PROVISIONS

Three things are essential for life both ashore and afloat: Shelter, Food, and Sleep. It's been my experience that the most underappreciated of this trifecta of life is food. Food underway needs to be both tasty and filling and maybe also not so bad to have coming out your nose. Kimchi for example in your nasal passage while you already are suffering from “Mal De Mar” would not be good. Unfortunately, my superstitious leanings won’t allow me to have bananas aboard as they are probably one of the better foods to have coming out your nose. Ask me how I know. What is most important is the food needs to be filling. We all know the joy of good food on a boat in a quiet anchorage with great company is one of the best things about being on the water. It seems like food tastes better on a boat. Food on a passage is completely different though; it has to be easy to cook and filling and there has to be enough to feed a number of people. Unfortunately cooking on a boat in a seaway is hard. Imagine chopping an onion at a 15-degree heel. Every time you slice the onion the slice rolls away. Now imagine your appetite leaving you as you try this feat wedged into the galley, a sharp knife in your hand, and your watery eye no longer on the horizon. The task is simple: cook dinner for as many as 6 people as quickly as possible without losing your lunch.

You may find that it is wise to slice that onion before you cast off or while you are in flat water. Otherwise, a “mandolin” is a good idea. That way a sailor in the cockpit with his eye on the horizon is able to slice whatever into a bowl or bucket. A slice-proof glove also may be a good idea… Cleaning a fresh-caught fish on a rolling boat can be dangerous.

On our classes and deliveries offshore we have my students fill out an application beforehand answering questions from mental health to drug and alcohol abuse history. On this list, the applicants rate their cooking from one to ten. This paired with their answers regarding their susceptibility to motion sickness can give us an idea of who is going to be a real asset in the galley. I can't stress the value too much of having someone aboard that can cook well and doesn’t get seasick. If you aren’t a great sailor you will need to be a useful cook on the boat. If you aren’t a cook either, do some homework and learn some basics.

Food

Buying provisions and planning the meals is a chore in itself. It takes two people pretty much a whole day to do this for a two-week crossing and that is in addition to the meal planning. In the past, we’ve had the crew all share the cooking duties and come up with a dinner or two each and share the ingredients and quantities. This takes the strain off but it is still a chore. Once bought and brought to the boat the vittles need to be stowed below and not all under the bunk where someone is trying to get sleep when it comes time to cook. Snacks have to be readily accessible and often this snack pooka needs to be replenished every few days.

Here is a list of some foods that will feed and maintain a happy and even perhaps slightly nauseated crew.

Cup O Noodles: The land-based snob will scoff at this low-brow culinary fare but when it’s blowing 35 knots and the sidedeck are covered in what’s left of the crew's lunch and breakfast, you will be happy as a clam to have a warm cup O in your mitts. You don’t need to buy the Nissin brand. There are lots of better instant noodles in serving bowls. You can greatly improve it with some simple additions. I like to soft boil an egg. Then I use scissors to cut green onion into the top and sometimes I’ll add a pinch of curry powder. The challenge here is not spilling boiling water on your front and feet so is best done in a rough sea with your seaboots and bibs on. Bikinis and speedos are risky attire in the galley. Cooking these for more than one person you may find that you have to use the gimbaled stovetop to keep things from spilling. Otherwise, it’s one at a time.

Another heavy sea quick meal that doesn't require dishes is a meal I learned about racing aboard a boat in the South Puget Sound in the winter called the Frito Bowl. The only ingredients are small bags of Fritos and canned chili. The chili is scooped directly into the small portion of corn chips and passed out to the “rail meat” (crew sitting on the rail on a race boat with a spoon). It seems unappetizing now but chili is a godsend for fueling up cold, wet, hungry crew quickly. Remember first and foremost food is fuel. You can add cheese, onion, or sour cream if you want to get fancy.

Spaghetti is a common meal underway and I've found that it is often better days after it’s been cooked so there is all the more reason to prepare this before leaving or while in flat water.

Breakfast can be porridge but I love an egg scramble and have found that it's best put together from pre-sliced veggies and bacon.

When you are not worried about the possibility of your dinner coming out the noses of your shipmates, curry is wonderful. Golden Sun Curry on rice with some pickled veggies is awesome and simple.

Tikka Masala chicken is easy and great on rice with some sour cream.

A large batch of rice can be prepared as well and works well for breakfasts with eggs and sausage and also works for stirfry.

Pressure cookers are a great tool aboard because not only do they cook fast they save propane. They are big pots and are great “set it and forget it” meals. I've managed some great Paella-inspired rice meals in mine. BTW I rate my skill in the galley at a meager 6 and as resilient as I can be with motion sickness I’m about an 8 on that scale.

Keep it simple and don’t get behind on feeding your crew. 

Some good easy offshore food ideas

Ramen with their own bowls with green onion and soft-boiled egg

Hard-boiled eggs

Corned beef and hash

Canned beef

Canned chicken

Minute rice (you lazy bastard)

Instant mash potatoes 

Chicken voila (look it up!)

Chili 

Cheese and crackers

Yellow curry and chicken

Bean and cheese burritos

Nongshim Bowl Noodle Soup, Kimchi flavor!

Stouffer's lasagna (the tropics can be too hot to want the oven on for this long in a boat going to weather with the hatches battened.

Spaghetti precooked with parmesan 

Tortellini

Meat sauce

Jerky 

Peanut M&Ms

Chocolate-covered coffee beans

Peanut butter pretzels

Powdered coffee mix (Medaglia D'Oro Espresso Style Instant Coffee or Starbucks Via or Cafe Au Lait instant)

Precooked bacon

Presliced onions and peppers for egg scramble 

Croissant 

Hummus with vegetables or whole-grain pita

Jam

Butter (some not in the fridge)

Yogurt 

Granola 

Instant oatmeal 

Swiss miss

Pirate’s booty

Soy sauce 

Sweet chili sauce 

Electrolyte Powder

Sandwich makings

Pedialyte

Pre-made smoothies

Precooked sausages

Almond/soy milk (no refrigeration!)

TVP® (Textured Vegetable Protein)

Here are some ideas for boat cooking