Every day’s diet plan is an essential, especially when you are on a trek. Usually, the Everest Base Camp Trek is about 10-15 days depending on your schedule and itinerary. In that case, it is the food you consume everyday that keeps you alive. So, eating properly during this time is crucial.
In the Everest Base Camp Trek route, the wide varieties of dishes are not available. You need to compromise with the local foods and the other recipes. You will be adding or deducting some food items from your regular diet plan as per the availability and necessity of those items.
Since the trekking trail takes you to the high altitude region, you should consume food that are altitude-friendly, mostly liquid food like soup noodles, soups, hot tea, etc.
You should avoid walking immediately after a full tummy. It will slow down your speed and make you feel lethargic. You might even suffer from stomach cramps. Eat just enough of healthy fiber based food items and do not stuff yourself.
Usually, three meals are planned for treks, breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Mid-day snacking is always there.
You can also choose to eat something else from the menu.
Everest Base Camp trek is challenging yet adventurous and interesting trekking experience you will have. The experience of mountain life is incredible. Proper food habit during the trek adds in to making it a lot more pleasant and rejuvenating.
Breakfast at Everest Base Camp
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It is necessary to have your breakfast 30 minutes prior to your trekking journey. It will provide you with the energy for the whole day and won’t make you feel stuffed.
You usually start your trek early in order to reach the planned destination of the day before dark.
You need to walk for about 5 to 6 hours per day. So, you will usually taking breakfast at around 7 am.
Most of the tea houses on the trail have similar menus for the breakfast. The items of bread, eggs, and potatoes are a common breakfast in this area.
Here is the list of some of the varieties of breakfast available in the tea houses along the trail of the Everest Base Camp.
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Tell us about your trip and we will help you design comfortable itinerary to meet your needs.Toasted Bread
The most common breakfast found in the tea houses of the Everest Base Camp trek route is the toasted bread. Here are some menus of toasted bread found there:
- Plain toast
- French toast
- Honey toast
- Jam Toast
- Cheese toast
- Toast bread with jam and honey
- Toast bread with egg and cheese
Bread and Pancakes
As regards to bread, Tibetan bread is the local breakfast item in the region. You should at least try the bread once as it gives you the touch of Himalayan lifestyle.
Regular pancakes with different flavors are also available. You can also find chapattis as another option for breakfast. Here is some list of different varieties of Bread and Pancakes:
- Tibetan Bread
- Pancake with jam or honey
- Apple pancake
- Cinnamon pancake
- Chocolate pancake
- Lemon pancake
- Egg pancake
- Plain chapati
- Chapati with honey,
- Chapati with peanut butter
- Egg chapati
- Chapati with baked beans
Eggs
- Eggs are another item on the menu for breakfast in the Everest Base Camp Trek. The varieties of the eggs recipe are available for the breakfast. Some of them are:
- Boiled eggs
- Poached eggs
- Scrambled eggs
- Plain omelets
- Vegetarian omelets
- Cheese omelets
Porridges
You can also find porridge as another option for the breakfast.
It is the best breakfast item when you reach the higher altitudes. You will find different varieties of porridges depending upon the menus of the place where you are having breakfast.
Here are some of the basic breakfast items available in Everest Base Camp Trek:
- Tsampa porridge
- Apple porridge
- Oat porridge
- Honey porridge
- Porridge with cinnamon and resins
- Rice pudding
- Chocolate pudding
- Cornflakes with hot milk
Muesli with hot milk
Muesli with hot milk is the general breakfast item present in the menu.
All these available options for breakfast are healthy and replenish your body with energy for a longer period of time.
Also, these breakfasts maintain a higher level of glucose level in your bloodstream essential for the trek.
According to your taste and preferences, you can choose any of these items for your breakfast. So, follow this as a food guide for the Everest Base Camp trek and eat a healthy wholesome breakfast.
Lunch at Everest Base Camp
Lunch is considered as the main course of the meal for the whole day in Nepal. It will give you enough energy during whole day trek.
Usually, the lunchtime is around 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm. Lunch will be served in one of the tea houses along the trekking trail of Everest Base Camp Trek.
You will find it in between your starting point and the destination point of your trekking route on that same day.
The popular lunch item in the Everest Base Camp Trek is the traditional Nepali food, Dal (Lentil Soup), Bhat (Boiled Rice), Tarkari (Vegetables), and Achar (Pickle).
Cooked meat and dry meat are also the optional items in the Nepal food set.
Here is the list of some of the varieties of the items in the rice menu which are available in the tea houses on the trekking trail of Everest Base Camp Trek.
