Shatterproof Dishes?

[LostBiker]

My wife and I would like to to know what type/brand of dishes everyone carries on their boats - shatterproof dishes, I mean. We will have a microwave in the new boat, so Melamine is "off the table". We have Corelle dishes for our RV even though it isnt shatterproof and its held up well so far. Cheap plastic or paper plates just add to the trash problems we just straightened out earlier this month, so thats a no go also.


Any advice for dishes, bowls, cups is welcome. Our mixing bowls are stainless.


Thanks in advance!


John

[a64pilot]

Corelle is my favorite, it doesn’t feel like plastic and frankly I believe the whole has to be indestructible for a boat thing to be way over exaggerated. Only thing I can think of that we have broken over the last several months is a Pyrex pan that broke on its own in the oven the other day.
Nesting pots like Magma ones with detachable handles and one lid that fits several is good for saving space, we put a piece of felt between each one, cause there are small movements that over time will wear through the non stick if you don’t, so things don’t go flying around in our experience, but there is some constant movement that can cause wear if you don’t take steps, of course things have to be stowed so they can’t go flying around if you ever get into severe weather.
We also wrap liquor bottles with the felt because where we store them in a seaway, they knock and make sounds if we don’t.

[Chotu]

Definitely another vote for Corelle.

Love these plates and bowls. They can take a lot of abuse and aren't all that heavy.

[LostBiker]

Corelle it is then! Thanks!


John

[Cheechako]

Corelle is pretty good, but I found out that when it does shatter... wow, it ends up with a lot of really razor sharp pieces. So although tough, it has a down side. Additionally the ones I had were very flat, little lip.
We ended up using good porcelain, specifically Dansk Bistro brand. The style we used has a tall lip on the outside rim which contains liquid when eating aboard, which is a plus. Very sturdy stuff. In 30 years I can't remember breaking one in bowls or plates. They nest well together too.I think you can see the depth here:

[a64pilot]

The take away for me was the realization that you don’t need any special marine plates etc. take the stuff you like, if you break something it happens but you occasionally break things in a house too.
Our breakage is about the same, but then we aren’t real honest ocean crossing types either.
I’ve heard some say they eat out of dogs bowls because they are nearly spill proof and just won’t tip over.
I’m pretty sure if I told my Wife that she had to eat out of a dogs bowl that I’d be doing this alone.

So it obviously depends, if your a real heavy weather world traveller then your needs are going to be different than people like me that take the easy way.

[boom23]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Corelle is pretty good, but I found out that when it does shatter... wow, it ends up with a lot of really razor sharp pieces. So although tough, it has a down side. Additionally the ones I had were very flat, little lip.

This has been my experience also... After a Corelle accident, I tried bamboo dishes but they can mold. I'm now back to melamine dishes. They're from a fashionable Italian company (of course, I forgot the name)...

[Hardhead]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I’ve heard some say they eat out of dogs bowls because they are nearly spill proof and just won’t tip over.

That's great to tell prospective crew -- they'll know it's rough when the dog bowls come out. I'm going to buy a few.

[sailorboy1]

I found out last month where it got rough that those “special” boat plastic bowls shatter pretty good where they start launching themselves around.

[LostBiker]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Corelle is pretty good, but I found out that when it does shatter... wow, it ends up with a lot of really razor sharp pieces. So although tough, it has a down side. Additionally the ones I had were very flat, little lip.
We ended up using good porcelain, specifically Dansk Bistro brand. The style we used has a tall lip on the outside rim which contains liquid when eating aboard, which is a plus. Very sturdy stuff. In 30 years I can't remember breaking one in bowls or plates. They nest well together too.I think you can see the depth here:

As someone who has been cut multiple times by sharp things, I find myself shying away from said sharp things. There are several stores here that carry the Dansk Bistro brand - we'll have a look at the porcelain. Thanks for the picture!


Hmmm - maybe some deep stainless bowls.....................I have a hammer if they dent and need to be beaten out.





John

[LostBiker]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

The take away for me was the realization that you don’t need any special marine plates etc. take the stuff you like, if you break something it happens but you occasionally break things in a house too.
Our breakage is about the same, but then we aren’t real honest ocean crossing types either.
I’ve heard some say they eat out of dogs bowls because they are nearly spill proof and just won’t tip over.
I’m pretty sure if I told my Wife that she had to eat out of a dogs bowl that I’d be doing this alone.

So it obviously depends, if your a real heavy weather world traveller then your needs are going to be different than people like me that take the easy way.

Hmm - having a few pet bowls in stainless is actually a pretty good idea. My wife agrees!


A remembered observation - my large cats have never had a spill with their deep dish bowls even when eating/drinking in the back seat of our truck going down the bumpy road.


John

[LostBiker]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

I found out last month where it got rough that those “special” boat plastic bowls shatter pretty good where they start launching themselves around.

Are you referring to the Melamine type? They bubble up pretty good if placed in a microwave. I got yelled at for it too!



John

[theDangerz]

We use and LOVE stainless steel dishes/bowls. Easy to store, easy to clean... cant beat it!

[BlackHeron]

We love our melamine and never really miss having a microwave on our boat. No room for it in a small galley and it is a power hog. The pressure cooker is our microwave, we reheat all our leftovers in it since we store them in reusable silicone "ziplock" pouches. They work fantastically in the pressure cooker with an inch or two of water in the bottom. Same for most processed foods that come in a sealed microwavable pouch, although we eat very little of that stuff and prefer to make everything from scratch. We do like those Indian meals that are almost like MRE's and come in those colorful flat boxes. Great for passages and easy to heat up in the PC even in fairly rough seas. We ditch the cardboard boxes and they take up very little room in the slat lockers.

Full time "on the hook" cruisers. More than halfway through our second year going up and down the US East Coast and two summers living aboard on a ball in Chicago.

We don't have a dishwasher or washer-drier either. Life doesn't need to be complicated or expensive as a cruiser. Go simple and small.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Corelle is my favorite, it doesn’t feel like plastic and frankly I believe the whole has to be indestructible for a boat thing to be way over exaggerated. Only thing I can think of that we have broken over the last several months is a Pyrex pan that broke on its own in the oven the other day.
Nesting pots like Magma ones with detachable handles and one lid that fits several is good for saving space, we put a piece of felt between each one, cause there are small movements that over time will wear through the non stick if you don’t, so things don’t go flying around in our experience, but there is some constant movement that can cause wear if you don’t take steps, of course things have to be stowed so they can’t go flying around if you ever get into severe weather.
We also wrap liquor bottles with the felt because where we store them in a seaway, they knock and make sounds if we don’t.

Well said!