Big adventures call for big nutrition! And little adventures call for super tasty treats. No matter the kind of adventure you’re setting out on, you need food. Today we’re bringing you a round up of the best backcountry fuel of 2024 so that you can stay energized one bite at a time. To create this round up, we brought the opinions of our gear testers together, asking them which backcountry foods they rely on most regularly.
The best backcountry foods are nutritious, easy to eat and taste amazing. Gone are the days when adventure food means bland and weird. Cheers to that! From drinks to snacks, meals to desserts; the bar for adventure fuel standards has never been higher. Some of our testers have even laughed about eating these foods at home when they don’t feel like cooking.
Got opinions on fuel? Be sure to let us know which backcountry foods are your favorites in the comments!
Check out our picks for the best adventure fuel of 2024 below!
Heather’s Choice African Peanut Stew
We’ll kick off this list with one of my favorite backpacking meals: Heather’s Choice African Peanut Stew. It is so impossibly delicious it’s hard to believe it cooks up in a bag. It tastes like a homemade stew with a texture to match. The stew’s taste profile is peanut and curry, with a kick of heat from ginger. One package has just about 500 calories, making it a good sized portion. Right in that Goldilocks zone.
If you keep a vegan or grain-free diet, this backcountry fuel is perfect for you! It’s also hand made in a gluten-free facility. This is hard to come by in the world of adventure meals and does not go unnoticed by many folks setting off on trips. Heather’s Choice is mindful of dietary restrictions and their whole line up of adventure food is good for folks with allergies and sensitivities.
See Heather's Choice African Peanut Stew
Farm To Summit Oat Milk Latte
We sure do love caffeine here at Backpackers. And caffeine seems like the common thread that connects each and every adventurer from all walks of life. So why not have some extra delicious caffeine when you’re getting up to rad things in the backcountry? Our pick for the best backcountry caffeine is most definitely Farm To Summit’s Oat Milk Latte. It is so incredibly tasty that it’s hard to comprehend it’s from a packet of instant.
This little oat milk latte has minimal ingredients: organic coffee, oat milk power, and a dash of maple sugar. It’s got 75 milligrams of caffeine and 85 calories. And of course to make it all you have to do is add hot water and stir it all up in your camp mug. If you like a little backcountry luxury, this is it.
See Farm To Summit's Oat Milk Latte
GOOD TO-GO Pad Thai
A lot of adventure meals make pad thai. None of them make pad thai as scrumptious as GOOD TO-GO. Mic drop.
Not only is this pad thai yummy and made with clean ingredients, it’s also very filling with a packet boasting 870 calories! It’s phenomenal for dinner after a huge day on trail. A lot of our testers like this meal because it cooks up in half the time of most other dehydrated meals. If you’ve ever had to wait a solid half an hour in the alpine for a meal to re-hydrate, you’re likely already buying GOOD TO-GO Pad Thai for your next trip!
Mountain House Chili Mac With Beef
It’s chili. It’s mac and cheese. It’s got beef. We’re drooling for Mountain House’s absolute classic adventure meal that pretty much any backpacker has relied on for staying fueled at some point. Yes, it’s a classic. It has been for a couple decades at least! It tastes good, cooks up in under 10 minutes and has 460 calories per package.
I can’t lie here, there isn’t much else to say about Mountain House’s Chili Mac With Beef. It’s a very simple backcountry classic. A simple scan of reviews from anywhere online will show the same. Be sure to grab a few packs the next time you’re backpacking and need some easy fuel!
See Mountain House Chili Mac With Beef
Tailwind Nutrition Endurance Fuel
Sometimes you need adventure fuel but don’t want to eat. During huge days, eating can get hard as stomachs get gnarly. That’s where Tailwind Nutrition comes in to play. This powder contains calories, electrolytes and good hydration, as you mix it up with water and drink it. One scoop offers 100 calories of very effective simple carbohydrate. This means your body doesn’t have to do much work to put this fuel to good use.
In the backcountry, sometimes you do not have time to hydrate calories. And sometimes eating just isn’t much of an option. Tailwind Nutrition’s Adventure Fuel is invaluable during those times.
See Tailwind Nutrition Adventure Fuel
PEAK REFUEL Mountain Berry Granola
It’s crunchy and sweet and a pure delight! Yay granola! We really love PEAK REFUEL’s Mountain Berry Granola. It’s a fiber rich, dairy free granola that’s a nice change of pace from the usual oatmeal so many of us pack into the backcountry. One pouch of this granola has over 500 calories, making it a great meal for any time of day.
Bite by bite, you’ll get energized from this granola. You can have it hot or cold, making it a great option if you don’t plan to bring a stove along on your adventure. If you are more of a strawberry fan, be sure to check out PEAK REFUEL’s Strawberry Granola. It’s as delicious as the Mountain Berry variety!
See PEAK REFUEL Mountain Berry Granola
Honey Stinger Energy Waffles
This is a top rated adventure treat and the favorite snack of a ton of outdoor lovers. Honey Stinger’s Energy Waffles are yummy and packed full of great energy sourced from good ingredients. They have 150 calories per waffle and don’t take up much room in your backpack or pockets.
Honey Stinger’s Energy Waffles are available in a handful of awesome flavors and they are also available in a gluten-free variety. It’s hard to believe these little snacks aren’t a straight up dessert, but there you have it. They’re perfect trail treats.
See Honey Stinger Energy Waffles
Bobo’s PB&J Oat Snacks
Peanut butter and jelly is absolutely one of the most amazing simple pleasure on this planet where taste is concerned. But a PB&J can get pretty darn messy in the backcountry or packed in a backpack. So when Bobo’s started making PB&J Oat Snacks, wow were we here for it! Not only are these oat bakes tasty, they’re very nutritious. And they’re gluten-free, non-GMO, dairy-free and vegan. Hooray!
These are the perfect adventure bite, but they’re also great to keep in your car or daily bag. Truly a perfect snack.
Think Jerky Grass-Fed Beef Stick
Sometimes you just need some jerky. It’s as simple as that. When it comes to jerky for adventures, we really like Think Jerky’s Grass-Fed Beef Sticks. They’re one serving each and at 80 calories, have a great macro profile hitting protein, fat and carb needs just right. Not to mention how amazing that little punch of salt is when you’ve been busting your booty in the wild. We love that these beef sticks are grass-fed and that the meat is sourced ethically.
Adventure food pretty much got its start with cured meat like these beef sticks and it’s easy to see why. Like the Bobo’s snacks above, these Grass-Fed Beef Sticks are a great all around snack for daily life. Toss em in your bag like you toss em in your backpack for adventures.
See Think Jerky's Grass-Fed Beef Stick
Backpacker’s Pantry Dark Chocolate Cheesecake 
No round up of the best adventure food would be complete without dessert! And after much deliberation, there was one clear winner for the most decadent backcountry dessert available! Low and behold Backpacker’s Pantry Dark Chocolate Cheesecake. It’s got amazing texture, epic chocolatey taste and hits just the right amount of sweetness. It’s packed with protein and has enough calories to keep you fueled up!
If you have a sweet-tooth, this is especially for you! Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t have cheesecake in the wilderness. Thanks to Backpacker’s Pantry, anything is possible!
See Backpacker's Pantry Dark Chocolate Cheesecake
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