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Chow down on these savory snacks.
Chow down on these savory snacks. (Photo: Vincent Camiolo/Tandem)

Savory Snacks We Love for Long Workouts

Energy that tastes more like a meal than a dessert

Published: 
Chow down on these savory snacks.
(Photo: Vincent Camiolo/Tandem)

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If the thought of eating a birthday-cake-flavored聽gel during a long workout makes you sick,聽all hope 颈蝉苍鈥檛 lost. Sure, you can break into a bag of chips when you鈥檙e craving salt, but potato chips won鈥檛 fuel you聽through an聽Ironman. Fortunately, there are plenty of brands making fuel options that offer quick-burning carbohydrates聽without the cloyingly sweet taste. Here are ten options that range from semisweet to totally savory.

Skratch Labs Savory Miso Bar ($2.65)

(Courtesy Skratch Labs)

Savory bars are more common than they used to be,聽but sets itself apart from the crowd with one that鈥檚 formulated for an athlete鈥檚 energy needs: 27 grams of quick-acting carbohydrates, ten grams of fat, and five grams of protein in a聽210-calorie聽serving. Popular meat-based bars聽have a fat-and-protein-heavy nutritional profile, but Skratch鈥檚 oat and tapioca-starch base offers the easy-to-digest calories your body needs midworkout. It鈥檚 flavored with miso, sesame seeds, soy sauce, ginger, shiitake-mushroom powder, garlic, and red pepper. All ingredients are vegan, gluten-free, and non-GMO.


Muir Energy Sweet Potato Oregano Energy Gel ($2.25)

(Courtesy Muir Energy)

uses organic dehydrated sweet potato,聽oregano oil, coconut, and molasses to deliver 120 calories and 30聽grams of carbohydrates (with just one gram each of fat and protein). It鈥檚 designed to taste savory, but expect hints of sweetness from the sweet potato and molasses. Made in small batches in San Diego, you can mix and match with other flavors like blueberry-thyme or sunflower. The flavors are all vegan, gluten-free, and paleo friendly.


Mediterra Kale and聽Pumpkin Seeds Savory Nutrition聽Bars ($25 for 12)

(Courtesy Mediterra)

With聽Mediterranean-inspired flavors, like kale and pumpkin seed or bell pepper and green olive, 聽might be your new favorite snack. The base is a combination of pea protein and rice flour, and with five grams of fiber,聽they鈥檙e better suited to lower-intensity activities like聽backpacking or riding (compared to harder-on-the-gut pursuits like聽trail running). Each 140-calorie聽bar has nine grams of simple carbohydrates, six grams of protein, and eight grams of fat.


Gu Hoppy Trails Energy Gel ($31 for 24)

(Courtesy Gu)

骋耻鈥檚 won鈥檛 go down quite as smooth as a cold one聽after a long ride, but it鈥檚 a good middle ground for those who find most gels too sweet. The flavor聽has a hint of citrus, cut with a little bitterness鈥攕omething like a nice, light summer Radler. My gel-hating mountain-biker husband snagged聽one from a friend on a long gravel ride last month and immediately ordered a case.


Clif Mojo Bar Honey SriRocka or Fingerpickin鈥 BBQ ($14.70聽for 12)

(Courtesy Clif Bar)

If you can鈥檛 handle another chocolate-chip or oatmeal-raisin bar, try Clif鈥檚聽 in Honey SriRocka or Fingerpickin鈥 BBQ. They鈥檙e as chewy and easy to digest as the original Clif Bars,聽but in refreshingly savory flavors. Honey SriRocka adds聽spice with red pepper and sriracha, and Fingerpickin鈥 BBQ聽packs a聽smoky punch, each clocking in at聽210 calories and 21 grams of carbohydrates per bar.


Picky Bars Moroccan Your World聽($27.50 for ten)

(Courtesy Picky Bars)

Take a break from generic chocolate, vanilla, or fruity flavors聽with the聽 bar. A blend of dates, pistachios,聽turmeric, and ginger give it a聽mild sweet-and-savory flavor profile. Sensitive stomachs may appreciate the ginger, which can , and the small, chewy bar packs 180 calories, including 24 grams of carbohydrates, into just a few bites.


Earth鈥檚 Best Organic Sweet Potato, Garbanzo,聽Barley Baby Food ($20 for 12)

(Courtesy Earth鈥檚 Best)

Pouches of baby food are an endurance athlete鈥檚 best friend. They鈥檙e made out of real food, available in hundreds of flavors,聽and typically cheaper聽than products marketed as performance fuel.聽 offers 70 calories of pureed sweet potatoes, garbanzo beans, and barley in an easy-slurp pouch that can fit in a jersey pocket. They鈥檙e ideal if you鈥檙e trying to eat more whole foods聽but still want something that will be easy on your gut while training.


Thunderbird Real Food聽Bar聽Hazelnut Coffee Maca ($31 for 15)

(Courtesy Thunderbird)

These from Thunderbird聽have an ideal nutritional profile for long adventures like hiking or backpacking, each with 220 calories, 20聽grams of carbohydrates, 15聽grams of fat, and four grams of protein. Dates add the聽slightest sweetness, while cacao nibs, coffee beans, sea salt, and hazelnut round out the聽nutty, nicely聽bitter flavor. They鈥檙e also vegan and paleo-friendly.


Tailwind Nutrition Naked Unflavored Endurance Fuel ($25 per 30-Serving Container)

(Courtesy Tailwind)

Like 骋耻鈥檚 Hoppy Trails, Tailwind鈥檚 颈蝉苍鈥檛 quite聽savory (there聽aren鈥檛 really聽savory sports drinks on the market, unless you want to fill your hydration bladder with V8 and hope for the best). That said, it鈥檚 nowhere near as sweet as similarly calorically dense drinks. The unflavored powder provides 100 calories per scoop of efficient, fast-burning carbohydrates.


Do It Yourself

The easiest, cheapest way to enjoy a savory snack on the go? Make your own.聽You only need two ingredients for a聽quick and easy ride food: sticky rice and a drizzle of soy sauce, packed into bar shapes and wrapped in parchment. If you want to get a little fancier, chef Biju Thomas and sports-nutrition expert Allen Lim have an of simple recipes that use basic ingredients like rice and eggs to hit the right nutritional notes with a wide variety of flavor profiles.

Lead Photo: Vincent Camiolo/Tandem

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