Festival Food

[mtbskalover]

its a difficult one this,

first of my experience with tranga's is that they are lame, mayb i was doing something wrong...

get down ur local jessops, watever those chain camping shops are called, or even halfords, get a cheap burner for about a tenner, and a gas cannister for a couple of quid. great things.

food wise, the difficult part of this topic,
pot noodles, instant noodles, instant pasta, and a firm fav of mine instant mash are all good contenders. but aren't really nutrious which is part of the reason for cooking yourself. but they are cheaper than a crappy burger.

the cost, and the healthy-ness are the two main reasons i take food to festies. but some smaller ones to have superb food stalls, just still pricey.

banana's are good, and help boost seratonin levels after canning the drugs. bars like nutri-grain or cereal based ones are good for a munch.

few recent times ive been camping before bike events ive cooked something up mid week, such as a stew, froze it. I have then taken it with me and it defrosts over the day your traveling to said event/festie. In the eve boil it up good and proper, simmer for a long time, 10-20 mins really. then eat good nosh!

tinned food is also good, and luckily many cans these days dont need openers. which has been a great relief to me out in a field as i reach for the tin and suddenly think of shit ive forgotten the tin opener.

 

[chymaera]

A very good point. Cue attempts to open tins with a tent peg.

My camping knife/fork/spoon/tea spoon set has a tin opener, crown cap remover and corkscrew on it as well. (Best £3.50 I ever spent).
There a quite a few tins of food these days with rip tops, highly suitable for camping for the not so well prepared. An Esbit solid fuel stove will cook a rip top tin of mixed grill, Irish stew ect with no problems at all.
It really is not necessary to carry a huge amount of kit to be self sufficient when camping.

 

[zenie]

Have a look on the grocery aisle and see what you can buy that doesn't need refrigerating.

You can buy non-dairy deserts/yogurts (provamel make them) which will keep unrefrigerated. Ditto noodles and bread.

I'd just buy the bare minimum of refrigerated goods and whack them in a cool box with as many ice packs as you can fit.

It's not likely to be searing heat this weekend anyway

 

[chymaera]

It's not likely to be searing heat this weekend anyway

As long as it doesn't rain next weekend I don't care. It is what I consider to be the best rally of the year, I would much rather not get wet getting there on Friday.

 

[vipper]

My camping knife/fork/spoon/tea spoon set has a tin opener, crown cap remover and corkscrew on it as well. (Best £3.50 I ever spent).
There a quite a few tins of food these days with rip tops, highly suitable for camping for the not so well prepared. An Esbit solid fuel stove will cook a rip top tin of mixed grill, Irish stew ect with no problems at all.
It really is not necessary to carry a huge amount of kit to be self sufficient when camping.

Or you can get supermarkets to deliver fresh stuff from your 3G phone.

hangs head in shame

 

[silver]

I'd just buy the bare minimum of refrigerated goods and whack them in a cool box with as many ice packs as you can fit.

Instead of ice packs I always freeze all my drinks, so you get chilled drinks as they defrost and they keep all your other stuff cold too

 

[pogofish]

Or you can get supermarkets to deliver fresh stuff from your 3G phone.

I really thought the very end had been reached, when a while back, I saw some festival or other advertising "Good phone reception" with almost the same prominance as the headliners.

Now I know who it was for!

As for festival food - Tins, rice, noodles, vacuum packs & anything fresh that won't go off/stale over a couple of days - Plus a well packed & chilled coolbox that usually manages to see me through the first day or so if I'm not on the bike.

 

[chymaera]

I really thought the very end had been reached, when a while back, I saw some festival or other advertising "Good phone reception" with almost the same prominance as the headliners.

Now I know who it was for!

I think most of the locations I go camping have very bad or no mobile phone reception. A deliberate policy on the part of the event organisors. (For which I am truly thankful).

 

[vipper]

I really thought the very end had been reached, when a while back, I saw some festival or other advertising "Good phone reception" with almost the same prominance as the headliners.

Now I know who it was for!

Really? Is that honestly a criteria for deciding to go to a festival? Instead of having a good time, having fun or enjoying youself. Jesus....

In self defence I have only done that once and after crawling from a festival to the seaside without the willpower to face a supermarket or anything vaguely complicated.

 

[pogofish]

I think most of the locations I go camping have very bad or no mobile phone reception.

Same here - A happy accident at least!

 

[vipper]

I think most of the locations I go camping have very bad or no mobile phone reception. A deliberate policy on the part of the event organisors. (For which I am truly thankful).

I couldn't possibly go camping without my mobile. In fact my mobile so loves camping I left it at a campsite on the south coast a month ago and haven't replaced it yet. Lucky fucking phone.

 

[pogofish]

Really? Is that honestly a criteria for deciding to go to a festival? Instead of having a good time, having fun or enjoying youself. Jesus....

Yes, I think it was even linked here at the time. Although complaints about the earlier lack of reception were on another board. I can only imagine it was to keep those folk who had previously complained about not being able to text their mates to say what a good time they were having happy?

