SBO Cook Book - Cooking for Cruisers and Racers

[Will Gilmore]

SBO is a great resource for all kinds of boating knowledge. With SBO's large membership, certainly there is, somewhere in here, the makings of an amazing collection of recipes and cooking ideas for the avid sailboat owner.

Having spent over 3 years of my childhood living on a boat with my family, cooking aboard or at dockside, represents a fair portion of my memories of boat life. I thought it might be fun to share some of those experiences and maybe create a collective repository of SBO cooking ideas.

Since I just came across this old picture. I would like to start with my father's "famous" dockside marina fish fry.

As a party boat captain on the Florida coast, my father always had fresh grouper available. and his beer batter fried fish was some of the best I can remember. This picture was taken of my father frying grouper for friends and neighbors at Clearwater Marina, circa 1975.

That's Sinbad in the foreground, a neighbor's cat, come to see what's for dinner.

Recipe:
My father used one pkg of Drakes Cornmeal batter mix

(about 1 cup) mixed with one cheap lite beer (Bud, Bush, PBR, Miller, ...). Use a light vegetable oil, always fresh (Canola is good). Heat the oil until a drop of water skips across the top (keep it hot while cooking). Then cook to a light golden brown (about 3 min). Remove and let dry on a few layers of paper towels.
Grouper is the best fish for this dish, channel catfish is also great. The secret, really, is not over-cooking the fish. Saltwater fish is perfectly fine even raw. Freshwater fish needs to be cooked. Don't eat raw freshwater fish. Over cooking, however, leads to dry fish that reminds me of fish sticks from public school lunches.

If you want to make your own batter mix, Drakes and other brands is equal parts cornmeal and wheat flour.
1/2 cup wheat flour
1/2 cup coarnmeal
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
a little thyme, rosemary, some spice you like.

-Will (Dragonfly)

 

[jssailem]

Looks like onion rings not fish sticks.
I’ve tried that with a tempura mix I found in the Asian aisle of the grocery store. Very light and crispy batter. Also sorts of fresh veggies. Likes. Green beans. Asparagus. Zucchini WALLA WALLA ONIONS .

 

[Ken Cross]

We have cooked pizza on the grill for years. Mostly we grill for dinner. Fresh seafood is always good in season.

An easy one I've learned from a friend: put mayo on a piece of parchment paper. Crush potato chips (flavored ones) and put them on the mayo, then put your fish on top. Top the fish with more mayo and chips. Throw paper and all on some foil and on the grill. It looks and tastes better than I had imagined.

Ken

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

We went through about a decadea while back in which it seemed that every woman who'd ever cruised for longer than a week decided the world needed another cookbook for cruisers. The first few were able to attract a publisher, but most were self-published. As the market became glutted with 'em, the demand for new ones died out. So I doubt there'd be much demand for another one, but there's a good chance you might be able to convince the sbo.com powers-that-be to create a "Recipes" or an "SBO.com cookbook" forum under the "forums for all owners" menu. Anyone who sees a dish they'd like to make aboard OR at home could copy/paste the recipe into a Word doc. to save in their own recipe files.

 

[Will Gilmore]

I know, Peggie, the world definitely doesn't need another cook book. I don't know about now, but cook books And diet books use to be the two biggest selling book categories.

SBO doesn't really need a cooking forum, either. I just think people have fun sharing their joys and reading about others. You have mentioned your own passion for grilling, even in Winter. Certainly you have a sailboat-based cooking venture you would be interested in sharing? I'd be interested in reading about it. I'll bet others would be too.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[Jackdaw]

Always best to eat like a local when traveling. Crossing the Aegean and having a spot of lunch. Greek salad made of tomatoes, onions, soft boiled eggs, and tuna with olive oil. Served with fresh bread with feta and olive paste. And some cheap Greek wine.

 

[jwing]

My favorite sailing recipe:
1) Catch tuna while sailing;
2) Filet the tuna, then cut into mouth-sized pieces;
3) Serve with cold beer.

4) Place leftover tuna in a stainless steel bowl;
5) Mix with soy sauce and ginger;
6) Place bowl in icebox until a crew member is hungry again;
7) Serve with lime wedge and cold beer. The lime is to squeeze onto the fish, not into the beer.
8) When all leftovers have been eaten, go to step 1.

 

[Will Gilmore]

Always best to eat like a local when traveling.

