Backpacking meal ideas
Good trail meals are simple: a few store-bought foods that need little or no cooking and carry a lot of calories for their weight. Below are combos for each part of the day, built from real products in the index. Each card shows the calories, protein and weight of the combo, straight from the labels.
Jump to breakfast, lunch and snacks, dinner or drinks.
Backpacking breakfast ideas
Breakfast on trail should be fast, warm if you like, and dense enough to get you to the first snack break. Instant oatmeal is the classic. On its own it's light on calories, so give it a partner.
Peanut butter oatmeal
- Nature's Path Instant Oatmeal1 serving · 40 g · 160 kcal
- Justin's Classic Peanut Butter Squeeze Pack1 serving · 32 g · 210 kcal
Make the oatmeal, then squeeze in the peanut butter. The fat more than doubles the calories of the bowl.
- Calories
- 370
- Protein
- 12 g
- Weight
- 2.5 oz
Protein oats
- Bob's Red Mill Classic Instant Oatmeal1 serving · 35 g · 140 kcal
- ZobaFuel Chocolate Plant Protein Powder1 serving · 34.7 g · 110 kcal
Let the oats cool for a minute and stir in a serving of protein powder so it doesn't clump.
- Calories
- 250
- Protein
- 25 g
- Weight
- 2.5 oz
No-stove breakfast
- Honey Stinger Honey Waffle1 serving · 30 g · 160 kcal
- Justin's Cinnamon Almond Butter Squeeze Pack1 serving · 32 g · 200 kcal
Spread almond butter on a honey waffle and eat it while you pack up camp.
- Calories
- 360
- Protein
- 6 g
- Weight
- 2.2 oz
What the planner picks for breakfast
Trail lunch and snack ideas
Most hikers don't stop for a big lunch. They graze from breakfast to dinner. Tortilla wraps and salty snacks do most of the work, and this is where the densest foods in your bag usually live.
Peanut butter tortilla
- Guerrero Flour Tortillas1 serving · 41 g · 120 kcal
- Justin's Classic Peanut Butter Squeeze Pack1 serving · 32 g · 210 kcal
The thru-hiker staple. Roll it up and eat it on the move.
- Calories
- 330
- Protein
- 10 g
- Weight
- 2.6 oz
Salami and cheese wrap
- La Banderita Flour Tortillas1 serving · 60 g · 180 kcal
- Hormel Hard Salami1 serving · 28 g · 110 kcal
- Mini Babybel Original1 serving · 21 g · 70 kcal
Good for the first few days, while the cheese is still fresh.
- Calories
- 360
- Protein
- 15 g
- Weight
- 3.8 oz
Trail mix and jerky
- Nature's Promise Monster Trail Mix1 serving · 30 g · 170 kcal
- Jack Link's Beef Jerky1 serving · 28 g · 80 kcal
A handful of each covers sweet, salty and some protein.
- Calories
- 250
- Protein
- 17 g
- Weight
- 2.0 oz
Salty and sweet break
- Fritos Corn Chips1 serving · 28 g · 160 kcal
- Snickers Bar1 serving · 26.6 g · 130 kcal
Corn chips and a candy bar. Not fancy, but it's some of the lightest food per calorie you can buy.
- Calories
- 290
- Protein
- 4 g
- Weight
- 1.9 oz
Backpacking dinner ideas
Dinner is the one hot meal most people look forward to. Grocery store sides cook in one pot and are light because they're dry. Add a protein to make them a full meal.
Ramen with chicken
- Maruchan Instant Lunch Ramen (chicken)1 serving · 64 g · 290 kcal
- Swanson White Chicken Pouch1 serving · 73.7 g · 70 kcal
Cook the noodles, then stir in the chicken pouch. Best early in a trip, since the pouch is heavy for its calories.
- Calories
- 360
- Protein
- 19 g
- Weight
- 4.9 oz
Cheesy potatoes with salami
- Idahoan Four Cheese Mashed Potatoes2 servings · 56 g · 220 kcal
- Hormel Hard Salami1 serving · 28 g · 110 kcal
Mix the potato flakes with hot water and slice salami on top.
- Calories
- 330
- Protein
- 9 g
- Weight
- 3.0 oz
Couscous with parmesan
- Bob's Red Mill Golden Couscous1 serving · 60 g · 220 kcal
- Good & Gather Parmesan Cheese1 serving · 28 g · 110 kcal
Couscous only needs to soak in hot water, which saves fuel. Shake parmesan over it.
- Calories
- 330
- Protein
- 18 g
- Weight
- 3.1 oz
Garlic pasta and summer sausage
- Knorr Creamy Garlic Pasta Side1 serving · 65 g · 240 kcal
- Johnsonville Summer Sausage1 serving · 56 g · 180 kcal
Simmer the pasta side, then add chunks of summer sausage.
- Calories
- 420
- Protein
- 18 g
- Weight
- 4.3 oz
What the planner picks for dinner
Drinks and drink mixes
Drink mixes weigh almost nothing and help you keep drinking on hot days. Some carry real calories, and a protein shake can double as a recovery drink at camp.
Electrolytes while you hike
- Skratch Labs Hydration Drink Mix (lemon-lime)1 serving · 13 g · 50 kcal
One serving per bottle on hot or sweaty days.
- Calories
- 50
- Protein
- 0 g
- Weight
- 0.5 oz
Calories you can drink
- Tailwind Nutrition Endurance Fuel (mandarin orange)1 serving · 27 g · 100 kcal
Endurance mixes add calories when you don't feel like eating.
- Calories
- 100
- Protein
- 0 g
- Weight
- 1.0 oz
Camp recovery shake
- ZobaFuel Chocolate Plant Protein Powder1 serving · 34.7 g · 110 kcal
Shake a serving of protein powder with cold water at the end of a long day.
- Calories
- 110
- Protein
- 21 g
- Weight
- 1.2 oz
Turning ideas into a trip menu
Pick a breakfast and a dinner you like, then fill the hours between with dense snacks until you reach your daily calories. The meal planner does that math for you and gives you a shopping list. To keep your bag light, check the lightweight backpacking food rankings, and print the backpacking food list to take to the store.