"Well, the sun has come back out finally! After what seemed like forever, the heat returned. It rained here for 7 days straight! It was crazy. Everyday we would wake up and look outside and hope for sun. Well, yesterday the sun G-d's heard our prayers. I spent the day in the park reading my book and basking in the sun. This backpacking adventure is quite relaxing, I must say..hehe.Friday I am off to Blue Mountains with some friends and will write again after that excursion. We have been cooking every night and so far so good. Karine and I went to get some water bottles to transport our olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Not sure if this will work but fingers crossed. I really don't feel like washing all my clothes... oy!"
TIP #1: THE COOK'S BAG
Ok guys, here is my first tip. When you are travelling from hostel to hostel you want to have as few bags as possible. However when you are cooking in hostels, you will need to buy a few items that you will want to bring with you so you don't waste your money at every stop you make. This is where the "cook's bag" comes into place. The cook's bag is basically your bag of cooking essentials that you will need for almost every recipe you make. Here is how I made this work for me:
Food staples for the cook's bag:
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Salt and pepper mix
- Cajun spice mix or curry spice
- Chicken powder (great as a salt substitute but gives a lot of flavor as well)
Before travelling you can purchase two small water bottle-type containers for your olive oil and vinegar. These containers usually come in space saving designs which are ideal for travelling. When I backpacked, my "cook's bag" was a simple plastic grocery bag with my name clearly marked on it. I would attach it to the outside of my pack when I had to switch hostels or carefully pack it in my day bag.
When it was necessary, I would buy some extra items, leave some items behind, and share some items with fellow backpackers. One of the greatest things about cooking in hostels is that there almost always is a communal section where people leave sauces, spices etc. These are things that usually are costly so it is great when you can find something for free and it is equally great to leave something behind for the next backpacker.
The greatest reason to have a "cooks bag" is that you will save tons of cash by avoiding double shopping. Saving cash is awesome because then you get to spend your money on cool things like seeing the sights, going out, and of course...drinking! You will quickly see that cooking in hostels is cheaper then eating out all the time. Also eating real, fresh, tasty food is just as affordable as the canned stuff so please put down the canned meatballs and let's make them instead!
Stay tuned for more tips, advice, and of course recipes.
The Hostel Chef
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