What meals do you cook off-site?

[Meech Loves Mickey]

Hi!

Looking for some quick and easy meals to cook for our off-site stay this June. We are going to be bringing groceries with us, so it needs to be something that doesn't have a ton of ingredients and little prep. (Mom's on vacation too!)
(We will be stopping at the store for perishable items when we arrive.)

Thanks!


MOD: sorry if this is in the wrong forum, I wasn't sure where to put this.

 

[bankr63]

We stick to the KISS principle.

We do try for a hearty breakfast and do lots of eggs with oven hashbrowns and usually ham slices (easier/cleaner than bacon).

Lunches are almost always on the go in the parks, but we usually pack it along (one counter service lunch for two at Uni was almost $40!). We focus on easy protein like jerky, hard boiled eggs, cheese and crackers, fruit and nut mix. Freeze a water bottle to keep things cold until lunch - drink it in the afternoon.

Dinners are simple too. Do you have a BBQ where you are? Cuts way down on the dishes! Some of our meals from March included:

Zatarain's Dirty Rice (add a few extra veggies)
BBQ Steak
BBQ Chicken and Salad
Nachos
BBQ Sausages with slaw
Frozen Pizza (but get the good gourmet ones!)​

There were a couple of others that I can't remember, but the focus was always minimal effort healthy(ish) and high energy. DW's fitbit had us doing around 18,000 steps most days.

 

[jsmla]

I try to cook as much as I can at home, freeze it and mostly just do a bit of reheating in the condo. I also use a lot of convenience stuff like foil pans and crock pot liners.

Gumbo/Salad/Garlic bread
Jambalaya/White beans/Salad
Red beans/Andouille/Rice/Greens
Bolognese/Pasta/Salad/Garlic bread
Taco/Taco salad bar
Baked potato bar
Homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

Thanks for all of the suggestions!

We stick to the KISS principle.

We do try for a hearty breakfast and do lots of eggs with oven hashbrowns and usually ham slices (easier/cleaner than bacon).

Lunches are almost always on the go in the parks, but we usually pack it along (one counter service lunch for two at Uni was almost $40!). We focus on easy protein like jerky, hard boiled eggs, cheese and crackers, fruit and nut mix. Freeze a water bottle to keep things cold until lunch - drink it in the afternoon.

Dinners are simple too. Do you have a BBQ where you are? Cuts way down on the dishes! Some of our meals from March included:

Zatarain's Dirty Rice (add a few extra veggies)
BBQ Steak
BBQ Chicken and Salad
Nachos
BBQ Sausages with slaw
Frozen Pizza (but get the good gourmet ones!)​

There were a couple of others that I can't remember, but the focus was always minimal effort healthy(ish) and high energy. DW's fitbit had us doing around 18,000 steps most days.

We are staying at Sheraton Vistana Villages and a I'm not sure if there is a grill available there or not. I will have to find out. Those are all great snack ideas and most are things that we can bring with us from home.

I try to cook as much as I can at home, freeze it and mostly just do a bit of reheating in the condo. I also use a lot of convenience stuff like foil pans and crock pot liners.

Gumbo/Salad/Garlic bread
Jambalaya/White beans/Salad
Red beans/Andouille/Rice/Greens
Bolognese/Pasta/Salad/Garlic bread
Taco/Taco salad bar
Baked potato bar
Homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese

Unfortunately, we have a day plus drive, so bringing frozen meals from home is not an option. But we can bring the dry goods from home and get the perishable items when we arrive.



Thanks for all of the suggestions! Keep 'em coming!

 

[jsmla]

That's too bad, cooking ahead really helps me but we can drive over in a day (ten hours) and my stuff will stay frozen in our Yeti for that long.

Anywho, sometimes we fly. On those trips I'll do a bit of prep the first day-stuff like browning the ground meat for tacos and spaghetti and boiling up a huge pot of pasta to have with the meat sauce as well as for pasta salads. It cuts down on the prep and clean-up time after a day in the parks. I usually throw a couple of chicken breasts in the oven while I'm at it. We use these for salads or stir-fried with a bag of frozen veggies.

