Long distance/ time victualing

[mandlmaunder]

When we do any long passages or are going to spend weeks on water away from shopping we have a simple plan to ensure enough food and treats for the duration.

Lee (SWMBO) asks what meals I would like over the period in question and fills in any blanks with her favorites as well then makes a card for each meal with all the ingredients on it.

When all the meals for all the days are done we have our shopping list for everything that will be needed.

when on our journey she will pull out a card for which ever meal, breakfast, lunch, dinner and then onto the alchemy of cooking up a great meal on a moving boat.

We add 20% safety factor, so for a 10 day voyage we stock for 12 0r13 days.

Been asked this question recently so thought we'd share our idea, please share yours.

Mark n Lee

 

[dmmbruce]

I have often wondered how people do it.

The only explanations that make any sense have been in the back of AtoZ of cruising type books and they always seem to go for pre-prepared meals shrink wrapped and put in the freezer.

Your way sounds much nicer, proper cooking so good to eat (?).

(My efforts only have to cover a few days for one person so proper planning is not necessary.)

Mike

 

[AndrewB]

Our approach is a little different.

With no freezer, we rely on canned food for any passage of more than 5 days. Each time we reach a country with good supermarkets we search to see what canned meat/fish is available. In Europe the choice is excellent but elsewhere in the world it takes patience to find more than Corned Beef, Spam and Tuna.

One large can for each dinner, one small can (eg ham, sardines) for lunch. The rest of each day's main meal is built round that: two canned or dried vegetables, canned fruit. Plus plenty of flour for bread, rolls and cake, and a daily treat. A few cans of "hearty soup" for bad weather days when just heating something up is about the limit. Then the cans are all packed in sealed bags each containing 5 days worth of meals.

There's drink to consider as well, we both like a daily G&T. But canned drinks take a lot more space, so on long trips it's squash and evaporated milk (we prefer that to powdered or long-life milk, but take your pick).

Our safety margin is about 20%, but we carry a further permanent emergency supply of 7 days food.

However as we cannot count on being able to restock in small islands, we may need to carry enough for all passages to the next major country. As a result we carried five months supply for crossing the Pacific, though it turned out we could have restocked in Tahiti.

Although many countries confiscate fresh and frozen foods on arrival, cans are generally OK, so we do not worry about carrying too much.

 

[pyrojames]

We had a fridge with very small freezer section which allowed us some fresh veg. We also carried un-refrigerated veg, such as carrots, cabbage and especially pumpkin/squash. Good for a couple of weeks. Potatos and onions obviously. Hiscock is actually quite good at giving tips for long term non-fridge storage. We found that we could get about 4 weeks of "fresh" food with a fridge. Without it 2 weeks was around the limit. we also found that buying food that had never been in a fridge helped, particularly with eggs. For some reason, food that came from refrigerated supplys didn't last so well.

As I am now fitting out for more long term cruising, a freezer is higher on the list of desirables.

 

[stephenh]

This is not mine ! I copied it from this forum a few years ago - I do not know who wrote it and I hope they don't mind my plaigiarism

"This is a quick system where you assume one main meal a day, one quick easy lunch meal and a breakfast.
Main meals are Carbohydrate/Protein/Veg
so you list the carbo's you all like....rice/pasta/potatos etc
same for protein and veg then
multiply the number of days by number of people....and you get , say, 10 days for five people.
50 portions of each....so you buy in portions 15 rice 15 pasta 15 spuds 5 gnochi...same for carbo' and veg..
You can then mix and match knowing you've got enough and you're not stuck to a fixed menu, as long as whoever cooks uses carbo/protein/veg they can cook anything they fancy.
Lunch was soups, bread, pot noodles...breakfast we liked pancakes with fruit.
Its much easier to shop like this than having to work out a menu that you then have to stick to.
Takes 15minutes to plan a shop for a 30 day trip, then not much longer than a normal shop to buy it, just more trolleys.

Fruit juice
Bread flour
Chocolate / biscuits / dried fruit & nuts – can’t buy too much !
Tins – not dried stuff

If unknown type then try a sample first......"

It works......

 

[ianabc]

Cans are lined with...

a plastic that leaches toxins...

" Food packaging is a major source of exposure to bisphenol A and phthalates,
both endocrine-disrupting chemicals with known links to cancer,
infertility, and early puberty, according to a peer-reviewed study on 20 participants in five families.

The study's findings were released Wednesday by the Breast Cancer Fund and Silent Spring Institute and published in the journal "Environmental Health Perspectives," a monthly publication ...."


From the following:


http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2011/2011-03-31-091.html.


see also bisphenol A

 

[AndrewB]

And frozen food is just as bad ...

" Food packaging is a major source of exposure to bisphenol A and phthalates,
both endocrine-disrupting chemicals with known links to cancer,
infertility, and early puberty, according to a peer-reviewed study on 20 participants in five families.

The study's findings were released Wednesday by the Breast Cancer Fund and Silent Spring Institute and published in the journal "Environmental Health Perspectives," a monthly publication ...."

"Experts renewed warnings of the danger and damage stored frozen food could cause if it is relied on for a long period of time, the International Fund for Cancer Research said on Thursday. The report warned that the excessive consumption of these foods, especially meat, ... would increase exposure to cancers, especially colon cancer."

From the following:

http://bikyamasr.com/wordpress/?p=2420

Best stay at home, then!

 

[noelex]

Been asked this question recently so thought we'd share our idea, please share yours.

Stuff up the lockers and hope for the best.
Its always worked out well.

 

[Conachair]

Stuff up the lockers and hope for the best.
Its always worked out well.

Me too.

Sell by dates for tins of tuna and the like are more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules.....

 

[tri39]

I must say I just cover the available shelves with tins, and the bilge with bottles.
Bread making only nec after several days or dry biscuits!
Large plastic containers for bulk items like rice and pasta.
People like Bill King and Mike Richey would sail long distances on dried fruit and nuts.
Health benefits are obvious in those two, Bill I think is 100!

 

[oldvarnish]

People like Bill King and Mike Richey would sail long distances on dried fruit and nuts.
Health benefits are obvious in those two, Bill I think is 100!

Indeed he is, and Mike Richey lived to 93 although his fruit and nuts were washed down with liberal doses of red wine.

 

[lenseman]

Stuff up the lockers and hope for the best.
Its always worked out well.

Love it!