The food lovers' suitcase

But even in London, I always have a few items in my handbag in case I should come across a bland meal, god forbid. I was intrigued to hear, and to me this was one of the more delightful nuggets of the awful gossip fest that her court case turned out to be, that Nigella Lawson habitually carries mustard in her bag. If ever I have sample sizes of food or drink in a press goodie bag, they get put aside for later use as a pocket book condiment. At present my handbag contains a small envelope of Maldon salt, a teeny bottle of tabasco, and one square of dark chocolate. In the past I’ve carried cloves of garlic, lemons, limes, miniature bottles of creme de cassis to add to particularly acidic or cheap glasses of white wine or bubbly.

I spent a year backpacking around South America, and, assuming I would be trying out great coffee from the Amazon to the Andes, I took a tiny Italian coffee maker, lodged in the side pocket. It was a shock to discover most South Americans drank Nescafé. Still I was popular at backpackers hostels, other travellers forming an orderly queue to use it.

Nowdays I’m lucky enough to have food, drink and travel as a job. I’m an addictive homeware buyer, trawling the markets and the shops for new kitchenalia, justifying it all as ‘props’ for photos. (By the way, one of my food travel pictures is a finalist for the Pink Lady Food Photography awards this year!)

My South African suitcase (so far)

On this trip I’ve gone a bit mad: two heavy-weight cookbooks, a turquoise whisk and rubber spatula, two glass bowls (how am I going to get those home in one piece?), several types of rooibos and a frankly ridiculous large ‘mat’ made of twigs and wire which I can’t fit into my suitcase. I also have some mango pickle but that has been doubled bagged in a plastic ziplock.

I’ve come up with a list that will help the enthusiastic travelling cook below. But what would you add to it? What do you always take with you either to eat or to cook with? It might be a cocktail shaker, or a portable bbq or a cigarette lighter electric kettle…

Cooking: Swiss knife, a set of cutlery, a cup. In the old days everyone had a knife and a tankard hanging off their belt. Ziplock bags for saving things. A flat rubber bowl? (Although I remember being impressed when I camped in Patagonia, Argentina, I saw an Israeli couple, straight out of the army, who, lacking implements, used a thick plastic bag as a salad bowl to accompany their meat barbeque.)

Food: Marmite, salt, lemons or limes, (easier than vinegar), chilli sauce, teabags, mustard, spices, garlic, fresh chillis, herbs, a spill proof small bottle for olive oil (I lost an expensive camera due to carrying around a bottle of vinaigrette in the same bag).

Posted with Blogsy so there will be typos and extreme frustration