Some businesses specialise in making only vegetarian and/or vegan dehydrated camping food whilst other businesses who make meat-based meals, also now offer a range of vegetarian/vegan options.
Vegetarian and vegan foods often taste just as good as their meat counterparts – some would argue even better. In our research we also found that vegetarian-only and vegan-only manufacturers often go that extra mile to create interesting and varied menus.
Why use freeze dried and dehydrated camping food?
Freeze dried and dehydrated camping food is a lot lighter than fresh food, and takes up a lot less space – essential for backpacking and most camping trips, particularly if you’re carrying a pack any distance. They’re particularly useful for multi-day hikes where you need to carry a few days worth of food with you. Freeze dried and dehydrated camping food is also super convenient and easy to use – in most cases you just open the bag, add hot water and wait. That’s it. A short time later you’ll be tucking into a filling and nutritious meal. Freeze dried food is generally considered to be better than dehydrated because it retains more nutrients and once rehydrated, the food will regain its original flavour, texture and colour better than if the food was dehydrated. Freeze drying food removes more of the moisture too, giving it a much longer shelf life in comparison to dehydrated food.
Anyway, getting back to vegetarian and vegan foods … lets take a look at some of the main manufacturers of vegetarian and vegan dehydrated camping food. Please note, we are not reviewing these products today. We may do some reviews in the future (watch this space). However, at the moment we are just taking a look at what’s on offer.
Affiliate disclaimer: We generate some revenue through affiliate marketing. Therefore, we may receive commissions when you click our links to products/services and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We try our best to keep things fair and balanced, in order to help you make the best choice for you.
Firstly, here are the brands who specialise in vegetarian and/or vegan dehydrated camping food (in no particular order):
Nomad Nutrition
These plant-based nutrition specialists, based in British Columbia, Canada, make a wide range of delicious and interesting sounding foods for the trail, with flavours from around the world. Main meals include Irish Shepherd’s Pie; Kathmandu Curry; Caribbean Curry; Ukrainian Borscht; Indian Red Lentil Stew and many more.
Some key facts:
Plant-based.
Organic ingredients where possible.
Local ingredients where possible.
Contain no dairy, gluten, palm oil or soy. Non-GMO.
Drying process: Nomad Nutrition use a revolutionary, exclusive drying technology called REVdry, which locks in nutrients and flavour, and keeps food dry and safe for longer periods of time without using preservatives.
No chemicals, no preservatives and no artificial colours are used.
See the Nomad Nutrition range available at Amazon
TentMeals
UK based TentMeals offer a small, but growing range of vegan dehydrated camping food. Main meals currently are Almond Jalfrezi; Italian Inspired; and Moroccan Mango. What we love too is that they come in two sizes to suit all appetites, 800kcal and 500kcal. They also offer a great range of breakfasts, trail treats and a unique option where you can buy freeze dried (and dried) ingredients to make your own meals.
Some key facts:
Location: UK
Vegan.
No preservatives, colourants or nasty additives.
Tent Meals use a number of organic ingredients and are making efforts to use more in the future.
Ultralight – just 3 to 4g of recyclable plastic per meal, but tough enough that you don’t have to worry about food explosions in your backpack.
Dietary and allergen information available.
Drying process: freeze dried and dehydrated.
Super small and lightweight packs – perfect for backpacking.
See the TentMeals range available at Amazon
Food for the Sole
Love the name! This US based company make some absolutely delicious sounding meals with a really varied and different menu. They make breakfasts, salads, main meals and desserts. The meals sound amazing: Coconut Rice and Cuban Black Beans; Garlic Green Bean and Cashew Stir Fry; Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Kale and Quinoa; and Lentil Walnut Pilaf with Kale. A nice little touch is that all their Energy Oats breakfasts come with a packet of crispy topping to sprinkle over the top when you serve it up. Food For The Sole also offer a number of bundles and kits such as a three-day food kit and a five-day food kit, along with a taster pack.
Some key facts:
Location: US
Vegan.
Most of their products are gluten free.
Drying process: dehydrated.
Ultralight.
Outdoor Herbivore
As the name suggests, US based Outdoor Herbivore offer a range of vegetarian and vegan foods. Breakfasts, soups, snacks, sauces, mains and desserts are available. It’s a varied and exciting menu. Main meals include, Penne-demic Marinara […see what you did there!]; Lemony Herb Quinoa Salad; Golden Forest Couscous; Lazy Lentil Salad; Fiesta Quinoa Salad; Open Sky Yasai; Chickpea Sesame Zetti; and Switchback Burrito Stuffer. They have a huge, mouthwatering range – fabulous.
Some key facts:
Vegetarian with many vegan options.
Whole food ingredients – no processed (refined/enriched) foods.
No flavour enhancers, synthetic preservatives, MSG, stabilisers, fillers, sulfites, nitrates, GMO’s, Texturised Vegetable Protein (TVP), or other artificial ingredients.
Many gluten-free products available.
80% of ingredients are Certified Organic Ingredients.
Drying process: Dehydrated and freeze-dried.
Grown, packaged and tested in the US.
Eco friendly, lightweight packaging.
Huel
Well ok … Huel doesn’t specialise in camping meals as such, nor do they make dehydrated/freeze dried meals. So why include them here? Huel offer a range of nutritionally complete and affordable vegan meals and snacks, many of which are perfect for the great outdoors – particularly for those people who are keen on nutrition and want to have completely balanced and nutritious food when out camping. Huel make groundbreaking products so we just had to include them. Whilst all their products seem to be suitable for when you are out on the trail, today we will focus on their newest range: Huel Hot & Savoury.
