Packing your own food for a road trip may seem boring because who does not love to stop along the way and buy tasty fast-foods? It is what traveling is all about after all.
As it is, travel and sitting for long periods put the body through a rough time, and vegan food, as opposed to junk food, can help with eliminating some of those regular negative travel symptoms, we experience such as the sore stomach, bloating and nausea.
What is the good of a road trip if your stomach is sore and you feel sick and lethargic from petrol-station food?
If you are planning an excursion or a getaway, it will be useful for you to plan in advance what you are going to eat there, since some foods will be more suitable than others, depending on the physical activity you are going to do as well as the temperature of the surroundings. After all, it is not the same to make an excursion to the mountain in the middle of summer, than to go skiing.
If you are a vegan and have not planned well as to what you are going to eat and where, you run the risk that your diet during those days will not up to what your body needs.
Vegan foods – gentler on the stomach
Travel-friendly vegan food is quick to prepare and it goes down far better if you suffer from the air- or car sickness.
Packing your own healthy vegan food snacks will work out cheaper, you know exactly where the food comes from, how it was prepared and you know it will be gentler on your stomach too.
Travelers may well be inclined to think that packing your own vegan food for the road is possible but what about air travel? There are plenty of vegan snacks that get the all-clear for traveling by air as well, and salads in an appropriate container are always a good idea for travel-friendly food ideas as opposed to bland airline food.
When in public spaces, you just have to think carefully about the kinds of vegan foods you prepare because hard cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower can give off a strong odor when you open the storage box. It is because cauliflower has sulfur compounds that do not smell good when you cook the vegetable.
Vegan can even be decadent
But there are other vegan foods that are delicious and easy to prepare before you leave and which will have you easily giving up that mindless travel- and binge type of eating on the wrong foods.
Look at vegan energy balls, for instance, made with dried fruit, nut butter, and chocolate and packed full of flavor but also nutrients. This is one decadent vegan treat that you do not have to feel guilty about when you pop yet another one into your mouth.
Popcorn – healthy and low in calories
There has always been something tantalizingly appealing about the smell of popcorn and vegan popcorn is a delicious, healthy road trip snack that can be made before you hit the road. When you make your own popcorn you can choose the kind of flavoring you like so that you know exactly what you are putting into your body. Popping your own popcorn is easy and the best thing about it is that it is a low-calorie food, and the air-popped type has just 31 calories per cup.
Vegan never look this good
- Just a few ideas for travel-friendly foods include swapping dried fruit for fresh fruit, replacing fizzy cold drinks with water that is flavored with mint or berries and using wholewheat or rye bread with delicious sandwich fillings instead of hamburgers or hotdogs. A delicious vegan sandwich with cucumbers, red onion, avocado, salt and pepper and a touch of mustard can be finger-licking good.
- Then again, some organic, whole-grain vegan crackers with some nut butters and vegan pate are excellent as road trip food and they are easily available at most supermarkets. Usually, they only require refrigeration after they have been opened.
- Once you get to your guesthouse or camping site for the night, mini-nachos made with tortilla chips and some tasty toppings such as salsa or vegan cheese can be a tasty meal. You can easily spread some tortilla chips on a plate, add cheese and pop into a microwave for just a few seconds to melt the cheese.
- Finding the perfect vegan snacks which are travel-friendly does not have to be all complicated either – in fact, no road trip should ever be complicated. There are just so many snack ideas that are delicious and healthy. If you visit a health store for stocking up on vegan snacks, choose snack bars, kale chips, nut butter, and other vegan snacks.
- Road trips are all about nibbling and what better way than to do it with healthy energy bars made up of dried fruit and nuts. Before your trip, you can buy some of these bars from your local grocery store or from a health shop and they can be taken along for a road- or plane trip too. These are good vegan snacks that are conveniently easy to carry with you and have close by.
It is no good thinking up some vegan snacks for the road a day or two before you leave. Planning a week before you depart can make your life on the road that much easier and your snack box can even contain a mix of vegan and gluten-free snacks.
Plan ahead for carefree travels
Eating vegan while traveling can become a bit difficult because not every supermarket, restaurant or wayside road store has caught on to just how many vegan-eaters there really are. With careful planning ahead of time however, you can stick to a plant-based diet with your travels when you take time out to do a bit of research ahead of time.