View Full Version : Trail Food Options
FooFooCuddlyPoops
02-01-2016, 14:30
Hey guys
I have been checking out recipes on the web, blogs, and you tube the last few months to figure out some basic ideas for the trail. It seems I am coming across a problem...
I don't like peanut butter by itself, or peanut butter anything unless it's on pancakes.
I don't like gronola.
I don't like honey buns.
I don't like most of the knoor packets (two salty?)
And, I dont like oat meal.
I never knew I was a picky person until I started to try different backpacking meals. Perhaps my tastes will change in the future:D?
What are some good blog's with recipes, websites, youtube channels, etc? I need more ideas.
My backpacking experiences are usually pretty laid back on eating. I never worried about calories because I was only ever out a few days at a time. A bag of trail mix, some snickers, and a soup mix was perfectly fine for morning, lunch, and dinner on the trail. When I was car camping, I brought pre-cooked meals that were awesome to eat back up over the fire. Steak, sausage, steamed veggies, anyone?
I am experimenting now at least to taste test some concoctions that are known to be seen on the trail.
http://www.wildbackpacker.com/backpacking-food/recipes/
LoneStranger
02-01-2016, 15:36
You really only have to worry about being picky for the first few hundred miles. After that you will eat anything that can't move fast enough to get away from you :)
Odd Man Out
02-01-2016, 15:45
Breakfast = cheese, sausage, and granola bar (call it a protein bar and you won't realize it's granola)
Lunch = PB and J on a tortilla (just pretend the tortilla is a pancake)
Snacks = trail mix
Supper = Curried lentils and rice.
Puddlefish
02-01-2016, 15:51
http://www.theyummylife.com/recipes/browse/Camping_%26_Backpacking
Test some of the recipes first. I wasn't able to get some of them to cook properly with the ingredients I was able to buy at my local store.
Hikes in Rain
02-01-2016, 21:05
Cous-cous is all but instant, and goes well with pretty much any meat and/or veggies and fruits. There's even a heartier whole wheat version, but it's not quite instant.
MuddyWaters
02-01-2016, 21:16
Hey guys
I have been checking out recipes on the web, blogs, and you tube the last few months to figure out some basic ideas for the trail. It seems I am coming across a problem...
I don't like peanut butter by itself, or peanut butter anything unless it's on pancakes.
I don't like gronola.
I don't like honey buns.
I don't like most of the knoor packets (two salty?)
And, I dont like oat meal.
I never knew I was a picky person until I started to try different backpacking meals. Perhaps my tastes will change in the future:D?
What are some good blog's with recipes, websites, youtube channels, etc? I need more ideas.
My backpacking experiences are usually pretty laid back on eating. I never worried about calories because I was only ever out a few days at a time. A bag of trail mix, some snickers, and a soup mix was perfectly fine for morning, lunch, and dinner on the trail. When I was car camping, I brought pre-cooked meals that were awesome to eat back up over the fire. Steak, sausage, steamed veggies, anyone?
I am experimenting now at least to taste test some concoctions that are known to be seen on the trail.
I hope you at least like tortillas, tuna, mac and cheese, beef jerky, and snickers.
Seriously, its not about what you LIKE. Its about what you are willing to carry to get the needed calories. Or sometimes its about what the hostel or convenience store has. If they only have slim jims and snickers, it may be slim jims and snickers for 2 days.
Fortunately, I do like peanut butter, tortillas, beef jerky, and peanut mms. I could live on that alone . ( and have)
There is a hiker named Model T, wrote a couple of good books. He existed on peanut butter and parkay squeeze margarine toward the end of his thru. :eek:
You really only have to worry about being picky for the first few hundred miles. After that you will eat anything that can't move fast enough to get away from you :)
Not only that but the worst town food will be terrific. Then, when you drive back to the same restaurant in the same town later for nostalgic reasons the food will be awful. But it's the same food!
Cous-cous is all but instant, and goes well with pretty much any meat and/or veggies and fruits. There's even a heartier whole wheat version, but it's not quite instant.
Agreed. I "discovered" the Near East brand of couscous at Walmart over the weekend. Walmart was a coincidence. The stuff is everywhere. Comes in a bazillion flavors. Cooking instructions: Add boiling water. Cover. Let stand 5 minutes. Sound like freezer bag cooking? Rice noodles cook the same.
To the OP: How do you feel about instant Cream of Wheat, grits, mashed potatoes, etc. ?
Peanut butter on pancakes? [emoji33] I've heard it all.
If tortillas don't work as pancake stand ins, try bagels or English muffins.
