Staying in a DVC Villa...Do you ever cook dinner?

[sheetz]

I've heard of many people packing frozen foods in their checked baggage with no problems at all. If it's packed properly even if it gets lost for a few days it should still be partially frozen by the time you get it.

 

[Suger Mag]

frozen gogurts... or any yougurt tube... make a fun and easy packed treat, also frozen grapes. besides being refreshing in the heat, it also help keeps the other stuff cold if you are packing food to the parks

 

[crisi]

I've heard of many people packing frozen foods in their checked baggage with no problems at all. If it's packed properly even if it gets lost for a few days it should still be partially frozen by the time you get it.

To me, with airlines charging up the yango for luggage, it just doesn't seem efficient when Garden Grocer will bring you your groceries for a small service charge ($14 for Garden Grocer - We Go Shop is a little more expensive). Especially if you are going to need any liquids anyway (bottled water, milk, soda, Orange Juice). Same with shipping it. Groceries through the delivery places are fairly competitive, the delivery fee isn't much, and it leaves room for you to pack an extra pair of shoes and a jacket

We've used Garden Grocer a few times and its worked really well.

 

[lucyem]

For even more ideas search over in the DVC forums. People are always asking on there for for ideas.

We tend to make quick and easy meals. Cheese and crackers, hard boiled eggs, fruit. Grab and go stuff. Often we have leftovers from eating out or just need a quick meal/snack after snacking in the parks. I hate spending much time making food that could end up going to waste. So I focus more on making sure we heave healthy stuff in the room.

We have done full meals. Burgers, crock pot meals, I have baked bread (a no knead recipe).

Get a copy of what is in the room to get an idea of what tools you will have available and what you might want to bring from home.

 

[anna08]

We cook dinner almost every night in villa - works with our game plan of park early with lunch there before we leave, come back to DVC for mid-day swim and eat dinner, then go back for nighttime stuff in a park.

We use the grill by the pools for one dinner (can cook extra chicken for another night.) Usually that is a night where we might watch the outdoor movie or walk around the BW or DTD instead of a park.

We do a spaghetti dinner.

I let the kids each choose their favorite frozen pizza from the store and leftovers make for good breakfast.

We do a play on stir fry - cook 10 min rice (in the bag) and sauté cut up chicken breast with cut up zucchini in butter (simplifies shopping to just buy butter instead of oil). It's ready in about 15 minutes. And you even get a veggie

If we buy a bag of mini-bagels for breakfast, you can also do tuna melts on top of these with some canned tuna, mayo and cheese.

We save so much money by eating dinner "in" it's totally worth it. My kids would tell you their favorite night is grilling chicken while they swim in the pool, and then eating it at one of the poolside tables. With some picnic-type sides, it's great! You just have to remember to get charcoal briquets and ask for matches.

 

[sheetz]

To me, with airlines charging up the yango for luggage, it just doesn't seem efficient when Garden Grocer will bring you your groceries for a small service charge ($14 for Garden Grocer - We Go Shop is a little more expensive). Especially if you are going to need any liquids anyway (bottled water, milk, soda, Orange Juice). Same with shipping it. Groceries through the delivery places are fairly competitive, the delivery fee isn't much, and it leaves room for you to pack an extra pair of shoes and a jacket

I wouldn't do it either but some people may have dietary restrictions and prefer to bring their own foods. I could also see the value of premaking dinners and freezing them in vacuum sealed bags.

Lots of people fly Southwest and therefore don't have to pay extra for checked luggage, and there are other ways to avoid baggage fees like obtaining elite status with the airline or having an airline branded credit card.

 

[chocolatemint]

Not if it is packed correctly. The idea spawned on me when I bought salmon at Pikes in Seattle

Now that's a freudian slip right there! OP, I think you meant "dawned." lolol

 

[crisi]

I wouldn't do it either but some people may have dietary restrictions and prefer to bring their own foods. I could also see the value of premaking dinners and freezing them in vacuum sealed bags.

Lots of people fly Southwest and therefore don't have to pay extra for checked luggage, and there are other ways to avoid baggage fees like obtaining elite status with the airline or having an airline branded credit card.

Garden grocer did a great job with my gluten free list.

