snip-
Living in such a confined and cramped quarters has taught me to become efficient and a minimalist.
Meals, Cooking and Galley life aboard smaller boats....
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There is lots of good advice so far and I'm sure more will follow.
I have done some cruising on a 26 ft boat. The longest was almost 3 months on Florida east coast and Keys and we brought our dog along.
We added a poptop cover for the boat as well as a bimini, boom tent and cockpit cushions, this adds a lot of real estate to a small boat at anchor or a mooring ball. The improved ventilation helps when cooking down below on a warm day. A cockpit table allows alfresco dinning under the bimini in almost any weather.
We changed the original cooler out for a 5 day model and ran the cooler drain into the galley sink drain. The boat came with a one burner butane stove from the factory that worked great and there was room on the counter for a small microwave. We added a Honda EU2000 to use the microwave on the hook and keep the battery charged. The microwave works well for baked potatoes, rice, oatmeal, etc.
We provisioned with canned dog food for 3 months to keep Angus happy, next we stowed 3 months of canned goods, rice, oatmeal, pasta etc. The fresh food and ice we bought each week. Not having to hike canned goods back to the boat saved my back as the grocery stores can be a long walk away.
We found smoked pork chops kept well in a cooler. We switched to cabbage, carrots, and onions as major components of our salads as they keep so long without cooling.
As was mentioned a BBQ on the stern rail is great and it can even be used to make a pizza or crisp up the potatoes started in the microwave.
The original fiberglass galley sink was changed out for a bigger s/s model, combined with a plastic dishpan it made washing dishes much easier.
Our Hunter 260 had a very large table down below that made food prep, dish washing and dining very easy. The H260 somehow swallowed up all our provisions for 3 months under the settees. We maintained a chart of our storage bins to help when looking for provisions.
Bob
I have done some cruising on a 26 ft boat. The longest was almost 3 months on Florida east coast and Keys and we brought our dog along.
We added a poptop cover for the boat as well as a bimini, boom tent and cockpit cushions, this adds a lot of real estate to a small boat at anchor or a mooring ball. The improved ventilation helps when cooking down below on a warm day. A cockpit table allows alfresco dinning under the bimini in almost any weather.
We changed the original cooler out for a 5 day model and ran the cooler drain into the galley sink drain. The boat came with a one burner butane stove from the factory that worked great and there was room on the counter for a small microwave. We added a Honda EU2000 to use the microwave on the hook and keep the battery charged. The microwave works well for baked potatoes, rice, oatmeal, etc.
We provisioned with canned dog food for 3 months to keep Angus happy, next we stowed 3 months of canned goods, rice, oatmeal, pasta etc. The fresh food and ice we bought each week. Not having to hike canned goods back to the boat saved my back as the grocery stores can be a long walk away.
We found smoked pork chops kept well in a cooler. We switched to cabbage, carrots, and onions as major components of our salads as they keep so long without cooling.
As was mentioned a BBQ on the stern rail is great and it can even be used to make a pizza or crisp up the potatoes started in the microwave.
The original fiberglass galley sink was changed out for a bigger s/s model, combined with a plastic dishpan it made washing dishes much easier.
Our Hunter 260 had a very large table down below that made food prep, dish washing and dining very easy. The H260 somehow swallowed up all our provisions for 3 months under the settees. We maintained a chart of our storage bins to help when looking for provisions.
Bob
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Spent 2 1/2 years cruising aboard a 25 footer. Two aboard for the first part. One burner stove, used for a 4 course Thanksgiving dinner once.
But I use a small Wok, and do things like stir fry. Fresh shrimp, sauteed in beer and Tony Chachere's here.
And I certainly do not consider being aboard that boat as "camping out"
But I use a small Wok, and do things like stir fry. Fresh shrimp, sauteed in beer and Tony Chachere's here.
And I certainly do not consider being aboard that boat as "camping out"
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Oh cooking one special meal aboard is a treat but feeding a crew three times day for a week's trip requires shortcuts. Precooked frozen or canned one pot meals work for us. A croissant casserole withd sausage, hash browns, cheese and eggs baked and then cooled provides a hearty, easy and delicious breakfast. I sometimes cut me a piece and eat it cold. Cooked meats also keep better than fresh specially in coolers.
How big a crew do/can you have on a boat under 30 feet. I only fix breakfast and supper and plan leftovers for lunch from supper the night before. Filled pancakes or muffins are good choices for between meals snacks. Our physical activity levels don't require as much food(calories) as we need on land. For us morning and evening meals happen at anchor.
You might take a look at our "galley page" at;
http://www.svguenevere.com/gg/
Cruised full time aboard our Nor'Sea 27 for years, now about 50% of the time.
