By Cheri Sicard
Food and travel! Two of life’s greatest pleasures combined. In order to take full advantage of this magical pairing, I’ve compiled some tips for how to stock a small RV pantry for long-term travel or boondocking.
All it takes is a little planning and you will always have delicious meals at the ready, no matter where you travel and no matter how far from a grocery store you may roam.
Stocking up on food in an RV pantry is a bit different than stocking your bricks-and-sticks pantry.
There’s less room overall, and even less space than usual in the fridge and freezer. Therefore, the RV pantry needs to take on some of the duties you would otherwise delegate to the refrigerator and freezer.
Nonetheless, with some thought and planning, you can have everything you need for extended periods of boondocking or on the road. Consider these points:
Have a plan
Have at least a rough meal plan before leaving and before shopping. At a minimum, make a list of some of the meals you intend to make while on your trip. Or for the next weeks, if you are a full-timer. Be sure to plan some of your meals around recipes made with pantry ingredients and nonperishable proteins (see below).
Bring along a taste of home
What can’t you get at your destination? Stock up on any favorite local or regional foods your family enjoys as you may not be able to get these at your destination. Ditto any exotic or hard-to-find ingredients you regularly use.
Versatility is key
Think about multi-tasking foods that can be used in a variety of ways. For instance, if you buy a can of baked beans in sauce, you are limited in what you can do with it. Buy a can of plain beans and you can turn them into side dishes or dips, or use as soup, salad, or casserole ingredients.
Can it
From a culinary perspective, fresh is usually better. However, canned fruits and vegetables are some of the RV pantry’s best friends. This is because they save lots of fridge space and canned foods last far longer than fresh produce. Don’t forget, “canned” foods don’t necessarily have to come in a can. More and more foods are being packaged in shelf-stable pouches, which weigh less and take up less space than cans.
All dried up
If you have a food dehydrator, put it to use before leaving home. Not only can you stock your RV pantry with delicious snacks like jerky and dried fruits, you can dry vegetables, soup mixes, dip mixes, and lots of other prepped foods that need no refrigeration. Find recipes and ideas here.
Grains and pastas
Grains and pastas need no refrigeration. They also make terrific versatile bases for lots of tasty meals that come largely out of the RV pantry (as opposed to the fridge). Have some favorite pasta and grain recipes handy and stock your pantry with ingredients to make them.
The staff of life
Breads can be challenging in that they don’t last long and take up substantial space. Tortillas and flatbreads take up less room. Storing in the fridge will extend the shelf life of tortillas and bread substantially. Another good idea is to pack small boxes of biscuit mix, cornbread mix, etc., for hot-from-the-oven breads that are quick and easy to make.
Non-perishable proteins
Cans of tuna, chicken, salmon, oysters, etc., can provide healthy proteins that don’t take up refrigerator space. Make vegetarian entrees by stocking some silken tofu, which comes in shelf-stable boxes ranging in consistencies from soft to extra firm. Don’t forget high-protein nut butters like peanut butter or almond butter, too.
Shelf-stable dairy
Milk of all kinds, half-and-half, and even whipping cream are all available in shelf-stable packaging. The same is true of every type of plant-based vegan milk under the sun. Depending on where you live, these items may be readily available in the supermarket. Sometimes you may need to order online.
Condiments to go
A lot of restaurants regularly throw handfuls of condiment packets in with every order. Instead of tossing them out, hold on to them and stock your RV pantry. Think about it. How much mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, etc., do you really go through? Probably not all that much. You may be able to forgo a space-sucking jar or bottle and just pick up a few extra packets next time you are at a drive-through to stash in your RV pantry. Depending on where you dine, you can get lots of different condiments in packets: relish, malt vinegar, wasabi, hot sauces, etc.
Add some spice
At home, I have a whole cabinet devoted to spices. On the road, I don’t have that luxury. My advice for spice-loving foodies is to get some quality spice blends that serve a variety of uses.
