Wow, what a selection! Standing here on deck 14 (the Oceanview Cafeteria) I can see everything from Indian curry dishes and Italian pastas to Asian cuisine, vegan choices, and even classic American fare. And, yes —gluten-free, too!
If you guessed that I am on a cruise ship, you are correct.
Location of my ship: Lifou Island, somewhere in the South Pacific.
Cruise start: Sydney, Australia
Cruise end: Hawaii, USA
Cruise ships are known for their gastronomic delights and this ship is no exception. However, eating with multiple food sensitivities is still challenging even with all this variety. I get plenty to eat on this ship—no doubt about it—but it still takes effort. I envy those who can pile anything and everything on their plates without a care (and many of them do). As for me, I am trying to avoid certain foods that I know will cause me trouble.
The wonderful breads, pasta, muffins, tortillas, and biscuits must be avoided. I just walk on by. But if I look carefully, I can usually spot a gluten free delight. This ship does a nice job of marking gluten-free items in the cafeteria, so I find myself looking for the little red “gluten-free” label.
The breakfasts are bountiful. This is not just your typical American fare- such as omelets, scrambled eggs, bacon, and Cheerios. No, this breakfast includes grilled vegetables, roasted tomatoes, mushrooms, beans, cheeses, carved meats, fruits, and fried bread. The British and Australians (who dominate the cliental on this ship) really know how to pack in a solid breakfast. Americans need to expand their gastric repertoire for the first meal of the day!
Black Pudding
I see that Black Pudding shows up on the buffet, next to the roasted vegetables. What is black pudding? If you are from the United Kingdom, you would know that black pudding is not really “pudding” at all. It is a food item prepared from pork blood and pork fat, and it is considered a type of blood sausage. It also includes some sort of cereal grain— often oats or barley—along with spices. This dish, or some variation of it, has been eaten for centuries not only in the United Kingdom but also in other places around the world.
I found the black pudding marked “Gluten-free” but queried the wait staff about it just to be sure. The waiter immediately said, “Oh no, it is not gluten free,” and shrugged when he looked at the sign that said otherwise. I did not pursue the issue further but took a piece anyway. After taking a tiny bite, I found it very tasty. I did not eat any more, just in case the dreaded barley (which contains gluten) was added.
Healthy eating—even on a ship—is possible, but it requires a lot of resolve and willpower. Yes, you will likely cave to temptation, but that’s OK because everything in moderation is key. Since the variety of foods offered on a cruise ship is much greater than what is found in the average person’s refrigerator (unless you live on a cruise ship), you can expand your food choices—especially your variety of plant-based foods—during meals. If you’ve read my blog post on the gut biome, you’ll know that eating a variety of plant foods improves your health. I am certainly trying to do that on this trip.
Salads
Below are some pictures of all sorts of vegetables, fruits, nuts, and grains that I encountered in my salads (including tomatoes, peppers, onions, but also pears, grapes, pickled cauliflower, quinoa, and garbanzo beans.
However, when eating salads, it’s best to avoid the salad dressings, as the vegetable oils used to make them are highly processed and can cause inflammation. Dressings made from olive oil are equally suspect, since one cannot be sure whether the olive oil is pure or adulterated with cheaper vegetable oils. Research shows that up to 70% of off-the-shelf olive oils are adulterated with cheaper oils, even if the label claims 100% olive oil. Read more about this here. Regardless, it feels good to eat these healthy salads (sans dressing) and give my tummy a treat.
Beans and Bass
Many plant foods are high in oxalates—another thing I watch out for. Oxalates can cause kidney stones, joint pain, cataracts, and other wonderful things (you can read more about them here). Beans and legumes are some of the foods that rank high on the oxalate list. One of the meals on the ship included garbanzo beans. Strangely enough they look just like Boston Baked Beans, a childhood favorite! On top of the beans sat a wonderful piece of sea bass. How could I resist? I used the “moderation” rule and only ate a few spoonfuls of the beans.
And of course, what is a cruise out of Australia without a serving of Kangaroo tail! I ate it before I got a photo of it, so you will have to imagine what it looked like. It is a red meat, and very tasty.
The Island of Fiji
This ship makes several stops on the way to Hawaii. On the island of Fiji, we visited a farmers’ market. This was no ordinary farmers market and can only be described in pictures-
One of the many vegetables at the farmers’ market is cassava. Cassava is a root crop and is ground and extracted to make tapioca starch. Another root crop is kava. Kava is ground into a loose flour and extracted with water to make a drink. The indigenous Fijians drink it at welcoming ceremonies when guests arrive in the village. It is famous for its relaxing, calming properties.
Below are native Fijians preparing the kava drink (in the large bowl) to welcome us to their village. The Chief of the village drinks first. My husband was designated the “chief” of our tourist group and was the first person on our side to accept the drink. (He said it tasted a bit “muddy” with a touch of mint). With graciousness we survived the welcome ceremony and drank our kava.
Before we leave Fiji, we visit a restaurant near the port, and I ordered this simple rice dish for lunch– stir fried rice and vegetables with a surprising egg on the top!
Speaking of eggs, I had a wonderful “Egg Masala” on board the ship the next day. It was made with sauteed eggs tossed in a thick, mildly spicy, onion-and-tomato based red sauce. Photo below. The egg was a nice way to add protein to a tomato sauce.
Of course, we cannot forget the desserts. I found many that were gluten-free! There were delicate cakes boasting of shards of thin chocolate and dollops of cream. There were rice puddings, as well as cookies and biscuits. All of them were tasty.
Summary
Our cruise continued for several more days, and I encountered many more culinary treats. But for now, I leave you with this—take advantage of the opportunities to try new foods even if it is just at your neighborhood restaurant or supermarket. Use moderation so that you avoid extremes (your stomach will thank you). The more variety in plant foods that you can consume the healthier will be your body.
Our next stop, Cape Horn.
As our ship rounds Cape Horn, we found that eating was out of the question and everyone gulped down their Dramamine. Did the captain take a wrong turn…?
Nope, we are still on track for Hawaii and have only found blue skies and calm winds.
Always talk to your health professional before starting anything new. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any condition and is intended only for entertainment. I welcome your comments.
Thank you, Jackie. I never thought about eating Kangaroo meat … even tail meat. But I guess they are like cows in Australia.
I hope you enjoy your trip!!