Hiking Lunch Idea: The Salad Wrap
A fresh, lightweight, bang-for-buck option for easy hikes and Great Walks
Lunch on the trail doesn’t always need to be complicated — in fact, on easier tracks or Great Walk–style trips, a simple salad wrap can be the perfect option. It’s fresh, it’s quick, it’s lightweight, and it gives you that satisfying crunch you often miss when living off dehy meals.
This is one of those lunches that feels almost too easy, but it works brilliantly. Even better, it becomes incredibly cost-effective and efficient when paired with Real Meals Mexi Nachos for dinner — with shared ingredients doing double duty across meals. This makes it ideal for a two-night hike, a Great Walk, or any adventure where pack weight and food simplicity matter.
Why a Salad Wrap Makes a Great Hiking Lunch
1. Freshness factor
When most hiking meals are dry or rehydrated, the freshness of salad and the softness of a wrap feel like pure luxury.
2. Fast and fuss-free
No cooking, no boiling water, no clean-up — perfect for lunch stops where you want to get moving again quickly.
3. Lightweight in the pack
Wraps weigh next to nothing, and a small bag of salad won’t add much either, especially if you eat it on day one or two.
4. Versatile & customiseable
Use whatever you like — lettuce, slaw, spinach — and add your favourite extras such as cheese, avocado, or dressing.
5. Budget-friendly, especially when paired with dinner
Because you’re likely carrying salad and wraps anyway for the Mexi Nachos dinner combo, using the same ingredients for lunch helps optimise weight, reduce cost, and minimise food waste.
How to Build Your Perfect Hiking Salad Wrap
Base ingredients
1–2 wraps
A small handful of salad mix (any washed salad bag works great)
Cheese (Parmesan, cheddar)
Optional: dressing sachet or a small bottle of dressing, avocado tube, relish, or hummus
How to assemble
Lay out your wrap on your knee, a rock, or your pack lid.
Add a handful of salad mix.
Add cheese or any extras you’ve packed.
Drizzle a little dressing or spread avocado/hummus.
Wrap it up tight so nothing falls out.
Enjoy immediately — fresh ingredients never taste better than on a sunny lunch spot with a view.
When a Salad Wrap Works Best
Great Walks
Perfect for tracks like the Kepler, Routeburn, Heaphy or Paparoa, where you have smoother trails, shorter days, and huts to prep ingredients the night before.
Easy overnight trips
Ideal when you’re not slogging up steep climbs all day — a salad wrap keeps things simple without weighing you down.
Day hikes where you want something fresh
If you’re heading out for a cruisy day trip, this adds a nice change from nuts and muesli bars.
Pair With Nachos for Maximum Value
Bringing wraps and salad for both lunch and dinner is one of the best bang-for-buck and weight-saving tricks:
The wraps double as dinner and lunch.
The salad gets used up quickly, reducing waste and pack weight.
You don’t need to carry extra ingredients for multiple meals.
The Real Meals Mexi Nachos tastes amazing inside a wrap — dinner sorted.
It’s simple planning that pays off.
Tips for Packing Fresh Lunch Ingredients
Eat salad-based meals early in the trip — day 1 or 2 is best.
Keep wraps flat at the back of your pack so they don’t get crushed.
Use ziplocks or a mesh bag to keep salad contained and organised.
Take only what you need — small snack-size salad bags are ideal.
Keep dressing in a sealed snack bottle or sachet to avoid leaks.
A Simple, Fresh Hiking Lunch That Works
A salad wrap might seem basic, but on the trail it’s everything you want:
fresh, quick, tasty, and lightweight. Combined with a dehy dinner that uses the same ingredients, it becomes one of the most efficient food systems for short trips and Great Walks.
Sometimes the best hiking meals are the simplest.
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