Boat Provisioning: Pack These Items to Maximize Nutrition
Honey Walnut Bread
Provisioning for a long sailing trip can be daunting the first few times you do it. I’m in my sixth season cruising, so I’ve had a few cracks at packing up our monohull for months away from the U.S. Here are the top items I bring with me to make sure my crew eats healthy.
1. Protein Packed
When provisioning for the winter cruising season, I always start my list with protein. Stock the boat with beans, chickpeas, and quinoa. They last a long time and don't need refrigeration.
My husband loves to fish, so we’re able to eat fresh fish and stock the freezer throughout the winter. The mahi jet fishing lure is his favorite to catch mahi and tuna.
2. Vegetables with Longevity
Certain vegetables have a long shelf life if stored properly. Last night, I made butternut squash soup with a squash I bought in the States over a month ago. It was such a treat to have butternut squash in the Bahamas. Here, they’re hard to find and more expensive than in the States.
Below are a few examples of vegetables with the longest shelf life:
Potatoes
Carrots
Onions
Garlic
Butternut, acorn, & spaghetti squash
Peppers
Cabbage
3. Pick Your Kitchen Gadgets Wisely
There are a few kitchen gadgets that I can't live without. When space and power are at a premium, you have to choose your appliances carefully. I get jealous of my friends with catamarans. Their boats are loaded with bread makers and induction tops. The rest of us with monohulls, don't have the space to have it all.
These are my top two kitchen gadgets for small boats:
BlendJet 2
A small blender (similar to the magic bullet and nutribullet). It charges with a USB charger, and you get about 10 "blends" per charge. A perfect power-sipping smoothie maker.
Immersion Blender
For big blending jobs like soups, I use my immersion blender. I also use it for Bravo Sauce*, which takes taco night to the next level.
Lobster Quesadilla with Bravo Sauce
4. Refrigeration/freezing
Over the years, we have grown our refrigeration abilities on our boat. We started with a fridge, and now we have two refrigerators and one freezer. Space is limited, so we keep our Engel freezer under the bed. One refrigerator serves as storage for long-term refrigeration (dairy and vegetables). The other small fridge is where we keep daily items like my morning yogurt, condiments, and a few cold beers. We load up the freezer with protein before we jump over the gulf stream. It gets refilled during the crusing season with fresh fish and lobster.
5. Water Flavor Enhancers
It's surprising how lazy we can get with water intake while cruising. Lazy days blend into happy hour. Before you know it, you’re waking up with leg cramps in the middle of the night from dehydration. Use your provisions to make drinking water exciting.
How to jazz up your water:
Fresh lemons and lime are best. Provision a bottle of lemon and lime juice in case the real stuff isn't available.
Invest in a soda stream. Seltzer isn't available everywhere and it can be expensive. The soda stream also cuts down on your environmental impact. Make sure you pack enough co2 to get you through the cruising season.
Flavor enhancers. A couple of squirts in your water changes plain water to fruit punch, sweet tea, or grape juice. You can even get flavor enhancers with vitamins included.
One of my favorite hacks to drink more water (and avoid drinking alcohol) is to drink seltzer. Add a splash of juice for a refreshing mocktail. It’s often in a Yeti cup, so no one knows what's in there anyway. That way, I can join in with the happy hour fun without hangxiety the next day.
6. Freeze-Dried Delights
Freeze-dried foods won't spoil and can jazz up your recipes. Fruits are the first thing that comes to mind when thinking freeze-dried. Mushrooms and peppers are also handy. Mushrooms are hard to keep fresh. In the freeze-dried form, you can add them to soup, stir fry, and pasta dishes. I use dried peppers when making Bravo sauce*. It’s definitely a crowd pleaser that adds quite the kick.
7. Nuts and seeds can add a huge amount of nutrition to your meals.
These protein-packed little guys can be incorporated into breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I add a blend of chia, hemp, and flax seeds to my morning yogurt. Quinoa is a nutty delicious seed loaded with protein that can be used in place of rice or pasta. Try adding quinoa to chili to thicken up the stock and pump up the protein. Nuts and seeds are also packed with fiber which helps keep your digestive system moving.
Black Bean Dip
8. Spice it up!
Spices are little gifts from nature that can have excellent health benefits. They also completely change a recipe from boring to gourmet. Adding variety to your diet is an easy way to eat healthy. Make sure you stock up on lots of fun spices to jazz up even the most boring dinner.
I hope this article gives you a jump start to healthy provisioning. Do you have any must-haves in your pantry? Share them below!
Bravo Sauce Recipe
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