Radix, a brand focusing on nutritional quality, was a new backpacking food brand for me, and the Radix Nutrition Basil Pesto was quite a surprise. There’s a long list of ingredients on the back – but they’re all natural ingredients. Extra virgin olive oil, pumpkin seeds, millet, buckwheat, cherries, kale, baobab fruit… it’s a lot. Thankfully this results in a wonderfully varied meal with delicious, complex flavours and textures.

Alex Roddie’s Best in Test

The only reason I’m taking off half a star is the lack of fill line on the pack, which makes preparation slightly more complicated, and the fact that it took a couple of minutes longer to hydrate.
Pros
  • Good Value
  • Quality ingredients
  • Great texture and flavour
  • Vitamins and minerals
Cons
  • No fill line on pack
Quick specs
Price: £8.99
Weight: 127g
Calories: 600
Calories/100g: 472.4
Calories/£1: 66.7
Time to hydrate: 7 minutes
Vegan/vegetarian/dairy free/gluten free? vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free
Allergens: none
basecampfood.com

I particularly liked the varied vegetables and crunchy seeds in the mix. The basil pesto came through, but was not overpowering, allowing many of the natural flavours to shine.

I was impressed by the nutritional information, which included exhaustive details of the vitamins and minerals included in the meal. This isn’t something I’ve seen from any other brand. It’s also vegetarian, dairy free and gluten free.

The only reason I’m taking off half a star is the lack of fill line on the pack, which makes preparation slightly more complicated, and the fact that it took a couple of minutes longer to hydrate than the instructions stated. Otherwise this is near perfect.