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<Food> <Shade
Stuff> Food |
Experienced desert rats can, and do, go on and on about their special desert recipes. Let's face it, if you can bring it, you can cook it. There are a few things that are more acclimatized to the desert than others, though. You should think about what happens if you run out of ice and your meat goes bad. Where does that leave tomorrow's dinner? You need to think middle-eastern. You need to think Mexican. You need to think preparation. Plan your meals ahead, and you'd be surprised at how much you can prepare the day before you leave. One of Heloise's favorite desert meals is falafels. Buy it in a box, mix it with water and fry it in little balls. Eat it in a pita with lettuce, cukes, onion, tomato and ranch dressing (it's perfect for serving to your vegetarian guests, too). The great thing about falafels, and many things you might like to eat in the desert, is that you can cook them at home before you leave. Tabouli is another fabulous desert dinner, especially when prepared by a master - thanks G! How about chicken fajitas? Why cook the chicken in the middle of the desert when it's way too hot, anyway? Slice it up and cook it at home before you go. You have less worry about the meat going bad, and all you have to do is heat it up to a palatable temperature before eating. If you think about it, there are many things that can be prepared in advance that will save you lots of time and effort in the desert. Be honest, there's way too much going on to have to waste a few hours cooking dinner. One of my favorite things is rice. It's a great staple and side dish for many meals. But I'm real particluar about rice - I want it Japanese style, sushi-sticky, if you know what I mean. My partner steams up a couple of batches at home before we leave, throws it into a ziploc bag and we have filler for everything. Gyros on rice, Jambalaya with red beans and rice, etc. I'm sure you get my drift here. Less cooking, more filling. You can make your own jerky, too … marinate turkey or beef in teriyaki sauce, throw that meat in an oven turned on low, let it dry out, and bag it up. Makes a great high-protean snack for the desert. It's also pretty darn cheap, compared to buying slim-jims at the 7-11. Heloise's tip - Put entire meals into separate bags, so you just pull one big bag out of your cooler for dinner and it's ready to heat and eat.
TTFN |
