Tricks for Eating Healthy on the Road

 

Our van trip has provided us with some incredible adventures. Fantastic trail runs, meeting new people, and far too many campfires to count. Epic sunsets. Although we enjoy what we do, living a nomadic lifestyle has its difficulties, one of which is eating a balanced diet of fresh foods while on the road. Some of our best advice for eating well while traveling has been compiled.

The key is to keep things simple

Nobody said you couldn't eat an eight-course meal while traveling, but the difficulties of doing so deter the majority of people. It requires planning, preparation, and cooking as well as storage, not to mention the trouble of cleanup. 

We frequently cook meals in one pot when we're on the road. For us, a typical meal consists of a protein, a starch, and a vegetable. Cook the one that takes the longest, then add the other ingredients as necessary. Simple cooking need not equate to bland food or unhealthiness.

Get Groceries Often 

Some trucks and vans come equipped with refrigerators. Not one of them is ours. It lacks a fridge but has a bed, some storage bins, a table, and other furniture. So that we may eat fresh, wholesome food, we find ourselves heading to the grocery store frequently (more frequently than we'd like to). 

Even while it requires much forethought, it is more affordable and healthier than eating out. Storage capacity and the ability to keep things cool are our main constraints.

Purchase a cooler It's worth its weight in gold to have this vintage igloo. Image: Genuine Asheville 

With a small Igloo cooler that I took out of my parents' garage over 15 years ago, we've been getting by. 

It is a little beat up from frequent use and no longer has a handle, but with ice inside, it can keep food chilled for around 30 hours. Investing in a cooler is the first step in continuing to eat well when traveling.

Always remain composed 

We keep our meals chilled using a variety of techniques, including ice packs, dry ice, frozen water bottles, frozen snacks, etc. 

 

Cool off frequently and early, whatever you do. If you're really on top of things, "pre-treat" the empty cooler for approximately an hour with some cold ice packs. When you put stuff into it, it will already be trained in this way. Filling your cooler to the brim is another way to increase cooling. Everything will remain cooler for longer. Try your best to keep your vehicle and cooler as much as you can closed and in the shade (or in the air conditioning). Opening it allows for the release of priceless chilly air.

 

Learn How to Pack Everything Properly Utilize your tools to the fullest, but a cooler will always be a requirement for your van life. 

Getting a cooler and cooling it are fantastic beginning steps, but learning how to pack fresh food can really up your fresh food game. Before moving into our van, I would simply open the cooler, place some food and drink inside, top it out with ice, and go.

Now that I think about it, I see how crucial it is to actually have a plan for keeping food cool because we frequently need it to stay fresh for longer than the afternoon. Ice always turns into water over time, regardless of the type of cooler you are using. Therefore, take careful to keep everything tightly closed so that it doesn't get wet. Once you've had a chance to experience it, you'll realize this in no time. Purchase a few containers that close tightly, and drain your cooler every couple of hours.

 

Think about Dry Ice 

Using ice and ice packs in a cooler is no doubt something you've done, but if you can locate some dry ice, try it out. When you do discover it, it might help you keep your food a little fresher even longer than conventional ice and ice packs, albeit it can be a little challenging to find. However, keep in mind that it has disadvantages and can harm you if you're not careful. When ice "melts," it converts into CO2, which can be quite harmful, especially in small spaces. Therefore, always wear gloves and allow the ice to ventilate.

Get Innovating. You need a quick, healthy fruit snack to keep on track and return to the essential things, like planning your next excursion. Image: Genuine Asheville 

Everything you put in your cooler needs to matter because there is only so much room in it. Sometimes we choose frozen water bottles to drink later or frozen fruit to consume later in place of icepacks and ice. Just keep in mind that frozen food will eventually defrost if you use it to cool your cooler. Make sure it is sealed tightly in two bags or a leak-proof container, and consume it quickly to preserve its freshness.

Purchase foods that don't require cooling 

A vanlifer's best friends are pasta, canned goods, dried fruits, cereal, granola, and bread. Why? They don't all require refrigeration, after all. Which means they don't take up valuable space in the cooler and may be kept under your bed or under the seat (anywhere you have room). It may seem obvious, but picking meals that can withstand temperature changes is actually very beneficial.

 

Even though a nomadic existence encourages whimsy, some planning is still done. Almost always, we make an effort to enter the grocery shop with a strategy. Failure to plan ahead when it comes to meals might result in having nothing to eat, wasting food, and consuming foods that don't go well with one another (beef jerky and wine, anyone?).

 

However, there must be a balance between controlling every aspect of your diet and planning ahead enough to ensure that nothing is wasted and that you enjoy the food you are consuming. We try to buy goods like cheese, tomatoes, avocados, tortillas, and rice, to mention a few that we can have for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Fortunately, we haven't grown tired of them yet.

But there's a narrow line between micromanaging your diet and planning far enough ahead so that nothing goes to waste and you genuinely enjoy what you're eating. We make an effort to buy things that we can eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, including cheese, tomatoes, avocados, tortillas, and rice, to mention a few. Fortunately, we still find them to be interesting.

It is feasible to eat healthily when traveling if you put some thought and imagination into it. Although keeping food fresh might be challenging and time-consuming, it is preferable to eating greasy burgers and french fries every day. One of the ways we keep our spirits high and fuel up for further excursions is to make sure we're eating wholesome meals.