Favorite go to food to pack in cooler
 

Beer!

You never specified this was about a trip cooler!

Buy a cold Subway 12" and put it in the cooler. Avoid soggy condiments.

I make beef chili and chicken on a bed of rice with corn and garbanzo beans. The juices from the chicken flavor the rice and keeps it moist. I put it in pyrex glass containers with no leak lids and freeze them. They stay cold for ~16 hours. With the dinners I pack 16oz lunchmeat packages from Hillshire Farm, mustard, Jam in a squeeze bottle and a loaf of whole wheat bread. After the dinners thaw I fill a medical type Ice bag (from CVS) which stays cool for ~14 hours.

This covers all meals on a four day.

Downsides:

Cooler weighs 15 pounds when full.

Blech. I'm always amazed at the crap people will put in their bodies in the name of saving a few bucks on a trip. Guess it's kinda like saving for a down payment on your by-pass surgery?

Homemade options that you can freeze and keep frozen are usually the best bet, at least for the first day or two. I have a background in the restaurant biz and food handling practices so I'm a little squeamish about going much beyond that. The magic number is 40 degrees. If your food spends much time above 40 degrees you start to see really impressive bacterial growth. Food poisoning can be great for cashing in sick-time but it's murder on your plumbing!

+1, well said.

You make a crew meal look like dinner at the Four Seasons....

Those yellow Tasty Bite bags that say "madras lentils" on it that you microwave in the pouch for 90 seconds are pretty good. I found them with a bunch of other Tasty Bite varieties but I've only tried that particular one. I've also bought it Costco in the past. It doesn't need refrigerated and you can eat it right out of the pouch. I like to eat at least one hot meal a day even when I'm at work and they seem to work out pretty good.

I refuse to fly with anyone who eats beef chili, chicken, corn and garbanzo beans for dinner. Unless you're deadheading and sitting no where near me!

The ready made tuna packets don't smell and don't have to be put in the fridge and are ready to go between your favorite slices of bread or crackers. Best thing is the other guy won't give you the stink eye!

[QUOTE=freezingflyboy;1355204]Blech. I'm always amazed at the crap people will put in their bodies in the name of saving a few bucks on a trip. Guess it's kinda like saving for a down payment on your by-pass surgery?

+2

Life of an adult commuter FO. You know, adult as in married with children. I feel like Al Bundy sometimes only his house is nicer...

Don't lie, you used to love those Steak, Egg and Cheese bagels from Mickey D's back in the day.

Yogurt, Turkey, Cheese, Bread, Soup, Chili, or leftover homemade spaghetti.

This thread is embarrassing.

I get a rosted chicken from Costco. It's enough to make 4 meals. I make my own meals before going on a trip. It's better than going to fast food all the time.

+1

It's one thing to pack food to be healthier, it's another when you can't afford to feed yourself at the airport due to our garbage wages.

Pop-tarts, bread, and water...

what? I work for a regional..

And yet there's no end to the supply of pilots lining up to work for said wages.

Thats whats perdiem is for. Regional pilots carrying lunch boxes , thats why we get no respect.

Ketchup packets and water from the hotel sink. Heat them up in the room's coffee pot and instant tomato soup!

Better yet, just cruise around Costco, taking in the free samples. A couple round trips should fill you up.

Only because it's true. You guys take jobs that don't pay enough to eat normal food at a normal restaurant like normal human beings do while out of town on a business trip.

A tub of protein powder and protein bars and a bag of vitamins + lots of water

I agree. I realize that some people must make do with the little money they have. Like the FO's at a crap regional that make crap wages. I feel bad for these guys and sometimes wish I could offer them a starbucks without embarassing them.

What always amazes me though are the captains that make over 100 k per year and pack all their food with them because they are too cheap to pay for anything on the road. I will never understand what makes many pilots some of the cheapest people on the face of the earth. Thoughts anyone ?

Do you lift Bro?

Favorite go to food to pack in cooler
 

It's one thing to be cheap. Food on the road is horrible for you. I pack wisely with a big bag because any food at an airport will likely kill me in 35 years. Gluten and dairy free are tough without a lunch bag, in my defense.