In over 20 years of meal prep at WDW I find that it's the clean up that gets to me. I do anything I can to keep the mess to a minimum. We go through a lot of foil and paper plates!

I make sure to pack any spices we'll need. They take up very little room and buying full-sized containers of all of them in Florida can get spendy.

 

[dancin Disney style]

We always make breakfast in the condo and several lunches. Simple things like cereal and bagels for breakfast which is what we have at home anyway. Lunches are sandwiches or dinner leftovers. If we are hanging out at the pool we might make burgers or hot dogs for lunch. Dinners we do things like frozen lasagna, frozen pizza and bag salads. Our vacations are usually 10-14 days long so we will eat out about half of our lunch and dinners.

I bring as many spices and condiments from home as possible. Those things really add up if you need to buy them and you never use all of it. I save up small plastic containers for things like ketchup, mustard and salad dressing. I also bring tin foil, coffee, tea, microwave popcorn, ice tea powder, crackers and cereal.

One way to make the meals that you do have in much easier is to have a meal plan. Figure out how many dinners you will eat in and then come up with a menu. You can then choose from the menu at mealtime what you feel like at that moment.

 

[jennasmommyinMS]

We're staying at Wyndham Bonnet Creek next month, but we're staying at Pop Century for the first night of our vacation. I'm still bringing a cooler with frozen food from home, even though it will likely be spending about 40 hours in there. My cooler is on wheels, so I'll be bringing it into our room at Pop to get it into the air conditioning, and then dropping it off at Bonnet Creek the next morning so that it can stay out of my hot van until that afternoon. If you pack it well, the food will be fine.

I pack that cooler tight with fully frozen food, filling every space. If there's a gap, I'll load that area with ice cubes. When I get to the top, I'll put a towel on top to fill the last couple of inches, and the lid goes down--not to be opened again until I'm ready to unload it. The last time I did this, the food had been in the cooler for almost 24 hours, including a couple of hours parked out in the heat, and everything was still frozen solid when I unloaded it--even the ice cubes. The key parts are packing it well and not opening it until you're ready to unpack it. I sat a second cooler on top of that one for road trip stuff--drinks and cold snacks for the road--so that I knew that the one with the frozen food had no chance of being opened during the drive.

As for meal ideas, my grocery store has this soup mix that I picked up for $2.00, and it makes 8 cups--just add water. I'll make grilled cheese sandwiches to go with the soup for one of our evening meals. I like to make the sandwiches in the oven on a sheet pan. I can make 8 sandwiches at a time that way, and they're all done in 15 minutes, which is the same amount of time for the soup to cook.

I have other meals planned, but they're pretty much the same ones that others have already posted.

 

[momof2gr8kids]

Ditto what Jennasmommy said. We did a road trip and jammed packed a cooler with frozen food and ice packs. Most of it was still frozen after our 2 day drive. Some of it was partially thawed and we at that first. I highly recommend making what you can at home and freezing it - will make your vacation that much more relaxing with it already done!

 

[greenclan67]

I am.usually up before everyone else. So my first day there I make sure I have everything to prep for a few meals. Our last trip in March was 14 days and being Canadian the exchange was brutal so we ate in more. My first morning, I cooked a whole chicken, a huge package of ground beef, split the cooked ground beef for tacos and pasta sauce. We froze half the pasta sauce for pasta for our second week. We did pasta x's two nights, tacos ( chicken & beef) Chicken Ceasar salad and garlic bread, We picked up hand crafted sandwiches at Winn Dixie one night, ordered pizza in one night. I also make homemade pancake mix in ziploc bags ( dry ingredients) and bring it with me. Just add the milk & egg when ready. Lots of great easy options.

