Vacation Dinners

Make whatever simple meals you usually eat at home ahead of time, freeze them, and pack in a cooler for the trip. Just heat and eat at the hotel.

Spaghetti with Ragu?? I'd make what you usually make but simplify the process. Crockpot stuff? I usually take mine so dinner can be ready when we get back.

We did this about a month ago. It's important to note that most hotel kitchenettes have very limited refrigerators. And sometimes they don't function well (ours was more like a freezer than a fridge).

We brought a very good cooler on wheels, with some flexible ice packs. The flexible ones take up less space than the rigid ones. Our cooler was a Coleman, and it was specified to keep ice frozen for 96 hours. We just kept the cooler supplied with ice on the bottom and rotated the ice packs from the small fridge/freezer.

Probably the thing that saved our week was a Cuisinart rice cooker. It's a "fuzzy logic" rice cooker that has a saute function (called quick cook), a steamer insert, and also functions as a slow cooker and soup cooker along with rice, oatmeal, etc.

I brought boxed pasta, rice, farro (a grain that cooks quickly - our daughter is allergic to quinoa, as well as other foods), and bags of unseasoned bagel chips. Also, foil packets of plain tuna, canned beans (without seasonings), canned artichoke hearts (packed only in water) mandarin oranges and pineapple in pure juice with no sugar (you could substitute peaches), and small bottles of soy sauce, olive oil, and sweet chili sauce. I packed bags of edamame (already shelled), bagged fresh baby spinach, a bag of romaine lettuce, bagged fresh sliced carrots (I usually don't buy bagged pre-sliced vegetables but this called for convenience and I knew I couldn't really throw away carrot peelings and tops very easily in a small kitchenette), fresh lemons, small bags of walnuts, and dried fruits (cranberries, apricots, etc). I brought the oils and sauces in clean small bottles that I found at a pharmacy - they're sold for putting shampoo and lotions in for airline travel. I just put them through the dishwasher and filled them with vinegars, oils and things like soy sauce and hot sauce.

I also brought good quality cheese sticks (mozzarella and colby and monterey jack varieties), cream cheese, and some ground turkey and boneless skinless chicken thighs that I cut up into bite-size pieces before we left home.

At the hotel, I cooked rice and vegetables and ground turkey and pineapple (substitute peaches). My daughter preferred hers unseasoned, but my husband put spicy Sriracha sauce and soy sauce on his. One night I made a similar meal but without rice, and we served the turkey and vegs and fruit in lettuce cups. I cooked pasta in the bottom of the rice cooker and in the steamer basket of the rice cooker I placed chicken thigh pieces and vegetables. Another night was a hearty spinach and artichoke cheese dip (in the slow cooker function of the rice cooker I put cheese sticks, fresh spinach, drained artichoke hearts, cream cheese, edamame and seasonings and just let it slow cook) which I served with bagel chips. Then I made a salad with white beans, tuna, dried cranberries, spinach leaves, edamame (just thawed at room temp) and cooked farro. Just a little olive oil and fresh lemon juice made a simple and delicious dressing.

There are many websites that have recipes for a rice cooker that aren't rice. The late Roger Ebert published a cookbook called More Than a Pot (or something like that) which tells how much you can make with a rice cooker. I didn't measure the pasta - just dumped a box in the bottom, filled the cooker with water and set the cooker to "steam". The pasta cooked just fine.

Each of our dinners just took a few minutes of prep, and we made it through the whole week without eating out at an expensive restaurant and without having to worry about our daughter's food intolerances. For anyone who travels, I suggest a good quality, multi-function rice cooker. It literally is several appliances in one, ours has a carrying handle, and it's non-stick and easy to clean. We figured that we purchased about $200 of food for the week, but that included bottles of wine that we purchased so we wouldn't have to open that expensive mini bar, and it also included lots of bottled water. The hotel had water bottles but if you opened them, each bottle was $2.50. My husband figured that our actual food bill was about one-quarter of what we would have had to spend at restaurants if we had to eat out every night (we don't eat fast food, so of course this doesn't equal just a few items off the dollar menu of McDonald's - I'm talking about an actual meal). Oh, and the reason we brought bagel chips instead of other crackers and chips is because they don't crush easily. We used them for dipping and as croutons.

