How Do You Cook Onboard?

[Amanda]

We have a princess LPG 3 burner stove/oven, a microwave, and a barbeque. Our boat also has a small convection oven, but I have not yet used it.
When we brought our boat up from FL to RI, we sailed straight through (stopping for bad weather and refueling), so almost all cooking was done underway. I planned all the meals to minimize using the stovetop while moving (even tho we have a catamaran, I didn't want hot stuff splashing around too much). So we had a bunch of oven dinners which turned out really well -- lasagna, frozen burritos, chicken dumpling casserole. Plus there are these fantastic frozen stuffed chicken breasts (made by Barber and sold at Sam's Club in several varieties -- cordon bleu, kiev, apple/brie). These make really good meals served with a stuffed potato and/or salad. When in port I do more cooking from "scratch" but when underway, it's very simple to just shuffle things from freezer to oven to table. Sure worked well for us.

[GordMay]

Wow - if this is your ‘heavy-weather passage’ fare, I’d love to hear about your ‘plugged-in dockside’ menu. ”Sure worked well for us”, must be the understatement of the week.
Impressed,
Gord

[SailWiz]

I just completed a 7.5-day cruise from Miami to St. Petersburg, FL. I purchased a modest cooker prior to the trip and had never used one before. It is the best thing since sliced bread. I can"t say enough good things about it. The best reference I have found for recipies is "The Cruising Chef." it is an awesome book for cooking while cruising with some very tasty pressure cooker recipies.

[GordMay]

What is a "modest cooker"?

[SailWiz]

Gord, sorry for taking so long to get back to you. WiFi trouble. I bought my cooker from sears for about $50.00. There are of course high-end model for around $200.00. Simple is better. Mine has no bells and whistles but it does sport a locking button that secures the lid when pressure builds. and releases when the food has cooled.

[bearhill]

If you want more pressure cooker recipes go to google and enter pressure cookers-recipe.This technique also works if you have some ingredients you want to use up.Example.Balsamic vinegar,carrots,chicken,recipe.
Hope this helps. I use this technique a great deal.

[CaptainK]

Gee how do I cook my meals?

Well I fire up the engine. And get it real hot. Then, I sit my frying pan on top. And then add oil. And then start cooking away!!

[Alan Wheeler]

I can handle that K, as long as you don't deep fry the chips in the engine oil.

It works! We used to pick up buritos at a local liquer store at lunch time when I hauled dirt, and put them on the manifold. We would make a run and they would be ready to eat. I wonder if this would work with baked potatos when motor sailing?

[CaptainK]

Hell no Wheels!!

That would be an insult to my culunary skills!!

The motor oil is for my outboards!!

The baked potatoe??? Hmmmmmmmm.

Well yes. It just might work?

You'd have to put a pot of water over it. And keep the engine compartment closed off. So the heat form the engine. Plus the heat from the engine compartment can work together?

It just might work?

[Weyalan]

There is a recipe book for cooking using your vehicle engine - it is really aimed at truck drivers, but I am sure that a similar techniqhe could work on a reasonably sized marine engine. The book (which I do not own, but have briefly flicked through) leans towards long slow cooking styles, and seemed particularly good for roasting style recipes.

[jstevens]

I think several of the responses identify that the question is much too simplex with too few possible answers. Cooking on board can mean while at anchor, at the marina or while underway making passage.
My guess is your question is directed to the first two situations and not the later, which doesn't have that many options.
In which case, my answer is all but the first and last option. Fix the poll to allow multiple selections and I'll respond.

John

[Craig Harlamoff]

While staying in San Francisco's downtown, it was easy to splurge and drop $70 on a dinner for two. Being of modest means, we felt guilty and usually cooked the next few meals on board. Thinking back, we cooked most of our breakfasts on board. Usually, we were out in the various fairs, Jazz festivals and wine tastings during the day. (Snacking here and there) Upon returning to the boat late in the afternoon, sunburned, hung over and full of festival spicy fish tacos, we skipped dinner all together.

On the occassion that we were on the hook, or, in the case of Angel Island, tie to several mooring balls with thick hausers, we took the oportunity to BBQ steaks, which we added to rice and a salad. We spent the evening sipping a good Merlot, watching the orange ball slip beneith the horizon.

irony... I was looking around the forum and noticed all the action on this subject so checked it out... I have some time as I am heating up left over Dominoes pizza under my broiler... i use it like a mini oven....gas taylors two burner with griddle and oven. gotta go though... i think it's done.

Cheers

bob

[Ed Steele]

Suggestion for cleaning fish while underway. We bought a gray plastic “bussing-bin”. You know – what the guys at the restaurants pick up your dirty dishes in It is about 24” x 14” x 4”. Dirt cheap from Sam’s / Wally-World. If the fish will fit in it, it will keep the decks clean. If the fish is too big, then we just use the side deck and wash the blood down with buckets of seawater. It is a really good idea to run a line through the fish’s gills or tightly around the tail, if you try cleaning it in a rolly sea. You may go overboard but you certainly don’t want to lose that fish!We have a gimbaled two-burner stove with oven, plus a microwave oven. The main oven rarely gets used in the tropics ‘cos it makes the boat too hot. The microwave is not gimbaled and you really have to have the timing right on, to open the door in a heavy sea. We also have a pressure cooker – great for making bread under passage! An alternative to pressure cooker “loaf” bread would be tortillas or pita bread cooked in a fry pan on the gimbaled stove. We couldn’t leave the dock without our “Whirley-Pop” popcorn maker www.popcornpopper.com . We also have a Force 10 barbeque but we haven’t used it much since the darn thing blows out with any kind of wind.We usually begin a passage with pre-cooked food warmed up in the microwave but after a couple of days, the cooking bug hits my wife and she is likely to cook-up just about anything. Of course if we catch a nice fish, it is filleted and cooked up within minutes, regardless of what time of day it is!