With this article I would like to share our experiences with cooking and food preparation on the road. The recipes share are the ones we used in Europe where we had access to a variety of foods in the supermarkets.
Already in the preparation phase we were planning to keep at least one of our saddlebags empty so that we can carry enough food for the two of us up to at least to days. I was searching the internet for different recipes. Looking for people who did remote tracks over months I came to the conclusion, that this could be manageable for a month but would never be implementable on a 9 journey crossing two continents. There is of course the ratio of amount of food and the amount of space available to carry and the calorie density can be easily reached by packing sacks of noodles and chocolates, but on the long run I think we would get more fat and closer to diabetes with this strategy.
The approach that I wanted to implement is to use the space to fill it with as many nutrients as possible. The next challenge is, that we are used to store our food in different temperatures. May it be in a not heated room with no window, a shelf in a kitchen, a bowl on the dinner table or one of the most important inventions of the western civilization. The refrigerator. If we would have decided to travel by van or a car that would not be a problem at all since there are already great solutions on the market available. On the motorcycle this looks completely different. Bye Bye beloved fridge!
Looking into the route of our trip we go first up north to Scandinavia where we will meet lower temperatures. It was easy there to keep a pack of meat for two days and even to store a yoghurt at decent temperature levels so that it gives the fully fresh taste in the morning. Further the supermarkets in Europe have everything! Money is the key and money management an important tool to get to the other side of our beautiful planet.
The standard ingredients we were carrying with us: Small bottle of olive oil, bouillon tabs, salt and pepper. Our cooking gear consist of: Fuel stove, 3 liters pot, 2 bowls, 2 plastic spoons, one wooden spoon, dromedary bag with 6l of water.
We use two drybags to store the food in the saddlebags. It keeps everything organised (e.g. breakfast, lunch & dinner) and the saddlebags clean!
In Europe our grocery routine looked as follows:
- Avocados
- Mushrooms
- Vegetables (Paprika, Zucchini, Tomatoes, etc.)
- Apples, Bananas, Pears
- Cans with fish
- Knäckebrod
- Yoghurt
- Oatmeal
- Cheese
- Granola
- Protein bars
What we found out is really easy and fast to make in a single pot with a gas or fuel stove is:
- Of course pasta, but that is the easiest and maybe not healthiest of all of them
- Risotto (with vegetables or even with fish, we just try to buy the fish in the late afternoon so that it goes directly into the pot)
- Burritos with minced meat
- Big omlette with cheese, zucchini and ham.
- The best breakfast ever!
Recipes
1. Pasta
- Persons: 2,
- Preparation time: 15 min
- 300g of pasta
- 300ml of tomato
- Onion and garlic
- ½ zucchini Champignons (two hand full)
- Rasped cheese
- Salt and Pepper
- Olive oil
Bring water to boil and put in the pasta, most pastas take 8 – 10min until they are finished. Put the pasta into the bowls and keep a bit of the water the pasta was cooked in. At the end this will give the tasty juice in the finished pasta dish. Cut all the vegetables, put a bit of olive oil in the pan, first the cut onion and garlic and as soon as they start to shimmer (getting caramelized) put in the zucchini and champignons and stir continuously (a fuel burner cannot be adjusted and the bottom of the pot is very hot that is the reason to stay active during the whole cooking process). After 5-8min everything is getting a nice smell and texture, ready to put back in the pasta. At this point stir until everything is mixed and turn of the stove. Put a lid on the pot and let it rest for 3min. Finally put the rasped cheese on it and some salt and pepper! Buon appetito!
2. Risotto
- Persons: 2,
- Preparation time: 25 min
- 200g of risotto rice
- Zucchini
- 150g of salmon
- Vegetable bouillon block
- Olive oil
- Onion and garlic
- Pepper and salt
- Lemon juice
First cook the vegetable bouillon block in ½ liter of water and put it into a cup or jar after 5min, don’t let it boil. Then cut the vegetables and fry the onions in some olive oil. Put the risotto rice with it and stir it. When everything is mixed put some of the bouillon into the pot and mix it again. Don’t forget to stir! The pot is too hot! The bouillon gets added step by step. In total the risotto rice will need about 15 min until it is finished. Over that period of time it should always cook. You can add more water if it gets to dry.
