Master Onboard Cooking and Menu Planning: Simple, Balanced Meals for Smooth Sailing

Now, me hearties, I hope you’ve got the idea that cooking on board means planning ashore.

First, find out if there are any special diets needed beforehand: any diabetics, vegetarians or religious restrictions and so on.  If the requirements are strict, you’ll need to tactfully explain that the extraordinary will have to be under the heading of ‘self catering’ due to storage and equipment limitations on board.

So long as people are warned and have time to prepare themselves, they generally are just happy to have received consideration. It means that they can weigh the facts up when they decide to join the crew and commit to the trip.

Next, try to imagine each dish on the plate: there should be a variety. The variety should include diet-balance, texture contrast, colour variance and flavour blend.

Then try to write down the meals, as if on the plate, for lunch and dinner for consecutive days. Try to avoid repetition except for breakfast. People generally like the same sort of breakfast each day, so they can choose from the same array.

In your spare time, try out some recipes or stick to family favourites. The rule must always be: keep it simple.