Everest base camp trek – Khumbu region serves the most dynamic dining scenes which offer every kind of food including the street and classical food. Whether it’s a butter tea, rich culture, or a room that provides the snow-capped mountains, diners can choose from an astonishing menu of Sherpa cuisines. The menu generally has vegetarian options and we encourage sticking to vegetarian meals during the Everest base camp trek. So being vegetarian is not an issue at all when it comes to traveling in Khumbu. It keeps your body healthy. Let’s learn more about healthy foods and drinks in the below subheadings.

Everest base camp trek - definitiveinfo

Everest base camp trek – Water in Everest base Camp

While talking about the food and drinks, one cannot forget about water.  There are several methods to drink water some of them are boiled water, bottled water, Purification tablets, SteriPEN, and so on.

Boiled water at Everest base camp: The safest and most convenient option during this trek is boiled water. Almost everywhere, you will get boiled water; however, some of the lodges might charge you from NPR 50 and 120 Nepali rupees per cup, and NPR 300 and 1200 per large pot especially in Gorakshep On your trek please avoid tap water.

Bottled Water at Everest base camp: Reusable water bottles are a must! And if you buy one with a filter straw, even better! Filter straws filter out 99% of waterborne bacteria, microplastics, and parasites. However, recently Khumbu banned plastic bottles in the Everest Region. Thus, bring your bottles and just make sure to fill them up with water.

Purification tablets at Everest base camp: During the trek, many people bring table or chemicals like chlorine dioxide with them to purify water. As these chemical tablets are easy to carry and inexpensive to buy. After adding the tablet to water wait for 30 minutes to kill off all the contaminants and then drink water.  However, these tablets are not effective as UV filters or boiled water and need a few hours to act.

SteriPEN at Base camp

SteriPEN is another way to kill bacteria in water. It can kill 99.9% of bacteria, viruses, and protozoa using UV technology and can hence turn tap water into drinking water easily. While using this make sure to read the directions carefully and use the pen for the required duration.

Everest base camp trek – Breakfast during the Everest trek

Everest base camp trek - definitiveinfo

There is no better experience than getting breakfast in front of the world’s highest mountain, Mt. Everest. The trip to Everest base camp is itself a fascinating experience. The panoramic view of the snow-capped mountains and dazzling scenery really makes the breakfast must be aromatic and tastier. Generally, the normal tea house trek offers breakfast at around 7-8 am. Here is a list of items that you can get for Breakfast during the Everest base camp trek. This breakfast may be similar to the breakfast of  Everest View Hotel when joining the Helicopter excursion to Everest base camp.

Bread

  • Cheese toast
  • Toast bread with jam and honey
  • Honey toast
  • Toast bread with egg and cheese
  • Jam toast
  • French toast
  • Plain toast

Bread and pancakes

  • Chocolate pancake
  • Chapati plain
  • Chapati with honey, egg, baked beans, and peanut butter
  • Tibetan Bread
  • Cinnamon pancake
  • Egg pancake
  • Lemona pancake
  • Pancake with jam or honey
  • Apple pancake

Eggs

  • Plain omelets
  • Fried eggs
  • Veg omelets
  • Boiled eggs
  • Scrambled Eggs
  • Cheese omelets

Porridge

Porridge is another famous breakfast item that you can get in the Khumbu region. Here are some varieties of Porridge.

  • Muesli with hot milk
  • Tsampa porridge
  • Apple porridge
  • Oat porridge
  • Porridge with cinnamon and resins
  • Rice pudding
  • Chocolate pudding
  • Cornflakes with hot milk
  • Honey porridge

Everest base camp trek – Lunch and dinner while trekking to Everest Base Camp;

Everest base camp trek - definitiveinfo

Well, Lunch is the main course of the meal that is served in the Khumbu region. Usually, they served Lunch on the way to the trekking. Mainly, you can find Dal, Bhat, Tarkari, Aachar, momo, noodles, pizza, and sandwiches. The lunch must be healthy and heavy which will give energy throughout the whole day.

Meanwhile, the dinner is served at the tea houses where you stay overnight. After having a tired day, you might need a portion of healthy and heavy food for energy. The food they served for the lunch is similar to dinner. Trekking for around 7 hours might need adequate energy for the body. To recharge your body, here is a list of food.

Rice Main course:

  • Veg dal bhat (dal, bhat, Papadum, achar, vegetables, etc)
  • Non-veg dal bhat (veg dal bhat plus meat item)
  • Veg fried rice
  • Rice with chicken curry
  • Mix fried rice
  • Egg fried rice
  • Rice with veg curry
  • Fried rice with cheese
  • Fried rice with Tuna fish

Noodles item:

  • Chow Mein (Fried noodles, Veg/ buff/egg/mixed)
  • Thukpa (Boiled noodles, veg/buff/egg/chicken/mixed)
  • Sherpa Stew
  • Garlic soup

Momo (Dumplings)

  • MoMo fried or steamed (buff/ chicken/ potato/ cheese/ veg)

Pasta/ Macaronis:

  • Plain Macaronis
  • Veg fried Macaronis
  • Mix Macaronis
  • Pasta with egg
  • Cheese fried Macaronis 
  • Pasta with cheese and tomato sauce

Sandwich:

  • Grilled egg sandwich
  • Grilled cheese Sandwich
  • Grilled Tuna sandwich
  • Grilled tomato sandwich

Spaghetti:

  • Spaghetti with tomato sauce
  • Spaghetti with cheese
  • Spaghetti with tuna fish

Pizza:

  • Chicken Pizza
  • Mushroom Pizza
  • Mix Pizza

Remember to eat balanced and hygienic lunch and dinner. And eat a healthy breakfast that contains enough amounts of vitamins, Carbohydrates, protein, etc.

Everest base camp trek – Snacks available during the Everest base camp trek

Everest base camp trek - definitiveinfo

Almost every tea house along the Everest trails has candies, biscuits, and Pringles. Apart from that you will get more options like Granola Bars, Dry fruits, Candies, and Coke in small convenient shops in Lukla, Phakding, Dingboche, Pheriche, Namche Bazaar, and Pangboche.

Everest base camp trek – Meat in Everest Base camp trek

Everest base camp trek - definitiveinfo

The Sherpa people prohibit the slaughtering of animals in the Khumbu area which means that the meat is either transported from Kathmandu or villages below Lukla. Thus, the quality of the meat is un-trustable and the region lacks refrigerators. Hence we highly suggest not eating meat during the trek.

Everest base camp trek – Beer and other beverages

The teahouses along the trail offer wild ranges of beer and beverages that include tea, coffee, juice, milk, and so on. They generally range from NPR 100 – NPR 300 however, the price might increase at higher altitudes. Similarly, in some places, there are café where you can get Cappuccino, Cafe Latte, and Americano. The price ranges from 250 Nepali rupees to 400 Nepali rupees.

For alcoholic beverages, there are several pubs and beer bars in Namche bazaar and Lukla. 650 milliliter Can beer in Namche Bazaar costs NPR 700 to NPR 1000. Apart from beer, you will get to taste the local Chaang (rice beer) or local wine. The local alcoholic drink places (Bhattis) in Lukla, Phakding, and Namche Bazaar sell them. While being there, taste once you will remember this taste for your entire life.

Overall, eating healthy is not only enough to keep you safe on the trek. Besides this, you also need to follow basic hygiene like washing your hands often or using hand sanitizer. Remember to eat healthily and drink well during the entire journey. I hope at the end of the article, you get a detailed view of a food and drinks guide for the Everest Base Camp trek.

Priya Jatoliya

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