Trail food
Plan a menu. Plan every meal and only take what you need.
Scurvy is for sailors. On day 3 of a hike you’ll hanker after something fresh. Wrap carrots, sweet peppers, onions are even cucumber in foil. Pack it in a small coolbag in your rucksack and put a small damp kitchen swab or a piece of newspaper in the top of the bag.
Let cheese breathe. Rather put your cheese in a brown paper bag than in a plastic bag. Like this it will stay fresh for almost a week. The paper absorbs the cheese’s moisture and stops it going rancid.
Smuggle in some buns. Take along a pack or two of hot cross buns in a Ziploc bag. They’re light and last in the veld.
Plastic is your pal. Spoon butter and jam into small plastic containers. Outdoor shops have special containers.
Herbs and spices. Put your salt, pepper and dried herbs in pill or contact-lens containers. These can make any meal in the veld taste like home cooking.
A touch of garlic. Take a peeled clove of garlic in a well-sealed container filled with olive oil or sunflower oil. The oil will flavour any food fried in a pan, or you can use it as a salad dressing. And when the oil is used up, finely chop up the clove and use that in your braai stirfry.
Meat. Vacuum pack a steak, freeze it at home and wrap it up in a newspaper. What can be better than a juicy piece of steak and a glass of good red wine under the stars? Droëwors, salami and biltong also last well in the veld.
Captain John to you. Dressed John West foil tuna packs are outstanding in pasta. Take along a small pack of olives to really add zip.
Instant pudding. Stew a pack of mixed dried fruit with a shot of sherry or other sweet wine of your choice and enjoy it with a packet of custard.
(Oct 08, p73)
Comments