Penzeys’ “Mural of Flavor” is a great example of a versatile blend that works with plenty of foods. Other choices from this high-quality spice company include Italian Seasoning, Southwest Seasoning, Cajun Seasoning, etc. These blends and others will give your foods lots of flavor without the need to cart around tons of different individual spices.
Don’t forget Fido and Fluffy
When it comes to pet food, pouches take up less space and weigh less than cans. Invest in a covered container for dry food as it will keep it from spilling and keep the food fresh.
The last step to stocking up on food in your RV
After you have a well-stocked RV pantry, filling the fridge and freezer should be your last step in stocking your RV with food.
If you’ve planned well and stocked your RV pantry, you should have enough room for the important ingredients that must be refrigerated.
Try to freeze foods solid before putting them in the RV freezer. I often will pack frozen meats in the fridge, too. Not only does this help keep the RV refrigerator cooler, but it can also help me pack more perishable foods and make them last longer. Just eat these first as they thaw.
How long can you go?
If I plan well, I can go for three weeks or so without visiting a grocery store and still eat well. This allows me more time to enjoy life off-grid and saves money overall, too.
Do you have other tips for stocking a small RV pantry for long-term travel? Drop them in the comments below.
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I use a food saver to prepackage serving sizes for meals, meats especially. By getting rid of store packaging and vacuuming out the air, I can stock a lot more in the freezer.
I keep my breads, rolls, etc in the freezer because refrigerating seems to hasten staleness
I like Penzy’s spices, too! Great company, great quality.
Lactose free milk has months long “use by” dates. And tastes like “real” milk, to me anyway.
So glad to see you use Penney’s. A company with a conscience!
At home we smoke hamburgers, freeze them in two-packs in the home freezer, and into the RV freezer as we get ready to hit the road. Quick and easy meal heated in the microwave!
UHT products are often found in the “international” or “Mexican” aisles or in baking aisles of supermarkets.
I have no idea what a UHT is.
Hi, George. UHT is “ultra high temperature” or “ultra heat treatment”–a method of processing food for a longer shelf life. Have a good night. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
I keep a variety of dried fruits and vegetables stocked in the RV and our off grid Alaska cabin. If you don’t have the time or inclination to dry them yourself, companies like North Bay Trading sells bulk dried products that are easily rehydrated and last forever. I always have good veggies to fall back on when fresh isn’t readily available.
When making your meals, if you are like me, I like toast for breakfast. Start the generator to make it? Why no! Use a pan on the stove. Put the toast in it and keep a sharp eye on making sure it does not burn. Flip as needed. I usually make my toast after everything else is done. My wife complains that I don’t use the electric toaster enough. It is fine when we are on shore power. I do use it then.
I also use a perculator instead of a coffee maker. Personal preference. Use a coffee filter in the basket for no grounds coffee.
As Terri S. does, my wife prepares one-dish meals and precooks some meats at home, then uses the food saver to vacuum pack and freeze them. She can store several weeks of meals for 2 in the RV freezer and fridge. We seldom out out, so space-, weght-, and time-saving meals are important when we are on-the-road every 2 or 3 days.
We also carry mashed potato mixes, Annie’s mac & cheese packages, and dried soups, all of which are very lightweight and just needed water added. Dried/frozen fruit is also lighter than canned fruit. We make oatmeal, muffins, rice pudding, yogurt, trail mix, etc., using dried raisins, cranberries, apricots, strawberries, and frozen blueberries.
Thank you, Cheri! 🙂 This is a really helpful article, thank you! When we went to Alaska, DW and her mother made copious amounts of chili and lasagna. These were portioned into meals for four and frozen. They thawed and reheated these on the days no one felt like cooking, usually travel days. DW’s parents had a conventional RV refrigerator in their fiver and we had a residential one in our MH, so space was less tight freezer-wise. Thanks again for this great reference article! Safe travels and happy Easter! 🙂