The Best Keto Backpacking Food Ideas (Low Carb Meals)

Fuel your next adventure with these keto backpacking food ideas—lightweight, low-carb, and totally trail-tested for life in the great outdoors!

We are avid campers who love spending as much time as possible in the wilderness. Today I am sharing a ton of backpacking food ideas that would be great for hiking or camping and are perfect for anyone following a low-carb diet.

When I began following a ketogenic lifestyle, I converted many of our favorite camping recipes to lower carb versions with much success. We now have many delicious keto camping recipes on the blog.

There’s something magical about hitting the trail with nothing but a backpack, a map, and some seriously tasty keto foods. Okay—maybe also coffee and bacon.

As a devoted hiker and camper, keeping my keto lifestyle on track while exploring the wild has become my personal mission—and honestly, it’s been delicious.

Too busy to make this right away? Pin it for later! Pin this post to your favorite board on Pinterest and it will be there when you’re ready!

After lots of trial, error, and testing on real-life backpacking trips, I’ve rounded up a list of trail-tested keto backpacking food ideas that pack light, fuel hard, and taste amazing even when you’re covered in sweat and bug spray.

When I hit 40 last year, I decided that I would hike the West Coast Trail to celebrate. Deemed “the hike of a lifetime”, this 86 km trek would take six nights to complete with only what we could carry on our backs.

At this point I had been committed to keto for a good year and a half, so there was no going back for me. I was determined to fuel the trip with real-deal keto backpacking food that wouldn’t leave me dragging my body weight up the cliffs, so I set out to find the best possible options.

Why yes, I AM cooking bacon over a campfire on the West Coast Trail. Because when you are keto, bacon is life!

What Makes Backpacking Food Different?

Finding keto-friendly backpacking foods can be somewhat challenging compared to standard camping meals because of the unique weight and packing restrictions. Backpacking foods need to be lightweight, easy to pack, and simple to prepare.

They also need to stay fresh without being stored in a cooler or fridge. Typical camping essentials are not usually available when backpacking.

Find more backpacking food ideas in this post!

This post contains affiliate links.

My Trail Food List for One Day

• Two Quest bars – I found Quest bars to have the highest amount of protein and the most keto-friendly ingredients of any protein bar that I looked at. They also have flavors that don’t feel like you’re chewing cardboard.
• One Starbucks Via Instant Coffee – Fast, lightweight, and just what I needed to get going in the morning.
• 1 Tbsp Powdered MTC creamer and 2 packets of stevia sweetener – A match made in backcountry heaven to keep your coffee creamy and keto.
• 1 packet of Chai tea – A great snack alternative when you’re craving something cozy without added sugar.
• Homemade dehydrated egg scramble – Packed with protein, veggies, and heavy cream powder, this is a backcountry brunch win. Check out the recipe below.
• 30g of Beef jerky – We get this salty, chewy, high-protein snack from our local butcher to avoid sketchy ingredients.
• 25g of Parmesan cheese whisps – Crunchy, salty, and shelf-stable, these snacks are available at Costco.
• 30g of Gouda cheese (not pictured) – Hard cheese is the MVP of keto camping—gouda is my go-to because it’s firm and flavorful.
• 50g of Homemade keto trail mix – I make mine with roasted almonds, pumpkin seeds, cashews, and Lily’s chocolate chips—zero added sugar, all yum.
• 1 packet of Miso soup – A hot, salty broth is just what you need to balance electrolytes.
• 1 Dehydrated low-carb backpacking meal – Check out Next Mile Meals, Good To Go, or Backpacker’s Pantry for dehydrated meals that have low carb counts and clean ingredients.

Finding dehydrated camping meals that are low-carb can be super difficult. I chose meals from Backpacker’s Pantry and Good To Go that had the lowest carb counts and cleanest ingredients that I could find. Many backpacking meals contain carbie fillers like rice, beans, and noodles.

I am absolutely thrilled that Next Mile Meals now offers shipping to Canada. This was not available when I hiked the West Coast Trail.