Rice Meals
- Veg dal bhat
- Non-Veg dal bhat
- Rice with chicken curry
- Rice with veg curry
- Veg fried rice
- Egg fried rice
- Cheese fried rice
- Fish fried rice
- Mixed fried rice
There are many other food items that are also available in the tea houses along the trekking route of Everest Base Camp Trek. You will be served different types of lunch menu according to your taste.
Everest Base Camp Trek is the most popular trekking all over the world. It is the busiest trekking trail ever. Hundreds of thousands of trekkers from different countries trek here each year so, the tea houses also provide the menu which suits for different nationalities.
Here are some of the possible menus of lunch items
Noodles
The variety of noodle items with different flavors is the popular menu next to rice menu. You can find Tibetan style boiled noodles (Thukpa) or fried noodles in the menu.
Thukpa (boiled noodles)
- Veg Thukpa
- Egg Thukpa
- Chicken Thukpa
- Buff Thukpa
- Mixed Thukpa
Fried Noodles:
- Veg fried noodles
- Egg fried noodles
- Chicken fried noodles
- Buff fried noodles
- Mixed fried noodles
Momo (Dumplings)
Momos are the dumplings with some fillings inside. These are the Tibetan food which has grown a lot of popularity in Nepal.
It is another best option for lunch. You will find the momo item mostly steamed or fried.
Steamed momo
- Veg momo
- Buff momo
- Chicken momo
- Cheese momo
- Potato momo
Fried momo
- Veg fried momo
- Buff fried momo
- Potato fried momo
- Chicken fried momo
Pasta and Macaroni
For pasta lovers, the tea houses on the trekking trail of Everest Base Camp trek provides you with a different variety of pasta and macaroni menus. Some of them are:
- Vegetable fried pasta
- Cheese fried pasta
- Plain macaroni
- Macaroni with cheese, vegetables, and egg
- Mix macaroni
Pizza and Sandwiches
- Chicken pizza
- Mushroom pizza
- Mixed pizza
- Grilled cheese tomato sandwich
- Grilled tomato egg sandwich
- Grilled tuna and tomato sandwich
Spaghetti
- Spaghetti with tomato sauce
- Spaghetti with vegetables and tomato sauce
- Spaghetti cheese and tomato sauce
- Spaghetti with tuna, cheese, and tomato sauce
These are the general concept of menus of tea houses along the trekking trail. You may get many other varieties of food items according to the menu of the tea house. The menu will vary and become scarce as you reach to the higher altitude.
Dinner on Everest Base Camp
At the end of the day, the dinner will be served in the same place where you will be staying overnight. The dinner time is around 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
After the day’s trek, you will enjoy a satisfying warm dinner that goes absolutely well with the chiling altitude.
Good dinner will provide you with a sound sleep. It will give your body proper rest.
The menu for the dinner is basically the Nepali traditional food “Dal Bhat” or you can also find other menus similar to the lunch. You can select any type of food items from the menu of the tea house that you are staying that night.
Drinks on Everest Base Camp
Hot water with sliced ginger is the typical drink found in the Everest region.
It will help you with the stomach problem and keep your stomach calm. Besides that, hot lemon and hot orange are also the best options to drink.
Tea and coffee are also served but you can have it only in the lower altitudes. It is recommended not to drink caffeine at the higher altitudes, it may bring the health issues like altitude sickness.
You should strictly avoid the alcoholic drinks during the trek. Consuming alcohol may cause a serious health problem at the higher altitudes.
So, you should select the drink wisely while trekking in the Everest region.
Water
It is essential to keep yourself hydrated all along the way while trekking. So, you need to take at least a bottle of water while trekking daily.
You may not feel thirsty at the higher altitude due to change in temperature and pressure. Even if you aren’t thirsty, you should not avoid drinking water. Dehydration may bring serious health problems.
Since water is the key ingredient to keep yourself healthy and energetic during trekking, you have to make sure your drinking water is healthy.
You will get different types of mineral water to buy or choose natural spring water along the trail for drinking purpose. If you are drinking tap water, you should use a water purification tablet or liquid before drinking.
Using tap water directly is strictly restricted for the trekkers as it might have contaminants . Better to carry a bottle and refill with boiled and purified water at stops.
You don’t need to worry about water while you are at the tea houses. They will provide you the boiled water which is totally healthy and hygienic. You will still have the option of buying mineral water and using purification tablet or liquid.
What to eat before trekking?
During the trek, you need to maintain your energy level. Food is the only thing that gives energy to your body. For this reason, you should know about what to eat before your trekking journey.
Selecting the right type of food will provide you the necessary energy to walk for several hours. It is recommended to take food with carbohydrates, which will give you an instant energy such as porridge.
Usually, you will start your trekking journey each day after breakfast, you need to select the carbohydrate-rich food from the menu provided to you.
