MRE'S for Long Airplane flights

[Katie Meadow]

There's almost nothing I want to eat on a plane, and I'm cheap. Even when the flight is long enough to get served a meal, I end up giving practically all my food to my husband. Rarely do I want to spend the money on the plastic-housed salads or the airport restaurants. I am very happy with PB and Marmalade on good bread that I can make the morning of and dole out to myself as desired, but next week I will be overnight in a hotel before my first flight and then in one airport or another for about 20 hours. The sandwich thing seems improbable, given it would have to sit in foil for so long. I would eat a 12 hour old sandwich, but that would only get me through breakfast, with 18 hours to go!

So....one idea is some nice hard cheese that travels well, crackers, some apples. Almonds or other nuts. I'm not too keen on dried fruit. I take energy bars, but more out of desperation; I imagine I will want them if the plane makes an unscheduled stop on the side of a mountain. When I fly I am basically low-level queasy the whole time and prefer things that are not too greasy or salty. I don't have a sweet tooth.

Anyone have suggestions for good travel food? Are there any little tins of tasty healthy stuff people like? Filling, healthy, not too messy or complicated, easy to do in small portions, you get the idea: I'm a terrible flier AND a fussy eater!

[markk]

I'm very tempted to say that in your predicament, I'd break down and spring for some airport food. But... here's what you requested, to a "t", as written up in the New York Times the other day: Gourmet on the Go

[nibor]

I take a lot of similarly long trips, and yeah, starting from a hotel is a problem. I usually try to avoid the airplane food not just because it is icky but also because it is almost 100% carbs. Spending an entire day eating sugar while simultaneously being strapped down in a hard uncomfortable seat makes me crazy. I take cheese, Atkins bars, nuts. Apples can help choke the cheese down - after about 12 hours it starts to get gummy, and I am also getting pretty sick of it.

However, I have also found that due to my aversion to bad food I don’t eat enough during these trips. Which can also make you feel pretty horrible. On one recent flight I took the above snacks and also ate most of what I was served just to see. I think it helped.

Lastly, I highly recommend taking some good chocolate. I dole it out to myself every couple of hours for good behavior.

[prasantrin]

There's another topic on eGullet addressing what foods to bring onto planes. You should be able to find it if you want more ideas, but for now...

Have some good pizza delivered to your hotel. It can last many hours, and isn't so bad served lukewarm. We had some pizza delivered to our hotel in Minneapolis, kept the leftovers for a couple of nights, then brought it on our 8-hour drive back to Winnipeg. It was still tasty, though the crust was a bit tough after two days.

Pack your bread and fillings separately, so they can last longer. You can get a bit more creative with your fillings that way. Or make a muffaletta (sp?) which is perfect for longer trips (though it can be messy to eat). If you do pack separate fillings, be careful about what you choose. It has to be able to get through security, after all. Condiments can be especially tricky, though if you can put them in containers less than 100mL and put them in the same ziplock as your carry-on toiletries, then you should be fine.

Mac and cheese isn't so bad served at room temp. Neither are barbecued meats. We were lucky enough to have both with us when we were stuck overnight at O'Hare (actually in the airport, not just in the area).

If your hotel room doesn't have a fridge, you can bring some ice packs to keep your food cool overnight. Then the next morning when you check in, put them in your check-in bags so they don't get confiscated.

Cheese filled croissants and other filled breads with protein in them are also good choices, as long as the bread doesn't get too stale too quickly.

[moosnsqrl]

Did I miss something? I was under the impression food and beverage were verboten under the current homeland insecurity restrictions. I was *really* dreading the transAtlanic flight but now I feel hopeful. I guess need to read-up on the latest restrictions.

[wattacetti]

Beverages still are so you're still stuck buying water at the usual usurious pricing found at all airports. Food without sauce makes it through; I have seen them confiscate the little soy packages and there will be times where you won't get anything gloopy through.

I have hard crackers, mixed nuts high-grade chocolate, fruit with peels (mostly oranges or grapefruit) and sometimes jerky if I'm doing a series of hops. The latter two get ditched if I need to cross a border, but I use those lovely system-wide upgrade certificates and avoid American carriers if I'm doing long-haul. Food in the front of the plane is getting better.

