a quart size ziplock. I've used it on multiple trips now, and it works really well, providing support for eating my dinner (with my long-handled spoon) and not burning my hands.