What's in your van kitchen!

[VanFan]

I have an 8” Lodge Dutch Oven, the kind with legs, that I’ve carried since I cooked every day for a husband, and am going to do some experimenting roasting meats in there with charcoal.

Like turkey and chicken pieces.

That should work, right?

For the time being, I'm leaving the 8" DO behind. Fire risk has been too high, and I had to make room for propane. I will really miss it! Please share what you have made/will make in yours. Enjoy!

 

[vanbrat]

I recently built a reflector oven thingy. It sits in front of a fire and the heat is supposed to reflect around the foods and bake stuff. I built it but have not yet cooked with it. The last trip out major burn bans and such.... I am hoping this next trip out I will get to use it.

 

[JDub]

I admit I haven't gone through all the posts, but does anyone else carry a Camp Chef Oven with them? I don't carry it for shorter trips but I find mine very handy for long duration stays.

Cheers!

 

[vanbrat]

Sense it is just 2 of us I know I can get by with just the airfrier thingy. And it is tiny so fits and it runs off my Jackery thing so even in fire season it will work.

 

[scaredycat72]

This is in answer to your question what do I carry in my kitchen (I'm in a SUV):

~ 2 burner camp stove
~ 1 skillet with lid
~ 1 pot with lid
~ cooking utensils
~ 2 plates
~ 2 bowls
~ 2 water bottles
~ 2 forks, spoons, butter knives
~ camping knife set
~ 4 plastic Rubbermaid food containers with lids
~ mini salad spinner
~ strainer
~ 20 liter 12 volt fridge
~ small rechargeable personal blender
~ electric rice cooker
~ cutting board
~ 2 collapsible sinks

Coffee Setup
~ 12 volt electric kettle
~ Aeropress
~ mug

I don't do a lot of cooking and the cooking I do do is heating canned beans, reheating rice packets, cooking packages of chili, reheating frozen vegetable dishes from the freezer aisle, and cooking fish to eat 2 times a week. I try to cook one day a week and then eat leftovers the rest of the week. Other then that, I'm eating nuts and fresh fruit, and drinking protein shakes. I try to eat healthy but eating itself isn't that important to me.

Nothing against what anyone else likes to do. I'm just stating what works for me.

 

[vanbrat]

This is in answer to your question what do I carry in my kitchen (I'm in a SUV):

~ 2 burner camp stove
~ 1 skillet with lid
~ 1 pot with lid
~ cooking utensils
~ 2 plates
~ 2 bowls
~ 2 water bottles
~ 2 forks, spoons, butter knives
~ camping knife set
~ 4 plastic Rubbermaid food containers with lids
~ mini salad spinner
~ strainer
~ 20 liter 12 volt fridge
~ small rechargeable personal blender
~ electric rice cooker
~ cutting board
~ 2 collapsible sinks

Coffee Setup
~ 12 volt electric kettle
~ Aeropress
~ mug

I don't do a lot of cooking and the cooking I do do is heating canned beans, reheating rice packets, cooking packages of chili, reheating frozen vegetable dishes from the freezer aisle, and cooking fish to eat 2 times a week. I try to cook one day a week and then eat leftovers the rest of the week. Other then that, I'm eating nuts and fresh fruit, and drinking protein shakes. I try to eat healthy but eating itself isn't that important to me.

Nothing against what anyone else likes to do. I'm just stating what works for me.

Sounds like you are ready to eat good as you go

 

[user 29855]

I didn't know this. I often reheat mashed potatoes, but won't anymore......

There are a couple of foods you’re better off throwing in the bin if they’re leftover. Or just not make as much of it in the first place. Whatever you do, reheating them isn’t a good idea.

1. Reheating potatoes is a bad idea, because the heat is a breeding ground for the bacterium C. botulinum and this can cause food poisoning. The bacteria aren’t killed by the heat; they will actually multiply because of it!
2. If you’ve got any cooked chicken leftover, you should eat it cold the next day or reheat it very slowly on a low temperature. What you shouldn’t do is put it in the microwave to be heated in a short burst. The proteins in the chicken will change if it is suddenly moved from the cold of the fridge to the heat of the microwave and this can really upset your stomach.
3. Reheating rice is risky because rice can be a breeding ground for bacteria. What you really shouldn’t do is let the rice get up to room temperature before reheating it. Just put it straight into the microwave when you take it out of the fridge. Even better: just eat it in one go or throw out the leftovers.
4. You can find celery in a lot of soups, but if you’ve got any soup leftover, it’s best to take out the celery. Celery contains nitrates and those transform into nitrites when they’re heated. Nitrites are toxic and are linked to cardiac diseases, among other things.
5. It’s best to eat eggs immediately after you’ve prepared them (or eat them cold later on), or throw them out. Reheating them can cause the release of toxins that can really damage your body.

 

[user 22017]

I didn't know this. I often reheat mashed potatoes, but won't anymore......

