Food to take bikepacking.
Moderators: Bearbonesnorm, Taylor, Chew
Food to take bikepacking.
I'm just wondering what food (breakfast, tea, snacks) do people take with them when you go away for a few days?
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Breakfast, 250g muesli or granola with milk. Usually try to pick up a half litre late in the day.
Partial to a Co-op meal deal for lunch.
Chocy digestives/hobnobs, shortbread, bananas, salted almonds for snacks.
Packet of spicy mexican par boiled rice with tin of spicy mackrel mixed in is my current go to.
Instant coffee with milk.
I try to eat about 4000 cal/day when bikepacking with daily mileage around 50 and max of about 6000ft of elevation gain.
Partial to a Co-op meal deal for lunch.
Chocy digestives/hobnobs, shortbread, bananas, salted almonds for snacks.
Packet of spicy mexican par boiled rice with tin of spicy mackrel mixed in is my current go to.
Instant coffee with milk.
I try to eat about 4000 cal/day when bikepacking with daily mileage around 50 and max of about 6000ft of elevation gain.
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
At the moment I been taking Porridge oats for breakfast cus cus with tin of tomato flavoured mackerels Roasted peanuts mars bars
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Cous Cous is easy, I usually chuck in a tin of sardines in oil (because the Cous Cous is low in fat). The rice pouches are OK as well, a third of a cup of water and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
Muesli for breakfast, but if it's going to be cold and you don't mind the weight, a tin of beans and mini sausages goes down well.
Muesli for breakfast, but if it's going to be cold and you don't mind the weight, a tin of beans and mini sausages goes down well.
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
I used to take whizzed up oats, with nuts, dried fruit and milk powder. Then in the morning I'd just whang some hot water in and let it steep for a bit before eating. I found it a bit of a faff to be honest and on the last few trips I've taken some granola and protein powder. For eating during the day, I carry a 150g of home made trail mix, a handful of various higher calorie trail bars and maybe some flapjack and gels. I'll stop at a coffee shop for coffee and cake, or at a Co-op or SPAR to grab something savoury.
There are theories at the bottom of my jargon.
- ledburner
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
I do the pooridge thing with dried milk, just simmer + hot water. tinned fish & cous cous cooks up quick, even with the dry couscous with veg 3 min mixes. Eg Lidl own...
lunch flapjacks, sliced cheese & wrapps. or cooked meat -a flat pack snack, carried well. marzipan instead of chocolate in cold weather.. fruit d nuts.
flap jack in a wrap, hold it self together and the wrap tapers the sugar rush. the coop used to do microwave ready cooked poached eggs..
Instant coffee & dried milk.
all plastic jiffy bags make brilliant pot/packet cossies.
lunch flapjacks, sliced cheese & wrapps. or cooked meat -a flat pack snack, carried well. marzipan instead of chocolate in cold weather.. fruit d nuts.
flap jack in a wrap, hold it self together and the wrap tapers the sugar rush. the coop used to do microwave ready cooked poached eggs..
Instant coffee & dried milk.
all plastic jiffy bags make brilliant pot/packet cossies.
I hope you think you know, what I might of exactly meant.
Warning - may contain value odded typos & ither mythspellings..
Warning - may contain value odded typos & ither mythspellings..
- Dave Barter
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Lots and lots and lots of Baby Bels
Elite keyboard warrior, DNF'er, Swearer
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
I started doing research on this after a disgusting, and with hind sight hilarious, dried meal accident.
After reading this https://bikepacking.com/plog/bikepackin ... packing-1/
I decided to just carry very basic ready made stuff and forage for the rest.
After reading this https://bikepacking.com/plog/bikepackin ... packing-1/
I decided to just carry very basic ready made stuff and forage for the rest.
Zazen - nothing happens next this is it.
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Yes, or marmite cheddar. Plus dry cured meats. Pork pies. Salt and vinegar crisps. Flapjacks, fig rolls. Pub meal, cafe stop and more. I'm a greedy feck!

