Cooking On Your Boat
Some boat trips are short and can take place between meals, perhaps supplemented with a few snacks. Others, though, choose to take longer boat trips that will require more extensive planning when it comes to food. After all, when you’ve been out on the water for a few hours, you’re bound to become hungry. It’s also a novel diversion to have a meal on a boat if you can!
If you’re in a massive yacht with a full galley, you probably already know how to cook on your boat easily. For those on smaller vessels, though, you'll need to find some workarounds so you can prepare delicious food for friends and family when they accompany you on a coastal cruise around the Keys! This guide to cooking on your boat by your friends at Jet Ski of Miami will help you determine what preparations to make and what tools to use to prepare food when you’re out on the water.
Using A Deck Grill
As noted above, many smaller crafts don’t actually have a galley (or kitchen, for laypeople), so instead, hot food is prepared by using a grill. Several varieties of deck grill are available on the market, with options to clip the grill to the side of your craft, to a pedestal seat or simply set on a heat-proof surface.
If you want to cook more food more quickly, get a VertiGrille, which has vertical skewers to transfer heat through vegetables and meat speared upon them. This gives you more horizontal space to throw your latest catch onto the grill or to whip up some burgers. Grilling is also nice because it doesn’t produce very much heat, so you can stay cool even on a hot day.
Making Efficient Use Of Storage
Space to stash food and supplies is pretty scarce on a small vessel, so you’ll need to be more judicious in what you bring on board and where you put it. Canned food lasts a long time, provided it doesn’t rust, and can be a good staple to have on hand.
It’s best to buy food in smaller packages and single servings to prevent waste, since you likely won’t have a place to keep food fresh and you don’t want a pest infestation to develop.
Preparing simple meals that only use one dish is also a good way to conserve space and reduce how many dishes you’ll need to wash. Do as much prep work on shore as you can, especially if you do have a small fridge or cooler where you can store salads and other side dishes to accompany your grilled food.
Practicing Good Safety
Obviously, cooking and eating on a moving vessel can be somewhat risky, which is why it’s important to always put safety first. Cutting up vegetables and fruits on shore or at the dock and storing them in containers means you won’t have to wield a sharp knife in choppy waves.
Ensure that your grill is anchored securely to avoid it sliding off and sending hot food flying everywhere. If you use propane as fuel, make sure to store it far from any heat source and turn off the tank when it isn’t in use.
Thicken up soups and stews with instant potato flakes or flour to prevent hot liquids from sloshing about and use Thermoses for hot drinks. Serve food in mugs and use spoons over forks to reduce sharp points and spillage potential.
Finally, always make sure you have a working fire extinguisher and a well-stocked first aid kit on your boat! This will help you deal with any emergencies that may arise.
We hope our guide to cooking on your boat has given you some great ideas for your next marine excursion! Visit our dealership here in Miami, Florida, to check out our selection of new and used boats for sale. Jet Ski of Miami proudly serves the cities of Hialeah, Aventura, Key Largo and Key Biscayne, Florida.