Greg
Nice thread...
I have two smallish things that you may find useful. I buy bottled water and freeze them all in advance. That becomes the ice in my cooler. It has two real advantages..... 1) the melt does not end up in your lunch meat or cheese... 2) your melt become drinking water later on.
And another is I buy those sandwich bread rounds instead of regular bread for making sandwiches. It does not get smashed so it is easy to stow. I also have a second "dry" cooler that I don't put ice in. It is used exclusively to keep food from getting crushed or knocked about.
I always make coffee in the morning but only occisionally to I cook eggs etc. Breakfast is usually fruit, pop tarts and/or granola. Lunch is a sandwich, trailmix and grapes and/or carrots or both. I pack something for the "3:00" snack (I really like the newer peanut butter Orios) and then we make a real dinner as the sun is setting at anchor. I like to make huevos rancheros as a one pot meal... chop some smoked sausage and grill it a bit in a teflon bowl... then throw in some chopped onions and some Cajun seasoning... then the eggs...but sometimes I get lame and do Chef-boy-r-de or Hormel. Seems like everything tastes great on a boat.
I have two smallish things that you may find useful. I buy bottled water and freeze them all in advance. That becomes the ice in my cooler. It has two real advantages..... 1) the melt does not end up in your lunch meat or cheese... 2) your melt become drinking water later on.
And another is I buy those sandwich bread rounds instead of regular bread for making sandwiches. It does not get smashed so it is easy to stow. I also have a second "dry" cooler that I don't put ice in. It is used exclusively to keep food from getting crushed or knocked about.
I always make coffee in the morning but only occisionally to I cook eggs etc. Breakfast is usually fruit, pop tarts and/or granola. Lunch is a sandwich, trailmix and grapes and/or carrots or both. I pack something for the "3:00" snack (I really like the newer peanut butter Orios) and then we make a real dinner as the sun is setting at anchor. I like to make huevos rancheros as a one pot meal... chop some smoked sausage and grill it a bit in a teflon bowl... then throw in some chopped onions and some Cajun seasoning... then the eggs...but sometimes I get lame and do Chef-boy-r-de or Hormel. Seems like everything tastes great on a boat.
Yep Greg- big difference between long term and weekend. actually, HUGE difference.
When you are aboard for months, the special meals come a bit further apart, and the "freeze at home" just doesn't work.
As I said- huge difference.
When you are aboard for months, the special meals come a bit further apart, and the "freeze at home" just doesn't work.
As I said- huge difference.
There are many ways to provision a boat and much will depend on how you plan to use the boat. I built our boat with wonderful plans to sail far and wide but age and financial reality got in the way. Only if you are crossing an ocean will you be more than a week between opportunities to reprovision. If I were to plan to be away from home for more than a couple of weeks I would certainly have a pressure cooker/canner on board. Then I would be able to purchase economical size portions of meat and poultry and preserve them in meal size portions. Since my boating never involves more than a couple of weeks I am able to provision with food and water for that period with no need to go ashore. Essentially I cook the same on the boat as I do at home
I'm in....
I call this liquid biscuits.
1. Open a bottle of Sam Adams
2. Drink the contents
3. Recycle bottle
Doh!!!
Re: Doc, I tried that but I had trouble
Pancake mix is a very versatile way to keep flour on a boat. The fundamental difference between pancakes and muffins is the amount of liquid used. When I make pancakes with one egg and one cup of milk and only one cup of dry mix I get a very thin pancake that I can use as a wrap for cold food or as a crepe for hot food or for a fruit dessert. When I increase the flour to a cup and a half I get thick pancakes. With thick pancakes I can add fruit or savory meat to the batter and when I use two cups of dry mix I get muffins. Sausage cooked in the oven at 300°F until they reach 160° internal temp will keep quite well and cut into small chunks make good filling for pancakes and muffins. Chunks of cheese, onion and green pepper are also very good.
Pancake mix is a very versatile way to keep flour on a boat. The fundamental difference between pancakes and muffins is the amount of liquid used. When I make pancakes with one egg and one cup of milk and only one cup of dry mix I get a very thin pancake that I can use as a wrap for cold food or as a crepe for hot food or for a fruit dessert. When I increase the flour to a cup and a half I get thick pancakes. With thick pancakes I can add fruit or savory meat to the batter and when I use two cups of dry mix I get muffins. Sausage cooked in the oven at 300°F until they reach 160° internal temp will keep quite well and cut into small chunks make good filling for pancakes and muffins. Chunks of cheese, onion and green pepper are also very good.
