How can one make a reasonable curry with limited spices and poor quality equipment? [closed]

The one thing that makes a big difference is the knife (and I say that as someone who doesn't look after mine very well). You may be able to take a small sharp knife with you (you can buy paring knifes with plastic sheaths, for example) though this depends how you're traveling and on thy knife laws where you are.

Then generally the idea is to cook simply. Simple doesn't have to mean boring, but dishes that don't use lots simultaneous cooking steps. Space can often make prepping everything in advance a challenge, but you can use cups, plates, and cereal bowls for anything you do prep (and put them on the dining table). Prepping at the dining table can also be a way to gain space, especially if you're sharing the kitchen facilities. Cutting up veg before meat to make better use of the only knife and chopping board is one simple way that does require prepping in a particular order.

Lack of non stick means using a bit more oil to fry, and keeping things moving. This may not be the time to try or your new recipe for homemade burgers, or other things that are prone to falling apart if handled roughly.

Most ovens should be up to most things, including baking cakes, but do you really need to? If you're only using the oven to roast, or make stews or jacket potatoes, you don't need precision, just too cook until done. This makes synchronising something cooked in the oven with something cooked on the hob a little tricky, but that's where simplicity comes in.

I go away with friends quite a bit, in holiday cottages, bunkhouses etc. and also have a campervan in which I like to cook proper if simple dishes, so face this quite often. Making a risotto in the van, for example, I kept the stock hot by putting it in a casserole dish on top of the pan in which I was cooking the rice, then used the pan from heating the stock to cook green beans. The beans were stored in the cold oven after trimming because I wanted to do that before cutting the onion and garlic with the same tools so as not to transfer flavour. My total food preparation surface there is about 40x50cm.

To take one aspect of that – the knife...

Carrying knives is somewhat frowned upon in the UK, so I'd avoid anything larger than a pocket penknife; leaving you with a holiday rental full of cheap rubbish last sharpened at the factory... in 1982.

I wouldn't suggest this for anything other than an 'emergency' situation, but if you find 2 knives, one harder steel than the other, you can get a rough but sharp enough edge on one by dragging the blade of the softer one hard over the squared back of the harder one, at 30–45°... like a poor-man's pull-through sharpener. Because the steel is cheap & soft, it works remarkably well. It probably wouldn't work with a good knife.

It won't do either implement much good, but it will rip an edge onto the soft one, whilst leaving creases & dents in the back of the harder one. I've even done this when cooking at relatives' - though I tell them what I'm about to do & give them pick of the one I'm going to crease the back of ;)