While they're not the "Meal of Champions" these little bags of goodness have gotten me through many an evening of dining. We normally have our "big" meal at lunch time so that we have plenty of time during the day to work it off. Evenings are pretty much left to what ever we each feel like having. Tracy normally goes for the more healthy stuff like apples and peanut butter or perhaps cottage cheese with salt and pepper. I on the other hand tend to go for the junk stuff. What I choose may not be good for me but it sure tastes good and satisfies my hunger pangs when on watch at night.
The photo above shows some of my favorites. Quick and easy with flavors that I can doctor up anyway I wish. On the left is a new introduction from Maggi. Slow Roasted Chili Flavor Noodles. Now the bag says to cook in 1.5 cups of water for two minutes and then drain off the liquid. Pour the noodles into a bowl and add the Soy Sauce packet that comes with it and stir it up and then add the "Spice Sachet" and stir again. It ends up being a nice spicy glop of noodles. I forgot to read the part about crunching the noodles into small pieces as I normally eat this as a soup. It was very good and full of flavor. I tried it a second time a few days later(noodles all crunched) and it was better as the noodles weren't in such a clump. I tried it a third time, this time as a soup--use 2.5 cups of water, cook for 2 minutes, add in the packet of Soy Sauce and the "Spice Sachet"and let it cook for another two minutes. Pour the soup into a bowl and let it cool down for a few minutes and dig in. I felt I got a lot more having it as a soup than just a noodle dish. Now if I had added some chicken, that would make a difference but I rarely do that as I enjoy the soup just as it is. Those artificial flavors come through just fine.
As for the two on the right, one by Apollo and one by Maggi, they are just fine. The Apollo comes with two flavor packets also. One with curry and one with the chili powder to make it HOT. With some of the earlier packets I'd bought, I'd add in some cracked chili flakes and pepper to get it to my liking. With this, it's not necessary. The thing about the two on the right is that they cost about half of what the new Senses does. The two on the right come in at just .25 cents while the Senses is at .44 cents. For me, all are good and quick and if the seas while under passage aren't too rough, it's the perfect meal for me as I go on watch at 1900.
Another favorite for me is popcorn. Lots of bulk in it and if I put cheese sprinkles and some salt on it, well it fills the stomach quite well and lasts for hours. Again, it only gets made when the seas are calm enough to allow me to not get thrown around so I can safely deal with hot oil(popcorn) or hot water(soup). When on really nasty passages, we descend to Vienna Sausages in their little cans. Lots of flavors available and they keep for years in a nice dry drawer anywhere in the boat. We ate a lot of these on our crossing of the Pacific Ocean in 2011.
We always keep a nice supply of snacks with in reach of the cockpit and have even had boxes set up with just snack food to keep them all in one area. Pretzels, chips(assorted flavors), cookies, crackers, apples and oranges and what ever else we can find in the different markets that quick and easy and not to hard on the stomach. It's important to go on watch with a full stomach as it can get quite boring sometimes and snacks make the night pass easier. It's not good for the waistline but it will keep you awake just thinking about what you will have next.