I notice that on many of the posts, you will use a pre-made mix of some type (most recently a Jambalya mix) cook it, add the meat, then dehydrate it. Wouldn't it be simpler to just dehydrate the meat and add to the mix while it cooks?

We usually dehydrate any meat separately from whatever type of thing we are doing. I do it so I make sure that is dehydrated well. For instance spaghetti, I do the meat separate from the noodles and sauce.

I agree, it is easier to dehydrate the meat and meal separate. Thats the way we do it.

Depends.

Some of my dehydrated meals are 'cooked' on the trail by just adding boiling water to the bag and letting it sit. As simple as a freeze dried meal, but with taste and texture.

One can also speed up a cooked meal by cooking and dehydrating at home, it talkes less time (fuel) on the trail to cook up the dish.

I also means fewer bags or containers on the trail, and simpler meal prep.