I agree completely. As a Florida boy, one of my favorite experiences was putting together a chowder from gathered and locally bought ingredients while beached on an island in Maine. One of the best chowder I've ever had. If it wasn't so salty it would easily have been the very best.

I'll post about it when I have more time.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

Threads in "ask all sailors" are soon buried under new threads. In a month, you'd really have to dig deep to find this thread--if you even knew it had been here. A forum dedicated to recipes would keep all of 'em available.

As for my own grilling style...I rarely coat or crust any meat or fish. Instead I season it. And I always grill everything, even steaks, with the LID DOWN. A couple of days ago I grilled a mahi mahi filet rubbed with a little olive oil, seasoned with Old Bay and lime juice on foil over medium heat... 3 minutes on the first side, two minutes on the other side. A salmon fillet gets an olive oil rub, then some basil, dill and a little white wine. If there's skin on it, I check after 3 minutes to see if a spatula will slide easily between the skin and flesh...if it does, it's done...if not, another minute, then check again.

I also grill most vegetables, even asparagus. Green beans with a little olive oil, red bell pepper strips, garlic and fresh ginger is one of my favorites. Another is zucchini and yellow squash with green pepper, red onion, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes. A few minutes in ziplock bags (the onions, tomatoes and mushrooms in a separate one 'cuz they don't go onto the grill till the squash and green pepper are at least half done) with some Italian--or any vinegarette--salad dressing then onto the grill in a grill pan over high heat...again with the lid down. Veggies take a bit more tending than meat 'cuz they have to be tossed a few times, but it's ok if they get a little bit charred around the edges.

I learned years ago that you can cook anything on the boat that you can at home if you do all the advance prep at home and bring it to the boat ready to cook, and bring ONLY what you'll eat. I once brought a 5 course rack of lamb dinner for four including appetizers and dessert from Atlanta to the Chesapeake Bay in a box that fit under the seat on the plane (details on request <g>). Marinate anything a day or two ahead...just be careful to drain any excess oil before putting on the grill or you'll start a grease fire.

That's how I do it! You may like things done differently.

 

[Will Gilmore]

That's how I do it! You may like things done differently.

No, that sound so good. Mostly, that's the gist of how I do it. I've done a rack of lamb before, but usually, I butterfly a leg and marinade it over night. I'll take lamb any way I can get it.
I do salmon as much as anything and it just gets an olive oil and course ground black pepper treatment. I sear the flesh very hot (less than a minute) , turn it skin side down and cook it until it just losses the softness of raw. When the center is barely in the opaque zone. But the skin is crispy.

Chicken and pork usually get a treatment of an old family BBQ sauce or Sweet Baby Ray's original.

Where's the 'YUM!' Emogi?

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[pateco]

Since I just came across this old picture. I would like to start with my father's "famous" dockside marina fish fry.

As a party boat captain on the Florida coast, my father always had fresh grouper available. and his beer batter fried fish was some of the best I can remember. This picture was taken of my father frying grouper for friends and neighbors at Clearwater Marina, circa 1975.
View attachment 146738That's Sinbad in the foreground, a neighbor's cat, come to see what's for dinner.

Recipe:
My father used one pkg of Drakes Cornmeal batter mix

(about 1 cup) mixed with one cheap lite beer (Bud, Bush, PBR, Miller, ...). Use a light vegetable oil, always fresh (Canola is good). Heat the oil until a drop of water skips across the top (keep it hot while cooking). Then cook to a light golden brown (about 3 min). Remove and let dry on a few layers of paper towels.
Grouper is the best fish for this dish, channel catfish is also great. The secret, really, is not over-cooking the fish. Saltwater fish is perfectly fine even raw. Freshwater fish needs to be cooked. Don't eat raw freshwater fish. Over cooking, however, leads to dry fish that reminds me of fish sticks from public school lunches.

If you want to make your own batter mix, Drakes and other brands is equal parts cornmeal and wheat flour.
1/2 cup wheat flour
1/2 cup coarnmeal
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
a little thyme, rosemary, some spice you like.

-Will (Dragonfly)

We love grouper and yellowtail snapper for our deep fried fish. However we do our own batter that is basically a tempura batter.

Rice flour, Club Soda, Salt and pepper to taste.
Mix until the consistency of heavy cream. Dip your fish fillets and deep fry till golden brown.

This could be done with beer instead of club soda, but with light fish like snapper, the club soda doesn't over power the fish flavor. Cornmeal and beer bring their own flavors to the party. They go better with catfish.