Huel Hot & Savoury is a nutritionally complete vegan meal packed with rice, quinoa, vegetables, herbs and spices. It’s ready in under five minutes and contains a balance of carbs, protein, fats, fibre and all 26 essential vitamins and minerals. It can be purchased in bags that contain seven meals and in general works out quite a bit cheaper than many other dehydrated camping pouches. The flavours currently include: Tomato & Herb; Thai Green Curry; Mexican Chilli; Sweet & Sour; Creamy Korma; and Madras.
Some key facts:
Vegan
Makes a risotto-like meal.
Main ingredients include flaxseed, grains (brown rice, quinoa), pulses, pea protein, sunflower oil & vegetables.
High-fibre
Omega 3 and 6
Slow-release carbs
MCTs from coconut
Gluten-free
Nut-free
Lactose-free
Palm oil-free
GMO-free
Soy-free
Vegan vitamin D2 and D3
Plant-based protein
BCAAs
Huel is available around the world. Check out the Huel website for details
Huel Hot & Savoury UK
Huel Hot & Savoury US
The following companies offer meat products, but have made the effort to provide some great vegetarian and vegan options (in no particular order):
Firepot
Firepot is a UK based company making camping meals that taste really good. They have a growing range of vegetarian dehydrated camping food. Flavours include: Dal with Rice and Spinach; Porcini Mushroom Risotto; Vegan Orzo Bolognese; Posh Baked Beans; and Chilli NON Carne and Rice. They do a fabulous mini taster pack too which is a neat way to try their meals.
See the Firepot vegan range available at Amazon
Summit to Eat
Another UK based manufacturer. Summit to Eat make an exciting range of freeze dried mains, breakfasts and desserts. Rather like Firepot, they do make some dishes with meat, but they also have a range of vegetarian freeze dried camping food meals such as Macaroni Cheese; Spicy Pasta Arrabiata; and 5 Bean Cassoulet. If you are interested, Summit to Eat has a quick video on how Summit to Eat meals are made.
Adventure Food
Netherlands based Adventure Food offer a wide range of vegetarian (and meat) products. Everything from main meals, breakfasts, desserts and snacks. Vegetarian options include Pasta ai Funghi; Pasta alle Nocim; Curry Fruit Rice; and Cashew Nasi. Widely available, certainly across the UK, you have likely come across Adventure Food in stores such as Go Outdoors. It’s under the brand of Trekmates on at Go Outdoors but on the Adventure Food website there is no mention of the word Trekmates anywhere – so not sure what that’s about!
Lyo Food
Lyo Food from Poland do offer meat products, but also have a great range for the vegetarian, and some of the recipes sound really exciting, such as Barley Lentil Risotto with Avocado Mousse. They also offer soups, breakfasts and desserts. Lyo also offer a vegetarian emergency food pack.
Expedition Foods
Expedition Foods have a huge range to choose from. They have a good selection of vegetarian and vegan foods offering snacks, breakfasts, main meals and desserts. They also have sample packs, and their main meals come in different sizes to meet the needs of different people. They also supply nutrition packs which include things like 6 x breakfasts, 6 x main meals and a range of snacks and drinks. Seven-day emergency kits are available and they even make a kid’s one-day ration pack which we feel is a great idea to get kids excited and engaged in the outdoors.
Be-Well
Be-Well is a British company specialising in sports nutrition, military rations and expedition foods, amongst other things. Their freeze dried foods come in different ranges: single serving Pack n Go range, a large serving BeWell Expedition Food range, and the ultra-lightweight, high energy Extreme Adventure Food range. They come in a range of different sizes and include main meals, breakfasts, desserts and snacks. The full vegetarian range can be viewed on the Be-Well retail site.
Backpackers Pantry
We really like family owned Backpackers Pantry. Based out of Boulder, Colorado, US, they not only have a great range of vegetarian camping food, but also a good number of options for vegans too. Backpacker’s Pantry meals are made up of a combination of freeze dried and dehydrated ingredients and they offer 20 certified gluten-free meals. They’re clearly really passionate about sustainability and helping the environment. There’s a lot of information on their site about the projects they’re involved in, including donating 1% of every sale, every day to non-profits around the world via 1% For The Planet.
Mountain House
US based Mountain House provides freeze-dried meals that are lightweight and portable. They have a couple of vegetarian options that may be worth checking out. We couldn’t find much information on their site about their products in terms of ethics, packaging, ingredients, or allergens. The information we found was more about delivery, ordering, etc.
Alpine Aire Foods
US based Alpine Aire Foods offer a good range of vegetarian meals plus two vegan options. We particularly like how easy it is to see which products suit your needs, in terms of ingredients and which are gluten free, lower sodium, no MSG, no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives.
ReadyWise
US based ReadyWise make freeze dried and dehydrated foods and have a great range of vegetarian and vegan dehydrated camping food. The range can be seen on their website. There isn’t a huge amount of information available on their site about their products in terms of ethics, packaging or the sourcing of ingredients. The information we found was more about manufacture, shipping, ordering, etc – all useful stuff of course, but often nowadays people want a bit more on ingredients, sustainability and the environmental policy.
Good To-Go
US based Good To-Go offer a good range of vegetarian and vegan dehydrated camping food. All of their products are gluten-free, low in sodium and made with no preservatives. The majority of their products are organic too. Sounds good to us!
Decathlon Forclaz
Decathlon have their own brand of adventure food now and it includes just one vegetarian meal: Organic Vegetarian Semolina/Vegetables. Decathlon do make good cost-effective outdoor products, so we thought they were worth a mention just for completeness, if anything.
So there you go. Hopefully we have given you a good range of vegetarian and vegan dehydrated camping food (and/or freeze dried) manufacturers to check out.
Disclaimer: This article has been compiled on a best effort basis from research on the manufacturers own websites. We do not guarantee the information/data we have given is correct and cannot be held responsible for incorrect information. Always do your own spec checks before making a purchase.
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