[Katie Meadow]

Thanks to all... perhaps I will try to wrap bread separately and figure out how to take small toss-away containers of PB etc. I don't usually think to take chocolate, but maybe some nice bitter stuff will help my mood? Those Gourmet on the Go as per the NYT sound good--maybe I'll see if they have made it to the West Coast yet.

Wattacetti: re water, you are not allowed through security with more than 3 oz of it, but I had no problem a few months ago taking an empty plastic bottle through. I put in a few oz of tap/fountain water as soon as I was through security. Then I filled it with more during the flight. This time I plan to take my favorite rei hi-tech plastic bottle so I can have it on my whole trip.

[nibor]

I have never tried this, but you might ask your hotel to pack a lunch (a sandwich to your specifications, some fruit, yogurt or whatever) for you to pick up at breakfast. If the timing works out, that is. When I stay at hotels for conventions we sometimes have outings, and hotels always pack box lunches for the group.

On these long trips it also helps to sleep if you can. You may be anti-drug, but if not, well, people take various things, all the way from Ambien to Valium to Benadryl. I sleep easily on planes but sometimes take as little as half or a quarter of a Dramamine. It helps to keep me from waking up when things get noisy. And since you said you are queasy, it might serve two purposes for you.

[percyn]

I have never tried this, but you might ask your hotel to pack a lunch (a sandwich to your specifications, some fruit, yogurt or whatever) for you to pick up at breakfast. If the timing works out, that is.  When I stay at hotels for conventions we sometimes have outings, and hotels always pack box lunches for the group.

...

The four seasons does this for you without having to ask.

A perk of flying business or first is access to lounges and most lounges serve food and in some cases like BA, hot food. On a long trip, particularly with a layover, you can see if a daily pass is sold to the lounge and enjoy the warm food and cold beverages.

[rooftop1000]

if you stop by a deli or the supermarket salad bar they should have the 1 or 2 ounce dressing containers for you PB and Jams or Butter or....

apples are good dupped in PB also

Genious about the empty water bottle

tracey

[MelissaH]

This time I plan to take my favorite rei hi-tech plastic bottle so I can have it on my whole trip.

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Be careful about doing this, especially if the bottle is irreplaceable. The restrictions are not so much for the amount of liquid, but for the size of the container. I've seen empty bottles confiscated at security. Some airports seem more strict than others.

As far as PB, yogurt, soy sauce, etc: I wouldn't think there would be a problem with the small containers of anything, as long as each container is smaller than 3 oz, and all of your containers fit into your one allotted quart-size ziplock bag.

MelissaH

[phaelon56]

I fly regularly and have brought a variety of food from home with no issues but it was not in liquid form. Like others I bring an empty water bottle through security and fill it from the first available fountain.

Some of the times I have been known to bring:

- banana or two

- dried fruit and dried

- granola bars

- cold fried chicken (if I anticipate consuming it in the first few hours of the trip)

- apples

- pretzels

- small pieces of prepackaged sharp cheddar and some crackers to go with it (Cabot sells little prepackaged wedges of cheese in multipacks)

- small snack size applesauce

- rice cakes (I get the caramel sweetened type because I do have a sweet tooth)

[Katie Meadow]

So I went to the TSA website and carefully searched every list of permitted and prohibited item. Nowhere is "water bottle" mentioned, only that 3oz of liquid in any given container is allowed. So I called them. Here is what they said: if you don't find it on any of our lists it is up to the discretion of the security personnel working the shift. On a whim they can decide whether or not to confiscate your bottle, be it hard, soft, big or small, w/3oz or empty. The person I spoke with confirmed that water bottles are up for grabs. That's the official rule!

