Interesting Pilgrim food hacks?

[evanlow]

1. Stopping for a break for the last push to Sahagun on the Camino del Madrid, Maura pulled out some leftover bread and a banana and said 'interesting, a banana sandwich'....

2. One morning after waiting for the bar to open, discovered they just have coffee, no food (not even those plastic wrapped ones) I pulled a boiled egg inside my backpack (tendency to buy half a dozen and boil them the night before) together with a slice of bread and a Mayo squirt bottle, crushed the egg, fold the bread in half, squirt some mayo and had an egg sandwich. (Mayo generally lasts 3-4 days before they turn light yellow). One of the them said "wow, that's looks like a hack from a pro".

Got me wondering, what other pilgrim food hacks are out there? Especially given the constrains of the Camino....

 

[Purky]

I'm a half dozen boiled eggs and tube of mayonaise in the pack man myself (and some salt). Saved my bacon more than once in France.
I also usually have one or two little tins of fish as last resort/panic food: sardines, mackerel or plain tuna.
Some bread is in my pack on principle: covers breakfast, lunch and dinner if need be. The same goes for fruit.
It is nice to be able to dish out an impromptu meal and even better to share it with someone who is caught off guard foodwise.

 

[notion900]

Here @StevethePlanner demonstrates the replacement of 6 cooled hard boiled eggs in their box, in the albergue at Casar de Caceres on the VDLP. Later to be consumed at the Embalsa Alcantara. Mmm, thanks Steve! Hope you're still going good.


I am a proponent of salted almonds. And Figs. Many a dawn start has been powered by these little beauties.

PS can we not say 'hacks', it's just too InstaPilgrim. 'Tips' is much nicer.

 

[trecile]

I'm thinking of bringing a small bottle of Tajín seasoning with me to improve the taste of some of the blander pilgrim's meals.

 

[notion900]

I'm thinking of bringing a small bottle of Tajín seasoning with me to improve the taste of some of the blander pilgrim's meals.

I thought about bringing a giant bottle of Daddies Sauce, a litre of Heinz Salad Cream, and a vat of Small Chunk Branston but realised it might cause offence.

 

[Deleted member 29041]

Last Monday, my breakfast was what I had at hand: a packet of olives, a tomato and some bread I dipped in olive oil. Definitely not the last time I'm doing that

Those small packets of olives are really quite handy

 

[notion900]

Nicest and cheapest cafe breakfast - tostada con tomate. It's plain toast which comes with a small bowl of a paste made of peeled and bashed tomatoes, you spread it on the bread and drizzle with olive oil. Tastier and healthier than boring old mermelada.

 

[PaulCat]

I'm thinking of bringing a small bottle of Tajín seasoning with me to improve the taste of some of the blander pilgrim's meals.

Maybe I should pack some Tony's.

 

[Lurch]

Sounds like I should bring some of those deli sealed one use packs of mayo with me. But they do have jalapeno sauce in Spain don't they??? Please tell me yes!!!I can forego eating the peppers but a man has to have his jalapeno or habanero sauce. Once you have stunned the tastebuds anything tastes passable!

 

[notion900]

If I was running a restaurant and people came in with their own sauces, I would throw them out on the street. Just saying.

 

[Lurch]

I was referring to meals on the run, so to speak. Restaurants usually have a their foods spiced enough for me, but eating my boiled eggs under a tree needs more than salt for enhancement. Now pickled eggs, that is different. Probably have to pack my own sardines, too!

 

[trecile]

Sounds like I should bring some of those deli sealed one use packs of mayo with me. But they do have jalapeno sauce in Spain don't they??? Please tell me yes!!!I can forego eating the peppers but a man has to have his jalapeno or habanero sauce. Once you have stunned the tastebuds anything tastes passable!

It's not Mexico, so those wouldn't be common in Spain.

 

[notion900]

There are various spicy paprika type sauces in bottles. And the pickled pimentos are very nice. So fear not.