Lots of great replies... there are so many great and different methods everyone has that makes their galley time on their boat a fun and exciting experience, rather than a chore....
I think this is the only time I have read so many replies on a single post....
I have checked out a lot of the links that have been submitted in the posts and there are some recipes that I will be adding to my menu ideas...
as I said in my earlier post, the single most important factor for food storage on MY boat is that it has to be completely sealed so that, #1, it doesnt draw moisture from the damp marine air and go stale, #2 so that it can be submerged in the slushy ice water of the cooler... and not come open. I dont want my cooler water to be flavored with chicken, shrimp or hamburger juice, nor do I want to have anything I have stored in the cooler to be diluted with ice water before I get a chance to cook it.
the frozen water bottles are a good way to dual purpose them, but I have found some things will keep a lot longer if they are submerged in melted 33 degree ice water than they will when sitting next to a block of ice, as the water will completely surround it... marinated chicken, steaks or shrimp in a sealed bag will keep for about two weeks when submerged in ice water. I wouldnt trust it to keep nearly that long in air next to a block of ice...
and a vacuum packer is an essential must have item if you want the best way to pack foods for keeping while traveling. We re-package everything with it. Top ramen noodles, mac and cheese, rice a roni, spaghetti noodles, rice (we only use instant rice on the boat) hamburger helper, chocolate bars (and then kept in the cooler)..... anything that is brought aboard is completely sealed so that even if we dont use it on this trip, it will remain fresh and not go stale.
With most vacuum sealers, you dont need to vaccum the air out to environmentally seal stuff in the bag, but there are some advantages to sucking all the air out first.
I dont have any special recipes as we dont really cook aboard the boat other than on the bbq, but we re-heat a LOT and with the food items we carry, we usually have full square meals twice a day, and when its ready to be served, you could never tell that it was all pre-packaged heat and serve type foods. We always have delicious and varied meals that we look forward to....
even though I do home canning with a pressure cooker, I wont bring the glass jars aboard the boat. But outside of the canning, I have never used a pressure cooker for actually cooking meals.
Learning how is something that highly interests me as I know it can tenderize meats while cooking and even be used as an oven. I will be looking for a small one for the boat and experimenting.. I can cook and package most all foods at home to be brought aboard, but the fresh baked goodies cant be had that way.
we dont have a menu, but rather we keep a list of foods we have available and what box it can be found in. We have the meat listed, such as marinated chicken, shrimp, fish, roast, salisbury steak, pork chops, ect. in one column, then the list of different veggies, cabbage, carrots, beans, peas, ect. and whether they are canned or fresh in the second column, and then the 3rd column is a list of side dish items such as rice a roni, macaroni and cheese, au graten or scalloped potatos, mashed potatos, rice crackers, hamburger/tuna helper ect..... and then we pick whatever combination our taste buds feel like from the list and cook it up.
There are so many different prepackaged food items, both home cooked and store bought, that this is only a partial list of foods that we use.
We also have all types of snacks, healthy stuff and junk food, yogurt, lots of juice, coke and gatorade, tea, tang, cocoa.... and we also use and carry a selection of freeze dried meals, of which the mountain house brand has the best price and quality, largest selection, and greatest tasting of all we have tried.
when you are provisioning for a few days on the boat and you buy most of the stuff ready-to-eat, its not cheapest way to do things but its so convenient, and we have it figured that even with buying most of our food pre-cooked and already vacuum sealed and then using canned veggies and fruits, with daily snacks and drinks included (alcoholic and juice or gatorade), we are consuming about $8-$15worth of groceries per day combined.... I think packaging for a longer trip would reduce that cost even more.
An evening when we get back to the boat late and have top raman or mac n cheese for dinner really reduces the daily food bill, but even so, the cost for us is less of an issue than is the good tasting meal.
When we catch fish or crab to either supplement the meal, or replace the meal, that is another way to reduce the food bill and change things up a bit...
Washing dishes is done in a plastic tub with the water we are floating in, and then rinsed with fresh water...
body washing is also done with “native” water, then rinsed with fresh..... I have found that dawn dishwashing soap works the best for dishes and bodies.... in someplaces of the world, the water quality may not allow bathing in it, but where I boat, it does, and although some will disagree, I think a small amount of enviromentally friendly soap in the water in exchange for a clean body is reasonable.
to minimize our garbage, when we package our food for a trip we will remove and excess packaging and then use white electricians tape with a permanent marker to apply an identification tag to it.. to package something like mac n cheese we will empty the contents into a sealer bag and then tear the panel from the box as an identifier and include it in the bag. When it vacuums down its about one third the size that the box was originally. It saves room in storage as well as in the garbage can...