The Everest Base Camp Trek takes you to the higher altitude of about 5000 m. You need to ascend the steep trekking trail of the Everest Base Camp. That’s why you need to take light and healthy breakfast rather than a heavy one. Heavy food will make you feel less energetic and fatigued.
On the way, if you are having lunch and have only a short time to eat, you need to select food items with a balanced diet from the menu. A balanced diet contains the right amount of carbohydrates, proteins, and vitamins.
The source of carbohydrate is the food item made from whole grains; the source of protein is eggs and lentils; and the source of the vitamin is vegetables and fresh fruits.
Lunch on the mid-way to the destination will refill energy as well as provide extra energy for leftover hiking.
Along with the healthy food before trekking, you must drink plenty of water. You need to keep yourself hydrated during the high altitude trekking more than lower altitude trekking.
What to eat after the trek?
You need to refill energy after strenuous hiking of the whole day. Energy bars also help you replenish the energy just after the trek.
Drinking plenty of water will relief you after a hectic hiking. You should have at least 500 ml to a liter of water after the hike.
During dinner, you need to choose the food items that are rich in proteins and carbohydrates. You should take plenty of hot soups and water to avoid altitude sickness at night.
What not to eat or drink while trekking?
At the higher altitudes in the Everest Base Camp trek, there are some food items that you should avoid such as meat, alcoholic drinks, and junk food.
There are different reasons to avoid these food items while trekking especially in the high altitudes.
Meat
It is recommended to avoid meat items while trekking at higher elevations. It is due to the reason of unhygienic delivery of meat from a lower region to a higher region.
All the meat is usually carried to Lukla from Kathmandu by flight and is distributed to the different stations in the higher altitudes from Lukla by the means of mules.
Mules carry meat from Lukla to different places without proper refrigeration. You will find dry meats rather than fresh meat at the higher altitudes.
They preserve meat by drying them either in the sun or smoke them in their kitchen. It is recommended not to risk your health by having unhygienic food.
Alcoholic drinks
It is known that alcohol dehydrates your body.
Even a small amount of alcohol will create a lot of problems while trekking in the high-altitude region. Rapid dehydration process of alcohol dries up your body faster and may lead to altitude sickness.
So, consuming alcohol while trekking is strictly prohibited.
Junk foods
Junk foods such as chips, fries, burger, canned food are also not recommended while trekking.
These food items cannot be digested easily and may cause stomach problem. Avoiding such food is better than trekking with an upset stomach.
Besides these foods, you need to avoid extra oily food items such as spring rolls, pizzas etc. Smoking is also strictly prohibited while trekking.
Essential Food Tips for Everest Base Camp Trek
- Have a healthy breakfast
Start your day with the wholesome breakfast. Go for health, not for taste. It is least recommended to have tea or coffee early in the morning because it contains caffeine and causes dehydration.
- Go for a balanced lunch and dinner
Your Lunch and dinner must be rich in carbohydrates and contains the right amount of proteins, and vitamins and plenty of water.
- Carry water
While trekking you must not forget to carry water in a bottle. You should keep yourself hydrated the whole time.
You can carry a bottle of two liters. If your bottle gets empty you can refill water on the way from the tea houses along the trail.
Do not forget to purify water each time you refill the bottle from the tap or open sources.
- Carry dry fruits
Dry fruits like cashews, walnuts, almonds, apricots, raisins, etc. are rich in minerals, protein, vitamins, and fibers. The dry fruits are nutritional and lightweight so, it is easy to carry.
These make snacking absolutely exciting. You should keep some dry fruits with you in your backpack while trekking.
- Carry chocolates and energy bars
To get instant energy on the way while hiking you need to have something more than water. Chocolates and energy bar gives you instant energy while on the way.
When you feel more tired and need a rest then you can rest for a while and have an energy bar, or chocolates. It will make you feel energetic. So, you should keep some of them in your backpack.
Conclusion
Healthy food keeps you healthy during the entire trekking duration. Food is the major factor that affects your trekking experience.
Besides that, you also need to take care of your personal hygiene before and after your meals.
Washing your hands or using hand sanitizers to keep away from contamination and from germs.
High altitude trekking is one of the most adventurous trek. A lot of adventure awaits. It won’t be likely if you are not healthy. You can begin by taking care of your diet. Go for a healthy diet rather than the tasty one.
You can go through our website or contact us for any other information regarding the Everest Base Camp Trek.
We have different packages for the Everest Base Camp trek:
Jiri to Everest Base Camp Trek
Everest Base Camp via Gokyo Lake
Everest Base Camp Trek with Island Peak
Trek to Everest Base Camp and Helicopter Ride Back
Do you have any question or Confusion?
Tell us about your trip and we will help you design comfortable itinerary to meet your needs.
