Category: Food Storage & Cooking

Scot’s Product Review: SUN OVENS International All American Solar Oven

I’ve already written about solar cooking (and plan to continue writing about solar stuff), but I will try not to repeat too much from the last review in this one. That said, there was some good generic information there, and you might want to refer back to it . As I continue on this trail, I have come to the All American Solar Oven http://www.sunoven.com/. It is a very high quality, made in the USA product that works extremely well. SUN OVENS is a long time player in the field. The original Sun Ovens came on the market in 1986, …


Saving Your Marriage for the End of the World – Part 1, by Cottage Mom

Could there be a greater, more important survival topic than building a stronger marital union, which is the bedrock of civilization? This topic reminds me of a young man I once spoke with. He noticed a young lady and heard the Lord telling him that she was to marry him. Even though he barely knew her, he intended to declare God’s will to her, go to the altar, check off the wife box on his bucket list, and move on, clueless to the reality that winning her is a journey. I counseled him that he was trying to barge in, …


Letter Re: Vitamins in a Grid Down Situation

Hugh, I would like to add these sources to the author’s: Vitamin D – the article is missing a crucial and easy to set up source– fresh shiitake mushrooms. “A fresh shiitake boasts about 100 IU of vitamin D per gram, but if you dry it in the sun, it creates 10,000 IU. If you dry it upside down in the sun and let the gills absorb the sun, a gram will provide 20,000 IU. The mushrooms are so full of D, in fact, it’s important not to eat too many dried shiitakes, as vitamin D overdose can occur with …


Food Less Fortified: Vitamins in a Time of Grid-Down Existence Part I, by PA Jes

TEOTWAWKI can take on many forms. This article is directed towards those who will transition (or already have transitioned) to locally-grown, seasonal, and non-processed (non-vitamin-fortified) food. This includes food produced as a result of homesteading, self-sufficient living, or surviving in a situation where trucks stop stocking supermarkets with vitamin-fortified food, multivitamins, Florida oranges, ocean tuna, and so on. Will America regress to a level of malnutrition typically seen in a third world county? This article is written to be a practical guide to surviving in a vitamin-deficient world, describing some of the key vitamins and their respective government-directed fortification in …


Scot’s Product Review: SUNFLAIR Solar Oven

I think I’m on to something– solar cooking. I’ve been interested in it for a long time but never got around to doing much about it. Writing for SurvivalBlog gave me an excuse, actually a duty, to check this subject out. I plan to do at least two reviews on solar cookers and hope to do more since there are a variety of them on the market. You can also make your own, and I’ll look into that, too. Why solar? Well, being able to cook without requiring fuel is huge. Not only can you cook, you can make water …


Preserving and Storing Food Safely – An Overview – Part II, by N.M.

Types of Preserving Now that you understand, from Part 1 of this article, some of the reasons to preserve and priorities in preserving correctly, let’s consider which preserving methods you may want to use. Preserving methods include multi-step processes, like soaking, skimming, rinsing, hanging to dry, freezing, canning (in mason jars), smoking, and sucking air out of bags, containers, and buckets. Your choice of which method to use is governed by the food. For example, you would usually freeze berries but dehydrate and vacuum seal tomatoes and strips of meat (jerky). You could can (in glass jars) green beans, though …


Preserving and Storing Food Safely – An Overview – Part I, by N.M.

Preserving food has become an important focus of many families. After reading this article, you will understand what is involved in preserving and be able to decide if it’s for you. Food prices are soaring, and food quality and quantities are decreasing. You can save lots of money by buying things on sale or take advantage of bulk purchases, because you can preserve the food and use it later. You will be protecting yourself and your family by having safely stored nutritious food in the event of an emergency, and you can help your neighbors. With all these pluses, it’s …


Prepping During the Calm After the Storm, by D.L.

One of the hardest things to do in prepping, especially if you were inspired by a specific incident or disaster, is to maintain your preps long after the initial threat seems to have faded away. There’s an initial burst of energy and acquisition of skills; then there is a slow fade and then a rapid fade. Eventually, something will happen, and you will find yourself unprepared again. It’s a bit like dieting before your high school reunion. Then, once the reunion is over, trying to keep your diet going but allowing yourself a weekly cheat day, then adding a cheat …


Letter Re: So You Think Starting a Garden Will Be Easy After TEOTWAWKI

I have been meaning to post this information online and have not found a good venue for it, but reading the responses to the article So You Think Starting a Garden Will Be Easy After TEOTWAWKI inspired me to contact you for your consideration of adding this little tidbit for your blog followers. The second letter response to the article stated that “We put dehydrated tomatoes and peppers in pint canning jars, put a tiny hole in the center of the lid, put on a Pump ‘N Seal seal, pump out the air, and place in our cool, dark, root …


Two Letters Re: Justifying Preparation

Hugh: Here in Georgia, a hurricane right up the middle puts power lines in the road and shuts down traffic for a minimum of 30 days. Evidence of that result can be found in the Connecticut Governor’s response to Hurricane Sandy, which was to shut down all state highways. There was no traffic and no grocery store resupply. Counting on FEMA to show up in three days is foolish. In the aftermath of Katrina, it was churches that carried the day rather than FEMA. My family up in New Jersey during Sandy was at the end of their rope after …


Letter Re: Home Brewing for SHTF

Thanks for providing the warning based on scripture concerning alcohol. Please make sure the readers know and understand that distillation of any alcohol product, without proper state and federal licensing will land them in the federal pen. I don’t think the writer of that post was clear enough on that. We call it ethanol now, but the BATFE still calls it moonshine if the producer doesn’t have his ducks in a row. – G.F.


LED Grow Lights for Indoor Food Production, by J.H.

Lighting products based on Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology continues to improve. Not only are lights getting cheaper, but the individual LED components are getting more higher powered and both efficiency and lifetimes/longevity are improving. Over time, LED technology is poised to replace the problematic and often loathed Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) as the preferred alternative to traditional incandescent light bulbs. However, this article is not about ordinary lighting applications but rather LED lighting specifically used for indoor growing applications. The benefits of LED lighting for plant growth, particularly as the technology advances, are truly revolutionary and will change the …


Letter Re: Storage Without a Basement

Hi, Mr. Hugh! I live in the hot, HUMID, deep South and have a couple of things to add to the conversation. 1) If you have a spring, dig it out and box it in with cypress wood or some other wood that should last in water. We did that back in ’75, and added shelving on the inside of the box, at just under water level. Our spring water is very cold and should keep milk and milk products nice and cool. I have to admit that we’ve never had to use it for that; we just pump the …


Home Brewing for SHTF, by C.K.

(Preface by HJL: SurvivalBlog neither condones nor condemns alcohol consumption. However, we stand by a biblical perspective that takes a strong stance against drunkenness. There are serious issues that must be weighed in regards to alcohol consumption and commerce, and each reader should measure them carefully to know whether home brewing is for you or not.) What is home brewing? I am not talking about brewing your favorite cup of coffee or tea; I am referring to the growing hobby of brewing beer, wine, and other spirits at home. There are many advantages of brewing in SHTF. However, like other …


Letter Re: Storage Without a Basement

I’m writing in response to the discussion about how to keep food in the Southeastern United States in the heat of the summer. My mother-in-law is in her 80s. I asked her how her parents and grandparents kept their food. For things like apples, potatoes, tomatoes, they would just store it above ground, sometimes packed in sawdust, usually in open air. For canned food, her mother had a little room off the house with shelves in it. It didn’t have a window, but it also got just as hot as the house. They would keep the canned food in jars …