some may not think of it as camping like I do, but you shouldnt confuse survival mode with recreational camping, and you dont always need to have ants and “skeeters” to consider it camping. camping is supposed to be an enjoyable outdoor experiance, and it is for me.... im away from the crowds of people, Im cooking with a bar-b-q, or a camp type stove (alcohol), Im sometimes using paper plates and plastic ware, Im cooking and consuming “camping” types foods and snacks, Im using water that I had to carry with me, my bathroom is a porta pottie, I dont have all the luxurys and space that I do at home (our bed space is about the same size as a two person pup tent)...... and its serene and peaceful.... and depending on your location, there may or may not be trees, mountains, birds, insects and/or other wildlife around.... it will never be the ritz hotel, and if I ever get tired of “camping” on the boat, I can pack up and go home.... I cant find a better way to describe it other than camping, but then even as my boat is set up reasonably well and very comfortable, with a fairly well stocked bar, I dont call it a yacht either..... its still a boat to me.
I think this is the only time I have read so many replies on a single post....
I have checked out a lot of the links that have been submitted in the posts and there are some recipes that I will be adding to my menu ideas...
as I said in my earlier post, the single most important factor for food storage on MY boat is that it has to be completely sealed so that, #1, it doesnt draw moisture from the damp marine air and go stale, #2 so that it can be submerged in the slushy ice water of the cooler... and not come open. I dont want my cooler water to be flavored with chicken, shrimp or hamburger juice, nor do I want to have anything I have stored in the cooler to be diluted with ice water before I get a chance to cook it.
the frozen water bottles are a good way to dual purpose them, but I have found some things will keep a lot longer if they are submerged in melted 33 degree ice water than they will when sitting next to a block of ice, as the water will completely surround it... marinated chicken, steaks or shrimp in a sealed bag will keep for about two weeks when submerged in ice water. I wouldnt trust it to keep nearly that long in air next to a block of ice...
and a vacuum packer is an essential must have item if you want the best way to pack foods for keeping while traveling. We re-package everything with it. Top ramen noodles, mac and cheese, rice a roni, spaghetti noodles, rice (we only use instant rice on the boat) hamburger helper, chocolate bars (and then kept in the cooler)..... anything that is brought aboard is completely sealed so that even if we dont use it on this trip, it will remain fresh and not go stale.
With most vacuum sealers, you dont need to vaccum the air out to environmentally seal stuff in the bag, but there are some advantages to sucking all the air out first.
I dont have any special recipes as we dont really cook aboard the boat other than on the bbq, but we re-heat a LOT and with the food items we carry, we usually have full square meals twice a day, and when its ready to be served, you could never tell that it was all pre-packaged heat and serve type foods. We always have delicious and varied meals that we look forward to....
even though I do home canning with a pressure cooker, I wont bring the glass jars aboard the boat. But outside of the canning, I have never used a pressure cooker for actually cooking meals.
Learning how is something that highly interests me as I know it can tenderize meats while cooking and even be used as an oven. I will be looking for a small one for the boat and experimenting.. I can cook and package most all foods at home to be brought aboard, but the fresh baked goodies cant be had that way.
we dont have a menu, but rather we keep a list of foods we have available and what box it can be found in. We have the meat listed, such as marinated chicken, shrimp, fish, roast, salisbury steak, pork chops, ect. in one column, then the list of different veggies, cabbage, carrots, beans, peas, ect. and whether they are canned or fresh in the second column, and then the 3rd column is a list of side dish items such as rice a roni, macaroni and cheese, au graten or scalloped potatos, mashed potatos, rice crackers, hamburger/tuna helper ect..... and then we pick whatever combination our taste buds feel like from the list and cook it up.
There are so many different prepackaged food items, both home cooked and store bought, that this is only a partial list of foods that we use.
We also have all types of snacks, healthy stuff and junk food, yogurt, lots of juice, coke and gatorade, tea, tang, cocoa.... and we also use and carry a selection of freeze dried meals, of which the mountain house brand has the best price and quality, largest selection, and greatest tasting of all we have tried.
when you are provisioning for a few days on the boat and you buy most of the stuff ready-to-eat, its not cheapest way to do things but its so convenient, and we have it figured that even with buying most of our food pre-cooked and already vacuum sealed and then using canned veggies and fruits, with daily snacks and drinks included (alcoholic and juice or gatorade), we are consuming about $8-$15worth of groceries per day combined.... I think packaging for a longer trip would reduce that cost even more.
An evening when we get back to the boat late and have top raman or mac n cheese for dinner really reduces the daily food bill, but even so, the cost for us is less of an issue than is the good tasting meal.