I think mashed potatoes are ok, as long as you refrigerate them promptly after cooking them. Don't let them sit out at room temp for 2-3 hours after cooking them. I've done it probably a hundred times and don't recall getting sick from it, but it's best to refrigerate promptly.

"The Independent explains that while the actual act of reheating potatoes is not an issue, it's actually the way you cool and store them after cooking. Allowing potatoes to sit at room temperature for too long (say, the length of a nice dinner with friends, plus the car ride home) can allow Clostridium botulinum, the bacteria that causes botulism, to grow, especially if sealed in an airtight container or foil."

From: https://www.mashed.com/192287/the-reason-reheated-potatoes-could-make-you-sick/

https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/What-methods-of-reheating-food-are-safe

 

[vanbrat]

All the french fries in all the fastfood places are cooked twice but after the first time they are fast frozen. As in within seconds. If they are left out or slowly reheated or chilled, they are really bad. Rice is the same way. To make fried rice it is always better to have the cooked rice cold as in really cold. It is the same as tatos don't let them chill slowly or reheat slowly.
The thing is, all foods need to be chilled in containers that are not airtight. Once cold then they can be stored tight.

 

[LargeMarge]

1. Reheating potatoes...
2. ... microwave...
3. Reheating rice...

.
Two -- microwave -- no plans to acquire one.
.
One and Three:
Cooked-then-cooled potatoes or rice contain healthy prebiotics... the food for our gut biome... the probiotics in charge of our immunity.
The trick is to consume it cold, a potato salad or a rice pudding with gut-soothing coconut milk.
.
Another source of healing heathy probiotics:
* Cassava, its parent yucca, and its sibling tapioca.
Although... I need to be careful with chips.
Their raggedy roughness plays havoc in my innerds.
.
.
Enjoying this exchange!

 

[vanbrat]

When home I love leftovers. I love to make a huge pot of soup, stew, casserole, or roasted turkey, or beef or ....
I make some things and freeze them to pack along with us. But they are frozen fast as I can and put into single meal bags. Taken out on the day they are to be eaten.

BUT I don't like to try to deal with leftovers when out and about. I just can't trust that I can cool things fully fast enough to be safe. I am working on how to do some of my favorites in tiny batches. Sometimes it works and sometimes not so much...

The idea of food poisoning while out just does not appeal to me.

I love tapioca. The fresher the better. Hubby not so much.

 

[hugemoth]

I carry a bread machine, a grain grinder, and several pounds of wheat and rye berries. The wheat and rye berries last for many months unlike preground whole grain flour. The bread machine runs on my inverter until the bake cycle begins, then I start the generator for the 1 hour bake. Fresh whole grain bread always.

 

[JDub]

.
Two -- microwave -- no plans to acquire one.
.
One and Three:
Cooked-then-cooled potatoes or rice contain healthy prebiotics... the food for our gut biome... the probiotics in charge of our immunity.
The trick is to consume it cold, a potato salad or a rice pudding with gut-soothing coconut milk.
.
Another source of healing heathy probiotics:
* Cassava, its parent yucca, and its sibling tapioca.
Although... I need to be careful with chips.
Their raggedy roughness plays havoc in my innerds.
.
.
Enjoying this exchange!

I eat yuca quite often - just finished off the last of this week's batch tonight. usually boiled in wedges or mashed. Delicious with a garlicky mojo sauce. I prefer the plantain chips to the yuca. They fry up crisper IMO.

Cheers!

 

[beavergod1]

I didn't know this. I often reheat mashed potatoes, but won't anymore......

There are a couple of foods you’re better off throwing in the bin if they’re leftover. Or just not make as much of it in the first place. Whatever you do, reheating them isn’t a good idea.

1. Reheating potatoes is a bad idea, because the heat is a breeding ground for the bacterium C. botulinum and this can cause food poisoning. The bacteria aren’t killed by the heat; they will actually multiply because of it!
2. If you’ve got any cooked chicken leftover, you should eat it cold the next day or reheat it very slowly on a low temperature. What you shouldn’t do is put it in the microwave to be heated in a short burst. The proteins in the chicken will change if it is suddenly moved from the cold of the fridge to the heat of the microwave and this can really upset your stomach.
3. Reheating rice is risky because rice can be a breeding ground for bacteria. What you really shouldn’t do is let the rice get up to room temperature before reheating it. Just put it straight into the microwave when you take it out of the fridge. Even better: just eat it in one go or throw out the leftovers.
4. You can find celery in a lot of soups, but if you’ve got any soup leftover, it’s best to take out the celery. Celery contains nitrates and those transform into nitrites when they’re heated. Nitrites are toxic and are linked to cardiac diseases, among other things.
5. It’s best to eat eggs immediately after you’ve prepared them (or eat them cold later on), or throw them out. Reheating them can cause the release of toxins that can really damage your body.

