cooking on the open sea

i will be spending a week on the open ocean shortly. the boat has a stove, oven, fridge, freezer, microwave, freshish water. what do i cook? i'm in charge of 4 meals 3x a day. making it simple would be sensical.

I'd do single pan/pot, simple prep type stuff. No pasta, except for couscous. Sub couscous for rice and get some of the Trader Joe's shelf stable Indian entrees. Brown some spicy garlicky italian sausages well in an oven-safe lidded pan, put in a can of chopped tomatoes, a cup of red wine, and some oregano, bake for an hour or so, serve with bread to mop up the sauce. Greek yogurt drizzled with honey and topped with toasted rolled oats and slivered almonds for breakfast, maybe some fresh berries. Eggs: scrambled with toppings like salsa or guacamole, with additions like chopped ham. Chilaquiles: toss some tortilla chips (corn please) or stale corn tortillas cut into 8ths with a jar of salsa and let it sit for 10 minutes; put into a casserole, top with shredded cheese, bake until cheese is melted - great for breakfast even. Make stuff do double duty: make double the amount of couscous needed for dinner, use the extra to make a salad for the next day (couscous, chopped parsley/mint/onion/green peas, lemon juice/olive oil/salt/black pepper mixed up for dressing). Frittata or spanish omelet: oil a biggish casserole, layer slices of potato, sweet onion, something green (chopped broccoli, leftover spinach, arugula); beat up some eggs (2 per person at least), pour over the layers in the pan, top with grated cheese, bake on medium low for an hour and the cheese is melted and bubbly. Etc.

Upscale sandwiches with proscuitto and goat cheese and fig spread, cashew butter and quince jam, cubanos with ham, roast pork, jack cheese and brown grainy mustard (grill this one for super-deliciousness).

Maybe someone will catch a fish? Bring lots of lemons.

those frozen petit pois peas are amazing btw.

corn/black bean tastiness: drain a can of corn and one of black beans, chop up some tomato and onion and maybe bell pepper, mix together, salt to taste, stir in a little salsa and lime/lemon juice and olive oil. Let sit in the fridge for a few hours or eat right away.

That "drain a can of corn" should probably be "thaw some Trader Joe's frozen super sweet corn", b/c that stuff is extra delicious. Put in a pan, chop an entire stick of butter over the top of it, cover, nuke until the butter is all melted and hot. Salt and eat.

Spices and herbs I would want to have on board: crushed red chili peppers, fresh cilantro, fresh mint, fresh ginger, lemons, capers in salt, ground cumin, oregano, cinnamon, vanilla, salt and black pepper

chop an entire stick of butter over the top of it

jaq, you are a woman after my heart and a true hero in the kitchen