Museli with milk powder, porridge pots, jam and peanut butter wraps.
- RIP
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
I skimmed that and read it as Baby Eels

Best keep them well hidden in your pack - a bloke was fined bigly recently for lifting elvers from the Severn.....
Last edited by RIP on Mon Nov 29, 2021 1:07 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
"My God, Ponsonby, I'm two-thirds of the way to the grave and what have I done?" - RIP
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
- RIP
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Now that I've ascertained that we're talking about the cheesey product rather than the wriggly one, I expect Dave will remind us that his BB's (bikepacker's babybel breakfast: BBBer's BB B) can also double up as excellent firestarters (said conflagration fully contained within a suitable receptacle and carted out obviously).
Worth pointing out that they're best used as firestarters after consuming the contents.
Then again, maybe igniting them with the contents still in position might result in some sort of tasty bikepackers' fondue? You could even top the fondue with some elvers.
Reg 'Galloping Gourmet' Perrin
Last edited by RIP on Tue Nov 30, 2021 9:44 pm, edited 2 times in total.
"My God, Ponsonby, I'm two-thirds of the way to the grave and what have I done?" - RIP
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Don't be a barbarian Reg, Simply take a mince pie to repurpose the foil case as your fondue pot and toothpick to jab into your crusty bread

Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Sounds weird, but a wrap with dairylea and jam stays eatable for ages and goes down well. Don't knock it till you've tried it!
And as previously mentioned, they won't get a mention in 'sports science', but pork pies will keep you going for hours.
And as previously mentioned, they won't get a mention in 'sports science', but pork pies will keep you going for hours.

- ledburner
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
baby bel cases make excellent ear plugs..

I hope you think you know, what I might of exactly meant.
Warning - may contain value odded typos & ither mythspellings..
Warning - may contain value odded typos & ither mythspellings..
- Jurassic pusher
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Cadburys Dairy milk..... lots of it!
Re: Food to take bikepacking.
One snack I have really come to appreciate is a big bag of dates. Fairly health big energy kick. Mixes nicely with salted cashews to get some salts into you too... Just don't eat too many dates in one day... You'll find out why if you do... 

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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Last trip I went on I had a chicken pie, Welsh cakes, licorice allsorts and proper coffee for breakfast. All bought the day before from Abergavenny and eaten in the valley beneath Pen-y-fan.
Best breakfast ever
Best breakfast ever
- ledburner
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
a form speed dating, making it a too regular event! .
I hope you think you know, what I might of exactly meant.
Warning - may contain value odded typos & ither mythspellings..
Warning - may contain value odded typos & ither mythspellings..
- BigdummySteve
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Precooked sausages, transport them in one of those tiny one egg frying pans with a little melted butter ( put it in the fridge to harden, it will say hard during cold weather) while the sausages are re-heating on your alcohol stove boil some water and use this to make up one packet of Idahoan instant mash.
Absolutely fantastic meal when sitting in a cold field, for the ultimate luxury add some instant onion gravy.
Absolutely fantastic meal when sitting in a cold field, for the ultimate luxury add some instant onion gravy.
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- whitestone
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
The true answer is...
Lots!
Lots!
Better weight than wisdom, a traveller cannot carry
- Bearlegged
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
This sounds ace, but how do you reheat the sausages and boil water at the same time?BigdummySteve wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 6:09 am Precooked sausages, transport them in one of those tiny one egg frying pans with a little melted butter ( put it in the fridge to harden, it will say hard during cold weather) while the sausages are re-heating on your alcohol stove boil some water and use this to make up one packet of Idahoan instant mash.
- RIP
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Stick 'em under your armpits instead while the water's boiling on the stove?Bearlegged wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 8:40 amThis sounds ace, but how do you reheat the sausages and boil water at the same time?BigdummySteve wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 6:09 am Precooked sausages, transport them in one of those tiny one egg frying pans with a little melted butter ( put it in the fridge to harden, it will say hard during cold weather) while the sausages are re-heating on your alcohol stove boil some water and use this to make up one packet of Idahoan instant mash.
Boil them in the water? (urk)
"My God, Ponsonby, I'm two-thirds of the way to the grave and what have I done?" - RIP
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
- Bearlegged
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- RIP
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Re: Food to take bikepacking.
Come to that, what sort of sausages are going to fit in a tiny one-egg frying pan? Maybe those little cocktail sausage things?Bearlegged wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:16 amThat would seem to defeat the point of the carefully melted and reset butter.
Using cocktail sausages to make a 'full English' you'd presumably need correspondingly tiny wrens' eggs, baby toms, bark mycena mushrooms, etc etc.
(sorry Stevo, I'm dissing your breakfast here! As a non-consumer of eggs or sausages you can safely ignore my ramblings).
"My God, Ponsonby, I'm two-thirds of the way to the grave and what have I done?" - RIP
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW
"At least you got some stories" - James Acaster
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - WW