As you would expect there are huge numbers of irate and often very funny rants on a variety of sites about this practice. An empty Sippy-Cup was confiscated from a two-year-old. A woman was required to drink her own expressed breast milk so she could keep the bottle, etc. Some airport personnel are more cranky than others, and some airports have reputations for being more lax. Sea-Tac is known for confiscating all kinds of stuff. JFK is easier. Sounds like a crap-shoot and I could easily end up having to replace my perfect bottle. I'm thinkin' about it. It'll cost me a trip to REI, the cost of the bottle AND four dollars for a cheesy bottle of stale tapwater purchased after security. But I will be wide awake.

The TSA website is kind of amusing. They tell you in detail all about the 1 Qt bag that you can fill with little 3 oz bottles, but that you must take it OUT of your carry on and put it in the basket. Then they tell you to remember: the more "allowed items" you bring, the more you hold up the line and make life miserable for everyone else. Thanks for that! Let's make sure to blame our fellow passengers before we even get on the plane.

[phaelon56]

On a whim they can decide whether or not to confiscate your bottle, be it hard, soft, big or small, w/3oz or empty. The person I spoke with confirmed that water bottles are up for grabs. That's the official rule!

I fly with some regularity - probably about 10 - 12 times per year. I always pull my empty water bottle out of my carry-on bag or computer case and stick it in my shoe to go through the X-ray machine. Non one has ever batted an eye including my trip through Sea-Tac a few weeks ago. But that's not to say that it couldn't happen.

I think taking an empty 16 oz or 24 oz spring water bottle is better than bringing that expensive Nalgene bottle - just in case. Not to mention that if you're a regualr water drinker like me you'll have the bottle out next to you while you're waiting for the plane. On more than one occasion I have jumped up to catch a boarding flight and inadvertently left my water bottle on the floor or on the seat next to me. No big deal if it was an empty bottle that was destined for the recycling bin sooner than later anyway.

[therese]

I've got a more or less standard plane meal that I take with me on long-haul flights. I visit a grocery store the day before and assemble some variation of the following as it's available (and as I've got room):

bread with soft goat cheese

radishes

cherry tomatoes

grapes

If I've got room in my 1 qt ziploc (which I typically do if I'm returning home, and that's usually when I need this meal) I'll pack a couple of Activia yogurt drinks.

I don't bother packing a meal for the outbound portion, as I fly Delta and Delta's got a quite reasonable special meal, cold seafood. It's been cold poached salmon with dilled potato salad for a couple of years now, and I don't mind it.

The return option is a great deal iffier, so I usually pack my meal.

[Katie Meadow]

I think taking an empty 16 oz or 24 oz spring water bottle is better than bringing that expensive Nalgene bottle - just in case. Not to mention that if you're a regualr water drinker like me you'll have the bottle out next to you while you're waiting for the plane. On more than one occasion I have jumped up to catch a boarding flight and inadvertently left my water bottle on the floor or on the seat next to me. No big deal if it was an empty bottle that was destined for the recycling bin sooner than later anyway.

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I am 100% sure that my husband, who is a risk taker (big and small), will vote for trying it with my REI bottle. Note that's MY bottle. I predict we will try going through with two bottles.

[JimH]

"MRE's for Long Airplane flights"

Ah, the MRE, you bring back such fond memories. Ham slices, meatballs in BBQ sauce with rice, the beef patty and pork patty all bound to cause you some unbearable indigestion. It was during my time in the wilderness that I discovered natures most perfect food, peanut butter & crackers. PB&C, sustained me on many a long journey. I suggest you look in the local grocery store for those orange peanut butter and crackers that are sold six to a package in a cellophane wrapper. They are a convenient snack, easy to carry and are easy on the stomach.

[I_call_the_duck]

Heh, peanut butter crackers, or so I lovingly call "toxic orange crackers."

I just recently got back from a long trip, and was worried about going through security with a water bottle, so I didn't bring one. We purchased an overpriced bottle of water at the newstand and took it on board. We noticed the people across the aisle from us had one of those expensive bottles which they’ve asked the flight attendants to fill. Great idea, we thought. (File for next time.)

About airport security...on our way back at CDG, we did notice a large bin of empty water bottles by security. We drank what was left in our bottle, and hid it in one of our carry-ons. Got through alright, and refilled it when we got onboard.