Plenty of thoughts. 1. You literally have no Idea what he/she has for monthly expenses. 2. Many he/she has an allergy to food that makes it hard to eat on the road 3. Maybe he/she doesn't want to fall victim to the American Diet. 4. Does it really matter to you if they pack their own food?

I pack all my own food on the road. I train for Ironman/half ironman's and follow a strict diet I eat a lot and don't really want to eat McDonalds, Dunkin donuts, Starbucks, among other things that people eat on the road. I really find no problem in bringing my own food. Id rather save my money so I can travel to races, save for a house, put extra money into a savings account.

I fly with ultra marathon guys as well, and they don't look like they are going on an extended camping trip like a lot of the regional guys do. There are many other things in airports other than McD's, Dunkin Donuts, and Starbucks.

In fact, I haven't been to any of those three places in years.

Does an expense card count?

Sorry, that sounded flip, but there is an old career advice about dress/act like what you want to be, not what you are. If you act like a regional pilot that might be your fate. Everyone has the "interview" suit, but you need to practice being the B777 captain you want to be everyday, on and off the jet.

GF

My apologies for listing the first three things that came to my mind. Lets try, burger king, subway, TCBY, Ben and Jerry's, all chinese food restaurants, Chilis, Uno's... again thats their motive, they want to eat out 2-3 meals a day on a 4 day trip, let them have at it. They don't want to it's their choice.

Hahaha thats greatest post on this thread. Because that has to do ANYTHING with bringing a lunch box?

Good point. So, for what it is worth, this 744 captain packs:

StarKist yellowfin tuna in olive oil (the foil packages).
Kind bars
Kashi trail mix bars from Costco
Medifast bars. These are not cheap, but they crush the appetite.

If I bid the 777 I guess that I will cut down on the Kind bars and increase the Kashi. And use less starch in my shirt.

Boys and girls. We all need to gain some self respect and stop eating chef boy are horrible.

Sack up, and buy some food. Maybe a Nice Caesar salad, a sandwich with some healthy fat called..... an avocado?

Or day old egg salad because your spouse packed it !

Whoooo whoooo

They sure stink to me when the guy on the other side of the flight deck is digging into that bag with his fork!

Thank you for chiming in! I would say you'd have to leave a packet or two of tuna at home.

742Dash

That's pathetic. Even at Eastern, captains took us new guys to favorite restaurants in new cities, sometimes picking up the drink tab. I learned about Chinese from one in PDX. If this business has sunk to eating cat fod ou of a can, it's gone.

GF

I don't think this thread is just about cheap/broke pilots not wanting to eat out. What about when you're hungry enroute? It's nice to have a healthy snack so you aren't starving and end up gorging on food during the first small break you get leaving you with nothing but a stomach ache and guilt. Also, what about when you're on an overnight that's too short to go out or there's nothing near by or when you leave too early to catch breakfast at the hotel. For some pilots, that is the reality--it's not a money thing. It's more of a convenience to have food with you in a lunch bag in case you get hungry throughout the day. If I don't carry food with me, I have the eating habits of a stray animal--I eat whenever I can, whatever I can and as much as I can because I don't know when my next meal will be. Keep the food ideas coming!

How is this pathetic? Sorry we don't have a company card, picking up our bills for surf and turf and margaritas. It's even more pathetic that you judge someone because they bring their own food.

Ok, in all seriousness.

1. I have pretty much been there, done that. Eating exotic food in the 3rd world sucks after the dice come up snake eyes a few times. If I never spend another night in a hotel bathroom curled in the fetal position that will be just fine with me.

2. I am trying to avoid crap carbs, which is difficult when on the road. Randomly seeking food on the road put 40 pounds on me over 13 years. Most of which is now gone.

3. I do go out, and I do spend money. I just prefer to now do it on my terms.

4. I do buy beer for my crew.

There are a lot of reasons to pack food on the road, and I clicked on this thread to see if there were any new ideas for me. Your first post, to be honest, comes across as somewhat patronizing.