Why not break the rules while you’re backpacking under the open sky? Muesli and granola cereal are quick to prepare, packed with calories, and taste great. Hikers often rely on energy bars, trail mixes, candy bars, and other packaged snacks for convenience. However, many of these snack foods are low in nutrition and contain highly processed ingredients, added sweeteners, and excessive amounts of sodium. So, the next time you need a quick and easy lunch or dinner that doesn’t require cooking, consider cereal. Outdoor Herbivore offers calorie-dense muesli cereal that combines dried fruit, nuts, and seeds with instant organic soy […]
Food
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Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wah) is the edible seed from the quinoa plant, a plant related to spinach and chard. Although technically a seed, it is generally classified as a grain since its appearance is similar to the grains we are familiar with. What is so special about quinoa? Quinoa is a superfood that offers a wide range of benefits to our health. Some of the benefits of eating quinoa are: High Nutritional Value – Quinoa is rich in essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, making it one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. Complete Protein – it contains all […]
Can I maintain my vegetarian/vegan diet on a thru-hike? This question is a common one that we get from backpackers planning a thru-hike. Some think a vegan won’t be able to finish their hike because they can’t consume enough calories or protein and will become weak and sickly. This is NOT true. You do not need to eat animal protein to finish any endurance activity. While hiking, the muscle continuously burns carbohydrates and fat as fuel, not protein. Like all other backpackers, vegans need to consume more calories from complex carbohydrates and fat. The best plant-based carbohydrates to consume when backpacking […]
You are excited about your upcoming backpacking trip but not the food preparation. You want to plan for the hike instead of preparing backpacking food, which, when done yourself, can take months. Making your backpacking food calls for considerable preparation. You must decide on a menu, purchase ingredients, prepare the meals, dry them using a dehydrator or freeze-dryer, measure and ration the portions, seal them into storage bags, and label the cooking instructions. Then, there is the concern about having packed enough food or too much. How will it taste – pleasant, dreadful, bland, salty…? Will you have enough calories, protein, […]
Why is our food quality so bad? Blame the consumer, not the system. The American food system is simply supplying what the American consumer is demanding. If you don’t want it or like it, don’t buy it. There are always alternatives – maybe not as cheap or convenient, but they are there…be aggravated enough to search. ~Safdy The Consequences of Fast Food Today, everything seems to feed off corn and soy: fish farms, animal feed, and packaged food for humans. That is because corn and soy crops are efficient and cheap to produce. Corn and soy are efficient transformers of sunlight, […]