 

[jm106]

In the past we roasted a whole chicken or parts and used it for dinner with a salad, lunches-wraps/chicken salad/ with garden salad
Then we have made tacos, quick easy meal plus you use the lettuce,tomato... from chicken meal for tacos(or you can shred the chicken to use in taco or burritos.)

 

[Greenfield1984]

We have a 24 hour drive and are driving from Canada so I can't prep meals before coming (can't bring meat across the border). I just finished our meal plan and tried to keep the meals really simple. Am also going to use the crock pot a couple of days. Throw it in in the morning and when we get back from the parks supper will pretty much be ready.

Here's what we're having for our suppers:
Fajitas
Chili (in crockpot)
Chicken cesar salad & frozen pizza
Spaghetti
Pulled pork sandwiches (in crockpot)
Hamburgers

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

Thanks to all for their suggestions! I like the idea of making the meal plan and knowing exactly how many nights and what you are cooking. Also good to know about the spices, ketchup etc. would never have thought of that.

I'm going to make a spreadsheet of meals and what I need to bring and what I need to buy when we arrive.

 

[sk8jdgca]

We have a 24 hour drive and are driving from Canada so I can't prep meals before coming (can't bring meat across the border). I just finished our meal plan and tried to keep the meals really simple. Am also going to use the crock pot a couple of days. Throw it in in the morning and when we get back from the parks supper will pretty much be ready.

Here's what we're having for our suppers:
Fajitas
Chili (in crockpot)
Chicken cesar salad & frozen pizza
Spaghetti
Pulled pork sandwiches (in crockpot)
Hamburgers

You actually can bring any meat except lamb over the border. No fresh fruit or veggies though. That being said you will probably get a better price on chicken but I haven't had much luck with hamburger in the states

 

[elaine amj]

Here's a few highlights about things you can bring over the border (particularly for Cdn travelers). That said, we personally find it too much hassle and just grocery shop in the US. DH just get too stressed. We do bring stuff like hotdogs and lunch meats. I wish I can get DH to be more comfortable about meat products though. Right now we rarely camp in the US because I hate taking the time to grocery shop on our way and it's a pain not to be able to pre-cook and do prep at home.

I am a Canadian Citizen and want to bring Canadian food products?

General Food

The following are generally admissible if they are unopened and commercially packed. Many prepared foods that are unopened and commercially labeled are admissible (excluding meats and meat products). You may bring bakery items and most cheeses into the United States. As a general rule, condiments, vinegars, oils, packaged spices, honey, maple syrup, coffee, fish, tea, and baby formula are admissible. Because rice can often harbor insects, it is best to avoid bringing it into the United States, particularly if it is in loose burlap packaging. Foods in packaging that appears unsafe or contaminated may be refused entry.

Fruits and Vegetables

Canadian grown fruits and vegetables grown during the typical Canadian growing season, May-October, are generally admissible if they are labeled identifying them as products of Canada. The best source for the current fruits and vegetable status on crops originating from Canada can be found on page 140 of the Animal and Plan Health Inspection Service (APHIS) website: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/manuals/ports/downloads/fv.pdf. You may also call APHIS at 301-851-2016 or toll-free at 877-770-5990. Every fruit or vegetable must be declared to a CBP Agriculture Specialist or CBP Officer and must be presented for inspection - regardless of its admissibility status. Fresh fruits and vegetables need to be clean and may be prohibited if they have insects or diseases.

Animal Products and Animal By-Products

The importation of fresh, dried or canned meats or meat products is generally not allowed from most foreign countries into the United States. This includes products that have been prepared with meat. However, currently pork and poultry, which has proof of origin, from Canada is enterable. Not all Ruminant material can enter however personal use amounts of bovine meat or foods containing bovine meat or meat products (e.g., beef, veal, bison) are allowed in passenger baggage and mail, no import permit or other documentation is required.

Questions about bringing hunting meat/wild game products, please click here.

