Atlantic Crossing Menu ?

[swagman]

Hi All,
Anyone prepared a menu and provisioning list for a 15 / 20 day trip?
We can of course start from scratch - there will only be 3 bodies on board - but if someone has a good one that they've used and it works - sharing it would give us something to base our own menu on.
Much appreciated in anticipation.
John

[Weyalan]

It is almost impossible to transfer a menu... people have such diverse taste! (no point telling you how much I love peanut butter and jelly s'wiches if you hate peanut butter). Also, your menu will be very heavily influenced by (a) your refridgeration capacity (both fridge and freezer), and (b) your cooking facilities, (c) your cooking ability and (d) your capacity to handle cooking underway.

Bear in mind, since you are relatively short-handed, and will be under-way 24/7, there will be limited opportunities to sit down and eat together and that everyone will probably have to take their turn at the cooking.

Personally, when underway, offshore and short handed, it is better to go for simple meals that require one or 2 pots only. If you can, make meals up in advance and freeze them... things like stews & casseroles that you can thaw, reheat and serve are good. Also, frozen cuts of meat to roast are good - but off the bone is a lot easier than ones with a bone in. You can roast in a roasting bag in any conditions, and throw in a few potatoes and you have feast. I have also pre-made things like bolognese sauce, so all you need to do is heat the sauce and boil the pasta (spaghetti is not particularly practical - twirls or shells, etc are easier to eat "on deck") or even lasagne and frozen them. I also take heaps of cans and packets of soup... it is amazing how good a big hot mug of soup tastes at 3am when you are on watch, on deck!

I would advise you to sit down with your crew and make up a list of likes and dislikes and use this in your menu planning.

[Pblais]

Weylan outlines the basic tricks to preparing meals when it is not easy or perhaps timely enough. Doing as much before you leave helps. Pre measure into plastic bags. Remove all the package material you can. You the extra large bags to hold a whole meal full of stuff so it's easy to find.

Save a few really good meals for near the end. When times are hard knowing a good meal is coming does matter. It's not much but you need something to get the crew excited and food is generally pretty good.

Find out what each person really likes and see where you might come up with a few meals worth waiting for.

Food is really something you can use to make up for any boring attitudes that can develop. It's new it's different!

Add to all that some food that is just easy to grab and eat or maybe a little boiling water and ready quickly. Rough weather is had work and you need to eat then too.

[Temporarily Landlocked]

The book Sell Up and Sail has a menu in for crossing the Atlantic. They go into detail as far as what to eat first (perishables). I enjoyed the book and would recommend it.

[hellosailor]

"there will only be 3 bodies on board "

Well, that should be enough meat to last 20 days as long as you take steps to prevent it from spoiling.<VBG>

Planning to take any greens too?

[swagman]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

"there will only be 3 bodies on board "

Well, that should be enough meat to last 20 days as long as you take steps to prevent it from spoiling.<VBG>

Planning to take any greens too?

No - although one can be a bit like a vegetable sometimes.

Appreciate all the tips but we've done one ten day voyage before - just seeking a base menu to work on that hopefully will not repeat over twice that period.

So thanks for the book reference - I'll check that out.

JOHN

[hellosailor]

John, one idea is for each crew to write up 7 days of meals. Add 'em up, strike out anything intolerable (liver & onions, blood sausage, etc.) to anyone else, and what's left becomes the menu. You don't have to fix the order of appearances, you can always pack 21 "each" and decide on what dinner will be as each day comes up.

[Weyalan]

Waht is wrong with bolld sausage or liver & onions?

[hellosailor]

Weyalan-
What's wrong with them, is that you'll often find many crew refuse to eat offal, it's an acquired taste.<G>

[Dunkers]

Swagman, I assume that you will be leaving from the Canaries and this makes life much easier. The markets in the large towns have the freshest of fresh vegetables and you can arrange for newly laid eggs to be picked up the day you sail. My own crossing took 33 days (single-handed and self steering broke half way across) but I ate very well. Potatoes, onions, carrots and other root vegetables and cabbage all lasted very well and in the case of potatoes and onions all the way across. I didn't have a fridge but kept them in a dark locker in netting bags. I made sure that every couple of days I picked everything over and threw away any rotten stuff and used any that was on the edge that day. Not having a deep freeze I only had fresh meat for a couple of days - I made a pressure cooker full of stew the morning I left. However I managed quite well on canned meat with fresh veggies so my diet was fine.

I took fruit, again very fresh, and this lasted well. In fact I underestimated how long it would last and didn't take enough.

I managed to find black bread in one of the big supermarkets in Las Palmas and this kept very well. Primula cheese in tubes made for a good snack on Rivita and the eggs made great omelettes with imaginative fillings.

Storing up for an Atlantic crossing is so easy now and if you have a fridge even easier. Good luck with the cruise

[aashton]

EL CORTE INGLES in las palmas, dept. store with supermercado many nice luxury items available to make crossing the pond a bit less boring, tinned russian crab claw meat, duck and truffle foie gras a bit pricey but highly recommend just a couple treats for the trip.. I have done the crossing for the last 3 years and there has been little or no wind most of the time, last year we almost had to be towed into antigua!! with this in mind everyone seems hungrier out of boredom.asiany chicken soups are always a winner simple chicken stock laden with ginger, spring onions and veggies.ginger is meant to be good for sea sickness and even though we dont suffer it still very soothing.Presidente spreadable cheeses are delicious especially the semi-curado and have a shelf life of 220 years he hee, spanish bonito tuna in the glass jar (oritz) is the BEST, seriously buy a case!! Also if youre coming through the med gibralter has beautiful cornish pasties buy and freeze! Bring loads of books its a LONG way.. Fair winds

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by swagman

we've done one ten day voyage before - JOHN

Goodness! This thread is a blast from the past!

I wonder how many long passages John has done now?!!

More important, did he learn anything? Was that first Trans Atlanitc a diet or a feast? Are Swagmans larders now kept full or emptier?


OMG! I just wondered if there is anything in the larder from the provisioning 4 years ago???????????????

Mark
Bottles of Gin for 4 Euros at Carefour Las Palmas.... Pitty I dont drink Gin

[capt_douglas]

On my ocean passages we've done well with cold breakfasts (with the occasional pancakes, french toast, omlettes, scrambled eggs), light lunches (sandwiches, salads, soups, chili) and more complete dinners (protein, starch, carbs) and sometimes a dessert. We stock up on lots of items that require little prep or stove time. We make dinner the most complete/balanced meal of the day.

Get your crew preferences, dislikes, and most important, their allergies. Cobble together a 7-day menu, pass it around for comments, and then triple it.

We found that simple home cooking got the raves. Spaghetti, pizza, chili, stew, meatloaf, chicken, fish; all can be made into fine meals. It is amazing what the smell of fresh bread can do to a crew.

Plan on bad weather, not catching fish, and strange cravings (our supply of cheddar goldfish lasted 2 days, our supply of pop tarts a bit longer). Stock up on sweets, coffee, tea, and liquids.

We plan on having a mid-point feast as well as a special event. Don't forget the birthdays, anniversaries, or special days. An ocean crossing rates a feast at the end.

Don't forget to make more than you think the crew will eat. More than once I've come on watch to see the off going crew munching cold chicken or pizza or mixed nuts. Our crew seemed to graze rather than demand big meals (although no one missed those either).

[sabray]

Fajitas love them. I could roll damn near anything in a fajita and its good. stores flat lasts well. Omlette fajita chicken fajita, bean and rice fajita. You just need good sauce to mix it up.

[anjou]

No point me ever provisioning for an ocean crossing as it would soon be fish bait.