The minute that I found out that these dehydrated keto backpacking meals were available in Canada, I ordered a sample pack. I cannot wait to try them out on our next backpacking adventure.

More Keto Backpacking Food Ideas

It is possible to take meat and cheese on your excursion. Dry cuts of meat like salami, pepperoni, and beef jerky are the best options.  

I pack pre-cooked bacon on many of our trips as well. Keep times will vary depending on the length of your trip and temperatures during your hike.

Hard, dry cheeses are best for backpacking. I chose gouda because it’s my favorite and I simply wrapped it in tinfoil for extra durability and protection. This felt like an absolute treat to eat each day during our hike!

Trail mix is essential for hiking in my opinion. I made my own keto trail mix using roasted almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, and Lily’s chocolate chips.

Don’t forget to pack electrolytes while backpacking. Nuun has electrolyte vitamin tabs that are sweetened with Stevia, but not all of them are, so be sure to check the labels!

Make Your Own Dehydrated Meals!

I made my own dehydrated scrambled egg packs because it was a lot cheaper than buying them. All you need is whole egg powder, dehydrated vegetables, and dried cheese.

DIY Dehydrated Egg Scramble

Ingredients

• Whole egg powder – Dehydrated eggs are lightweight, shelf-stable, and ready to fluff up with just water.
• Dehydrated vegetables – Think bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, and spinach; they add color, crunch, and nutrients without weighing you down.
• Dried shredded cheese – Because even in the wilderness, cheese makes everything better—and this version won’t melt in your backpack.

All of the ingredients for these scrambled eggs can be found at your local health food store. Experiment with serving size and quantity until you come up with a recipe that you like.

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients, divide into daily servings, and store in labeled freezer bags.
2. When you’re ready to cook, just add water and let it sit for 10 minutes.
3. Once rehydrated, cook the eggs on a backpacking stove.

I seriously love, love, love this Jetboil Stove and could not recommend it for backpacking more.

If you don’t already have a backpacking stove, buy a Jetboil. You won’t regret it! It has been the most essential and lightweight piece of backpacking equipment that I own.

Tips and Tricks

• Use a large freezer bag to organize each day’s backpacking food—just pull one out and eat, no rummaging needed.
• Label everything with day numbers and ingredients. It saves time and brainpower on those hard days.
• Choose dry meat options, like salami and jerky, that don’t have added sugar or fillers.
• Use foil to wrap hard cheeses, like gouda, for an extra layer of crush protection.
• Make your own homemade keto trail mix in small batches to avoid portion mishaps (yes, I’ve eaten two days’ worth by lunch).
• Don’t forget electrolytes—Nuun tabs that are sweetened with Stevia are a great option.
• Keep a stash of nut butter packets, like almond butter or peanut butter, for a quick energy boost.

The best way that I have found to organize my meals for backpacking is to place all of my keto foods for each day into a large freezer bag. This way I only have to pull one bag out of my backpack for meals every day.

Staying keto while backpacking might sound like a challenge, but with the right food options, it’s 100% doable—and honestly delicious. From early days of carb-counting confusion to finding the highest nutritional quality food for an extended period in the wild, I’ve learned that keto backpacking isn’t just possible—it’s powerful.

Whether you’re on a national park trail or just out for day hikes, these meals will keep your body fat burning, your energy level up, and your tastebuds happy.

Of course the best keto food is the kind that is caught and eaten directly from the source, like this crab at the Crab Shack at Nit Nat Narrows. Works for me!

Do you have more great ideas for keto backpacking food? Please share them, as I am always looking for new keto foods to pack on my next trip.

If you love these backpacking food ideas, please help me share them on Facebook and Pinterest!

Hello, I’m Heather!

I'm an active mom of twin boys who is always looking for opportunities to inspire creativity through fun crafts, do-it-yourself projects and delicious recipes. This blog has been an integral part of supporting my little family and I am so grateful to have you become a part of our journey! Let's create together... Read more...