{"id":14849,"date":"2023-09-29T02:28:03","date_gmt":"2023-09-29T07:28:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=14849"},"modified":"2023-12-12T07:42:06","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T12:42:06","slug":"equipping-a-galley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2023\/09\/29\/equipping-a-galley\/","title":{"rendered":"Equipping a Galley"},"content":{"rendered":"
Position: Over a Hot Stove<\/h6>\n

The standard metric for sizing a kitchen is how may \u2018butts\u2019 it can accommodate. Butts equate to the number of working chefs in a kitchen. Most American houses have 2-3 butt kitchens. Most British kitchens allow for 1-2 butts. More if you own an AGA stove<\/a>. Aleta\u2019s is strictly a one butt galley. There\u2019s not even enough room to lean in and help. Thus, if you\u2019re shucking corn or shelling peas you\u2019re out in the cockpit.<\/p>\n

Given the tight quarters, how is it possible to create dishes of enviable culinary excellence? Setting aside the inherent genius of the chef, there is the galley itself. Over the years we have tuned the layout and built on our experience cooking<\/a> in our little space to tease out the maximum yumminess our meagre skills will allow.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>LAYOUT<\/strong><\/h6>\n

Let\u2019s talk layout. Aleta\u2019s galley is U-shaped. Our gimballed stove swings at the top of the U, against the port-side hull just about amidships, the widest section of the boat. To the right along the forward side of the U is the fridge and freezer, a small drawer and the rubbish bin. To the left, aft side, is a deep locker we call the glory hole*, a double sink, and three deep drawers to. Above the sink is a cupboard with our spices and coffee makings.<\/p>\n

Beneath the sink is a functional cupboard filled with cleaning supplies and the electric freshwater pump. Two foot pumps, one for sea water and one for fresh, supplement the electric one. If and when we return to land and have a kitchen of our own, I plan to install at least one foot pump. They are that useful. Whenever I extract myself from the engine room my oily hands need scrubbing. With a foot pump I never touch the taps with my grimy fingers. Fantastic!<\/p>\n

Storage<\/h6>\n

Above the stove is a long, low cupboard that houses our glasses and cups. Below this cupboard is a series of three cubbies that keep our plates and bowls secure. The glory hole is deep and capacious. In it we store bottled water, mixers, and occasionally potatoes. Underway we put our organic recyclables bin in it to keep it secure and prevent it flinging coffee grounds and peelings everywhere.<\/p>\n

While we lived in Italy, we adopted the local practice of tossing our organic waste into a small bin, then recycling everything once it filled up. The Italians, almost uniquely in Europe, recycle banana skins and potato peelings via their municipal sanitation services, rather than flush it down a disposal. Eventually, it gets composted and is spread on allotment gardens. For us, separating organic matter keeps the rubbish less smelly.<\/p>\n

The pantry is a thing of splendour. Four shelves on rollers store most of our dry goods. A small cupboard above the pantry is where chips and biscuits are kept. It\u2019s Aleta\u2019s highest locker and furthest away from the dampness of the bilge. We seal all open packets in a Ziploc bag anyway.<\/p>\n

Simmering<\/h6>\n

\"dickinson-mediterranean-stove\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Aleta’s stove is a three burner Dickinson Mediterranean<\/a>. Three burners is something of a luxury. Most boats our size have only two. The surface is snug and fitting a large pot alongside the frying pan isn\u2019t wholly practical.<\/p>\n

But three smaller pots will happily simmer side by side. The oven will reach temperatures of 450F (232C) and the grill will brown toast all day, once it warms up. It will also fluff an omelette if you are patient. Below the stove is a small locker for storing cooking sheets and plastic wrap and suchlike. It is just above the bilge and a little more prone to dampness.<\/p>\n

Speaking of cookware, we have reduced our needs to a set of nesting Magma non-st<\/a>ick pots and pans. The set includes a deep 10-inch skillet with a cover, a five-quart stock pot, and three saucepans that nestle together like babushka dolls. The entire thing fits into the oven as a unit. It\u2019s all we need. It\u2019s all anyone needs, really. According to the sales literature it\u2019s as happy with gas as it is with an induction hob. That\u2019s important since we may be induced to go electric one day.<\/p>\n

All in all, this arrangement means we can roast a chicken in the oven, boil potatoes and steam carrots on the stove while we slice apples and blend flour, sugar, and butter for the crumble. Nothing is more than half an arm\u2019s reach away. It\u2019s worth remembering that if you\u2019re given to second guessing the chef from the sidelines. (That you\u2019re no more than an arm\u2019s length away.) Wooden spoons land with deadly accuracy at that distance.<\/p>\n

Frozone<\/h6>\n

\"frozone\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The fridge and freezer were designed in the middle of the last century (that would be the 20th<\/sup>) and behaves like it. To keep things in their place, each compartment has a hatch that opens into a deep dark hole where all matter vanishes.<\/p>\n

Naturally, when you peer into the event horizon looking for a chilled tin of tonic water, you are guaranteed it is at the very bottom of the fridge, some three or four feet down. For shorties this leads to a lot of diving: heads down and legs akimbo up. While taller crew may bump their head on the cabin top, with their longer reach they are spared such indecorously gymnastic displays.<\/p>\n

Large 1950s style cooling plates line the insides and get cold enough to make ice and keep the milk from curdling. As good as that sounds, the insulation isn\u2019t up to the most modern standards and, like your home, the fridge\/freezer is the biggest consumer of electricity on the boat. If money were no object, I\u2019d rip the entire thing out and replace it. We might even add a vertical door for improved accessibility.<\/p>\n

Tweakers<\/h6>\n

When we arrived back on Aleta in April, we had a big post-Covid clear out and tossed a bunch of stuff we didn\u2019t use. What did we retain? Here\u2019s a list of some of our favourite galley gear still on the boat:<\/p>\n