What is in your freezer?

To us, one of the challenges of cruising is how much food and what we can carry with us in our freezers on board. We probably have more space than most but we often cook for more people so ultimately we have space for fewer meals per person.

As an adjunct question, how frequently do you grocery shop when cruising? I know much depends on how frequently you cook vs. eat out. But do you visit grocery stores regularly for all items or just occasionally for fresh items, or try to go weeks without grocery stores?

My rule to the cook (half the time me)...

I will plan 1 stop at a grocery or market every 7 days.

Keep on hand 3 days fresh, 3 days frozen, 3 days dried/canned. Plus a reserve of 2 days frozen and easy like a frozen pizza or frozen complete meals.

We often wind up eating out every week 1 or 2 meals so my rule often postpones grocery or market trips to 10 days...unless something critical goes short.

Will rethink the system when going on the hook for weeks on end...but will just probably add a few dried/canned meal selections.

We probably pack somewhere in the 7 meal range for a 2 week trip plus full amount of non perishables. We tend to go out more for lunches and eat lighter for dinner, so the quantity of food is not as high as "full meals". Add in there rewards from fishing/clamming/mussels or passing a fish market and picking up a couple of lobsters.

I am terrible at food planning. So I am taking notes.

Many people that have assumed the duties of kitchen organizer tend to follow some American custom that I have experienced of filling a kitchen with items to make meals....not shopping for specific meals...except maybe a few.

I come from a background of backpacking and tiny boats so my meals are by meal/day/week and only the ingredients necessary are on hand.

Yes, boring to an extent...but also you know what you have. Too often the cook complains we don't have something aboard to complete a meal....to which I say...the boat can't hold everything and multiples thereof....figure it out....

2 Rendang Curries 4 serves
1 Butter Chicken 4 serves
4 grain fed aged steaks 450gm x 4 in separate packs
rack lamb
1.5kg pork neck
2 x 1kg chicken breasts
8 hash browns 1kg frozen peas
3 x 500g bacon

All in cryovac bags that are flat packed so they take up 1/2 the space of containers

No freezer, tiny fridge...we went 3 weeks last holiday without seeing a dock let alone a marina or store. Plan on a month or more between marina visits once retirement hits and the boat is set up so we can stay out longer.

Went two months on a sea kayaking trip with a general delivery mail drop of home dried food in Klemtu, BC so going longer in a trawler won't be a hardship.

In freezer currently: ice in a bag plus one tray.
4 packages of Mild Italian chicken sausage from Aldi's (the Never Any brand)
3 packages of Jalapeno turkey sausages (that are basically spicy hot dogs)

I am boring.

Plus one paintbrush (I'm varnishing and by freezing the brush I don't have to clean it between uses; simply defrost and it works again like magic)

I haven't started using the freezer for much more than storing stuff I find on sale. I'm not a person who buys processed stuff much so will be reading to see what others stash.

Aboard Seaweed I have a lot of canning jars filled with chicken, pork, sausage, ham, etc. In the days before the latest two solar panels I didn't have reliable refrigeration (not enough power) so I'm getting used to the reefer thing.

It is Wonderful to have fresh halo or cuties brand oranges chilled, along with my newest yummy treat: Diet IBC root beer. And ice! Gosh I love that. What a treat it is!

During our normal life around here, we don't have much in the freezer. When we're cruising, we usually fill one compartment with meats of various sorts, although sometimes with a couple "bail-out" microwave sides just in case (veggie lasagna, scalloped potatoes, stuff like that).


Plus maybe whatever left-overs we create along the way...

The rest of the original meals (aside from the bail-outs) mostly come from fresh salads, fresh veg (usually steamed), fresh bread, maybe sometimes either rice or pasta or maybe a baked potato if we happened to think that far ahead.

We can go for a couple weeks like that, almost never need a grocery in there... although the bread usually runs out earlier than anything else...


-Chris

Check out "The Boat Galley.Com" lots of very good info there

janice142 said:

In freezer currently: ............one paintbrush (I'm varnishing and by freezing the brush I don't have to clean it between uses; simply defrost and it works again like magic)

Click to expand...

Now there's a tip that I haven't heard before. Thanks. Will have to try it sometime.

Does it work with paints as well? If I used green paint, might my wife serve it to me as asparagus in retaliation for using her freezer?

Our freezer (3.9 cubic feet) and our refrigerator (4.5 cubic feet) go from being packed after provisioning to rather empty right before the next store run. What is in there depends on the country/island we are in or coming from (Eastern Caribbean). There is a vast difference from country to country on what is available.

In 2008 when we left Florida for the Bahamas at the start of the current trip, our freezer was a solid block of meat. We had heard (correctly then) that beef was difficult to buy and very expensive in the Bahamas. Same thing when we left Puerto Rico for the Eastern Caribbean.

We stock up on what is available and plan the meals as we go.

dwhatty said:

Now there's a tip that I haven't heard before. Thanks. Will have to try it sometime.

Does it work with paints as well? If I used green paint, might my wife serve it to me as asparagus in retaliation for using her freezer?

Click to expand...

Wifey B: After she microwaved it.

Were in the middle of restocking our boat so we have lists already.

