Need ideas for take-along food for travel

G

Gobias

Cathlete
Hi All,

I travel a lot for work and am having trouble finding a variety of foods I can take along with me that are healthy (and tasty).

Here is my dilemma - when I travel, it is usually for a 5 day stretch. My hours are then about 3am - 8pm or later. Once I leave the hotel in the wee hours, I have no access to a restaurant or gas station, etc. (sometimes as I leave the hotel we stop at a gas station but they really only have donuts...or hot dogs). Then during the day we are out in the extreme heat all day long. Our cooler that we packed the night before is usually melted by morning and warm by the afternoon.

The people I travel with take pop (which is usually warm by mid-morning) and bags of chips or trailmix. I have tried taking lots of water (which is usually warm by mid-morning), my own homemade trailmix, fiberone bars and fruit. But I still don't feel like I am getting my nutrition (or variety).

I have previously tried to take nutrition shakes and lunchmeat and bread, but the cooler melts so fast I don't feel it is safe to eat meat warm (and the shakes are quite gross when they aren't cold). I can't take certain fruits since in the warmth they get mealy (bananas seem to get mushy and pears seems to get mealy in the heat). I usually take apples and grapes (oranges I don't want to peel since I am hot, sweaty and dirty). I've also taken V-8 but it also tastes bad warm.

I really can't put any food in the cooler since we only have so much room and we keep our needed drinks in it.

The hotel has a fridge usually and I will put things in it for me to eat breakfast - but I have to force myself since I don't want to eat at 3am.

At the end of the day we have access to a restaurant (which none are particuarly healthy) but at least I can get some nutrients and calories in me.

So....any ideas whatsoever? I need food ideas that don't have to be cold, take zero prep (I can't wash, cut, stir anything), won't taste too bad when it becomes warm/hot and hopefully are healthy. Like I said, the guys all eat chips, candy, trailmix and pop all day. I eat a bag of apples and a bag of grapes with my trailmix, fiberone bars and have water, but I need some variety and more calories.

My guy does this kind of travel on a regular basis and I have just started joining him. He even says he feels so blah after a week of eating crap.

ANYTHING?!?!? Thanks.
 
I was going to suggest nuts but if you are eating trailmix then I would assume nuts are included in that....

What about one of the healthy varieties of tortilla chips, etc? The brand "food should taste good" puts out a large variety of tortilla chips in all kinds of yummy flavors that are free of crap and really yummy!

There's always pretzels too which are a far better option then your average "chip".

Perhaps some type of cereal with 5 or less grams of sugar eaten dry? You can just bring it in a bag to munch on.

Raisins would probably travel well but not sure if they would also be included in your trailmix??

Hope something I've come up with helps you a bit!
 
Current favorite is dried apple rings, love them, but you said you do take apples. I was thinking too apple sauce, wouldn't necessarily have to be cold.

Dried fruit Mango, papaya, pears, (cantaloupe & pineapple although they're quite sugary).

I used to get raisin bars that were pretty good for the packed lunch, they're baked, I don't know how processed, somewhat like fig newtons, healthier I think.

I tend to like tortilla chips & salty stuff, no help there.:(

Are we racing Wendy? Starting to wonder if you're screening my posts!
 
Wow not an easy situation at all! For protein, how about beef jerky? It's actually quite low in fat, has a lot of protein, and the heat doesn't matter.

Nuts of course are good to always keep around, because in a pinch they really do help satiate hunger.

Oh yeah, how about protein bars? They are not the healthiest, but it's better than donuts and hotdogs I guess. Or will they melt too easily?

Grapes and apples are good for fruit that can stand up better to the heat, maybe strawberries too? Not too sure.

Little boxes of cereal and crackers.

Maybe even string cheese. I have put string cheese in my purse and eaten it hours later, but I agree I would not eat the meat after it's been warm for too long.
 
Popcorn? We get Kettle corn that has a very light sweetness, and is lightly salted, I'd eat pretty much any kind of popcorn, lighter is better.:)
 
I would be starving if I had your schedule.

Have you tried keeping an insulated bag with you? They come in all sizes. I keep one in my car and it seems to keep the food from changing temperature (hot stays hot; cold stays cold or at least cool). You could prepare single servings for the day before you head out. Most Wal-Mart stores are open 24/7. They have a great variety of healthy foods now.

