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Hiking Food

lovinglife said:
Avocado, can be eaten with a spoon
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Great minds - I'd actually thought of that just after starting this thread. I figured that the calories-per-gram are about the same for eggs, those tuna meals, and avocados. Avocados are like eggs - come in their own shell and survive for a while in heat! I could even fill them with those tuna things. Or poached eggs. Oh, the possibilities.

I think I'll be changing my backpacking food approach as a result of this thread! Normally it's cold food and water, and even tea is a luxury. I do have a very nice non-stick Trangia stove though, which I normally only use when car-camping. I'm tempted to lug it around the hills so I can go full-on Keith Floyd now, though!
 

Good one. I'm also thinking that with things like that, I can take some pre-buttered low-carb bread as well. Butter lasts a very long time out of the fridge. So I could use stuff like those tins as fillers to make sandwiches.
 
I've just thought I might try taking some chorizo since I've really gone off peperami. Should last a while out of the fridge. No need to cook it, but could also go well with eggs in an omelette if I happen to have a stove with me.
 
Dont do any backpacking or camping anymore but when I did I took:

pouches of olives (small packets, nice and light and keeps fresh in heat)
mini babybel cheese though any small prepacked cheeses would work (frozen to act as sort of mini coolblocks)
celery and peanut butter (usually had celery on first day)
mixed nuts (pre-portioned into small zip lock bags to stop me eating them all in first day)
flaxseed blend to mix with hot water as a breakfast "cereal (Linwoods brand from H&B or some big supermarkets)

we would get eggs and fresh milk from local farms. It you want to freeze full fat milk without it separating shake it every half hour or so to help it stay mixed

Havent ever tried it but what about beef jerky?
 
Crispy cooked bacon strips. Tesco and Sainsbury's do it, but M&S is best, without question. Beef Jerky?

The frozed "stuff" is a great idea. If you're a bit uncomfortable about milk, then you could freeze bottled water, because, you'll also be consuming it along the way.

Vaccum packed stuff. If the air is removed, what's inside keeps way longer outside the fridge. If you weree taking a small saucepan/wok and camping gaz cooker, then pouches of curry or whatever would work well, because you could even heat those still in the vac bag. I'm afraid since I got my vacuum sealer, I'm a bit of a vac bore!

For cooling, I'm wondering if the Frio style evaporation system would work for small quantities.
 
AdamJames said:
Good one. I'm also thinking that with things like that, I can take some pre-buttered low-carb bread as well. Butter lasts a very long time out of the fridge. So I could use stuff like those tins as fillers to make sandwiches.
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When exactly is this trip? Give me enough notice and I'll be there........
 

Peanut butter and beef jerky are definitely going on the list! Thanks. I've seen some low-carb beef jerky, though it seems you have to be careful to avoid some of the marinated stuff.

I'm thinking peanut butter could be quite versatile. Peanut butter neat, or in sandwiches, or even in cooking (satay?) for when I'm particularly adventurous.

That's reminded me I did make my own very simple 'snack' by just blending mixed nuts and a few raisins, then stirring in nut butter to make a very high calorie snack which can be shaped into balls / bars very easily. They'd last well in the heat, too. I've never taken them hiking, I really should.
 

I really liked the crispy bacon strips I tried from Aldi a while ago. They are definitely going on the list when I'm carrying a cooler bag. Thanks. I wonder how long they'd last in warms temps as well? Possibly a bit longer than one might expect, given they are cooked?

Frozen water instead of an ice block makes perfect sense. I've clearly lost my touch - I used to be very into the ultralight backpacking thing where I'd think of multiple uses for every item! Why on earth carry a sealed ice block when a small frozen bottle of water can be drunk once it's finished with!

Can you recommend a cheap vacuum sealer for food? I'm intrigued! Might be a way to make my own version of those expensive pre-prepared bagged meals for campers.
 
archersuz said:
When exactly is this trip? Give me enough notice and I'll be there........
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Pretty much every weekend these days. If you bring your Lara Croft outfit and your bow, I'll do the cooking
 

Lidl had a simple one a couple of weeks ago, at something like £25, but I've not idea how good it would be, although Lidl/Aldi goods seem to be fairly decent, usually. Hard vacuuming liquids i.e. the seal pouch is hard, if very difficut without a vacuum chamber at some hundreds of pounds. Dry foods and thingslike meat are fine, and liquids in a slightly squelchy pouch do well. The Foodsaver brand are well respected.

Don't forget you need special bagsfor the vacuum to work - they have one textured side, so that the bags just doesn't collapse as opposed to stand up to removing the air.

If you're thinking about it, have a look on YouTube. There are a gazillion demo videos on there and some review/troubleshooting clips too.
 
Hi Adam,
As something of a post-script ref the milk options mentioned above (probly too late if you've already toddled off to Tesco, but maybe to think about for next time).... Today I picked up a carton of Arla lactofree semi skimmed milk, not realising that it was the long-life version. Actually, they refer to it as a"dairy drink". Amongst other info, the carton also indicates "decant and freeze for 1 month". I haven't tried it yet so can't comment on taste/flavour, but I wonder if this would suit your needs for a milk (sort of) and smaller-sized frozen blocks to use as needed.

Hope you have agood trip - with an especially satisfying array of foodstuffs to sustain your travels.
 
rab5 said:
I cant work out the carb content of each bar do you know what it is. On a review it says two but Im reading it as 5...?
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That’s because the 5 includes the polyols, the type of sweetener they use which although it’s a carbohydrate it isn’t absorbed, so you need to subtract the polyols. On the front of each bar it says “net carbs 2g”
 
@AdamJames - Having had THE most amazing duck breast, cooked sous vide yesterday evening for dinner, I was thinking again about the vacuuming process.

When I wa in Lidl yesterday, they had remainers of their manual vacuuming offering (as opposed to the electric pump and thermal sealer). If you want to try vacuuming, with a modest outlay, something like that might work well for you.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TAILI-Vacu...3&sr=8-4&keywords=reusable+sous+vide+bag&th=1

The bags are really strong, and absolutely reusable, provided they are well washed and dried. I can think of some advantages of being able to open and close the bag as many times as you want (to add more spices to marinade for example), without cutting and resealing the bag.

If I hadn't been plotting for a sous vide for a while (and I love my gadgets!), I might have been tempted.

It's just a thought.
 
I'm on phone in a village at moment, just got signal. I've just come down from the hills and found a butcher that was selling lamb and mint stir fry. Looks like healthy low carb heaven, at back of pic. Just bought some. It's a hot day so now for a lot of quick walking uphill to see if I can get to my car where the stove is before the lamb turns green! Reckon it will take about an hour and a half. There won't be a signal there. Will check latest top tips later, thanks!



Lesson learned - always carry big stove! They were very nice, gave me a free cup of tea and would have let me cook on the table outside!
 
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