One more find at WallyWorld: cooked quinoa you can eat straight out of the bag. Which means you could add it to any meal. 7 ounce foil packs of chicken breast too.
Honey buns should be shunned. Good for you.
Have you found precooked bacon and sausage? Have you found Knorr Cajun Sides? Probably against your dietary rules.
Bon Apatite!
Way
Sent from somewhere around here.
gather your ideas then practice:
go to the grocery store and buy for 3 days, no refrigeration - weigh your total purchases, 8-9 lbs should be max and eat the heavy stuff first - eat only that for the 3 days
also do this at stores you are not familiar with
One Half
02-01-2016, 22:33
I have a friend doing the trail this year and she eats Paleo so the "normal" hiker diet wasn't going to cut it for her either. She is using a lot of recipes from this site with some slight modifications. http://www.backpackingchef.com
Old Hiker
02-02-2016, 08:47
500 mile attempt in 2012
I like peanut butter, so that wasn't a problem. However:
Found these instead of pop tarts: http://www.belvitabreakfast.com/ (http://www.belvitabreakfast.com/) - less weight, same or slightly more calories, won't freeze, comes in either a hard, crunchy biscuit or soft bar. Lots of brands out there now.
Tortillas
Mini-bagels when you can find them
Tubs of cream cheese – 2-3 meals with the bagels - lots of flavors as well
Millennium food bars – I like them for a “snack” instead of a candy bar - http://beprepared.com/millennium-energy-bar-combo.html (http://beprepared.com/millennium-energy-bar-combo.html)- not sure if this is the “official” site
Packs of chicken in instant rice or couscous - I add more water than needed for a soupy consistency - gives me extra hydration as well
Flavored tunas – not just the plain – LOTS of flavors
Old El Paso skillet packs – eat cold from the bag
Mountain house - #10 cans – broken into ziplocs –theepicenter.com
Frosted mini-wheats - was a great snack to munch - found on sale at the $ store, so I bought it
I agree with all of the above, except maybe the pop tarts.
Try dehydrating - make what you like. There are several websites for ideas.
DuneElliot
02-02-2016, 13:17
I also can't stand PB with anything...not even pancakes. I do like Nutella and raspberry jelly (not together) so I think I can survive. Might be eating a lot of cheese spreads!
I've copied the ingredient list from many a dehydrated backpacking meal and made my own tweaking the recipe according to my food pickiness. Backpacker mag, Trail Groove(check out some of Mags offerings, I just tried Mags Banana Nut Pudding recipe made with added coconut powder and shredded coconut flake - yummy), etc. offer monthly suggestions. I like Liz Thomas aka Snorkel's site in that she's constantly creatively trying new backpacking foods. Since I'm mainly a vegetarian wanting to know the ingredients, nutritional info, etc I also like the stuff Outdoor Herbivore and companies taking like approaches are doing. IMHO, the last thing you want to do in your situation is eat as the typical AT hiker eats - boring.
Yeah, Glenn offers good ideas. There are several classically well trained Professional Chefs that have sites offering food suggestions. There is actually quite a bit of suggestions on food applicable to the outdoors and light wt hiking on the net.
hikehunter
02-02-2016, 17:06
Packit Gourmet
Hawk Vittles
I like the Ovaeasy with dehydrated veggies in the mix for breakfast.
I take the bow tie noodles and toemato paste in a tube (like toothpaste) some dehydrated onions & garlic ---- good dinner
dehydrated chicken olive oil Grill mates seasoning and fry it up in my baby fry pan place on totilla and chow down
crackers and cheese and or PB&J - lunch
trail mix made and bagged at home
Go to Wendy's get some of the different packs of sauses they have Texas Pete.
So eat what you like, and don't eat what you don't like. Everything that you mentioned, except for pb, is sugary crap.
A more grown-up attitude would concentrate on what successful fuel/nutrition would be.
You could do worse than eating cheese, avocados, eggs, beef jerky, and nuts.
I forgot Kind & Kind + bars, Kind Grains (no, it's not granola). Good stuff. No cook. However, I add the Kind Grains to hot cereal, doesn't have to be oatmeal or granola.
Another find over the weekend: a small (12 ounce) can of Nido Whole Milk variety. For some reason, all I had seen in all of my looking was a non-fat milk version. Yuck! Anyway, I'm going to try the Nido soon. Everyone here swears it is good. Add it to anything.
