DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (2024)

Are you tired of eating expensive freeze-dried backpacking food that's heavy on salt and light on vegetables?

Wouldn't you rather eat healthy, homemade backpacking meals?

Grab a spoon and let's get started!

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (1)

Welcome to Backpacking Chef.

An entire website devoted to helping you make light-weight, nutritious DIY backpacking meals.

Learn how to dehydrate food from A to Z, while exploring over 100 trail-tested backpacking recipes for dinners, lunches, breakfasts, desserts, and snacks.

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (2)

Greetings. Chef Glenn here.

When I set out for my first 30-day hike on the Appalachian Trail, Ideveloped a complete menu of healthy backpacking recipes.

The meals tasted great, packed light, kept well, and were easy-to-cook with a small backpacking pot and stove.

What's on the Menu?

DIYBackpacking foods on the menu include chili, unstuffed peppers,risotto, ratatouille, taco mac & cheese, Thai peanut noodles, Thaicurry, pasta marinara, shrimp linguine, and dozens more.

Vegetarian Meals & Cold-Soak Salads

There's a good selection of vegetarian backpacking meals, like lentil stew, andrecipes for cold-soak salads like peach salsa rice salad.

Don't Forget Dessert!

Explore backpacking desserts like applesauce, peach crunch,banana pudding, fruit smoothies, and healthy hiking snacks like sweetpotato bark and pumpkin pie bark.

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (3)

Ready to hit the trail with delicious, homemade backpacking meals?

Pick a Topic and Let's Get Started!

Backpacking Food Recipes

Dehydrating Backpacking Food

Recipes for Adventure Books

Trail Bytes Newsletter


Backpacking Food Recipes

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (4)

Table of Contents:

Backpacking Food Recipes

Find 100+ breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack and dessert recipes. Learnhow to assemble dehydrated meats, vegetables, and starches into a greatvariety of delicious backpackingmeals. There are also recipes for dehydrating whole meals.

Photos of every recipe are included with exact quantities foreach ingredient, packing instructions, and how to rehydrate and preparethe meals on the trail with minimal effort and fuel.

Explore More Recipes:

Breakfast| Vegetarian|No-Cook |Desserts

Dehydrating Backpacking Food

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (5)

Table of Contents:

Dehydrating Backpacking Food fromA – Z

Dehydrating backpacking food substantially reduces pack weight and preserves the food.

Learn how to dehydrate vegetables, meat, tofu, beans, fruit, sauces, and starches.

Explore More Dehydrating Topics:

DehydratingFruit | Dehydrating Meat

Dehydrating Vegetables

Packing& Cooking Backpacking Food

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (6)

Backpacking FoodStorage for Home & Trail

Keep backpacking food air and water-tight. Vacuum sealingand/or using oxygen absorbers will keep your trail meals well-preserved at homeand on the trail.

Explore:


Backpacking Stoves

How to cook DIY backpacking meals with a simple tea-light cup alcoholstove or three tea-light candles. Instructions for making light-weight potsupports and wind screens.

Explore: Backpacking Stoves.


How to Make a Pot Cozy

Save fuel and keep your backpacking meal hot while it rehydrates. Watch the instructional video.

Explore: Making a Pot Cozy.


Thermos Cooking

A thermos food jar is great for rehydratingdehydrated meals with either hot or cold water. Enjoy nutritious and convenientDIY backpacking food wherever you travel.

Explore: Thermos Cooking.

Backpacking Food Recipe Books

Recipes for Adventure: Healthy, Hearty & Homemade Backpacking Recipes

If you like what you find on the website, you will love my cookbook, Recipes for Adventure.It covers everything from the website plus more recipes and dehydratingtechniques. Nicely formatted with hundreds of photos, it is availableas a PDF download for computer viewing or as a full-color printededition.

Explore Recipes for Adventure


Recipes for Adventure Action Guide

A Step-by-Step Action Guide to put together 31 dehydrated meals.

Includes the shopping list, drying instructions, meal assembly, cooking directions, and packing.

"When you keep a supply of dehydrated meals on hand – for adventure,work, and travel – you’re automatically prepared for emergencies."

Explore the Action Guide


Recipes for Adventure II: The Best of Trail Bytes

My newest cookbook features the best backpacking food recipes and dehydrating techniques collected from over 100 issues of my newsletter, Trail Bytes, plus new topics that will make your DIY backpacking meals as memorable as your adventures.

Explore Recipes for Adventure II


Menu Planning & Food Drying Workbook

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Use the workbook to plan your menus and estimate how much food to purchase and dry.

It's a great tool to go with Recipes for Adventure.

Explore the workbook

Free Backpacking Food Newsletter

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Get started with a free e-book, Home & Trail: An Introduction to Drying Food, when you subscribe.

DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (10)

Each monthly edition of Trail Bytes delivers new backpacking food recipes and food dehydration techniques.

"Chef, There's no better timethan now for the information on dehydrating food and the backpackingrecipes in your newsletter. A very big thank you, keep up the great work." -Ray

Subscribe to Trail Bytes

Questions about Backpacking Food?

If you have questions or comments after exploring the website, feel free to contact Chef Glenn.

Stayinspired!

FollowChef Glenn’s posts on Facebook and get social with 12,000 DIY backpacking foodenthusiasts.

Explore the Backpacking Chef Facebook Page

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DIY Backpacking Food | Recipes for Adventure (2024)

FAQs

What is the best easy food for backpacking? ›

Instant rice, couscous, noodles, pasta, rice mixes and other shelf-stable boxed dinners are easy choices. Peanut butter is often available in individual servings, pouches or in powdered form. Add spices: Spices can boost the appeal of backpacking food with minimal additional weight.

How do I pack enough food for backpacking? ›

Don't over-pack meals!

