Category: Food Storage & Cooking

Letter: The Importance Of Food And The Ability To Grow And Process Food

Dear Hugh: The situation in Venezuela has a precedent. When the Kuomintang Army remnants fled to Taiwan in 1949, they brought tons of paper money and spent it freely, resulting in a rapid hyperinflation. During that time only food had any value and nothing else, not PMs, weapons, ammo, fine art, you name it. Now for those who have some arable land (or neighbors that do) I figure veggie seeds, fertilizer, and stabilized diesel will have considerable value in that they can be used to grow food. It is for this reason that each year we save many gallons of …


Nutritious Homemade Dog Treats and Food Using Mainly Scraps, by Sarah Latimer

In this day when everything seems to cost so much more than it did twenty or even five years ago and we all work harder than ever to make ends meet, I just can’t stand waste. Beyond that, I think I was born with a love for efficiency and resourcefulness. These are traits I highly esteem in individuals and strive to accomplish myself, and I know Hugh appreciates that I am able to stretch our dollars further than many others know how to do. So, let me share how I apply this to our beloved and useful dogs. While I …


Letter Re: Pantry Building Basics

HJL, This was an excellent article to which I would add home freeze drying (fd). Canning fresh foods is a lot of work, but you know what went into those canning jars. Freeze drying at home is almost no work and is fun, in addition to you having the knowledge of what went into those jars. A home freeze dryer costs less than $3,000; that’s less than a one year’s supply of commercial fd food for one person. You can fd almost any food at home. Imagine ice cream sandwiches after the SHTF! Those cans of commercial foods that are …


Letter: Discounted Freeze Dried Food Sources

Hugh, I’m reasonably sure lots of your readers are aware, but just in case… Costco (online) has lots of freeze dried foods at really good prices compared to other vendors online. Apparently they buy overstock from many suppliers. Anyway, I just got a case of six #10 cans of Mountain House Breakfast Skillet for $149 with UPS shipping included in the price. Also, I got a case of MH Chicken Stew for $139, with the same free shipping deal. The prices of these items are usually between $185 and $200 PLUS shipping at three of the popular online providers. (I …


Hawkins Pressure Cooker, by Pat and Mary Cascio

We’ve owned several travel trailers over the years but hardly ever went out camping. We live in the boonies, and I sincerely love where I live. There is no need for me to go any place else to enjoy myself. Basically, we used travel trailers as mobile bug out retreats, if the time ever came, or as a spare “bedroom” for guests. Approximately a year ago, we acquired a newer 21-foot travel trailer that has everything I wanted, except a/c, which would have been nice. (I still might have it installed and spend hot summer nights sleeping in it in …


Response to Making a Final Run, by Jim Fry

I must confess that I haven’t had a chance to read every single post on “Making a Final Run”. A farm in winter can be a very busy place. So I hope I’m not just repeating someone else. In the main I agree with most posters, a final run is possibly/probably not a good idea, maybe. If you’re talking about a last run to Walmart, then maybe you run the chance of getting into the middle of where you don’t want to be. However, there are lots of other sorts of “final runs”, such as to the bank, the gas …


Letter: Rocket Stoves and Tiny Pressure Cookers

Dear Mr. Rawles and Mr. Latimer, I read with interest your recent article on rocket stoves and slow cooking. I would like to note that while rocket stoves do use less fuel, a person can also burn less fuel and save time with a pressure cooker. Many people are totally unaware that there are very small 1.5 liter pressure cookers for sale that use very little fuel to cook a delicious and healthy meal. If you are going to go to the trouble of using an efficient stove, it pays to use efficient cooking vessels. I recently made two YouTube …


Letter Re: Rocket Stoves

Hi Jim and Hugh, I have appreciated the rocket stove articles. If one has the funds and is less mechanically inclined or adept at welding, I have purchased a Stove Tek rocket stove and am very pleased with it. They have upgraded it some from the one I bought. I think probably from your website a few years ago someone suggested that a Saratoga Jack ‘slow cooker’ would work well with the rocket stove, and wouldn’t you know it does. There is an interior removable stainless pot that fits nicely on the rocket stove. I boiled water using leaves and …


