Packable Meals That Make for Easy Road Trip Food

Rotisserie rotisserie chicken sandwiches, salad-in-a-glass or thermos gazpacho

If it turns out that you spend most of your time driving during the day, there are plenty of sandwich options that go well beyond peanut butter and jelly. Homemade chicken salad tastes even better (and is more nutritious) when you add fruits, nuts, and fresh herbs. Poaching or roasting chicken isn’t difficult, but using fried chicken is a great option without cooking. Put it in a croissant and add an avocado to keep it filling and provide healthy fats. (Hold the avocado whole until you’re ready to eat; just don’t forget to pack a knife.)

You can also conjure up a high-quality BLT on the go. Cook some turkey bacon in the morning – it can stay crispy for hours without refrigeration – and marinate the tomatoes in the evening before you go. (Simply drizzle tomato slices with a squirt of red wine vinegar and olive oil and store in a container in the refrigerator.) Get fresh bread, lettuce and mayo or an avocado and assemble it when you are ready to eat.

If you need dinner too, make use of the time in the car: make a salad that gets better and better in marinades, like an Asian coleslaw that you serve with roasted chicken, boiled shrimp and / or cashew nuts before serving. Another creative way to get your veggies inside is to put a salad together in a jar that you stash in the cooler. These score lots of road trip friendly points for being easy to store and eat, and the layers keeping the ingredients fresher and crispier.

You can really add whatever you want – maybe blue cheese and bacon for a cobb salad; Shrimp and beans for a taco spin – then just shake it to beautify it all. Pasta salad variants also work here. You can try something as simple as mixing chickpeas in a jar with onions, oil, and vinegar, then layering them on top of spiral pasta, a handful of arugula, and a few tablespoons each of olives and feta. When you’re ready to eat, just shake it.

Finally, consider a light lunch or dinner with a drinkable soup like gazpacho. The following recipe is delicious, fresh and easy to keep in an insulated travel mug.

Sippin ‘Green Gazpacho

Yield: 6 cups

ingredients

2 pounds of English greenhouse cucumbers (about 2 large), chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 cups of coarsely chopped arugula

2 cups coarsely chopped mixed tender herbs (such as basil, parsley, coriander and / or mint)

3 tablespoons (or more) of sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

Kosher salt

3/4 cup (or more) olive oil

manual

1. Puree the cucumber, garlic and 1/2 cup of water in a blender until smooth. Add the rocket, herbs, vinegar and a large pinch of salt and puree, scraping the sides of the mixer as necessary until it is very smooth. Let the oil flow in slowly with the engine running; mix until emulsified. (The mixture will turn pale green and creamy looking, almost like a salad dressing; add more oil and / or water if needed.) Try gazpacho and add more salt and vinegar to taste. You want it to be borderline too salty and acidic at room temperature. Transfer the gazpacho to an airtight container. Cover and let cool until very cold, 4-12 hours.

2. Try gazpacho and adjust with a little more salt and / or vinegar as needed before pouring it into chilled glasses.

source https://dailyhealthynews.ca/packable-meals-that-make-for-easy-road-trip-food/