One of the many benefits of enjoying an RV lifestyle is the convenience of bringing your kitchen with you everywhere you go. Whether you are in Alabama or Alaska, you can make your favorite dishes, save money on meals by cooking in your RV and ensure that you have the foods that you simply cannot live without with you at all times. Additionally, having the ability to cook in your own well-equipped kitchen, makes eating healthy while on the road much easier and more convenient.
Whether you love to cook or just go through the motions in order to avoid eating cereal at every meal, herbs are an essential part of the process that make foods more enjoyable and can even make each meal more nutritious. Cooking with herbs and spices is also a great way to add flavor to your meals without the need for using salt as a seasoning, which is ideal for anyone limiting their sodium intake, as well as for anyone managing high blood pressure, watching their weight or avoiding excessive salt use due to other health concerns.
While most dried herbs are easy to find in any grocery store and are convenient to stow in even small RV kitchens, there is nothing quite like fresh herbs or herbs that you have grown yourself and dried, even while on the road. Gardening on the road may seem like more trouble than it is worth, but if you start with a simple herb garden, you just mind find yourself moving up to tomatoes, peppers and other larger vegetable plants once you see just how easy it can be.
Consider starting small with just a couple of your favorite herbs. This will allow you to enjoy healthy, flavorful dishes while on the road and will encourage you to use your kitchen and avoid dining out for every meal. Growing even a small amount of fresh produce and herbs while on the road is an excellent, portable hobby that will allow you to enjoy the health benefits of eating fresh vegetables and using healthier seasoning choices at each meal.
I would love to to this but the hubby not so much. I miss gardening!
I tried this with tomato and basil plants- visions of ensalata caprese in mind. The plants rode on a plastic garbage bag in front of the toilet when we were underway, and were moved to the best sun when stopped. The day before I was going to pick the first tomato, we came back from social hour to find the deer had knocked over the tomato and taken a big chomp out of the ripe one. I harvested the green ones for use like tomatillos, cut off the deer chomp and we enjoyed half a nice, ripe home-grown tomato. The next week at Blue Mesa Reservoir in Colorado, the three-striped squirrels ate all the basil they could reach, leaving me with basil palm trees. After the basil leafed out again, I harvested it all and made pesto. That ended my on-the-road gardening experiment. Now I carry a potted flowering annual that hangs from a crook we store in the underbay – so far no critter issues!
Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. I hope to be taking my small veggie garden with me as I travel and fully expect to engage with the local wild life for my harvest.
Why should things change? I have been batteling deer, rabbits, slugs and chipmonks for years…LOL…that is part of the challange!
I’ve been growing my own chives, basil and rosemary for two years now and I would never replace them with dried herbs. The taste of the dish is totally different! Mine are planted in longer containers, but I might try ti plant them in small pots, in order to make a portable installation. Thanks for the idea!
We lived in 28ft. Class C, much to my husband dismay I turn our front cab over into greenhouse this winter. But we both enjoy the fresh herbs and vegetables.