Provisioning Questions

[CJMac02]

I'm looking at buying a sailboat in the next couple of years and right now I'm in the 'feasibility analysis' stage. This forum seems quite informative and so I'm asking all I can! So tell me, what foods are always on your vessel? Do you fish? What do you bring on extended trips? How often do you cook/prepare meals?

Thank you for any replies!

[model 10]

Beer, wine, coffee, eggs, cheese, limes, potatoes, fruit....

[aclmck]

This depends a bit on the setup of your boat, but we take with us what we will normally eat on land, obviously fresh is always what we want,our refrigeration assists with some of this while our freezer takes care of the freezable products.

Canned food alternatives exist where fresh is not possible (provided you are not too fussy).We cook daily when possible we catch fish and other seafood, this is about 30% of the protein we eat.

For days on passage we have preprepared things like pasta , soups that can be reheated easily or simple wraps etc

we have some (lots ) snacks also to help when you get picky dips,crisps candy and chocolate, biscuits and cakes.

Just provision with what you will eat and sit down and work out what an order for say 1 week is and then multiply it out for the weeks, we always try something new each time we shop, sometimes up to six new items and if we like them they go onto future lists, make it simple by deciding on a menu for each day of the week though, the rest gets easy, while on a trip start your next shopping trip by making up new menu's and try them.

Some remote places have limited supplies of food other than a few fruits and veggies, you will surprise yourself how you can make tasty meals with some of these by adding some pantry items.

Make sure you keep plenty of non perishable items in the pantry rice,pasta,spices, salts,peppers,flours and things you can use to "spice up" some otherwise bland dishes we also stock up on cheeses that don't require refrigeration. Canned food needs to be rotated often so get enough that can be consumed at least each 6 months (some tins tend to get rusty easily)

UHT milk and cream are good and if you have not tried them start now and acquire the taste, once you have they are very palatable, even preferred.

Plenty of excel spreadsheets exist on this forum for stocking your boat, but keep it simple at first and all will work out, we started out on pasta,steak/chicken and salad, cold meats and salad, but now bake cakes and breads along with a lot of other stuff you take for granted when land based. we actually started on land and at first had to do without if we forgot something, it soon makes you compile a list (with alternatives if that item is not available) that you take shopping

When the oven is used we fill it with breads biscuits pastry products so we keep our energy costs down and always have fresh baked products a couple times a week .

[ozskipper]

Most people, aside from the purist minimalist, would agree that you dont rely on fishing to keep your belly full. Rather, you use it to supplement the other foods on board.

[NornaBiron]

Originally Posted by CJMac02

I'm looking at buying a sailboat in the next couple of years and right now I'm in the 'feasibility analysis' stage. This forum seems quite informative and so I'm asking all I can! So tell me, what foods are always on your vessel? Do you fish? What do you bring on extended trips? How often do you cook/prepare meals?

Thank you for any replies!

We live aboard full time in the Med (currently) and only have a small fridge with an even smaller ice compartment. Norna is always well stocked with beans, lentils, tinned tomatoes, spices, dried herbs, onions, garlic, tinned tuna, mountains of bread flour, yeast, uht milk and other items with a good shelf life. We try to reserve the fridge for dairy and drinks and the odd bit of meat.

We always tow a lure or two and are occassionally blessed with an albacore tuna that we eat fresh for a couple of days and then cook in olive oil and keep in the fridge for up to two weeks. My husband spear fishes when able/allowed and usually comes back with bass or bream as a treat.

When we are near a town we stock up with fresh fruit and veg, we're very particular about choosing good quality produce and have become experts at storing it to prolong its life.

The vast majority of our meals are cooked on board using a pressure cooker and wonderbag, having a decent hob and oven helps immensely. During the winter months I source cheap vegetables and fruit and make chutneys and preserves to last the coming year.

We have a very varied diet that is mainly based on beans and pulses, very different to our shore based diet in the UK before we left. We enjoy this way of eating and feel healthier as a result.