煮飯時間是我在船艙內最喜愛的時刻之一。
在船上，煮飯是Rob的工作，洗碗則是我的。在漫長、勞累的一天之後，餓肚子的我通常只想好好坐下來享受晚餐，無法動腦花心思想花樣把食材變出大餐。然而，發揮創意煮上一頓卻是Rob犒賞自己辛苦一天的方式。Rob討厭洗碗，我卻願意在飽餐一頓之後把髒亂恢復整潔。對於如此的分配，二人皆大歡喜。
在船上煮飯是個大挑戰。切菜板翻開底下是儲存鍋具與乾貨的空間；電爐正後面的櫃子裡放著大多數的調味料，蔬菜水果躲在要伸長上半身才搆得到的置物籃內；窄小的水槽塞不下太大的鍋具，水龍頭不是輕輕一扭就出水，而是要用腳踩水槽下的踏板，每踩一次只出水５秒。
若是我煮飯的話，大概就會發生將切好的菜不慎倒入切菜板下的空間，伸手抓洋蔥卻撂倒鍋子、衣邊踩踏板卻【遠水就不了近火】的狀況。但是看Rob煮飯卻是一大享受。就像料理鼠王裡的畫面一樣，彷彿小老鼠就藏在Rob頭上操縱一切般的順暢（但是他光頭小老鼠可無處可躲）。
也由於空間狹小、水資源取得不易，再加上為可能在航行中船一邊搖晃一邊煮飯做準備，Rob就練就了一鍋煮天下的獨門絕技。
此神奇之鍋為壓力鍋。基本步驟便是先炒香佐料，放入生米拌炒加入其他材料與適量水分之後蓋上鍋蓋，提高壓力悶煮就大功告成。
就這樣，Rob煮出一鍋又一鍋口味迥然不同的菜餚。昨天是義式燻鮭魚節瓜燉飯，今天是酸辣白菜豆腐燴飯、明天Rob想做泰式椰汁蔬菜飯。他也嘗試過墨西哥白豆蔬菜飯、地中海鮪魚燉飯，都讓我驚為天人、讚嘆不絕。。
每天，我期待鍋蓋發出長長的「咻」一聲，逐漸止息的時刻，然後就可以掀起鍋蓋，大啖Rob今天的創意點子。
(Translation)
Dinner time is one of my favorite times on the boat.
Cooking is Rob's job. Dish washing is mine. When I'm hungry after a long, tiring day, all I want to do is sit down and enjoy my meal. I don't have the energy to put my brain to the task of creating a meal. Rob on the other hand rewards himself for a day's labor by dreaming up something good to eat. And he hates washing dishes. After a good meal, I'm perfectly happy to restore order to the boat and clean up the night's dishes. We are both overjoyed with how well this arrangement works out.
It's a big challenge to cook on the boat. Dry goods and pots and pans are stored directly under the cutting board. The majority of the seasonings are stored behind the stove. Vegetables and fruit are stored in out of the way baskets which take a bit of reaching to get at. And the sink doesn't come on with the push of a lever. We pump water with a foot pump.
If I have to cook, I'm likely to dump the just cut vegetables into the storage bin under the cutting board. When I reach for an onion, I'll probably knock the pot off the stove. And the foot pump is just far enough and slow enough that kitchen may very well burn before I can put it out.
But Rob takes great pleasure in cooking in this kitchen. He moves through the kitchen like he has a “Ratatouille” rat on his head controlling his every move (Of course, with his bald head a rat would have no place to hide).
Because of the small space on the boat and in preparing for cooking under way when the boat is lurching from side to side, Rob has developed the skill of the one pot meal. The magical pot he uses to make this happen is called a pressure cooker. His basic technique is simple. He sautes his aromatics, adds rice and sautes it as well, and then adds the remaining ingredients and some water. Once it boils he closes the lid and brings the pot up to pressure. A few minutes later the meal is ready.
With this simple technique, Rob is able to come up with an astonishing range of different flavors and textures. Yesterday he cooked smoked salmon and zucchini over rice. Today he made sweet and sour cabbage stew with tofu. Tomorrow he is planning on making Thai coconut milk curry soup. He has also made Mexican rice and beans and Mediterranean risotto. Each time the pot opens I am joyfully surprised.
I look forward to this moment each night, when the new smell first comes forth from the pot. I wait with anticipation to see what Rob has created.