The old stuff...
6# frozen chicken breast
6# steaks
12# ground beef
2# butter
We vacuum bag and freeze most of our dry goods before putting them away for storage.
20# flour
10# pancake mix
30# sugar
5#dry milk
30# rice
15# dry beans
We did some cooking that will be packaged and frozen in the morning.
30# meat balls
2 pans of lasagna
20# twice baked potatoes
After we take on fuel we are going to finish off the shopping.
15# boneless chicken breast
9# chciken wings
9# ground beef
15# steaks
3 boneless legs of lamb
30# of frozen vegetables
30# of breakfast meat
10# butter

BandB said:

Wifey B: After she microwaved it.

Click to expand...

We buy meats and poultry at Costco (and Penn Dutch when around there), vacuum seal them. The Hatt had a full size Sub Zero side by side and we kept the freezer jammed full. Ann would also seal and freeze breads, vegetables, sauces, soups etc on occasion. We ate on board almost every meal, and entertained frequently. The vacuum sealer was one of the very best tools on the boat and we have carried on the practice since we moved back on land. The quality of the meat when thawed is excellent. We could go a couple weeks on the hook or a mooring, and eat every meal on board. Produce was usually the driving force behind market visits.

Stouffer's Lasagna. A sea going tradition.

And NO, I do not microwave it. Believe it or not, a mid sized brick fits in the toaster oven. 54min. Smells sooo gooood.

And why carry lots of meat when there are conveniently packaged meat units swimming around under the boats?? Fresh fish and curried rice. Dang I'm hungry.

Right now? Some frozen squid bait.

Ski in NC said:

Stouffer's Lasagna. A sea going tradition.

And NO, I do not microwave it. Believe it or not, a mid sized brick fits in the toaster oven. 54min. Smells sooo gooood.

And why carry lots of meat when there are conveniently packaged meat units swimming around under the boats?? Fresh fish and curried rice. Dang I'm hungry.

Click to expand...

How many times a week do you eat what you've caught when cruising?

BandB said:

How many times a week do you eat what you've caught when cruising?

Click to expand...

We eat fresh fish or shrimp probably half our days.

it may not be the main course but its there.

nothing better than catching a nice batch of shrimp and boiling them in melted glacier ice.

We keep enough food on board for at least a week, but usually visit the grocery store every 4-5 days. What is frozen in the freezer usually stays there until we are on the hook for a while. My wife is not a long term planner in any stretch of the imagination. There seems to be Publix and Walmart all over S FL within a mile of anywhere we have stayed. We keep a pile of single page grocery lists in a folder (old school) and mark one for the next grocery stop.

My mistress is in the freezer, Marie Callender.

In a perfect world, I would provision every 6th day (6 bagels to a bag). But often, provisioning is easy opportunity based. Example: Lock through at Great Bridge into the Dismal Swamp canal. Right after the bridge, there is a bulkhead to tie to and Food Lion is a short walk away.

Actually, what I take depends on what I'm doing and who is with me. When by myself and motoring from sun up to sun down, it's Marie, a salad, a bowl of pasta, and some nuked green beans. With a friend on the boat, we plan what we want in advance.

I'm a creature of habit that really doesn't enjoy cooking. So my meals are quick and repetitive. I do like good food, so eating out when traveling the ICW is more frequent.

When on the hook for a few days, meals become more involved (something on the grill). Typically my freezer will have meat, frozen vegetables, and a few Marie dinners for when I'm feeling lazy.

Ted

What's in my freezer?

dwhatty said:

Now there's a tip that I haven't heard before. Thanks. Will have to try it sometime.

Does it work with paints as well? If I used green paint, might my wife serve it to me as asparagus in retaliation for using her freezer?

Click to expand...

Yes, it works with enamel and bottom paint too. I used the freezer method for all manner of paints when I painted the house interior too. Just make sure you cover the brush (I wrap it in a baggie) then add a couple more layers to prevent the paint smell from leaching. It takes about a half hour to defrost and by then the can is open and I'm ready to paint.

Have fun...

And asparagus is good. Skinny ones make great snacks when raw. Fatter ones cooked on a grill with butter are amazing. Steamed in the microwave with some Molly McButter they are even better.

BandB said:

How many times a week do you eat what you've caught when cruising?

Click to expand...

As often as possible. Mostly when down south. Even grunts can be caught dockside, just be patient with the bones, sooo tasty. Spiny lobster and eggs. Snapper is top on the chart, but harder to catch.

To answer your question directly, fresh fish maybe one out of three days.

janice142 said:

...Plus one paintbrush (I'm varnishing and by freezing the brush I don't have to clean it between uses; simply defrost and it works again like magic)...

Click to expand...

Major thread drift, but I had no idea that worked. I've tried zip lock bags in the past, but the varnish still gets stiff or at least gummy. I'll have to try that next time.

Menzies
Light hors d'oeuvres?

You can also prepare 3 or 4 days worth of meals before heading out. Prepared meals take up less space than the ingredients stored separately.

No Mast said:

You can also prepare 3 or 4 days worth of meals before heading out. Prepared meals take up less space than the ingredients stored separately.

Click to expand...

And who want to stink there boat out with Indian curry

We only go on extended cruises in the summer. At the beginning of the season we will do a massive shop for drinks and packaged goods that will last us for the firsts month or more. We also get enough frozen meat for a a couple of weeks.

After that we shop opportunistically when we come across good shops. Bread, fruit and vegetables we try to buy two or three times a week.

Besides the meat (and the ice and Gin bottle!) we keep bread in the freezer. We will pre-cut it so we can just pop it frozen into the toaster, as good as fresh.