I am going backpacking in a few days and am planning on pasta and meat (from one of those tuna packets or chorizo) for dinner. I have a big bag of brown rice pasta that I was planning to use because it says on the package you can cook it by boiling for two minutes then turning off the stove, covering it, and letting it sit for 12 minutes. I made a serving tonight to test this and it was great! Perfect for not heating up the kitchen, too. But I decided that while the portion was ample for my dinner tonight, on the trail where dinner is my main meal I will want more, which leaves me one dinner short in my planning after doubling the portion. So I was going to buy more, but I almost never eat pasta, so I was thinking of using some regular pasta that I already have. Can I cook it the same way? Stopping the boiling after two minutes? Does anyone know?

I highly recommend couscous. You can stir in boiling water and let it sit for 5 minutes, then fluff.