One of the ways to make your boating more enjoyable is to have your galley set up properly.
Experience has shown that the following should be borne in mind:
- Make sure you have a good deep sink, preferably a deep double.
- Have good water faucets or taps.
- Hand or foot pumps are simple and reliable, however electric pumps are common now and can give good service.
- Have a good stove with gimbals and potholders – twin burners are best, with a grill and/or oven if possible.
- If gas, the stove should have a flame failure device fitted for safety, with a separate gas tap in the galley to enable it to be isolated.
- Make sure you have some good bench/table working space, with a raised edge and wipe out slot.
- Make sure you have a good mug rack or hooks and a plate and bowl rack.
- Have storage jars, preferably square, behind a rail for quick access.
- Have the can food locker below a seat, and a good size pot locker under a bench in or close to the galley.
- Make sure you have a fan on the bulkhead facing towards the hatch to extract galley fumes.
- Install a security strap for offshore sailing.
- Good Melamine or Corelle plates and deep bowls are the best. Stainless lined thermal mugs with hook handles and good lids are definitely the best option for hot drinks – the hook handle is to hang over galley sink edge whilst making coffee and to hang on the binnacle rail for the helmsman’s easy access.
- Provisions are best prepared in multiple small packs -not the big value jar that you can’t store and allows the contents to go stale from sea air fast.
- Flat mountain bread is a great back up and easy to eat rolled up.
- If you are day sailing, make the skipper happy and don’t bring a cold chook – chook bits just seem to get over the boat in no time, and having crew hanging off winches with drumsticks in the mouth is not a good look! Also avoid seeded bread rolls – poppy and sesame seeds are a curse around the cockpit.
- Make sandwiches small and bite size so you can grab and eat them quickly. For longer trips, small packs of cracker biscuits with cheese to keep the crew fed and sugar balanced. Muslin bars are good, but sweet.
- Make sure you have lots of water on board, and small water bottles for each crewmember that can be refilled. Hydration can be critical for crew concentration and harmony especially on long races!
Being able to provide attractive and nutritious meals afloat takes a little forethought and preparation, but it is worth the effort just to see the reaction of the crew to good food, particularly when the crew is hungry after a watch.
