Meal ideas for developing country trip if you can't use tap water to cook...

[Anonymous]

Hello, I am brain storming meals especially for my kids. The last trip we all got super sick and we were still sick we we came back to the US.

Ramen noodles of course with eggs

pancake/ waffles using a mini waffle maker

Mac n cheese could be possible but my kids usually don't like mac n cheese

Plan on bringing powdered milk but I have never tried it... does it taste okay?

some soup mixes only need water added

we can eat bananas because they are should be cleaner

i could sterilize the cook ware ( utensils, bowls) in the microwave using one of the bottle sterilizers I have used before

i could look into bringing a powder to mix with milk for protein

i plan to take propel packets

i may pack dried cranberries to add to oatmeal

kids could have a pb and j sandwich using pancake bread

we will be over there for almost a month. there are stores where expats shop but it's hours away. the cars are a lot smaller too so there is less space for luggage and shopping bags. no hot running water for a month. fun times.

[Anonymous]

If you can’t use water to cook then why does most of your list require water?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you can’t use water to cook then why does most of your list require water?

they will use bottled water but doubt they can do that by making pasta... cleaning with bottled water gets expensive

[Anonymous]

You need to use bottled water, boil it or bring some kind of filtering system with you. Everything you said with water, that water needs to be boiled at a minimum.

[Anonymous]

Where are you going? Why can’t you eat out? If it’s a nice hotel, you should be fine. Same with high end restaurants.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You need to use bottled water, boil it or bring some kind of filtering system with you. Everything you said with water, that water needs to be boiled at a minimum.

OP here. Planning to use bottled water and bring a filter. So should I boil the bottled water and then filter is after that? Arsenic contamination of groundwater is a major problem where we are traveling. My husbands family doesn't think it's a big deal but that's all they have known. We will not be staying in a hotel and there aren't any high end hotels or restaurants close to where we will stay.

[Anonymous]

I’ve lived all over the world and so I understand your worry. Unless you are worried about chemical contamination or something (I don’t know where that might be the worry) then you can cook and wash with the water. You can drink it, too, but you need to treat your water first.

Get a great big pot and put tap water in it. Boil hard for 5 minutes. Put a top on it. This water can now be saved and used for drinking and cooking anything that won’t come to a boil. If you want to decant the water into a bucket or something make sure the bucket is washed and rinsed with hot, boiled water.

When you cook anything with water just be sure to bring it to a full, rolling boil and hold it there for a few minutes.

There is no need to avoid shipping at local markets - really. Just cook fruit and vegetables rather than eating them raw. That will expand your options. Living on PB&J and ramen for a month could get old!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve lived all over the world and so I understand your worry. Unless you are worried about chemical contamination or something (I don’t know where that might be the worry) then you can cook and wash with the water. You can drink it, too, but you need to treat your water first.

Get a great big pot and put tap water in it. Boil hard for 5 minutes. Put a top on it. This water can now be saved and used for drinking and cooking anything that won’t come to a boil. If you want to decant the water into a bucket or something make sure the bucket is washed and rinsed with hot, boiled water.

When you cook anything with water just be sure to bring it to a full, rolling boil and hold it there for a few minutes.

There is no need to avoid shipping at local markets - really. Just cook fruit and vegetables rather than eating them raw. That will expand your options. Living on PB&J and ramen for a month could get old!

Ah, sorry, I see your worry is about arsenic. Boiling won’t help. You’ll need a filter of some sort.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve lived all over the world and so I understand your worry. Unless you are worried about chemical contamination or something (I don’t know where that might be the worry) then you can cook and wash with the water. You can drink it, too, but you need to treat your water first.

Get a great big pot and put tap water in it. Boil hard for 5 minutes. Put a top on it. This water can now be saved and used for drinking and cooking anything that won’t come to a boil. If you want to decant the water into a bucket or something make sure the bucket is washed and rinsed with hot, boiled water.

When you cook anything with water just be sure to bring it to a full, rolling boil and hold it there for a few minutes.

There is no need to avoid shipping at local markets - really. Just cook fruit and vegetables rather than eating them raw. That will expand your options. Living on PB&J and ramen for a month could get old!

Ah, sorry, I see your worry is about arsenic. Boiling won’t help. You’ll need a filter of some sort.

Boiling water will only increase arsenic levels

[Anonymous]

A couple suggestions...

1. Research acceptable levels of arsenic consumption. If you're there for a short amount of time and only using it sparingly, would that be an acceptable level? (Have never researched it so I don't know personally)
2. Eat fresh cooked vegetables or deep-fried foods
3. See if there are water filters that remove arsenic from

[Anonymous]

Are you the poster who’s going to Bangladesh for a month?

[Anonymous]

Could be Bangladesh, China, India but why does that matter. OP is asking for meal ideas. I think all of the meals you suggested are good. I don't think I would eat animal meat since sanitation is also a concern in developing countries. I would avoid rice because arsenic gets worse when you boil water. I also would stick to cooking at home since you have young kids. You can never be sure unless you cook the food yourself.

[Anonymous]

Hard pass on that trip!! For a MONTH?

[Anonymous]

To keep from getting ill in India, taking probiotics and cow colostrum pills with each meal helped us immensely.

[Anonymous]

How about grits?