Have you tried carrot chips and hummus? I thought I saw single serving containers of hummus at Kroger.

Check the snack aisle at your local grocery store. I bet they have all kinds of fairly nutritious single serving foods that are geared towards kids taking their own lunch to school. I don't have any kids so I've never ventured down that aisle.

Guys, what about the Lunchables pre-packaged snacks? My mother uses them when her blood sugar drops too low (she is Type 2 diabetic). I don't think they have to be refrigerated.

Dela, I don't think strawberries would work. They get mushy quick.
 
Have you ever tried larabars, or kind bars? Not sure if this would work, but what about freezing yogurt and bringing that along, it would melt some, but maybe stay cold until you wanted to eat it. Rice cakes with peanut/almond butter. I'll try to think of more.....
 
I am thinking a can of chicken or tuna and whole grain pita bread would be perfect for this. You would just have to bring a can opener, but the chicken would be indestructible as well as the pita bread...it is already flat!!! Idk if it would be too much to drain off the water and plop the meat in the pita, but It would be fairly healthy and easy and protein. It is probably what I would do.
 
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My husband is an airline pilot; you would think the company feeds these guys, but actually they need to fly trips greater than 3 hours before the airline will load a crew meal. When they do get a meal it’s still airline food, yuck! Try finding healthy food in an airport. So his strategy is this, he packs instant oatmeal for his morning meal. He uses one regular packet and one flavored packet. All hotel rooms I have been in have coffee makers. He uses that to heat the water to make the oatmeal. He always carries tuna packets , protein bars and apples. I make him a vegetarian meal, usually a grain or bean/lentil based salad packed in Tupperware. I make sure that there is no dairy of meat products in the dish. This dish will last about two days without refrigeration. I wouldn’t press it any more than that. He has been doing this for years and hasn’t had any problems. By the way, since he been doing this he has maintained a healthy weight, is more alert and has tons of energy. Hope this helps.
 
I have to travel a lot for work and I thought I had a tough time packing food with my food allergies, but now I have decided that I have it easy after hearing your schedule. When I travel I always have a bag of what we call my "safety food" since you never know what you will find. The food tends not to be tasty, but in the moment when I am really hungry I am really grateful for something that I would not even consider eating normally.

Also, I know those hotel fridges are usually pretty small and unreliable. It seems my food either stays too warm or freezes in there.

I love the idea of an insulated bag that would help keep your food from getting warm so fast. Anything to help the situation.

When I travel I mix kidney beans and chickpeas, when I am going to eat it then add some salad dressing for flavor (you can get some dressings in packets that don't need to be refrigerated).

Like the airline pilot I also pack packets of tuna and chicken. Not the tastiest, but a good source of protein. Once again you can add some type of dressing (they even have packets of mayo that don't need to be refrigerated so you can make a sandwich).

Carrots and broccoli tend to be pretty sturdy veggies and may be able to stand up to the heat.

For beverages you could bring those flavor packets to add to water. I know many companies make them like Propel and Crystal light. Once again not as tasty as a cold beverage, but we are not talking ideal situation here.

Good luck to you with this. I know how ishy it is to be working all week (or weekend in my case) and have to eat really ishy food because of circumstances.

Shayne
 
From reading this, I can't tell if you're traveling in a car/truck or flying /then driving.

If it's a car/truck.. get an insulated cooler that plugs in the cigarette lighter. various sizes. will cool whatever you want while you're driving and keep it cool quite a while after you stop. they're supposed to shut off when you turn off the ignition but will stay cool for quite a while even when hot. we unplug ours when we stop driving just to be sure.
 
I've actually looked into this topic quite a bit because I am vegetarian, and often have a hard time getting good protein when traveling (fast food places often have nothing for me, and higher-end restaurants tend to make the mistake of thinking vegetarian = rabbit).

1.There's a company called Wild Garden that makes these cool little single-serving cardboard tubes of hummus. It's actually quite good. 63 calories and 6 grams of protein in a packet. Pair that up with some high-fiber crackers and you have a pretty good snack. Oh - I got mine at Cost Plus World Market, not sure where else they are sold.

2. If you eat meat, Bumble Bee makes tuna packs with crackers. You can get traditional tuna-salad, or fun flavors like Spicy Thai Chili. My husband uses those when traveling because he often arrives at his destination at a late hour, when the hotel restaurant has closed.