The regulations on importing meat and meat products change frequently because they are based on disease outbreaks in different areas of the world. The best source for the current disease status can be found starting on page 19 of the APHIS website: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/manuals/ports/do

 

[tristyp]

We stayed at SVV last year. They do have bbqs. We went to Costco last year. We bought a big pack of boneless skinless chicken Breast, a big pack of Ribs and a large spiral Ham. We were at parks half of the days and at the Resort the other half. The ham was convenient as we ate it for 2 days as well as my wife made a quiche (quick and easy,no mess) plus we used it as a breakfast meat. My wife was up a bit earlier and she found Chicken recipes to cook in a casserole dish. We would re-heat at night. The Ribs were great for resort days as we slow cooked them in the oven while we were in the poo and then finished them on the grill. We pre-made a pasta salad so it was quick. Costco has a great bagged Kale salad which we also used. We kept dishes to a minimum as others have said by using re-useable plates, tinfoil etc. The other thing we did was we purchase a rotiserrie chicken from Costco for 4.49 and ate that for dinner the first night with some wedges and salad. We were able to use the leftovers for sandwiches the next day.
We are also from Canada. We did about a 50/50 split of eating in and out. This year due to the dollar it will probably be 70/30. We didn't bring food into the parks but we did bring snack bars and drinks and that really helps reduce the costs. Hope this helps.

 

[avic77]

I make extra to use over 2 meals:

Meatball subs (crock pot meatballs on low) & chips
Leftover meatballs with Spaghetti Salad and garlic bread
Tacos or nachos
Leftover taco meat used in shepherd's pie (layer meat peas mashed potatoes cheese bake on 350 till hot)
Hotdogs and chips
Frozen Family size lasagna (Stouffer's is good) Salad and bread

 

[LoveToTravel2001]

While we don't cook on Disney vacations, we do for our ski vacations.
I always bring my crock pot. I can easily make:
Chili served with pre-made corn bread
Meatballs just cook up some pasta with some rolls and a salad (make extra pasta for pasta salad)
Sweet and sour chicken with some minute rice
Ribs with pasta salad
Beef stew with brad and maybe a salad
Pork roast either as pull pork sandwiches or sliced with potatoes and veggies
Always use a crock pot liner for easy clean up. I pre-mix my seasonings for each meal into a ziplock baggies so I don't have to bring all of them with me. Ziplock bags for storing leftovers - no clean up.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

Nights we cook at the condo are usually quick and easy nights - we're eating well when we eat out, so we do whatever is easy when we stay in.

Pasta with meat sauce is the big one, with frozen Texas Toast in the oven.
Good deli pizzas is another.

We usually take muffin mixes and disposable tins to make muffins. Breakfast is usually super easy - toaster waffles and microwave bacon or instant oatmeal.

Since we drive, we can take a crockpot, but we don't always. Crockpot meatballs are awesome and usually good for two nights. One night as subs and one night served with couscous and pineapple chunks.

 

[NorthshoreTigerFan]

For my family, breakfast is a no brainer every morning unless we are doing a character breakfast. Bringing (or buying at a local grocery store) some fruit, cereal and milk couldn't be easier. We rarely eat lunch in the condo. For dinner, I'm a huge fan of crock pots because we can let our red beans, chili, chicken in wine sauce or whatever we are cooking go all day while we are at the parks. We have also frozen meals and brought them with us (we drive and it takes about 10 hours door to door so spoilage isn't an issue). On average, I think we eat dinner at the condo about 2 or 3 nights out of a week long trip.

 

[tasha99]

Breakfast in the condo every day. Bagels w/ cream cheese, cucumbers and lox, bacon and eggs. Well probably go to Boardwalk Bakery once for to-go pastries.

Lunch is usually out. We only have one lunch ADR, but other days we'll most likely eat a counter service meal in the parks. Dinner is about half TS and half made in the condo. Spaghetti, chili, sandwiches--it will always be something with a quick prep and easy clean up, because I'm on vacation!

Like the tip above about crockpot liners. I never use them at home, but will pick some up for our trip.