Rather than pack extra meals, pack extra snacks or cold-soak meals. This way, you can still eat if you run out of fuel or are too tired to fire up the stove. A general guide is to plan 1.5 – 2 pounds of total food (including snacks) per person daily.

What non perishable food to take hiking? ›

3. For a Hike or Day Trip...
  • Trail mix.
  • Nuts, seeds, nut-based bars or nut butter packs.
  • Fresh, whole fruit that doesn't require refrigeration such as apples, bananas and oranges.
  • Dried or freeze-dried fruits and veggies.
  • Energy bars, chews or gels.
  • Granola or granola bars.
  • Ready-made tuna salad pouches.
Jul 5, 2022

What is the most dense food for backpacking? ›

Examples of calorie-dense food include: nuts (peanuts, walnuts, almonds, cashews) and nut butters (peanut butter, hazelnut butter) seeds such as sunflower or pumpkin.

What is the best lightweight food for hiking? ›

Backpacking Meal Suggestions
  • Granola & Cereal (Bear Naked)
  • Powdered Milk (Nido or Grace Coconut Milk Powder)
  • Breakfast Drink Mix Packets (Carnation)
  • Trail Mix.
  • Nuts and Seeds (Almonds, peanuts, etc.)
  • Almond Butter Packets (Justin's)
  • Peanut Butter Packets (Justin's)
  • Instant Oatmeal (Quaker)
Jan 29, 2018

What food to pack for a 3 day backpacking trip? ›

Backpacking Food Ideas
  • Jerky.
  • Fig bars.
  • Cheese & Crackers.
  • Gummy candy.
  • Rice Cakes & Peanut Butter.
  • Tuna Packets & Crackers.
  • Trail Mix.
  • Nut Packets.
Jun 22, 2022

How many days of food can I carry backpacking? ›

How much of an impact depends on what food you're carrying. An average food carry on a thru-hike is five days (some can be even longer).

What is a good lunch for backpacking? ›

As foodie experts, here is our list of the 25 Best No Cook Backpacking Lunch Ideas for your next hike:
  • Nuts. ...
  • Cheese, Crackers, and Salami. ...
  • Cold Ramen. Ramen. ...
  • Couscous. Couscous. ...
  • Gazpacho. Gazpacho. ...
  • Tuna Packets with Crackers. Tuna Packets. ...
  • Sardines. Sardines. ...
  • Backpackers Crepes. Peanut Butter & Gronolla Tortilla Wrap.
Sep 26, 2022

What meat does not need refrigeration? ›

The solution is to bring meat that does not need refrigeration. Some long-lasting canned meat products fare well in cool and dry places. Canned chicken, chicken packets, sausage links, precooked bacon, beef jerky, and canned ham are viable protein substitutes.

What food lasts a long time for travel? ›

Choose foods with a longer shelf life: Opt for foods that are naturally shelf-stable or have been packaged in a way that preserves them, such as dried fruits, nuts, jerky, and canned goods.

What food to bring backpacking overnight? ›

  • OvaEasy Eggs. If you don't mind cooking in the morning, OvaEasy's powdered egg crystals are surprisingly close to the real thing! ...
  • Instant oatmeal. Instant oatmeal is quick, easy, cheap, and totally customizable. ...
  • Bobo's Oat Bars. ...
  • Instant Coffee. ...
  • Greenbelly meal bars. ...
  • No-cook meals. ...
  • Nut butter. ...
  • Trail mix, nuts, and dried fruit.
Oct 24, 2023

What is too heavy for backpacking? ›

Members of the UI Hospitals & Clinics Rehabilitation Services team recommend you carry no more than ten percent of your weight in a backpack. If you weigh 150 pounds, you should carry no more than 15 pounds in a backpack.

Is peanut butter good for backpacking? ›

The best foods for backpacking are actually peanut butter, salami (depending on the brand), cheese, and nutella. They all have roughly the same calorie density at about 70% fat. Toblerone actually comes surprisingly close (even compared to other chocolates/candies).

What are the best easy backpacking breakfasts? ›

Camping & Backpacking Breakfast Ideas
  • Instant Oatmeal. Warm, hearty, and nourishing, instant oatmeal is an excellent camping breakfast. ...
  • Yogurt and Granola. ...
  • Trail Mix. ...
  • Instant Coffee. ...
  • Peanut Butter Energy Bites. ...
  • No-Cook Breakfast Sandwich. ...
  • No-Bake Breakfast Cookies. ...
  • Chia Pudding.
Jun 22, 2021

What are the easiest survival foods? ›

What Emergency Foods to Keep in Your Pantry
  • Peanut Butter. ...
  • Whole-Wheat Crackers. ...
  • Nuts and Trail Mixes. ...
  • Cereal. ...
  • Granola Bars and Power Bars. ...
  • Dried Fruits, Such as Apricots and Raisins. ...
  • Canned Tuna, Salmon, Chicken, or Turkey. ...
  • Canned Vegetables, Such as Green Beans, Carrots, and Peas.
Mar 27, 2023

What foods are easy to eat while traveling? ›

Healthy options that will travel well in your backpack and carry-on include:
  • Applesauce.
  • Single-serving bags of veggie chips.
  • Single-serving containers of tuna.
  • Single-serving packets of unsalted nuts, like almonds or cashews.
  • Air-popped or bagged popcorn (stick to kinds that are low in salt and no butter).
Oct 1, 2023

How much food do I need for a 5 day backpacking trip? ›

Here is a complete 5-day backpacking meal plan similar to what I eat on my hikes. It includes three meals and four snacks, providing 3,500 calories from 2 lbs of food per day. 3,500 calories a day is a good baseline calorie goal for most backpacking trips.

References

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