 

[Jackdaw]

Is it just me, or do the terms 'sailing' and 'deep fat frying' NOT belong together? I can think of fewer things more dangerous to try on the boat.

 

[pateco]

Is it just me, or do the terms 'sailing' and 'deep fat frying' NOT belong together? I can think of fewer things more dangerous to try on the boat.

Do it on the dock or the beach at the end of the day. No deep frying on a gimballed stove.

 

[Justin_NSA]

 

[Will Gilmore]

Is it just me, or do the terms 'sailing' and 'deep fat frying' NOT belong together? I can think of fewer things more dangerous to try on the boat.

An excellent point. Please refer to the picture of my father frying fish for the marina residents.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[TomY]

That's a great photo, Will. Your Dad on the dock, was quite a cook and adventurer.

I bake French Baguettes. The simple process is meditative. Flour, yeast, water and salt(a little olive oil). Over 20 or so years, I've turned out hundreds. Mostly a winter activity, they're never the same. You learn something every time.

Naturally, we came up with a Boat Baguette version years ago. My daughter helped me do an article for a local magazine when she was about 12. We can bake 2 footers at home but on a boat, things are scaled down. Here she is forming baguettes.

And pulling them out of the oven. There were usually a few kids onboard. They disappear almost instantly.

My whole family cooks (better than I, most of the time). Here's Mary Jane this season. She visits from NYC these days. I remember this day, her brother and friends joined us on a raft up. We had a feast on the water!

 

[Will Gilmore]

When is the next batch coming out of the oven, Tom? I'll be right over. I love the Down East coast.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[Kermit]

We keep our cooking simple. Hamburgers, hotdogs, steaks and sausages work well on our Magma grill. I’ve done shrimp and scallops, too. And pancakes on the stove on the cabin. @Peggie Hall HeadMistress I *always* grill my asparagus. Really don’t cook it any other way. And beer. Beer is good in the cockpit or in the cabin. It’s even good while on the dock or in the clubhouse.

 

[Tally Ho]

Naturally, we came up with a Boat Baguette version years ago. My daughter helped me do an article for a local magazine when she was about 12. We can bake 2 footers at home but on a boat, things are scaled down. Here she is forming baguettes.

@TomY , you can’t post bread pix like that without sharing the recipe!

Greg

 

[Will Gilmore]

One of the most memorable meals I've had aboard started with my 6th grade principle, Mr. George B Tosh.
He invited my brother and me out to join a friend of his and him on a scalloping trip to the flats in Tarpon Springs.

It was the first time I ever saw a shark while swimming. Just the tail of a black tip disappearing into the cloud of mud kicked up by the others pushing the jon boat back to shore.

Mr. Tosh's friend was Greek and he gave my brother and me our first taste of sea urchin row. Wasn't a fan but it was mostly just salty.
Anyhow, afterwards, my mother made an awesome dinner of our bay scallop catch. She really wanted it to be great, since her children of 10 and 12 had caught them. Mom bent to the task of throwing all her cooking skills into the dish. It was a horrible experience because she ended up spilling the entire half cooked catch onto the galley sole. There were tears and lots of expletives. The most common one was "Ah S#IT!" (That phrase was so common that my father said he was going to engrave it on a plaque and hang it at the head of the cabin's main salon, it would be our family motto). This meal meant a lot to her.
Well, my mother being the determined woman that she is, scooped it all back up, rinsed the grit off and finished cooking.
It truly was delicious.
What you will need to make this dish:
1 aluminium jon boat.
2 - 3 galvinized wash tubs.
2 adults and 2 kids or any combination there of.
1 set of mask, fins and snorkel each.
1 natural Nature Coast grass flat.
Let soak for 6 - 7 hours until tubs are full.
Cooking instructions:
(Entree for 5)
About 4 lbs of shucked blue eyed bay scallops.
2 cloves of fresh garlic peeled and pressed in a garlic press.
3-4 onion chives, chopped.
1/4 stick of butter (margarine will do as a substitute, but I wouldn't mess with perfection).
Pre-heat a large skillet to medium heat, throw in butter and garlic followed by chives, stir for a minutes or so to just begin browning the garlic and finish melting the butter. Turn heat up a smidge and add the scallops. Toss occasionally to cook evenly. Remove from heat after the scallops have just lost their translucences and a few of the corners show just a slight browning.
This is an excellent dish served with grits and/or a spinach salad with chopped walnuts or pecans.

Again, where is the 'YUM' emogi?

- Will (Dragonfly)