I hope this helps!

I agree with premaking/freezing meals which cannot be prepared in the accomodations you have. I have some food sensitivities and usually premake a portion of what we take, so that the meals are what I need.

Scrambled eggs with veggies (think mushrooms, avocado)
Bring his favorite bread, some hummus.
I love to make some 'friendly' tabbouleh, (parsley salad) with quinoa instead of bulgar. I add the tomatoes in right before I need (as tomatoes can break down quickly in some foods).
Black bean salad-- black beans, avocado, olives, tomatoes with whatever seasonings your husband likes.
Hard boiled eggs/cheese for protein. Prep some green salads with his favorite ingredients if you can-- you might want to add in a few ingredients (cucumber, tomato-- stuff which can make the salad get 'slimy' over a few days) right before serving.

Also, and this sounds a bit Type A, but is a good practice for those of us with sensitivities-- I spend a LOT of time before a trip doing restaurant searches for the area I stay in, and looking at menus online. For example, the local fishhouse might offer fish and chips,which would have wheat, but may also offer a grilled fish dish as well. It's worth doing a bit of extra research, in my opinion.

It's not a vacation for me if I have to cook!
My favorite thing to make is reservations.

If your husbands dietary needs are that delicate it might be better if you stick with what ever he usually eats at home when you are on vacation.

Google "foil packet meals" for camping. Super easy and basic foods. Good luck.

It might be helpful to know what food allergies your husband has.

:)

First, double check what the kitchenette is like: how many burners, is there an oven or not, how big a fridge, is there really a freezer in it or just enough for an ice tray, what equipment is there. I usually take a scrubby sponge and a small bottle of dish detergent - that's not always provided.

If in doubt, try to take a frying pan, a sauce pan and 2 lids with you, preferably one that can go in the oven. Take your own foil, salt/pepper, plastic wrap, storage containers. I usually verify that there's a cutting board and a sharp knife, or I take my own.

You could make an American chop suey with turkey or beef, skip the onions, and use any vegetables that he can tolerate. Peppers are out, but you could throw in some cut green beans, peas (frozen or fresh), and some rice-based pasta or any other gluten free pasta-like product. I find a lot of pastas can cook in a watery sauce, not just in a pot of boiling water. You could use a tomato puree and water it down.

Chinese stir fry - start with cubed chicken and fry up in oil, remove. Add vegetables in stages, with the longest cooking ones first. Start with carrots and green beans (cut into 1 inch pieces), then after 2 minutes add green or yellow squash (disks or short spears depending on size), after 2 more minutes add quick cooking ones like mushrooms, snow peas or canned water chestnuts/bamboo shoots. Add the chicken back in to heat through. This is also a good recipe for leftovers or meats you pre-cook at home: chicken, turkey cutlets, sliced steak, etc. Just put it in at the end and skip the first part where you cook the meat in the oil. Just start with veggies in oil. When things are in to just heat, hrow in a little soy sauce diluted with water. I thicken mine with a little cornstarch but I don't know if your husband can eat that. I make rice with a little soy sauce or chicken broth in the water. I also use Chinese 5 spice powder if your husband can eat that. If you don't want rice, use any other grain that he can eat. Quinoa cooks fast, so does gluten free couscous

Omelettes or frittatas (a cross between an omelet you don't flip and a quiche but with no crust). Start on the stove top and finish in the oven - if you have an oven-safe frying pan, it's great. Put in any omelet fillings you like and that he can eat - you can do anything breakfast-like (bacon, ham, tomatoes) or you can do a pizza-type flavoring with pepperoni, tomatoes or sliced meatballs (if they don't contain wheat). If you're camping, you can do this on a grill.

You can make almost anything in a crockpot. Go to the library for a good cookbook, choose your recipes, and make your shopping list from there. You could precook some ground beef at home, take 2 cans of beans (2 kinds if you like) and a can of tomato puree, add in some water, salt & pepper, and skip the chili powder if he can't eat it, and let it cook all day.