Why You Need a Rocket Stove And How To Build Three Types- Part 2, by Charles Fockaert

How to Build a Rocket Stove From Tin Cans Prep Mode Two types of cans can be used for the main body of your tin can rocket stove– a #10 can or a metal paint can. I much prefer the metal paint can for two reasons. First, it has a lid. Secondly, it has a built-in handle. I will explain how to build a rocket stove out of a paint can. The process is basically the same for the #10 can. Let’s start by taking a look at what the finished product looks like. This is a photo of a …


Letter: Rocket Stove & Slow Cooking

Mr. Rawles, SurvivalBlog is one of our daily Internet staples. My family has gleaned far too much from the site to ignore. Today’s article on rocket stoves and a reader’s submission touting the benefits of a slow cooker were meant to go together, maybe even Heaven sent. We have a slow cooker, and we also have a rocket stove. However, in a hunker down crisis the slow cooker becomes almost useless without using an alternate AC source. But the rocket stove, grid down, becomes a wonderful item to have in your quiver of preps. It excels in heating items quickly …


Why You Need a Rocket Stove And How To Build Three Types- Part 1, by Charles Fockaert

It finally happened. You knew it would. It took longer than you expected, but the Schumer hits the blades scenario you knew was coming is here. It is now “Your. New. Reality”. To survive, you are going to have to cook food and heat water daily, for yourself, for your family, and perhaps for your friends but maybe without electricity, propane, or natural gas. All you have available for fuel is wood. Your New Reality The Federal Reserve Note, a fiat currency created out of thin air by the multiple trillions over the last 100 years, has been rejected finally …


Sarah Latimer: Unrealized Expectations – Part 2

In continuing with the idea of not relying upon others for the “sweet” wants and needs we have, here are a few more ideas that you can provide for yourself (and feel quite good about your independence in doing so!): Fresh and Dried Fruits and Vegetables– Want organic, highly nutritious fresh or dried fruits and vegetables year around, economically? Plant fruit trees and bushes and grow a garden as well as consider using a greenhouse for winter produce. Then, can, freeze, dehydrate, and/or freeze dry your excess produce for later seasonal use. We are still enjoying freeze-dried cubed tomatoes from …


Community Risk Mitigation, by T.P.

I hate it when I see statements on prepping site that make assumptions of our fellow citizens that are overly broad and frequently demeaning. You know the things I’m talking about. “They assume the government will save them.” “Sheeple.” “They refuse to prepare because of their narrow mindedness.” There is certainly a small subset of people who fit that mold. Most however are of the “ignorance is bliss” variety. They simply haven’t woken up to the risk. Prepping is simply a form of risk mitigation. It’s insurance. When my family woke up to the risk, we didn’t suddenly realize the …


Letter Re: Low-Carb Paleo and Primal for Preppers

Dear Editor, Regarding the article “Low-Carb Paleo and Primal for Preppers, By T.Z.”, there are a few points of this article that should be clarified. The low-carb diet can be used to great effect, however you need to be aware that you can overdue it and cause yourself harm. Symptoms of harmful ketosis are thirstiness, feeling tired, peeing a lot, feeling sick to your stomach, belly pain, throwing up, dry or flushed skin, trouble breathing, confusion, and fruity smelling breath.  The main benefit of the ketosis diet is the lack of hunger your body feels when on the diet, making …


Letter Re: A Lesson from Fasting for Preparedness

Dear Editor: I enjoyed the post by J.C. regarding Fasting for Preparedness. It was well written with lots of info for those who may wish to explore further. I am a 55 year old male. I am 6’3″ and weigh 190 lbs. I’ve been blessed with a strong Christian upbringing and was familiar with the concept of fasting for spiritual reasons most of my life. The Bible is chock full of fasting references, from short duration to supernatural fasts such as Jesus Christ in Matthew Chapter 4. So back in the 1990s when I began fasting, it was for spiritual …