Cooking out at sea is part of the adventure, it's those cramped cooking experiences and eating out on the deck with the wind in your hair that become memories which last a lifetime. Whilst cooking on-board can be tricky depending on the size of your catering facilities on your boat, it's definitely not impossible! Regardless to how long you're out at sea, we still want to be able to enjoy our home comforts - the alien cooking facilities might also prompt you to make some more adventurous dishes that you otherwise wouldn't try, or eat at home. After all, cooking is cooking, but there are definitely some handy tips and tricks which will help make that cooking experience on a boat that bit easier for all involved!
Planning Ahead & Making Lists
Once you leave the marina, it may be days or even weeks until you see civilisation again, so list making is a MUST! Whatever you have on-board is all that you'll have for meals or snacks so thorough planning and stocking up the galley with everything you need beforehand is advisable. Planning your meals beforehand will also make it much easier so you know exactly what ingredients you'll need to buy. Lists are a godsend, and a coping strategy that will really help deal with the challenge of being away from the convenience of local supermarkets and cooking on-board.
Make The Most Of Your Space
Whilst limited space in your galley can be a bit tricky there are ways and means around it. Limited space does mean that there is less room to store food, pans etc, so again think ahead and only take on things for storage that are essential. Boxes and containers can be left behind, however some things do actually have a purpose of keeping items safe or dry so do bear this in mind too. Find out about the cooking facilities before boarding too, such as whether the stove has two burners or less. If it doesn't come with an oven, you could also look at getting a stove top open to take on-board which will still let you cook on the burner. Only plan meals where you know that the facilities will accommodate it, no one wants to take a whole chicken on-board to cook if there's no oven!
Use Prepared Food & Package Mix
Cooking from scratch can seem intimidating on a boat, especially if there is little light and not much room. Using prepared food and package mix will not only save you a lot of time, it's easy to store before use - they don't usually require refrigeration and it means more time can be spent relaxing and enjoying your getaway! There is so much choice for prepared food packs these days that you're sure to find something that takes your fancy.
Cook From Scratch
Whilst prepared food can be so much easier, there's nothing quite like cooking something from scratch that will achieve the same great taste as home cooking. The Boaties Frying pan has been specifically designed for cooking on a boat, and this pan means that you can cook everything in it in one place and on top of the stove - how easy is that?! But if you're still lacking inspiration and stuck for ideas on what to cook, they have a dedicated Boaties frying pan cookbook which is packed full of healthy and delicious recipes which can all be made in the one pan - a space saving design that is simple, easy and delicious!
Limited Water
Whether you have a watermaker of not, they'll become times that you have to limit your usage of water. Water has to be used for drinking, cooking, washing produce, hands, dishes and showers! It's important to remember not to waste water on-board as you won't be able to magic it out of thin air when you're miles from land. Certain ways that you can limit and both conserve your water supply include the following easy ways; don't run the tap longer than is needed - turn it off when brushing teeth, don't cook your food in more water than is needed, re-use water where you can and limit shower time to only a few minutes!
Although not limited to, these are some of the most basic and easiest tips and tricks to help make cooking on-board that bit easier. Your meals never have to stint on taste or quality, as long as you plan thoroughly beforehand everything will be plain sailing from here on in! To keep up to date with all future blog posts, float on over to the Mylor Chandlery Facebook, Google + and Twitter!