Sorry G. Sounds like a lot of paranoia to me. I have done everything you have warned about all my life and I'm pretty healthy and kicking. Maybe if a person has an immune deficiency problem they might heed this advice. Have to disagree on this one, although I've been wrong before...
On a side note, it sounds like my daughter and her having to have organic everything, including her organic toothpaste. She also chants to the vegetables and thanks them for their nutrition before she boils them. The only chanting you hear out of me is when the boiling water pops upon my hand. And it's not a thankful blessing chant for sure...

 

[Frood]

I eat yuca quite often - just finished off the last of this week's batch tonight. usually boiled in wedges or mashed. Delicious with a garlicky mojo sauce. I prefer the plantain chips to the yuca. They fry up crisper IMO.

Cheers!

My favorite chips are Taro...

 

[Frood]

Sorry G. Sounds like a lot of paranoia to me. I have done everything you have warned about all my life and I'm pretty healthy and kicking. Maybe if a person has an immune deficiency problem they might heed this advice. Have to disagree on this one, although I've been wrong before...
On a side note, it sounds like my daughter and her having to have organic everything, including her organic toothpaste. She also chants to the vegetables and thanks them for their nutrition before she boils them. The only chanting you hear out of me is when the boiling water pops upon my hand. And it's not a thankful blessing chant for sure...

If the food isn't contaminated to begin with, then the bacteria isn't present to reproduce. The risk comes in the instances where there are a few bacterium that are packaged with the food, especially since the toxin they produce isn't broken down when reheating the food. I believe it's actually the same thing used when someone gets a botox injection (Botulism Toxin?). Just more weight to the adage that "The difference between poison and medicine is typically in the dosage."

 

[JDub]

My favorite chips are Taro...

I like Taro (Kalo) Chips but for some reason they disagree with me... I have no problem with Poi though... Weird.

https://hawaiianchipcompany.com/collections/

GREAT place to order from and buying fresh from the store to DIE for.

Not sure this link will be good - might have a paywall.

https://www.honolulumagazine.com/this-hidden-gem-has-freshly-fried-taro-and-sweet-potato-chips/
Cheers!

 

[savana1957]

I carry a bread machine, a grain grinder, and several pounds of wheat and rye berries. The wheat and rye berries last for many months unlike preground whole grain flour. The bread machine runs on my inverter until the bake cycle begins, then I start the generator for the 1 hour bake. Fresh whole grain bread always.

That is so great. I have a nice Mockmill 200 grinder, a Zojirushi 1 lb. breadmaker and stacks of FoodSaver bags full of organic wheatberries in my chest freezers. I am a future nomad and was hoping that I could use all of these appliances on the road. I only have 400 watts of solar. Will try to add more.

 

[LargeMarge]

beavergod1 says:
* Sounds like a lot of paranoia.
.
About that 'dump it if it exceeds/nonceeds/overceeds those Very Official 'guide-lining' by the government agents' beezwax...
.
I lived and worked all over this particular planet.
I ate in rural Yemen homes with no running water within a two-day walk.
I ate on Mekong home-business boats with the cutlery given a quick rinse in a bucket of primordial swamp.
I ate from hand-pushed food-carts featuring 'exotic' especiales on hot dusty sidewalks throughout Latino Americo... the last time it felt the loving embrace of refrigeration was probably never.
.
On a multi-week back-country mule-pack hunting journey through the Bob Marshall Wilderness on Idaho, doing prep for lunch, I discovered a drowned mouse in our dish-worshing water.
I was tempted to leave it for the supper cook, but then, I would probably get blamed for planting it there...
... just like I blamed the breakfast cook for thinking I would go all squeamish and run in tiny circles waving my hands.
No way!
And 'yes', the supper cook had a complete hissy-fit melt-down.
Yelled at me from the other tent through most of the night.
.
I got sick -- green/shoot-me sick -- twice in my short sweet life:
* after a fun gathering of chums at a well-known long-time busy restaurant in Oakland, California.
* after a swanky time at a cloth-napkin joint with 'proud-of' prices near Sacramento, California.
.
Obviously, the food is not the problem.
Obviously, I need to avoid eating in California.
.
Let's suppose, at a family re-union, if Aunt Sally has a spoon of beans... then keels over, I would avoid helping myself to her beans.
But I would be first to snag her ham.
Stands to reason.

 

[eliyama]

I carry a bread machine, a grain grinder, and several pounds of wheat and rye berries. The wheat and rye berries last for many months unlike preground whole grain flour. The bread machine runs on my inverter until the bake cycle begins, then I start the generator for the 1 hour bake. Fresh whole grain bread always.

Great idea about bread machine--far superior in quality over store-bought; and the prices these days are ridiculous for commercial stuff. The old stone hand grinders are fine, too. You can find mortar & pestle made in Mexico out of rock for corn and wheat berries.