ON SITE FOOD/COOKING TIPS

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• PRECOOK RICE at home, let it cool, and seal it in a gallon ziplock bag. Can be heated up with meat for a fast first-night dinner, or use an egg, some oil, a few veggies and bits of meat for fried rice.

• FOOD PREP--Do as much at home as you can. Prechop veggies, measure and bag pancake mix ingredients, parbake a couple potatoes.

• DUTCH OVEN--indepensable in our camp. We've used it for baking cakes and bread, holding water for washing, frying....and the lid makes a great grill or spare plate for an unexpected guest.

• HOT WATER--Take an insulated coffee pot. We fill it with hot water at home, and have hot water for dinner or washup after camp it completed. Also, you can make hot water or coffee at night and have it ready for you when you wake. Washing up with hot water before you put in your contacts is so much nicer....

• FREEZE AHEAD--A technique that has worked well for my household for Great Northeastern War is to make a batch of beef and vegetable stew at home. Freeze this in a pot that will work on whatever stove or cooking source you will use in camp. If taken in a cold cooler it will still be solidly frozen on the second day. You can then safely heat this to boiling in camp and have a ready meal by simply serving it with bread. This can save all the chopping and simmering time on a day when we are usually busy working at the event. --contributed by Lady Aelfwyn

• DRIED FOODS--Has anyone tried to make a stew out of dried vegetables and meats? I was considering throwing some dried beef cubes, dried carrots etc into a pot with some water, onion powder and so forth... It occurs to me that, if it works, you could prepackage quite a few nice stew meals in advance.--contributed by Tig

• THINK ABOUT FOODS THAT DON'T NEED REFRIGERATION--. Cured meat like salami and salt fish, hard cheese like pecorino or parmesan, root vegetables like garlic, onions, radishes, carrots and turnips, medium to long life fruit like apples, pears, citrus fruit and melons, spices, dry goods, biscuits and crackers, nuts, dried fruit, pasta, and rice. And eggs. And almond meal. And pickled and preserved fruits and vegetables. And water. And beer and wine.If you are able, add your favourite perishable veges, dairy and meat goods stored in your cold box *which you make sure to keep as cold as you can* (try dry ice).***Given what cooking facilities you have***; what can we make with those?The real differences we have with medieval cooks is we can't buy meat fresh daily on site, we don't have a milk producer on the hoof, and we don't have a herb garden out the back of our tents. Pity.PS. Make a roster & stick to it. Make a roster & stick to it. Make a roster & stick to it. --contributed by Alistair aka Stefano

• THINK LIKE YOU ARE COOKING IN A REGULAR KITCHEN--I found that you are only limited by what you do not have. This last weekend at Barmaids, a friend of mine brought out a waffle pan and a nitrous powered whipped cream dispenser. Belgian Waffles anyone? I try and plan my foodplan based on what is going to happen at the event. If there's to be a lot of fighting, the previous night I'll make something with lots of starch and protein. Pasta is especially good for this(and easy to pack). It gives the fighters a little extra energy out on the field. I'm a firm believer that if you have a properly equiped kitchen, you can do anything you can do at home. Only difference is the amount of prep. I love Tupperware(tm). With it you can store, freeze, & thaw anything. You don't have to worry about extra dirt getting in the food. Darn wind can get through the best kitchen tent and I prefer cooking in the open. Proper sizes fit easily into ice chest or storage boxes. As far as recipies: Bisquits and Gravy, Meat Gruel (Beef cubes with Gravy and rice), Brautwurst with Saurkraut, Potatoes and Onions, Beer Batter fried chicken , Stir fry(beef, chicken, pork, shrimp), Roast foul with stuffing, Veggie pasta salad vinegret, Scottish eggs, Meat pies, Fajitas , Spanish Cornbread--You name it, it can be done. If you want to cheat, you can have a cooking party the night before the event and just heat it up when you get there. So long as you have good presentation and flair, who's to know you didn't cook it there. Prep. Prep. Prep, and a good kitchen staff and you'll go far.ps. Oh yeah. Have a plan and stick to it. Have a plan and stick to it. Have a plan and stick to it.--contributed by Fergus de Botha

• MARINATE MEAT BEFOREHAND--My favorite recipe is to take frozen chicken breasts and put them in a ziplock bag with about 1/2 a cup of italian salad dressing. Keep in an ice chest until ready to cook. They grill beautifully over a fire or can be cooked on a camp stove. Bagged salad is a wonderful invention, perfect to bring to an event.--contributed by Beth AKA Peldyn

• STRAWBERRY SCONE RECIPE--I also like to make scones at home to bring to an event. Tea and scones for breakfast are wonderful!--contributed by Beth AKA Peldyn
Strawberry scones
• 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teas. baking powder
• 1/4 teas. salt
• 3 tbls. butter
• 2 tbls. sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup light cream
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh or frozen strawberries
• milk and sugar for top
• Sift flour with baking soda, salt, and sugar. Cut the butter into this until it resembles coarse meal. Toss the strawberries with the flour mixture. Lightly beat the egg and cream together. Add to flour and stir until just mixed. Pat out in the shape of a round, onto a greased baking sheet. Make eight pie shaped slices in dough, only cutting about halfway through. Brush top with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 400 degrees until the top is golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Makes eight scones.
• DON'T GIVE UP ANYTHING THAT WORKS--Grilled meat can be a godsend sometimes. Brisket is especially good. Just marinade that bad kid for a few days in a mixture of teriaki, a little wine(port is REALLY good), water, lemon juice, garlic salt and pepper. Be sure to third about five cloves of garlic and put the slivers into the meat BEFORE you marinade. It'll help spread the garlic taste through the meat. I guarentee than when you grill this to a nice medium rare that people will definately be following their noses. A nice large garnish (larger is better when prepping feast foods, so long as it doesn't take away from the dish) like a leaf of romane lettuce and a few grilled cherry tomatoes works nicely. Make a presentation of the carving. Trust me, the meat will fall away from the knife. Baby taters (skin on) and whole green beans in a butter sauce is a good follow-up. Roasted in the husk sweet corn always goes over good. (Be sure to dip the husks in water before grilling to prevent burning.) To finish, for a cheesy touch get some hamburger buns. Split 'em and put the inside up. Melt some cheddar and pepper jack cheese till it's pourable. put a dollip on the buns so that it 'just' goes over the edge. Before the cheese sets sprinkle lightly with some parsley(just enough to make it look spiced). A cherry cobbler or pudding is a good desert. Bisquick has a great recipie on practically every box.--contributed by Fergus of Agni Vajra of the Barony of Tyr Ysgithr

•  Hay boxes have been used for centuries to slow-cook any number of foods.  We brought one to the last SCA event and from about 10 minutes of preparation at breakfast time, served up a tasty stew at supper with no

added fuss... merely the pot to wash.  You must have a kettle small enough that it will be about 3/4 full when you have the end quantity desired all mixed up inside.  Insulate it well either with a wooden hay box (we brought ours to double as a 2x2x2 foot styrofoam filled camp seat) or with scads of sleeping bags contained in something cohesive so there are no cracks between them to let the warmth out or the cold in.  Brown whatever needs browning, add whatever liquids need adding.  Bring to a thorough boil (a good bubbling
for a few minutes) and close it up in the hay box.  When you come back a number of hours later, the rice is cooked, the meat is tender, the vegetables are delicious and the company satisfied.  You even have the
leisure to fix a salad or toss back a cocktail before you begin.--contributed by Angharad

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