I have a branded card and my husband is a platinum level frequent flyer - we can haul a moose onboard without being charged. But you still need to deal with the moose.

 

[Suger Mag]

Now that's a freudian slip right there! OP, I think you meant "dawned." lolol

lol first I wrote dawned, then changed it when I couldn't resist the pun...

 

[ali in wonderland]

we use our DVC kitchen a lot... not a big fan of WDW food... across the board way too much money for the quality... even at the signatures.

YES! This is exactly my reasoning for doing this. We are DVC members since 2006 with many trips in the villas under our belt. We just returned from a long weekend at WDW last week. We had a Fantasmic dinner at HW&V. Disney decided to also make it a star wars character dinner. Even with my TIW discount the dinner was $386, and the food was terrible. Once I started to think about it, I realized that we really like the breakfast buffets, and a few select restaurants for dinner. So I thought...let me see what the awesome people on Disnoards cook. I knew I would get some great ideas, and I have.

 

[ali in wonderland]

I haven't read all of the responses, but I will say this..... CROCKPOT, CROCKPOT, CROCKPOT!! It can be SUPER EASY and dinner will be ready when you walk in the door, tired and hungry from a long day in the parks!! If you have a crockpot, consider shipping it down ahead of time or even just checking it as luggage (as long as you don't have to pay for it). You could also buy a used one at a thrift store or yard sale (I've seen really nice ones for $5) and ship it down and then just leave it. A piece of pork loin cooked on low all day, shredded, and then topped with bbq sauce. If I was home I might add some spices or onion at the start, but could easily be done without to make things easier. A bag of bulky rolls and a side of green veggie and/or applesauce and you are good! Boneless chicken thighs (preferably skinless), topped with chunky spaghetti sauce and a bag of frozen sliced onions and peppers (usually labeled for fajitas)and cooked on low for several hours.... serve with cooked pasta and you have some pretty easy chicken cacciatore. Again, if I were home I would probably use fresh onions and peppers and maybe add some parmesean, but trying to keep things easier. I actually have several quick crockpot recipes (including breakfasts and desserts) I could share, but I don't want to clog things up here..... but let me know if you would like any other ideas. Or there is always Pinterest.... but I would suggest TRYING these recipes at home at least once before counting on them on vacation. BTW, if possible, use a crockpot that automatically goes to WARM after the allotted cooking time, just in case you end up staying in the parks longer than intended.... at least that way the food isn't dried up or burned to a crisp when you get back. Have a WONDERFUL TRIP!......................P

I love my crockpot. Even though I'm a SAHM, I use it often when the kids activities have me running around from the time school gets out through dinner time. Our favorite recipes are pulled chicken/pork, chili, stew, pasta sauce. I am always looking for new recipes. If you have a favorite, and are willing to share I would love for you to PM me. Thanks.

 

[ali in wonderland]

We are at aulani now and I have cooked pasta, chicken and pizza. Plus salads, chips and salsa and cheese and crackers. And wine of course. Plus breakfast every day and a few lunches. Leftovers from dinner make a great lunch in the microwave. If you are going to cook recommend you get extra dishwasher soap, paper towels and napkins because you will need them. I do dishes after breakfast and again at the end of the day. I also buy extra toilet paper and detergent. Run out of both quickly and you don't have to run around looking for extra. We have a one bedroom and with the washer and dryer I can bring less underwear, etc but usually wash every day.

Thanks for responding. I always bring dishwasher detergent and laundry detergent in my luggage. I just take from my Costco supply at home, and put it in a ziplock. It's so easy now that everything comes in those meltable pods. We used to only cook breakfast in the room, and I would run the dishwasher while we where at the park. Each night I put a load of laundry on as soon as we get back in from the park. I switch it to the dryer and go to bed. Then fold it while the kids eat breakfast. I only pack enough for half a trip. If we are more than half way done, then I fold it and put it in a suitcase in my closet. This way I don't waist a lot of time packing to go home. Bonus is that when I get home I don't have a ton of laundry to do.

 

[Quicklabs]

Breakfast is easy. We pack lunches and carry them in a backpack to the parks (sandwich, fruit, cookie)
For dinner, we cook pork chops, chicken, steak (watch the smoke detector if you use the broiler--I speak from experience), shrimp, pasta... anything we would make at home. I buy lots of fresh veggies from Publix for side dishes. In my suitcase, I bring a little bit of olive oil, basic herbs and spices. It's one of the reasons we bought into DVC and it's been a great money saver for us.
Don't forget the wine!

