I’ve two go baggage in my home—although neither one would assist me a lot within the case of a pure or man-made catastrophe. Given the state of the world, I ought to in all probability put together for these potentialities, however as a substitute, I want to all the time be prepared for 2 issues I really like: touring and picnics.
My picnic go bag means I’m all the time able to hop on my bike and share an alfresco meal with buddies in Brooklyn. Take a while to construct your individual, and I promise your summer season meal sport will enhance immeasurably.
I can’t actually take credit score for this concept. I inherited my picnic prepper tendencies from my late mom. She all the time had a small cotton pouch—I believe sewn by my grandmother—filled with a squat bronze pepper mill, a wooden wine opener, and a folded piece of foil prepared for picnics. That treasured pouch is approaching its fiftieth yr and deserves a medal for excellent service.
Come summer season, it lives within the vestibule outdoors my entrance door. It’s tucked right into a soft-sided blue cooler left behind by an outdated roommate (thanks, Emily) together with melamine plates and different picnic necessities. Should you’re constructing a picnic go bag from scratch, begin with an insulated bag or cooler that’s large enough to carry a bottle of wine or seltzer and sports activities each brief handles and an extended strap so you’ll be able to swing it over your shoulder in your technique to your picnic vacation spot.
Subsequent, stash small gadgets in a pouch in order that they don’t get misplaced amongst bigger picnic accoutrements. Go for type over style right here: a bag or two that’s washable, like these from Baggu, both with a sample or a darkish coloration to cover stains.
Tuck a foldable knife inside that’s sharp sufficient to chop a tough cheese like Piave or an apple. I like utilizing one I purchased at Odessa’s Privoz Market years in the past, however Opinel makes a stainless-steel knife with a corkscrew that matches the invoice. Relying in your picnic unfold, you may want so as to add extra silverware earlier than dashing out the door, however pack no less than a few forks and spoons in right here.
Invariably, a good friend will probably be speeding to the picnic from work or one other get-together and received’t have time to make one thing. “It’s effective,” I guarantee them, “simply choose up some Persian cucumbers or summer season tomatoes in your approach.” I’ll have salt on the prepared, which is basically all they want. Jacobsen’s mini salt slide tins are intensely cute, however in the event you’re the kind of particular person to picnic greater than as soon as a season (please be such a particular person), a small glass jar which you can replenish with Maldon or your most popular flaky salt is the transfer.
It’s useful to retailer just a few melamine salad plates in your picnic bag too. You need surfaces large enough to carry a number of snacks, however nonetheless a dimension that’s straightforward to stuff right into a plastic bag on the finish of the night time when the plates have to be washed. Storing them within the cooler additionally means you don’t must filter a spot for picnicware in your cupboards. Lastly, toss in just a few paper towels, dark-colored fabric napkins, or an outdated dish towel, since they all the time turn out to be useful.
When it’s go time, pack your picnic meals in a tiffin. It’s the perfect picnic transit vessel I’ve discovered; mine miraculously by no means leaks. I often pack the highest of my three-tiered tiffin with olives and pickles and save the opposite layers for cherry tomato salad, cubes of marinated feta, or a whipped candy potato and tahini dip, however something goes and leftovers could make for a stellar picnic. (I’m presently eyeing a four-tiered model so I can simply tote one other dip or a mixture of darkish chocolate discs, almonds, and dried cherries.)
I additionally maintain three picnic blankets of varied sizes close to the go bag, so I can simply seize the suitable dimension for any group. On a dry summer season day, that tapestry you got at City Outfitters on your faculty dorm and even an outdated sheet will do, however when the bottom’s moist from a sun-shower, one thing that’s water-proof is finest—bonus factors if it has a deal with or strap for simple transit.
As soon as your go bag is prepared, picnicking is a breeze. All you want are some buddies, a bottle of wine, and one thing to pack in your tiffin. Deliver on picnic season.
