love2cook

Meals on Wheels

Last summer, before the spike in gas prices, DW and I bought a small 22-foot motorhome. We had a great time exploring some of Wisconsin's state parks and campgrounds!

Despite the jump in gas prices, we're eager to "hit the road" again soon. (Lucky for us, the motorhome is a diesel van conversion that gets good mileage.)

We're also looking forward to making more meals on wheels. As you know, DW and I really enjoy cooking together, and that's true even in the tiny kitchen of our motorhome. With a small refrigerator, a 2-burner propane stove and a microwave/convection oven, plus a portable charcoal grill outside, we can prepare just about any meal we might make at home.

On our very first overnight trip, we enjoyed a dinner of grilled marinated lamb chops, asparagus with seasoned butter sauce and rice pilaf. Of course, on subsequent trips we also enjoyed Spam and beans or canned chili.

We bought a set of durable dishes and flatware just for the motorhome kitchen. But on each trip, we took along some of our favorite heavy stainless steel cookware from home. It worked great, but cleanup and storage was a challenge—the skillet barely fits in the motorhome kitchen sink!

Over the winter, I ordered a set of small "nesting" cookware designed especially for camping. I figured it would save some space and be easier to use in the motorhome kitchen. But when it arrived, DW and I were disappointed—the two pots and two skillets are very small and pretty thin.

We'll try them on our first outing this year. But I have a feeling that we'll end up using our heavy stainless cookware again. Don't want to crowd the Spam and beans!

Comments

 

mrsjmn said:

My DH and I used to have a Tioga and I also had a separate set of dishes and cookware for the motorhome.  One of the best purchases was a West Bend Slow Cooker.  I could prepare a beef roast, make gravy and slice the beef in advance then just reheat as we traveled or when we stopped.  The slow cooker pot fit in the motorhome's small sink.

We sold "Lady Ti" and bought a modular home on 40 acres up north and plan to retire there in a few years.  I just shifted the dishes, pots and pans from  Lady Ti to up north.  I guess I'll have a good rumage sale when we leave Milw and blend both households.

Now with the price of gas it would be limited travel.  We got about 10 mpg (13 mpg with a tail wind one time)

April 7, 2008 12:38 PM
 

buffalopk said:

I hear ya!  I am a full time RVer.  My Husband and I are in our 40's and decided to abandon the rat race and sold the house and everything in it and moved into a travel trailer 2 years ago.  Normally we travel with the seasons and go North in the summer and South in the winter.  Due to the cost of fuel we have decided to stay in south Texas year round for awhile.  (Yes, it is VERY hot!).  We are too young to take retirement income so we have to work and have found employment as gate guards for oil rigs.  The challange I have to cooking is that using the oven or the stove very much raises the inside temp of the trailer to an unbearable level so I am working and thinking of cool things to make for supper every day.  This is further complicated because my husband is on blood thinners due to a recent blood clot in his leg and cannot eat things high in Vitamin K which includes most veggies so things like salads and stuff are out.  I have been making potatoe and pasta salads early in the morning and letting them chill in the refer until it is time to eat.  By adding things like chicken or sausage or eggs, these become full meals and are quite good.  I use a lot of small cast iron cookware that I find in specialty shops or at stores like Sportsman's Warehouse and meant for open fire cooking.  They work great and come in a variety of sizes and are easy to store.  We love RVing and wouldn't think of stopping!  Have fun and Hit the Road!

May 28, 2008 1:57 PM
 

momof17 said:

You need a fireless cooker! Also called a hay box. You only have to get the food to a full boil and place in cooker to finish up. You can make it yourself. Lots of ideas online.

June 12, 2008 7:27 AM

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I'm strong to the finish 'cause I eat my spinach. I'm also Executive Editor of tasteofhome.com.