Cooking in (very) small spaces.

[cbayer]

I live on a sailboat and have gotten pretty good at cooking in a small space. I have a decent sized frig, virtually no freezer, a small propane oven and 2 burner stove and a small outdoor BBQ.

I can't use much electricity, so crock pots and microwaves are out.

This is not my kitchen, but the kitchen of an identical boat. I don't have the big microwave or glass hangers (and wouldn't want them), but that bottle of tequila looks pretty good!

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One of the advantages is that my kitchen (galley) is right in the middle of everything, so It is fun to cook for guests. On the other hand having 2 people over is great, 4 a stretch and any more than that impossible.

I would be interested in other's experiences with cooking in small spaces. What are your favorite recipes that would be compatible with this arrangement? What kinds of foods do you like that last for longer periods of time? Are there multi-use utensils or cookware that you particularly like?


:hi:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

1. In college, back in the sixties -

which means "pre-microwave" - we had a kitchen that was little more than a sink, a full-sized refrigerator, no oven, and a two-burner stove that was sort of a glorified hotplate.

Avant-garde as we were, being hippies in New England, and all that, we did most of our cooking in a wok. That was revolutionary back then, but, if we could get any fresh vegetables, we just stir-fried them, hit them with soy sauce, and ate lots and lots of rice. There was always rice in a pot, sometimes in the refrigerator, and it was always getting heated up.

That was before RAMEN, even.

Cripes, I'm old.

But we also were lucky enough to be lobsters right off the boats at cost, and we always had the Dean's wife, who'd lend us her full-size kitchen where we'd steam the lobsters and pig out.

Dessert was never part of any meal, as I recall, since that would have taken up more space and attention than we had. If someone had shoplifted a pie at the local IGA, we considered ourselves lucky. (Poor students, and all that.)

But, it's funny - I remember the wok, a big one, fixing spaghetti sauce in it while the rice pot was used for cooking the macaroni.

Mostly, though, it was about us being together and not having to endure the swill at the Dining Commons. Or walk a mile through sub-zero weather to get there.............................

[cbayer]

5. It might be fun to re-enact that.

Rent a small and very simple place on the coast and make do.

It's liberating, IMO, to need nothing and use everything you've got.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

9. We still get together every September

on the coast, commemorating when and where we met. But, we stay in a hotel, and we eat our lobsters in restaurants.

Occasionally, though, about every five years, we'll all gather at the great big house (it has a ballroom!) where one of our group lives in Vermont - Saxtons River - and we "rough it," doing our own cooking and eating at a big communal table. Do all the cleaning up, too. It's very nice, very wonderful.

But, every time, there are fewer and fewer of us, which bites................................

[NashVegas]

2. Looks Really Intriguing

It makes me want to find a houseboat to rent :)

[cbayer]

6. Isn't there a big lake somewhere near you?

We used to take family vacations on houseboats in remote areas. That and camping is what has led me to really love the idea of making do with limited space and limited facilities,

If you had a week on a boat, what would you bring? One shopping trip for all your supplies and in charge of cooking for a week.

:hi:

[NashVegas]

11. Depends

I grew up by Lake George in NY so these lakes (Percy Priest and Old Hickory) look small to me, but yes, there are some marinas and houseboats.

One week? For say, four people? How badly do I want to impress them with my l33t skillz?

[cbayer]

15. I've done some house-boating in Tennessee. There are several rivers that have

been damned and large lakes created. As I recall, there was very little development on the shores of these lakes and one could tie up the houseboat in relative seclusion.

I generally provision for three weeks/2 people, with some flexibility for the inevitable overnight guests, but I think 1 week/4 people is a great place to start.

What are 133t skillz?

:hi:

[NashVegas]

16. Hacker Talk

"elite skills"

Anyway ... I can't imagine trying to provision for a week for 4 and no freezer. Seems like that's just begging for food poisoning.

My guess is you might do well with lots of ingredients for Mediterranean-style cooking, stuff that doesn't have to be refrigerated in the first place - tomatoes, onions, oils, beans, rice, pastas. If you can fish and eat that, even more helpful.

One example - peppers stuffed with risoto and roasted in the oven or on the grill would rock.

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

3. I just googled (edited)

'cookbooks for cooking on a boat' & got some fun hits. There's one boatbooks.co that looks like it 'might' have some fun cookbooks. (I was actually looking for a book I saw years ago where the author hired herself out as a caterer on sailboats. I glanced through it & it had some great recipes, but I didn't buy it.)

ETA that I know you didn't ask for cookbooks, I'm just fascinated by them & can't help searching.

[cbayer]

7. I have quite a few boat cookbooks, but I have not a single one that I like.

They range from one pot meals to Martha Stewart *perfect housewife* types. But not much in between.

I am thinking of writing one, so would love to hear what you would do if you had to get everything you needed for a week (or two) and then fix meals.

:


:

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

12. Here's two that might work. Do you have either of these?

The Great Cruising Cookbook: An International Galley Guide by John C. Payne

Cruising Chef Cookbook by Michael Greenwald

I found both of them on amazon & both got good reviews.

And, I would probably just jump overboard since advanced planning isn't my thing.

[cbayer]

13. I will check them out. I thought I had seen them all, but both of these are new to me.

thanks!


:hi:

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

17. I found a forum about sailing - I think it was sailnet.com -

and a few members said that the one by greenwald was their favorite cookbook. He writes about provisioning for 2 weeks & what kind of storage works best. He favors ziplock over tupperware which makes a lot of sense. Tupperware are pre-set sizes, plus you can't smoosh them down to fit.

[cbayer]

18. I just looked at that one on Amazon and think I will buy it.

I also go for the ziplocks. My refrigerator compartments are very deep and part of what I struggle with is organizing things in a way so that foods that need to be eaten first stay on top.

Of course, when DH gets hungry, he just starts digging and inevitably ruins my pristine organization!

:grr:

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

19. What I love about Amazon - & what gets me into trouble -

is the scroll at the bottom that says "Customers who bought this item also bought" & then I'm off to check out every.other.link. :bangshead:

[pengillian101]

4. What a great lifestyle!

RV's have small kitchens also.

Maybe this site will have helpful ideas. www.rvcookingshow.com

Here's a video about cooking seafood chowder in a small space that seemed appropriate for you, living on a boat. :hi:

http://www.rvcookingshow.com/rv-videos/by-recipe/fish-chowder-genuine-new-england-style-and-a-trip-down-the-maine-coast-rv-cooking-show

[cbayer]

8. Thanks for the links.

RV living has a lot in common with boat living. The biggest difference is in the provisioning. RV's have access to groceries. Boats of often do not.

The seafood chowder is great, as fish if the one thing we can get on short notice!

:hi:

[Tesha]

10. Maine Windjammers

did you ever see this?

http://www.sailmainecoast.com/the_experience/cookbook.htm

[cbayer]

14. That looks pretty cool, but more of a cooking for a crowd using Maine ingredients

kind of book.

I want a book that focuses on menu planning and provisioning for up to three weeks.

:hi:

[Tesha]

20. ahh - then this?

http://www.galleyguru.com/

and this http://www.amazon.com/Galley-Guru-Effortless-Gourmet-Cooking/dp/093983779X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218908629&sr=8-1

has other good books listed below

[cbayer]

21. Now that is very, very cool and I will spend some time on that site.

Thank you so much.

:hi: