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15 hiking snacks and meals that actually taste good
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items Traditional hiking food tends to be a series of heartbreaks. After years of shoveling down stale mixed nuts and stuffing gelatinous protein bars into my gullet, I decided to buck convention and seek out hiking snacks and meals that actually tasted go...
Sections
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Snacks
Meals
Beverages Pairings
Snacks
You're already in promising hiking snack territory with popcorn. It's relatively healthy (love that fiber), it can be augmented with flavors, and it doesn't crush as easily as a bag of chips. But Pipcorn takes all of this to another level with their ...
Pipcorn miniature popcorn
Peanut and almond butters go into many of the wretched nutritional bars that are often marketed toward hikers, but why ruin a good thing by pairing it with all kinds of other crap? Justin's has the confidence to stand behind the quality of its nut bu...
Justin's nut butter pouches
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I'm as wary as you are about the Coconut Oil Industrial Complex and all the dodgy promises that wellness influencers regularly make about the slick solvent. But the Dang coconut *chips* are another matter, being rich in healthy fats and fiber (both o...
Dang coconut chips
Salty snacks get a bad rap in day-to-day life, but when you're out on a hike and sweating hard, you're losing a lot of salt and sodium rich snack can help you replenish it. (If you don't, your energy can take a nosedive.) I'm a long-time fan of Trade...
Trader Joe's Giant Peruvian Inca Corn
Beef jerky is a backcountry classic: tough enough have you savoring each little piece through the process of chewing, and packed with protein and salt. Wild Bill's is a nostalgic choice for me. My dad and I would stock up on it at a gas station befor...
Wild Bill's beef jerky
Meals
One of the more surprising meals that can translate nicely to a day of backpacking is good, nutrient-dense soup or chili! You simply toss a soup box or can into your backpack, along with a spoon, and when you reach a summit or a cascade, you fish tha...
Dr. McDougall's boxed soups and chilis
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Meat doesn't have much of a shelf life once it leaves the refrigerator, but cured sausages are an exception. You can toss one into your backpack, open it up mid-hike, and keep coming back to it for additional slices over the course of the day. Summer...
Prasek's summer sausage
We've gotten used to thinking about hummus as a garnish. But on a hike, where backpack space is limited and the need for energy fuel is real, a tub of high quality hummus can be the centerpiece of a great backcountry meal. I like to start with a 10 o...
Cedar's hummus
Tuna pouches are a popular meal baseline for backpackers, but when I'm on a hike and battling the elements like mosquitoes, drizzly skies, and limited energy, I need to treat myself. And that's why I turn to Matiz tinned seafood products for a protei...
Matiz tinned fish
Meal plans for hiking shouldn't just orbit around utility. Hiking is both physically and mentally taxing. It's a time to be indulgent to yourself whenever possible. And what's more indulgent than digging into a can of cheesy tomato sauce and pasta, a...
Annie's canned pasta
Beverages Pairings
Electrolyte replenishment can make a hike much more enjoyable, but a few bottles of Gatorade can take up a lot of space in a daypack. That's why I've gotten hooked on the DripDrop electrolyte powders. A little tube of this stuff transforms a bottle o...
DripDrop electrolyte powder
If there's any running theme to this list, it's the idea that many foods and drinks that we enjoy in daily life can become Hiking Food and Drink with relative ease. Take cold brew coffee. With these instant coffee sticks from Cameron's (among many si...
Cameron's cold brew instant coffee
A can of beer, with or without alcohol, is a loaded with carbs that can be useful before, after, or during a hike. And the lineup of non alcoholic beers from Athletic Brewing Co. has gotten more and more impressive with each passing year. From IPAs t...
Athletic Brewing Co. non alcoholic beer
While hiking and alcohol should be paired with some degree of caution (ex: don't plan on drinking during a hike if the temperature will be scorching), a well-timed “glass” of wine or beer can be a delicious treat on a summit or beside a river. Bota B...
Bota Box wines
Just like wine, a trailside beer in the middle of a hike or at the end can be the perfect garnish for a day in the great outdoors. While there are literally thousands of craft beers to choose from today, you might consider a German double bock: a vel...
Troegenator double bock