Chef Paul: Traveling…
April 19 2011
I’ll be taking a much needed vacation later this week to visit friends and family out of province. I’m really looking forward to reconnecting with friends I haven’t seen in a while. I’ve got a few dinners planned; including a meal at a former chef of mine’s new restaurant…we’ll be there for his “trust me” night, which is his tasting menu.
I find the hardest part of traveling is always meal time. You either end up at the mercy of others or eating at restaurants all the time. For part of our trip, we’ll be at my father-in-law’s house which means I’ll be able to cook some meals and my brother-in-law, who’s also a chef will no doubt be cooking as well.
But it’s easy when traveling to forget all about healthy eating, to get out of your routine and not consume enough fruits or vegetables. Breakfast I find is always a bit of a challenge. When you’re staying at friends’ houses you often get up to a big breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast etc when all you really want is a bowl of oatmeal and a half a grapefruit. It’s also really easy to eat too much fast food when traveling and end up being “bogged down” as I like to call it.
For me, the key is to always try to have as many fruits and vegetables as possible. It keeps the metabolism flowing and gives you the energy needed to be social and on the go. I make it a point of ordering the vegetarian option if I’m going to be out for meals often. I’ll also pack some healthy snacks for the road, like apples and carrot sticks instead of stopping off at the road side coffee joint and buying a donut.
A few years ago, when my wife and I were traveling around France by car, we were sure to hit any market days we could find to purchase fruits and vegetables for lunch…and of course cheese. We stayed mostly in B&Bs and hostels so quite often breakfast was included with our accommodations and dinners were always restaurant meals. Therefore to save money and to keep us “regular” we had light picnic lunches everyday featuring fruits, vegetables, bread and cheese…and wine.
It’s one of the joys of traveling, experiencing a culture’s cuisine and culinary heritage. What better way than by visiting the local market.
