Several health food aisle staples also work well as backpacking food; just look for the highest protein, lowest carb choices for the weight. Take them out of their cups and boxes (save the directions!) and repackage them in better trail containers. Nile Potato-Leek soup in the cup is 8g ECC split into two servings. Mixed with some protein or milk powder, grated cheese and/or bacon, and rehydrated with 10oz. of water, it yields about two cups of soup. Make your soup a complete meal by adding smoked salmon or dried shrimp. Knorr and Miso-cup soup mixes also travel well, and are tasty sauces and meal-extenders. Other brands to watch for include TasteAdventure (Curried Lentil soup, Red Lentil Chili), Tasty Bites (ready-to-eat Indian entrees), Fantastic Foods and Premier Harvest (TVP-based Sloppy Joe Mix and Taco Filling), and Near East (Falafel and Tabouleh). If you decide on one backpacking store entree, Mountain House makes a freeze dried bacon and egg breakfast that has 12 ECC for the whole bag (1 serving), and Heuvos Rancheros has a similar protein/carb profile.
Nestle Table cream is shelf-stable (no refrigeration required) evaporated heavy cream in a can. Depending on the length of your trip, you could repack it into a small spill-proof bottle to use it all at once with foil-packed tuna and chopped dried mushrooms for a tuna casserole dinner or, in a shallow pan with cheese on top and sun-dried tomatoes inside, you can make a bread-free trailside tuna melt.

Bring fresh garlic to make garlic broth on the trail--one 20-clove bulb will only weigh 2-3 oz, but make 4-5 cups of broth, enough for a dinner soup. Add dried vegetables or mushrooms, dried beef or tofu, and shreds of nori (seaweed). Save a cup or so of broth in a nalgene bottle and soak some lentils, mushrooms and yuba sticks overnight--you can cook them the next day and have stew in minutes. Some people crush the garlic and spices at home, pack it and then add water on the trail, but that's a sure way to have a pack that smells like garlic soup.

Roast some vegetables--spray them lightly with extra virgin olive oil and dust them with granulated garlic, chile powder or curry. They make crunchy trail snacks on the trail, or good mix-ins to whatever you're cooking. Roasting them gets rid of almost as much water weight as dehydrating them. However, unlike dehydrated veggies, you can munch on the roasted ones without adding water. Broccoli florets, cauliflower florets, thin slices of onion and thin bell pepper strips roast up nice and crispy, and if you keep the olive oil spray light, they'll stay dry enough to last three to four days.

Peanut Sauce is tasty, easy to carry and ramps up protein counts whenever it's used. It will keep two to three days without refrigeration, or up to a week at colder temperatures, yet it liquefies on low heat. If you make basic peanut sauce at home, put it in a Nalgene(r) squirt bottle or squeeze tube for use as needed, but it's simple enough to make on the trail. Basic Peanut Sauce is a ratio recipe; combine to your taste 1 part creamy peanut butter, 1/2 part soy sauce, 1/2 part rice wine vinegar, 1/12 part oil (olive, garlic or sesame), 1/12 part (or more) spices. If you don't like soy sauce, try worcestershire sauce, dark miso, balsamic vinegar (use 1 part peanut butter to 1 part balsamic), lemon juice, orange juice or beer. In addition to, or instead of, garlic and chile flakes, lemon or orange zest work well.

Planning low-carb meals for several days may mean taking components of recipes (vital wheat gluten for trailside seitan, foods that can function as either snacks or meals, etc.) But whatever your destination, filling your pack with low-carb food choices is just like any other part of backpacking: think ahead, be prepared, and remember to enjoy the view!