Cooking on Vacation

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I know, I know.  There are people who don't want to cook while on vacay.

But I have a large family, who somehow have grown into teens that eat a lot. And eating out 3 meals a day plus snacks can get crazy expensive.

Plus, I just get tired of eating at restaurants all the time. The overpriced tourist menus. The long waits for a table when everyone is tired and hungry. Who needs it?

So, on longer trips away from home, I like to find a place with a kitchen.

It doesn't have to be fancy. Or big. Or even complete.

I've been known to just cook out of a microwave and to drag my crock pot along.

Yep. As long as the room has a mini-fridge, I'm in business.

Here are some easy ideas to feed your family.

1. Prepared Foods

I'm becoming a huge Trader Joe's fan, so of course I had to hit one up for some shopping. I bought several of their precooked meals to try. I normally don't buy many precooked meals anymore, but I thought it would be quick and easy. And they were. We had Orange Chicken, Spicy Beef and Broccoli, Fried Rice, Jasmine Rice, and Mashed Potatoes from the frozen section. And we tried the BBQ Pork and BBQ Chicken from the refrigerated section for sandwiches. To be honest, some meals were tastier than others, but all took under 15 minutes to prepare.

2.  Crock Pot Meals

Have you ever made Lasagna in the crock pot? It's awesome. When we travel, I just leave out the meat and make it a cheese lasagna to keep things simple. I also like to make Soup, but I go with easy mixes while traveling. We had Potato Soup on this trip, and I'm wanting to try some Broccoli Soup on our next trip.

3.  Sandwiches

I know this is not rocket science, but we have hit up the deli on trips and bought some rolls, sandwich fixings, side salads, and cookies or brownies for desert. Nice and simple. On this trip we streamlined and had Subway make the subs and we picked up chips and fruit at the store, then took everything to the beach to watch the sunset.

Hope this helped you think outside the box when it comes to traveling.

How do you like to travel? Do like to keep costs low and maybe sneak in an extra trip here and there? Or do you like to travel less and go all out with your dining?