If you have an oven or a grill, make roasted or grilled potato "fries" - slice a washed but not peeled potato (Russet or Yukon Gold), or cut a few red potatoes into equal sized chunks, or cut up a sweet potato. You can do these on a baking sheet in a 350 oven, or on a grill pan. Toss with a little oil (olive or canola), then add in salt & pepper, and dill if he can eat that, and cook about 20 minutes until soft enough to eat. You can also cut into chunks and do them on skewers. You can also do a skewer of mushrooms and tomatoes, or zucchini/yellow squash. For yourself and your child/ren, you can cut up a green or red pepper and an onion into wedges and thread those on a separate skewer. Metal skewers help conduct the heat into the center of the vegetable, lessening cooking time. If you use bamboo or wood skewers, soak them for an hour first so they don't catch fire!

You can also do asparagus in a packet of foil with oil, salt & pepper on a grill.

Fish is easy to grill in foil packets. Buy the pre-sealed individual packets so you don't have to deal with anything leaking. Eat this one of the first nights.

Use the frozen fish and frozen beef or chicken as ice packs in the cooler. Anything you precook at home will probably last a little longer than raw stuff that defrosts en route.

I bought a fuzzy rice cooker as described by Elena. The brand is aroma and cost around $25 at Walmart. I bought a rice cooker cookbook in the marked down section of Barnes and Noble for less than $10. If I were traveling and wanted to cook, just the rice cooker is all that I would need. It can be a a pot, a crock pot, a steamer, and a rice cooker. I would cook one pot meals. Add a salad and bread. I'd use the prepackaged salad kits. If there is no working refrigerator pick it up on your way back to the motel.

Your husband's food allergies aren't all that prohibitive. You could easily go out to dinner. If you want to save money, make breakfast and lunch.here are some ideas-

hard boiled eggs,
salami and cheese,
cereal,
nutella and jam
olives, cheese, carmelized onions
roasted red peppers and hard cheese
pesto, tomato and mozarella
peanut butter and jelly
black bean burritos

Best,
F. B.

I think you are over-thinking this. If you have a full size fridge - make what you would make at home.

for camping? If you just have a cooler to store your food? bacon, eggs, english muffins for breakfast. tub of precooked meat (like taco meat) and scramble eggs and breakfast burritos.

little boxes of cereal and milk work fine too.

When we camp? I use the KISS method - Keep It Simple Silly.
How many days are you camping? What access will you have to cooling for food?

We keep hamburgers, hot dogs, eggs, bread, condiments, pancake mix, bacon, etc. (we have a great camping stove and a huge cooler). Dinners while camping are typically hamburgers and hot dogs...

Muffin recipe to make ahead:
1 cup almond butter
2 ripe bananas
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
Mix and bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 12 minutes. Great snacks/breakfast.

If there is a microwave you could take some prepared food just to be heated.
You can also "cook" in a coffee maker or waffle iron. Or take a crock pot with you.
Some hotels also have a shared grill which makes it easy to grill meat and veggies.

Why not just prepare what you usually eat and bring it with you?

Make ahead & freeze a lasagna & Shepherd's pie (this one is easier than it
sounds)
Make seasoned taco meat ahead of time & freeze in a freezer ziplock bag.
Then take flour tortillas, shredded cheese, salsa, tomatoes & onions to dice
there.
Steak. Grill there.
Can, also, marinate & take thin breakfast steaks for steak tacos.
Frozen burger patties for hamburgers. Grill there.
Take dry pancake mix for pancake breakfast.
Take eggs & sausage for breakfast or buy eggs there.
Take a bunch of veggies (green/red/orange peppers, onions, carrots &
broccoli) stirfry them, take rice you can cook in microwave & take some
teriyaki sauce for Chinese stir fry one night.
You can buy pre-made shredded bbq pork for sandwiches one night. Bring
coleslaw.
Bring ground turkey, spaghetti noodles & sauce for Italian night. Can even
bring bought garlic bread you buy & keep refrigerated to bake there.
Corn on the cobb, ribs, potatoes for making mashed potatoes.

We usually make a few casserole and bring them with if it's that kind of vacation. However, we also don't mind to cook a little bit if it's easy. We usually do taco night and burger night, we sometimes do a chicken and rice dish that is SO easy, and we always do at least one night out. So that can take a whole week if we make three there, bring three, and eat out one.

So take what you usually make and incorporate that into your vacation meal planning.

I'd do simple microwave things and if there's a small stove I'd pan broil some stuff. Take what you need, when you come home you'll have less because you ate most of it.