 

[AtlantaDisneyDreamer]

I'd stick small amounts of spices, labeled for the meal, into zip lock on my check in luggage.

I love this. Will borrow it when we stay at Disney in September.

This is a great thread. I was wondering what to make.

 

[crisi]

Thanks for responding. I always bring dishwasher detergent and laundry detergent in my luggage. I

Dishwasher detergent and paper towels and toilet paper DVC will bring you for the asking if you run out. Laundry detergent they won't - that needs to be brought or bought if you do more than one load every four days (we get two out of the little box, I'm not a big user of detergent).

 

[LovesTimone]

I don't cook on vacation. But I do cook a lot at home, and I like doing what call 2 for 1 :

Baked potatoes with broccoli and cheese - just bake your potatoes and use a frozen box or bag of broccoli and cheese sauce - add a salad and your done. Bake extra potatoes, when baking the others so that you can use for home style potatoes for breakfast one morning, or make a quick potato salad for another night.

When cooking pasta, make extra for a pasta salad side dish.

If you buy bacon cook the whole package, use for breakfast, blt's sandwiches, add into salad.. Everything taste better with bacon. When cooking use the oven method 350 degrees use a cookie sheet covered with foil ( easy clean up)
bake for about 15 to 25 minutes maybe longer depending on oven , just watch it until done, we like crispy bacon so we let it go a bit longer. Let the extra cool and wrap in a paper towel, place in a baggie, in the frig and your good to go.

Sandwiches are great for vacation, but in order to use it up before you head home, We like to get the sub rolls, you can make garlic bread easily, and no waste.

The tubs of BBQ beef are really good, and easy to use - any left over can be used for a breakfast hash.

If you buy English muffins, you can use for breakfast, and use left over red sauce and lunch meat and cheese for mini pizzas, use left over salad, and you have a meal.

Have a wonderful time.

 

[DVC-Don]

We cook all breakfasts and most dinners with an occasional lunch thrown in. Love the kitchens.

 

[mom4graceandlogan]

If you want to keep it real budget, these are two we often do on vacations Hot dogs, chips, and mac n cheese or baked beans and maybe watermelon. Our favorite meal ever at disney(and we have spent almost 200 nights there) were hot dogs grilled out at Fort Wilderness, just relaxing. We did them in the room at VWL last year not quite as good but still fun and satisfying. We have only cooked dinner probably 5 times at disney, we often snack our way around epcot or have a big lunch. But we have made Breakfast for dinner, pancakes, eggs and a pack of bacon or sausage with fruit. Another easy and cheap is the grilled cheese with fruit. You can add veggies and dip or fruit. My kids rarely feel like soup or anything I would make in the crockpot on our september trips. Now each year I do a week at the beach with my best friends family and we eat all meals in. It involves intensive planning grocery lists, 2 crockpots, measuring spices etc. I find that the taco night always costs more than we planned and is much messier to clean up than planned. My best friend and I love to cook and don't mind cleaning up together, plus we have alot more time in the room on a beach trip. I like my DIsney DVC trips to be easy. So for us, cereal, sandwiches, fruit, hot dogs, and using the fridge as a place for leftovers, drinks,milk, and beer are pretty much the only uses of the fridge for us. Nacho bar is also an alternative to taco night and leftovers for either are good for snacks lunches during the week.

 

[jodifla]

I normally buy a big tray of the cut up veggies with dip. That way, we have a fresh, healthy appetizers and I can use the cut up fresh veggies for dinner as well, like stir-frying the broccoli and carrots together with some onion.

For dinner, meals are often:
Fresh Florida seafood on the grill, rice and cooked veggies from the veggie tray
Steaks on the grill, baked potatoes and a bagged salad
Spaghetti and salad
Hamburgers on the grill, coleslaw and beans

We also bring popcorn and lemonade to have in the room as snacks.

Particularly when we go in the summer, we are at the villa a lot during the day using the pool and such.

Oh, and we also have wine and bourbon in our Owner's Locker as well as spices and such, so we can have cocktail hour. We have spices in their as well.