Boat Food 101

   So, I just thought I'd fill everyone in on something that Bill left out, provisioning and cooking. 

  For the past few weeks we have been creating menus, and, once all the necessary items were picked up at the store, finding a place to put all of it.  For those of you who have never tried to provision a boat, I want to try to paint an accurate picture of how this provisioning thing works.  First, one must consider what sorts of foods to buy.  This means stocking up on favorite items or things that you fear might be hard to find or too expensive elsewhere.  It also means planning what's for dinner in advance, waaay in advance; as in, "We need to buy 10 cans of tomato paste because we have planned to make pizza sauce 10 times in the next few months". 

   Then, a place must be found where all of your purchases can be stored. We'll start with the fresh items.  We have a refrigerator/freezer on board but, it is not by any means close to the size of a home fridge.  I think my refrigerator in college had more room than this one.  So, anything that can be stored elsewhere is, and the things that can't are just made to fit.  As for dry/canned goods, that's where creativity and ingenuity come in handy.  Not only can these items be stored in the small spaces in the galley but, they can also go behind settees; under cushions, floor boards, or beds; even under the air conditioning unit (yes, there is usable space there). 

  After all of the food is stored, there comes the challenge of cooking.  Cooking in a galley has challenges in and of itself.  However, when you factor in all of the preparation that must be done before cooking, the challenge is something worthy of a Food Network show.   Once we have decided what to cook for the up-coming meal, we make sure we gather EVERTHING needed for the preparation of that meal.  Our reasoning for this is two-fold: the main work surface is actually the top of the refrigerator and there are cans, cookware, etc. in multiple places.  Before we moved on board, I never thought that I would have to make sure that I got the chicken out before I started cutting onions because if I didn't, I'd run the risk of spilling the onions all over the counter to try and retrieve the chicken. 

   In all honesty, we have enjoyed the new experience and the challenge of cooking aboard.  We have found that with little adjustments here and there to old cooking routines, we can cook successfully in our tiny galley.  I enjoy making  lots of different soups and stews; something I got to do a lot of this past week, as I made several batches for something quick to heat up underway. Bill likes making juicy burgers, breads of all sorts, and  pizza cooked on our pizza stone. 

   So, if any of you are looking for a way to spice up dinner, try cooking on a boat.  It will certainly be a challenge.  It will offer a new perspective to preparing a meal.  Who knows?  It might even make you grateful for that not so small, landlubber-style kitchen of yours.



Here's our galley with the work space/refrigerator