 

[HeidiL]

I always carry some powdered soup bags. Mushroom soup sprinkled over pasta (there is always half a bag of macaroni in the back of the cabinet in albergues with kitchen), drizzled with olive oil (ditto) and some small chunks of cheese, maybe with a sliced tomato or two or some frozen peas if there was a shop in the last village, makes a nice meal when there isn't a bar/restaurant around.

(My specialty is getting to the village on the one day in the week when the bar is closed - won't happen on the Francés, will definitely happen on the less popular caminos.)

 

[nathanael]

Nicest and cheapest cafe breakfast - tostada con tomate. It's plain toast which comes with a small bowl of a paste made of peeled and bashed tomatoes, you spread it on the bread and drizzle with olive oil. Tastier and healthier than boring old mermelada.

now that sounds good myself unable to eat eggs..so the tostada con tomate sounds real healthy.

 

[camino-david]

I thought about bringing a giant bottle of Daddies Sauce, a litre of Heinz Salad Cream, and a vat of Small Chunk Branston but realised it might cause offence.

What! No Marmite!

 

[StepheninDC]

I thought about bringing a giant bottle of Daddies Sauce, a litre of Heinz Salad Cream, and a vat of Small Chunk Branston but realised it might cause offence.

I'm an American and I like Branston pickle!

What! No Marmite!

Ugh, now Marmite, that stuff IS an offence! ;-)

 

[notion900]

Mushroom soup sprinkled over pasta

We used to call this carbo-cond when I was a student - carbohydrate plus condiment, the last resort. Rice and marmite is the worst.

 

[Lurch]

There are various spicy paprika type sauces in bottles. And the pickled pimentos are very nice. So fear not.[/QUOte

I was just being a smarta** with my comments, so sorry bout that. Almost each society has some form of spicy condiment; whether it is Hatch chili and ghost pepper, or jalapeno and habanero, or wasabi or Polish horseradish, so I do not fear for not finding something hot enough for my tastes...but about that ghost chile...

 

[jbear]

I always had some cured meat and bread in my backpack. Usually some hard cheese as well, same as at home. But the two things I had on the Camino that I wouldn't necessarily have here were; 1) A small (plastic, not glass) bottle of olive oil, 2) A water bottle full of olives.

The water bottle of olives was something I thought of one day as I was walking out of a store with bag of bulk olives. I enjoy them so much more than the small packs of olives that one would buy. But one of my favorite parts about the Camino was interacting with the shop keepers, so this was perfect.

 

[J.Patrick]

I'm taking Cholula...can't be helped.

 

[Marbe2]

We bring packs of powdered HErb Ox Chicken bouillon soup. No msg, 5 calories and 1100mg of salt. We use them with a hot cup of water at a bar with no food, Have added part of a packet into bland spaghetti soup, and other foods which have recused the dish! They are lite weight and easy to store.

 

[vettesquared]

Maybe I should pack some Tony's.

Try "Slap Ya Mama". Similar to Tony's but more peppery and not as salty. It's my go-to seasoning.

 

[Marcus-UK]

I'm an American and I like Branston pickle!

I used to work for a firm in Huntsville Alabama but based in the UK. On my trips to Head Office I used to take jars of Piccalilli and Branston for my colleagues who had become addicted while stationed in the UK. On my return journey I had Choululah hot sauce, Various steak and BBQ sauces for my American colleagues based in the UK.

 

[Marcus-UK]

I'm taking Cholula...can't be helped.

Cholula can now be purchased in the UK

 

[Derrybiketours]

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[henrythedog]

I wonder if those recently lobbying to keep threads open indefinitely might now be reconsidering their position?

The concept of a ‘food hack’ is a new one for me. It would seem that inserting a boiled egg into a bread roll, adding mayonnaise and some seasoning and declaring the result to be an egg sandwich is somehow the peregrino version of splitting the atom.

(To the usual suspects - I really don’t need telling that I’m being intolerant.)

More significantly, the news that Cholula is available in the UK deserved a thread of its own. Carrying either Branson or Vegemite in your pack would be guaranteed to make life-long friends as well.