When we catch fish or crab to either supplement the meal, or replace the meal, that is another way to reduce the food bill and change things up a bit...
Washing dishes is done in a plastic tub with the water we are floating in, and then rinsed with fresh water...
body washing is also done with “native” water, then rinsed with fresh..... I have found that dawn dishwashing soap works the best for dishes and bodies.... in someplaces of the world, the water quality may not allow bathing in it, but where I boat, it does, and although some will disagree, I think a small amount of enviromentally friendly soap in the water in exchange for a clean body is reasonable.
to minimize our garbage, when we package our food for a trip we will remove and excess packaging and then use white electricians tape with a permanent marker to apply an identification tag to it.. to package something like mac n cheese we will empty the contents into a sealer bag and then tear the panel from the box as an identifier and include it in the bag. When it vacuums down its about one third the size that the box was originally. It saves room in storage as well as in the garbage can...
some may not think of it as camping like I do, but you shouldnt confuse survival mode with recreational camping, and you dont always need to have ants and “skeeters” to consider it camping. camping is supposed to be an enjoyable outdoor experiance, and it is for me.... im away from the crowds of people, Im cooking with a bar-b-q, or a camp type stove (alcohol), Im sometimes using paper plates and plastic ware, Im cooking and consuming “camping” types foods and snacks, Im using water that I had to carry with me, my bathroom is a porta pottie, I dont have all the luxurys and space that I do at home (our bed space is about the same size as a two person pup tent)...... and its serene and peaceful.... and depending on your location, there may or may not be trees, mountains, birds, insects and/or other wildlife around.... it will never be the ritz hotel, and if I ever get tired of “camping” on the boat, I can pack up and go home.... I cant find a better way to describe it other than camping, but then even as my boat is set up reasonably well and very comfortable, with a fairly well stocked bar, I dont call it a yacht either..... its still a boat to me.
In the 13+ years of using our boat with glass jars and antique wine glasses we haven't broken anything. We use stoneware mugs and plates. We cushion our jars with sock tops as sleeves and our storage is below the settees. Vacuum packed food could be placed in wide mouth snap top containers filled with water and frozen and allow a dry icebox. I am going to try a variation of that soon with frozen shrimp. I will place them in a zipper freezer weight bag and fill it with water and in turn place that in a large wide mouth container filled with water and frozen.
I could see the benefits of a vacuum sealer if you were going to spend a lot of time out there.
For me, I know that I make landfall every night somewhere. Every few days I have the option of getting a small thing of groceries. I usually restock once during a week trip and twice during a two week trip. It makes thing much easier.
Then again, I am a slave to ICE. I have all sorts of tricks but in the end, I end up buying ice every two days during the summer. Still, if you do the math, getting ice is so much cheaper than putting refrigeration on the boat.
For me, I know that I make landfall every night somewhere. Every few days I have the option of getting a small thing of groceries. I usually restock once during a week trip and twice during a two week trip. It makes thing much easier.
Then again, I am a slave to ICE. I have all sorts of tricks but in the end, I end up buying ice every two days during the summer. Still, if you do the math, getting ice is so much cheaper than putting refrigeration on the boat.
i think most of us small boat sailors are slaves to the ice... i use a 62qt 5 day cooler and if i pre-freeze all the food that will go in it (drinks are not kept in the cooler), and top it off with ice, and if I keep it in the cabin with a large thick beach towel over it, I can go 7-8 days before needing ice. and i open it a couple of times per day. after the initial "freeze" is gone from the food, the ice needs replenishing about every 5 days.... ive used this same cooler for almost 10 years now, forest camping and boating both, and its about the same as long as its kept in a ventilated shaded area with an insulating blanket over it....
i dont drain the water until i have a re-supply of ice for it, as i have found the ice will last longer when it is in water than it will with air circulating around it until it turns into water.... and with leaving the water in, even after the last cube of ice is gone, the cold of the water remains working for awhile.
usually people keep their cooler in a shaded area, but if that shaded area is enclosed like in a trailer or tightly closed boat cabin, the surrounding air can reach 105 degrees rather quickly.... so to keep the temps down and preserve ice, ventilation of the space is necessary, and an additional insulating blanket to keep the warm air movement off the cooler helps immensely, even if there is no ventilation of the space, especially if the cooler sits in the sun in the cockpit.... and the melt ratio of ice per volume, will be quicker with smaller quantities....
and you are right that if you are able to get to the store every couple of days, then the vacuum packer does not have as much value as it does for those of us that cannot or dont want to make landfall if it can possibly be avoided.
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