Cooking in an RV

Food is a big part of our life.  Craig likes to pick out interesting recipes, shop for the ingredients, and  I enjoy cooking them. 


Mostly, I enjoy is eating them!


As I look forward to the day we are full timing I have been thinking more and more about how small  RV kitchens are, and wondering how I'm going to create the types of meals we have become accustomed to. 


But, the more I read and the more I think about how I do things now, the more comfortable I am becoming with the idea of an RV kitchen.


I have been working my way thru the RV cooking and kitchen talk threads on the RV Dreamers forum site. Many of my questions have been asked and answered by others there.


Many of the full time bloggers write about what they prepare and post recipes. Some, like Laurie and Odel have a whole side bar of recipes that look very interesting. Knowing they have done some very interesting cooking in their RV is encouraging.

I've also been working my way thru the many episodes of the RV Cooking Show.


The recipes Evanne demonstrates are not very complicated, nor exotic, but for me watching her cook in a small space has been interesting.  


I have noticed that although I have a very large kitchen, I actually do most of my prep work in a very small area.  If Craig helps, which he often does, he takes his cutting board to our seating area of the island.  


My biggest set back is, or was, the pile of dishes I would accumulate and all the cooking "things" and ingredients that got left out on the counter while I cooked.


I do think it's all a mater of changing habits.  Changes that are for the good whether I stay in a sticks and bricks or get to move on to an RV.


I started changing last year.  It was one of my first accomplishments toward my RV dream.  I used to leave dishes in the sink and pans soaking overnight.  I try not to anymore.  (Well, almost never.) Most nights all of the dishes and pots and pans are done and put away.


I have always been a fan of "cooking shows."  And when preparing a dish with many ingredients I usually try to get them cut or prepared and put into separate bowls before I actually start to cook.  I have been known to measure spices or sauces like soy sauce into little cups so I don't have to fumble about when it's time to add them.


I think this is a very important habit to have.  Not only to have the ingredients measured and ready to use, but to have any preparation mess and tools cleaned and put away before starting to cook, and then to keep washing up bowls and tools as you go.


Earlier this week we made ribs in the crock pot.  Since we had some left over I decided to make stir fried rice the next evening.  I had some rice in the freezer because for the first time I had doubled the amount of rice I cooked and froze what I had not used.

Instead of using a lot of bowls, I used coffee filters to put my cut up carrots and vegetables into before cooking.  


Four less dishes to wash! I could have used one for the meat as well.    I also used a prepackaged "fried rice seasoning" which made things even easier.


My kitchen is one thing I will miss, but I think we will continue to enjoy delicious and creative meals on the road.

Of course there will always be nights like tonight,  tired from removing wall paper all day, when I ask Craig to bring home 






A true no mess dinner!