May 25, 2020
Travel Gluten Free Podcast
S04 Episode 13
Gluten Free COVID Camping Snacks and Foods
Since many people have been camping for their COVID vacation, I wanted to share with you great gluten-free food prep tips for creating meals, camping snacks, and food storage when you're camping. I've learned these experiences the hard way by making mistakes while on the road and eating out of the back of my car or at the campfire. Take steps to eliminate the hassle and expending energy on clean up when you're camping with these camping COVID-19 tips!
I love camping. I love the outdoors, sleeping outside, sleeping in my hammock, having a campfire every night, not caring about smelling like campfire smoke or makeup. The beautiful trails I hike and the out-of-the-way places I find when I'm taking that road trip to my next camping spot. There are so many things to love!
Storing Food for COVID Camping
Ice
Use dry ice! There are several reasons not to use regular ice in your cooler.
- Regular ice is heavier when you first get the ice and even heavier when the ice melts, and you have a pool of water in your cooler
- Food in cooler gets wet when your ice melts
- Have to throw out good, expensive food - ever tried to eat wet gluten-free bread?
- Dry ice lasts much longer than regular ice.
Be careful not to touch dry ice with your hands as you can get a burn. Handle with paper or a towel! Although a bit more expensive, dry ice is worth the extra cost because of the benefits listed above.
Coolers
Best cooler: Yeti coolers, they are pretty pricey, starting at $79.99 for a lunchbox, however; they are the best option when you are not going to be near any dry ice for days. The description from their website reads, "Extreme insulation power and durability are bare minimum requirements for every cooler we make — and we never stop there. Our hard coolers don't flinch in the face of snowstorms, the beating sun, or even bears, and our soft coolers are leakproof, waterproof, and quick to carry. As for our foldable lunch bag, that's only for those of you who enjoy ice-cold drinks and a fresh meal on your lunch menu."
Storing Food in Your Car
When I go on a road trip, I get shallow plastic boxes. Why shallow? I can more easily organize my food and see my food because it's one layer deep and not several layers. If you get containers with a sunken top, you can easily tape a paper label to the bin so you can see what is in that container. Put canned, aluminum packaged, nut butter, snacks, and other sealed items in these bins.
Make sure to not leave open food in containers or your cooler, especially if you are in bear country. They can peel down a locked door car window to get to your food. Definitely NEVER store or bring any food, toiletries (because they smell like food to a bear), or any food wrappers into your tent. This will attract bears at night, and they don't like that you are preventing them from getting to their food.
Gluten-Free Snacks for Hiking
If you are going hiking and need hiking snacks, the most efficient way to pack these is to buy single servings and put one type of snack in each Ziploc bag - this is one of the expenses I will incur because Ziploc is sturdier than other brands of plastic storage bags.
For example, if you have 14 different types of squeezable fruits, put all the squeezable fruits in one Ziploc bag. This way, when you are packing snacks for a hike, you can easily find what you want, and choose a flavor. You can tell your kids that they get to pick three snacks, from any of the snack bags you have brought. This is an easy way to give out and pack snacks before a hike.
You can also give each child a Ziploc with their name on the front with a permanent marker. This way, their bag is their responsibility, and they won't accidentally take someone else's snacks when it's time to stop and eat.
My Favorite Gluten-Free Hiking Snacks
In previous podcasts, I've talked about how you can avoid messy foods when you pack for travel. This also includes camping and hiking. In Utah, especially in the summer, it gets scorching here! Anything and everything, including lip balm, will melt inside your car. Make sure not to bring snacks with a coating or that have large amounts of chocolate. This is especially true with protein bars and cookies, make sure to try them out first before you take them camping with you.
With a variety of vegan, certified gluten-free bars and cookies
Seed butters and bars
In different flavors including Sriacha, 1oz, and 3oz size
Sesame based bars
Single serving if you don't have a nut allergy person with you
Orgain bars and protein drinks
Blueberry almond bars and protein drinks in flavors
Stuffed oat bites
Grain-free granola bars
Pre-packaged olives and single-serve hummus perfect for hikes!
Great chips, come in single-serving bags
The perfect alternative for regular trail mix comes in delicious flavors.
Marinating Gluten-Free Foods
An easy and efficient way to prepare your marinated food is to take your favorite gluten-free salad dressing and place your meal to be marinated into a double Ziploc. If you are using tofu, make sure to use firm tofu and plan to eat the first or second night, as tofu can fall apart quickly. Also, make sure to cut in thick slabs to be more sturdy.
For a quick and easy marinade, take your food to be marinated, add favorite salad dressing, place in double Ziploc, close bag, take all air out, then seal. Keep cold until ready to use.
Gluten-Free COVID Camping Soups
To create easy soups, prep and blend your spices ahead of time and put them in an air-tight container. Label your container. Use dried spices instead of fresh if you are not going to use them in the first two days. Then, bring along canned items that you are going to use to make your soup. Make only the amount you need for one night - storing leftovers is time and energy-consuming.
Links and Resources Mentioned
Grab the Guide to Traveling Gluten Free
Get the BEST all-natural gluten-free travel cosmetics at Lemongrass Spa!
Visit my Travel Deals page on my website
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