3. Tasty Bite has a nice selection of vegetarian Indian food in small sturdy bags. You are supposed to heat them by microwaving or placing the pouch in boiling water, but I've eaten them at room temp and they are really not bad that way. I've seen them at Cost Plus -- not sure who else carries them. Perhaps Trader Joe's?

4. MTR makes similar read-to-eat items to Tasty Bite. Also at Cost Plus.

5. See if you can track down any single-serving packets of peanut butter or almond butter. We have one local grocery store that sells the Justin's brand. Depending on the flavor you buy, you're looking at something along the lines of 180 calories and 7 grams of protein.
 
Oh wow! Every single thread was helpful! Thanks so much and keep the ideas coming please.

I didn't realize that hummus didn't need to be refrigerated and I love hummus. I can't take any canned food that needs to be drained (due to I would have to drain it in the desert - and that is frowned upon). But the waterless packets are good ideas. And the chips, bars (as long as the bars don't have chocolate or peanut butter which melt), drinks, and other ideas are great. I was thinking of lunchables also but didn't know if they needed to be refrigerated? Is there a low salt lunchable? I know they are very high in salt and I don't need salt making me more thirsty than the temperature already does.

To answer a few questions - it is 100% driving. I am unable to use the cigarrette lighter since we use that (and a huge after market installed generator(?) for all power and internet that is used during the drive. And we have to conserve since we are literally parked in the desert for up to 21 hours. We currently take about 2 coolers that are insulated and have ice but I kid you not - it gets warm by mid-morning and hot by afternoon (those of you who live in the desert know what I am talking about. The outside temp is 120 degrees. But having a cooler sit in a very hot truck in a very hot environment for a very long time seems to make it hotter). I am usually OK with a semi warm 'breakfast' and morning snack but my lunches and dinners are pretty warm/hot. I usually prepare my entire week's worth of meals once before the trip since to be honest, the last thing I want to do at the end of every day is prepare something. (more often than not, we return to the hotel after 9pm and have to be up by 2-3am for the drive back out). I am exhausted and just want a shower. My hotel room does usually have a fridge (I request one) but never a freezer...although the one poster is right - it usually just keeps everything lukewarm.

Another thing - the trash that we make sits in a bag that sits in the very hot desert for the day. We try not to get 'smelly' foods since we can't rinse anything.

Thanks so much - I previously only did this travel occasionally but now I am doing it more often. And my guy will appreciate the ideas also. And probably the entire crew (who, I kid you not, basically only consume pop & pringles & candy all day long & all week long).

Also - great idea for the dried fruit, nuts, pretzels, seeds. That is basically my recipe for my homemade trailmix.
 
Peanut butter on crackers, flatbread, pocket bread.
Peanut butter on apple halves. or just bite apple, smear PB on, repeat.
Any kind of energy bar or granola bar plus PB. big protein boost.
PB and jelly or honey packets on any bread, cracker, bar.
Nutella on any of the above.

this assumes you like PB. I prefer the PB that needs to be stirred but think you should use a PB that won't separate. or almond or cashew butter.
 
How about making some protein pancakes to take on the road? There are lots of great recipes out there if you do a search. I like to put eggs, rolled oats, protein powder, cottage cheese, and either applesauce/cinnamon or canned pumpkin/pumpkin pie spice in mine. YUM!

ETA: If they seem too dry to eat on their own, you can always top them with a little nut butter or jam.
 
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112toGuru said:
Check this out, thought you posed an interesting question, and I ended up looking at military MRE's, some of that stuff looks a little iffy, worth a look, if you had several people to go together you could all probably eat a little better, more like regular meals?

Nitro-Pak: World Leader in Freeze Dried Food | Mountain House Food | Emergency Preparedness

Good one.:)
Click to expand...

Funny you post this. We have access to MREs and I currently have a ravioli, meatloaf, walnut cake, and turkey dinner in my pantry! I have yet to try one since you are right - they look iffy to me. But I will definitely bring it up to the guys since they are usually meals for 8 people (the ones we have).
 
I was looking along the lines of backpacking & camping type foods as well as the preparation, storage, & cost, given your environment, add that in too.

What do people who live in the desert eat?

:)
 
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