The ketogenic diet, like other diets, is all about consistency over time. It only works if you stick to it as a lifestyle. That’s hard even when you’re at home following your routine, but gets a lot harder when you’re on vacation or travelling. I found that the hardest part isn’t actually when you get there, but is when you’re in transit, either through airports or driving on the road. Airports and road trips always feel like I’m in limbo and outside of the rules I set for myself. It’s really easy to fall off the keto diet wagon in those moments.
In order to fix this, I found that a little planning goes a long way and having foods that are high in healthy fats (and low in carbs) ready to eat makes it easier to stick to it. I try to get as many things as I can from my local grocery store and take them with me. Here are my go to, best keto snacks for when I’m in the car, on the road, going someplace fun.
Best snacks for short trips (2-5 hours)
For short trips I usually just pack my regular keto meals. I probably won’t have to visit gas stations on the way and so I like to get everything ready to go. I’ll eat things that taste good even when they’re cold and I’ll bring a cooler and an ice pack to keep things “food safe” along the way. That being said, if you don’t want the hassle of dealing with a cooler, just pick snacks that don’t need it. There are plenty of those below in the longer trips section.
Hard-boiled eggs
Hard boiled eggs are my favorite short road trip snack. You can make and peel them in advance, dust them with a little salt and then put them in tupperware for a quick ready-to-go snack that you can pull out of the cooler anytime. You can also mash them with some mayo and a few green onions for a little egg salad. Don’t do anything illegal or unsafe though, if you’re going to eat something that needs a fork, make sure you pull over at a rest stop.
Fat bombs
Who doesn’t love a good fat bomb! They tick all the boxes for easy keto snacks: They’re high fat, low sugar, can satisfy your sweet tooth and are easy to share with anyone else in the car that you might be travelling with. They take a little work to make before you leave but they’re so worth it. Here are a few of my favorites if you’re looking for inspiration:
Olives
This might be controversial but I think olives make a great road trip snack. They don’t require any cooking, they’re high fat and some are even packed in extra virgin olive oil. You can eat them as finger food, just make sure they don’t drip in your lap. I recommend straining them out of their liquid if you’re buying them in bulk and into a container so that they’re easier to eat.
Cheese
Cheese might be the easiest snack on this list of keto choices. It’s one of the best road trip snacks regardless of if you’re keto or not. There are a ton of great options: String cheese or cheese sticks, babybel cheese, sliced cheddar or swiss. Pick whatever cheese you like best! Anything that would be on your cheese plate at home can be cut up and put in a container for on the road. It’s a fantastic option. Available everywhere, easy to get, and easy to eat.
You can also make some quick and easy snacks with cheese to have ready for on the road. One option is to take some cucumber slices, put cream cheese on top with a little “everything bagel” seasoning. Another would be to cut up some cheese sticks and deli meats or pepperoni slices (or pepperoni meat sticks) to make little keto pizza topping bombs.
Dips and veggies
Last on this list is a quick and easy mix to add a little roughage to your diet while on the road. Broccoli dipped in ranch sauce is always one of my favorites. You can also use any keto friendly vegetable like radishes or celery sticks. If you’re not feeling the ranch sauce, you can also eat peanut butter with a few carrots or celery. Easy breezy and it’ll help to balance out some of the dense and heavier options on this list (like all that cheese you know you just ate!).
Best snacks for longer trips (1+ days on the road)
After about a day, the cooler becomes a bit of a hassle trying to find ice to keep things cold so I usually don’t take it on a long trip. I’m also going to be eating at restaurants along the way (my go-to keto meal order is a cheeseburger, no bun with caesar salad, no croutons). For longer trips I’m still looking for healthy low carb snack items to keep me energized on the road. Here are the things that I bring with me that don’t require a cooler or anything else.
Pork rinds
I love potato chips. I love them so much, I think half the reason I needed keto in my life is because of my potato chip addiction. In a previous life I tried to be a vegan for weight loss. Didn’t work. Why, you ask? Because potato chips are vegan. I love them even more on road trips, they’re everywhere and I can eat a family size bag without thinking twice while listening to tunes and making good time down the highway.
Pork rinds, although not quite as good as potato chips, are still the dark horse of keto and a clear winner on the list of best keto road trip snacks of all time. They’ve also come a long way in the last 10 years. You should check out what’s available these days if pork rinds aren’t a snack that’s normally on your radar. They come in all the usual chip flavors now. Best part is, nutritionally they’re actually a pretty great option, especially for junk food to eat on the road.
Nuts and seeds
Most nuts and seeds are keto, you just have to be careful about serving size and whether there is any added sugars like honey. Read the nutritional info to be sure. They’re also available at convenience stores and gas stations along the way which makes them a great keto snack option.
Macadamia nuts and almonds (in addition to peanuts) are all pretty much everywhere these days. Sunflower seeds (Spits!) come in a variety of flavors and have been in every gas station I’ve ever been to since the 80s. Lastly, pumpkin seeds are also a great snack but might not be as readily available at every gas station.
Moon cheese or cheese crisps
Back to cheese! These days you can buy cheese snacks that don’t need to be refrigerated. They’re one of the better keto options to get a few grams of protein in while going on your next trip.
Beef Jerky
Speaking of protein, who can forget the classic meat snack that is beef jerky. It’s the keto lifestyle poster child for snacks! That being said, it’s another one to be careful with. A lot of teriyaki and other flavors have a lot of hidden sugar so look at the nutritional information before you chow down only to realise later that it wasn’t as “low carb diet friendly” as you thought. Who doesn’t love beef jerky though…
Sweet treat(s)
In this last section, here are some of what I think are the best keto travel snacks for people who are motivated by sweet snacks instead of crunchy.
Protein bars
When I’m craving something sweet instead of salty my go-to is protein bars and for protein bars, I really like Quest bars. I think protein bars are a popular option for people traveling regardless of whether they’re doing keto or not. I have more warnings though as we move farther down this list. For this one, my warning is that most low carb protein bars have a lot of sugar alcohols like erythritol, maltitol or xylitol. I personally can handle maybe one or two of these per day tops before they wreak havoc on my digestion. I learned this the hard way so make sure you stick to only one per day unless you know you can handle more.
Another great option are Bulletproof Collagen bars. They don’t contain any sugar alcohols but they do have inulin in them which has the same effect on me if I eat more than one.
Dark chocolate
There are a ton of high-fat chocolate bars out there these days without a lot of added sugar. These Lily’s chocolate bars are a great addition to your travel snack packing because they’re like a fat bomb without carbs or protein and are great to balance out any jerky or cheese that you may have eaten before (or after).
FYI Lily’s also makes amazing chocolate chips which are great in keto baking.
Conclusion
If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading. I hope you’ve found this list helpful and you can stay on track for your next road trip. These have really helped me in the past and I wish you the best and safe travels on your next adventure!
Tara Klippert is a Registered Health and Nutrition Counselor and holds a diploma in Holistic Nutrition and Health Coaching. She shares her gluten free, dairy free & allergy friendly recipes.
Welcome to my blog! I share my *healthified* comfort food recipes that work with a variety of different diet approaches. AND all of my recipes are 100% gluten and dairy free.
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