When the risotto rice is finished it should have a soft sticky texture. Put it into a bowl to rest. Put some oil in the pan again and fry the zucchini, half way add the salmon and fry everything together. After 5min add the risotto rice to the pan again, mix everything and turn off the stove letting everything rest for 3 min with the lid on the pot again. At the end add some lemon juice, salt and pepper! Super delicious!
Our kitchen gear
3. Burritos with minced meat
- Persons: 2, although many times we could also make lunch with it
- Preparation time: 40 min
- 1 pack of plain burritos
- 300g of miced meat
- 1 can of black beans
- 1 pack of burrito herbs
- 1 avocado
- 1 tomato
- Onion and garlic
- Pepper and salt
- Lemon juice
- 100g of rice
- 50g rocket salade
- 1 cup of sour cream
First cook the rice in the pot, one cup of rice and two cups of water is the ratio. Take the pot once in a while from the stove, since the water is evaporating really fast. After 10min of cooking put the rice into a bowl.
Put some oil, cut onion and minced meat into the pot, stir and put after appr. 5min the beans in it. After frying for a few minutes, add some water and the burrito herbs. Put the pot on the side and once in a while over the stove again.
In the meanwhile cut the avocado, more onion, the tomato (eat the fruit flesh and just keep the thick peel. Put everything into a bowl and smash it until it gets a paste. Add some olive oil salt and tiny sliced garlic in it. At the end warm the burritos over the flame of the gas stove and put everything in it. Add some rocket salad and some sour cream.
Enjoy! By the way if something is left, make some wraps for the next day, they taste also cold delicious!
4. Big omlette with cheese, zucchini and ham
- Persons: 2,
- Preparation time: 15 min
- 6 eggs 150g
- Ham or bacon
- 1 zucchini
- 50g of rasped cheese
- Salt and pepper
- Onion
Fry the ham zucchini, put them in a bowl on the side. Put oil over the whole pan surface. Fry the onion and put in the eggs. Let the eggs get fried and put the ham and zucchini pieces into it. After 3min put the cheese on and lift the eggs from the pan bottom. Serve it in the bowl with some salad if you have or some bread!
5. The famous breakfast
- Persons: 2,
- Preparation time: 25 min
- Oatmeal
- Yoghurt (if you buy it the night before it's usually fine)
- Fruits (Banana, Apples, Pears, etc)
- Honey
- Nuts
- Granola
- Cinnamon
Put the instant oats in the bowls and boil water in your pot. Add the boiling water over the oats. Put the oats on the side and let them soak up the hot water (make coffee and tea with the rest of the water). In the meanwhile cut fruits into small pieces. Put some cinnamon powder over the oats. Put the fruit over the oats. Add a few scoops of yoghurt. Add some nuts and berries. Add sprinkles or whatever else you have and at the end some honey on top! Perfect start of the day!
Watch the video about our breakfast routine
All over I would like to say, camping and cooking for yourself is like a zen moment of the day for myself. The art of preparing food sitting outside, just with one fireplace and a few ingredients, being exposed to wind and/or rain is something I appreciate everyday on the trip. Making a bonfire next to it and enjoying the food while the dark is rolling in is magical and in my opinion something truly natural. It is slow but good for my soul!
In Europe we were able to get all different kinds of ingredients and with that manner of cooking we spend about 12€ per day for 2 persons. Which makes an average price of 2€ per meal, since we were having breakfast everyday as well as light lunch and ended the day always with warm dinner.
Cooking is essential and a real part of the adventure. Still, once in a while we like to eat out to experience the local culture and the different food alongside the journey.