Here you go. Buy a box of these for your peanut butter.
https://www.leggomyeggo.com/en_US/products/pancakes.html
One more tip: Check out this dry peanut butter. I add it hot cereal also. I dare say you could add it to anything wet. It is so mild that you won't know it is there. But you get the nutrition of peanut butter without all the junk that off the shelf peanut butter has. Have you ground your own nut butters ni stores with the grinding machine? REALLY nice! Almonds, cashews, peanuts. Yummy! Keeps a long time.
https://www.bellplantation.com/
Wayne
damskipi
02-02-2016, 19:46
I don't like peanut butter by itself, or peanut butter anything unless it's on pancakes.
I don't like gronola.
I don't like honey buns.
I don't like most of the knoor packets (two salty?)
And, I dont like oat meal.
While you certainly don't have to eat any of these items, maybe understanding your aversion to them would help us with suggestions. For instance:
- Is it the texture of PB you don't like, or the flavor? If it's flavor, try Nutella, almond butter, sunbutter, cashew butter, etc...
- There are TONS of types of granola. What don't you like about it? Have you tried the soft snacking granola they have at Whole Foods and Costco? It's AMAZING
- Yeah, I don't like Honey Buns either. They don't offer much other than sugar. No advice here.
- I also recommend the Near East couscous instead of Knoor sides. Mac and cheese is also good, Annie's makes some great mac and cheese.
- Is it the texture or flavor of oatmeal you don't like? If it's texture, I'd recommend steel cut or Scottish oats. I'm not crazy about rolled oats but I love steel cut and Scottish oats. If it's flavor, try couscous or quinoa with mix-ins you'd normally put in oatmeal - nuts, dried fruit, brown sugar.
PS - I also love PB on pancakes. I don't know why people think that is strange. It's delicious!
jj dont play
02-23-2016, 01:29
When you get hungry you'll be less picky.
I can't stand canned tuna, but when I'm out camping I actually crave it.
Side Note: One thing I'm considering but hadn't been able to find any other opinions on is protein power. Easy to carry a good bit and easy to increase calorie intake, plus the right brands taste dang good just mixed with water. Most of my camping experience has been tied to hunting and I usually just do protein powder and meal replacement bars to last all day and not have to pack much or cook.
Weather-man
02-23-2016, 08:06
When you get hungry you'll be less picky.
I can't stand canned tuna, but when I'm out camping I actually crave it.
Side Note: One thing I'm considering but hadn't been able to find any other opinions on is protein power. Easy to carry a good bit and easy to increase calorie intake, plus the right brands taste dang good just mixed with water. Most of my camping experience has been tied to hunting and I usually just do protein powder and meal replacement bars to last all day and not have to pack much or cook.
Came here to post something very similar. Those foods that are less than desirable at home may taste like manna from heaven after a few weeks of hiking, especially if you're cold and wet. As an example in my younger days I spent quite a bit of time "hiking" and sking in the artic. I'd often spend a few weeks at a time in the snow. On these trips I learned to carry sticks of butter. I'd put butter in everything....even coffee. I'd also just cut off a hunk and eat it. The taste was indescribable in how delicious it was.
My point is that when you're calorie deficient, and potentially wet and cold, certain foods will taste very different.
Just something to thnk about in your food planning. Things may change around week 3 or 4. Or not :) .
Enjoy.
Eat what you like at home...and just make it trail friendly.
PS: We don't eat PB anymore. Our youngest has severe food allergies. Don't miss it. We live on Sunbutter instead :)
valeflyfish47
02-23-2016, 15:19
Breakfast = cheese, sausage, and granola bar (call it a protein bar and you won't realize it's granola)
Lunch = PB and J on a tortilla (just pretend the tortilla is a pancake)
Snacks = trail mix
Supper = Curried lentils and rice.
New to backpacking. Curried lentils and rice sounds good. Is that a freeze dried meal or homemade. (I was in the Army for a number of years and MRE's still weren't all that great and the way they put together some meals I don't understand)
Agreed. I "discovered" the Near East brand of couscous at Walmart over the weekend. Walmart was a coincidence. The stuff is everywhere. Comes in a bazillion flavors. Cooking instructions: Add boiling water. Cover. Let stand 5 minutes. Sound like freezer bag cooking? Rice noodles cook the same.
To the OP: How do you feel about instant Cream of Wheat, grits, mashed potatoes, etc. ?
Peanut butter on pancakes? [emoji33] I've heard it all.
If tortillas don't work as pancake stand ins, try bagels or English muffins.
One more find at WallyWorld: cooked quinoa you can eat straight out of the bag. Which means you could add it to any meal. 7 ounce foil packs of chicken breast too.
Honey buns should be shunned. Good for you.
Have you found precooked bacon and sausage? Have you found Knorr Cajun Sides? Probably against your dietary rules.
Bon Apatite!
Way
Sent from somewhere around here.
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