Holiday essentials: self-catering without the fuss

Never have I felt more sympathy for my parents than I did on my return from my first self-catering holiday as an adult. As the self-elected cook for the holiday I was in charge of planning, preparing and (more often than I’d like) tidying up after all the meals we ate for the week. Self-catered holidays can be great - often cheaper, and a wonderful opportunity for leisurely experiments in the kitchen - but if you go in without a plan you can often be left feeling even more in need of a holiday at the end than the start.

There’s no need for quite as anally retentive planning methods as my venn diagrams, but think carefully about common ingredients in meals to make the most of what you take. Which herbs crop up most commonly across your menus? Do you need both brown and white rice? Is it worth buying that enormous sack of potatoes? Take a look at our recipe collections by ingredient to get some ideas on using the same core ingredients in a variety of interesting ways.

On a recent holiday to Berlin we were ten minutes from the vast Turkish market running along Maybachufer, whereas several years ago on a trip to the Isle of Mull there was one shop on our half of the island. It is always worth doing a little bit of research on the area you will be staying in before deciding what to bring with you and what to buy there. The same goes for shopping hours; opening hours vary widely from day to day across Europe (and around the world). Depending on where you’re staying it may be difficult to find an open shop if you’re arriving late at night or on the weekend, so check ahead and maybe have a couple of nearby (open) restaurants up your sleeve too.

It’s common for most holiday rental listings to have an inventory, but often these are vague at best. Self-catering properties should provide enough crockery and cutlery for everyone staying, and a basic range of pots, pans and utensils. If you’re staying for longer than a few days, however, or your planned holiday menus are a little more ambitious than the average holidaymaker have a think about what you would classify as the essentials. A quality knife is always a good bet - depending on travel arrangements, obviously - while a colander can earn its place by doubling as a salad spinner and steamer if you’re getting desparate. Tupperware, too, is an oft-forgotten necessity, along with cling film or foil for on-the-go money saving snacks.