 

[vipper]

Yes, I think it was even linked here at the time. Although complaints about the earlier lack of reception were on another board. I can only imagine it was to keep those folk who had previously complained about not being able to text their mates to say what a good time they were having happy?

I suppose it's handy for meeting up and such like. Although we all seem to have managed quite nicely without them for sometime.

 

[Kanda]

I really thought the very end had been reached, when a while back, I saw some festival or other advertising "Good phone reception" with almost the same prominance as the headliners.

Now I know who it was for!

At the V festival, I could only get a good reception in the Virgin VIP, everywhere else was fucked

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Make some flapjacks!!

Take cheese or cheese spread (which will keep fine for a couple of days - espcially as the weather isn't exactly tropical).

Crackers/bread/rolls.

Salami will also keep just fine if you eat meat.

Peanut butter (as someone else said)

Biscuits

 

[Pingu]

pot noodles or have a look on ebay for MREs (Meals Ready To Eat) or Ration packs

these are normally easy to prepare and have a shelf life measured in decades

some are self heating

eta


here ya go

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MRE-US-Ration...ryZ16036QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

and

http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/sea...action=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search

 

[seeformiles]

yeh, or even instant noodles, pasta and pesto, instant risotto - chuck in some pulses or whatever. With one stove and one pan, you can make all sorts really cheap, really easy.

Cereal's a good call too.

I'd agree with that 100% and add that it's best to go veggie - no fun having the shits and sitting in one of those "Turdis" thingies.

 

[mtbskalover]

pepperami does not need refrigeration so is often packed,

thats one for the meat lovers...

 

[Pingu]

btw the peaches in syrup ration packs are fucking lush

 

[Detroit City]

A tub of chocolate spread...

you mean like Nutella or something like that?

 

[chymaera]

I'd agree with that 100% and add that it's best to go veggie - no fun having the shits and sitting in one of those "Turdis" thingies.

I wonder what the hell goes on at events some people here go to that the bogs are seemingly always in such a state. At the events I go to, the "Turdis" toilets are emptied and cleaned frequently. (If they weren't the organisors would find themselves face down in them.)

 

[pogofish]

Festival bogs do tend to be cleaned pretty regularly IME. It has been a very long time since I've seen an old-skool festival toilet/quagmire/clump of bushes.

However, I have to say that as well as the apparent inability to pick-up their own litter, the lack of bowel-control/toilet habits of a significant minority of festival goers is something that does sometimes amaze me. You only need one or two idiots shitting all over the place or blocking-up the lavvy to make it unusable a bit down the line (& sometimes a very long one at that). I'd also say that IME, many of the missed deposits are clearly from the arses of someone who was trying to be "hygenic" & hover - badly!

 

[vipper]

I'd also say that IME, many of the missed deposits are clearly from the arses of someone who was trying to be "hygenic" & hover - badly!

Hovering + drugs + alcohol = a god awful mess on the seat.

I wonder if they get their clothes as well?

 

[pogofish]

I'd agree with that 100% and add that it's best to go veggie - no fun having the shits and sitting in one of those "Turdis" thingies.

Going Veggie does not protect you from getting the shits at all. Indeed, the rise in popularity of raw/salad & organic food has been accompanied by an inevitable increase in food poisoning because of the presence of various types of bacteria in natural fertilisers.

 

[pogofish]

Hovering + drugs + alcohol = a god awful mess on the seat.

I wonder if they get their clothes as well?

Coming from a background of bike rallies & suchlike - which tend to have any amount of partying going-on as well. It is the case that you don't see nearly as much of this & with very few exceptions, the participants do tend to clear-up after themselves.

Festivals, although they have plenty of good points all their own, do have some way to go here & I truly pity the poor sods who not only have all the hard work of organising/setting-up in the first place but have to spend so much time clearing-up after those twats who can't be bothered.

I would hope they do - Indeed, I've also seen more than a few items of clothing discarded in festival toilets as well!

 

[Nixon]

Thank you for your ideas so far urbs .Have now sort of decided to pack some food for the first day or two,then on the third walk to the supermarket near the field and get some more munch.Only 20 mins down the road apparently.It's probably better than making food for 5 nights or something equally stupid (and probably not the nicest thing to eat).Im sure i'll save a bit of cash either way

<---- Tightarse

 

[seeformiles]

Going Veggie does not protect you from getting the shits at all. Indeed, the rise in popularity of raw/salad & organic food has been accompanied by an inevitable increase in food poisoning because of the presence of various types of bacteria in natural fertilisers.

Damn - that's my theory knackered! (Mind you, I've never had the shits at a festival - maybe it's the bacteria-killing properties of the booze? )

 

[selamlar]

All Day Breakfast in a can is suprisingly nice festival type food cold. Don't expect anyone to believe that, but hey ho.

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Hovering + drugs + alcohol = a god awful mess on the seat.

Immodium should be in everyone's festival survival kit...

 

[pogofish]

Mind you, I've never had the shits at a festival - maybe it's the bacteria-killing properties of the booze?

Neither have I - You may be on to something!