Category: Food Storage & Cooking

The Zero Waste Kitchen, by Kate in Colorado

With food prices soaring with no end in sight, it is extremely important to use our food purchases and harvests wisely. How we manage our kitchens and decrease food loss will become even more critical in the face of increased economic pressure that seems to be increasing at breakneck speed.  The people of this country have been blessed with such food abundance in the past that many people automatically assume the supply of food will continue to be endless in the future.  The average person has no idea where their food comes from nor how it is constructed, processed, and …


Off Grid Cooking Solutions, Part 2, by V.W.

To follow up o my article Off Grid Cooking Solutions, Part 1: One of the first items we purchased for off grid cooking was the humble Dutch Oven.  There are many enthusiasts of this time honored way of cooking.  The Dutch oven is surprisingly versatile as it can be used over a fire, with charcoal briquettes, on a regular kitchen stove, a woodstove, portable camp stove, or the rocket stove.  Because of the fuel consumption required and the logistics of storing charcoal and wood, I am not as interested in using my Dutch oven over an outdoor camp fire or …


Off Grid Cooking Solutions, Part 1, by V.W.

About three years ago, my husband and I jumped in with both feet and decided to invest in emergency preparedness and survival skills. It’s been quite a journey, and we certainly have learned a lot. My husband’s main interests are in security and heating the home, while mine have been food storage and off grid cooking. We make a good team as we rely on each other’s strengths and abilities. Although we are not yet at the level we hope to be, we are a lot further down the road than where we once were. I recently taught a small …


Three Letters Re: Losing Weight, Prepper Style

Dear Sirs, I would like to address something in the recent article, Losing Weight, Prepper Style, by Caleb E. that I hope will provide some further information to your readers.   The author of the article describes an approach based largely on the theory that calorie intake/outtake is the root cause of modern health and obesity problems. This is an extension of the classic food pyramid we were all taught since the 70s. This is not necessarily a wrong approach, but its important to know that there is growing evidence that the underlying theory is deeply flawed; that calories aren’t the problem, but rather the types of calories.  There …


Losing Weight, Prepper Style, by Caleb E.

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, I am not a dietician, I am not a nutritionist. I am an average, overweight guy, who happens to be a prepper and believes that, after trying numerous ways to lose weight and a great deal of reading, research, trial and error, he may have a solution to wading through the sea of dietary B.S. that many people get lost in. All those who take this advice, do so at their own risk and are encouraged to seek the advice of a medical professional first. Many of us, including survival/self-sufficiency minded people, have …


Preparedness for Short Term Regional Disasters, by K.H.H.

I know this blog is primarily aimed at folks preparing for a long-term crisis, but I have a unique perspective on living without electricity after a regional disaster that I thought some might find informative. I live in the hills of northwestern New Jersey, and I have lived through three sustained (my definition: 4 or more days each) power outages caused by extreme weather events during the last two years. These power outages were caused, respectively, by Hurricane Irene, 19 inches of wet, heavy snow in October before the trees had lost their leaves, and Hurricane Sandy. I have learned …


Letter Re: Storage Foods at COSTCO Stores

James – I am on Long Island in New York. Recently I ran into a great deal at my two local Costco stores for 72 hour [storage food] buckets.  This was advertised as a combination food, cooking (fire) and water (filter) kit. At Christmas these buckets were $79.99 each–a bit pricey. However when I was there on Tuesday, the [local store’s] price had dropped to $9.98 a bucket! So I cleaned them out. These buckets are still on their web site for $79.99 apiece. I just wanted to pass this on to you so your readers could get in on …


Letter Re: Warning on Canola Oil

Mr. Rawles; Yesterday I was in my local Costco store doing some shopping for my prepper pantry, and I noticed something new that Costco is selling, a vegetable oil blend. It’s labeled as “Mediterranean Blend” and is a mixture of canola, olive, and grapeseed oil. It may be attractive to value-conscious preppers, because the cost per liter is low; $2.97 a liter vs. Kirkland (Costco’s house brand) olive oil for $5.97 a liter.  Beware of this oil. According to Mary Enig, Ph.D., who is the current world authority on trans–fatty acids, Canola Oil is actually derived from the rapeseed, a …


Letter Re: Inexpensive Solar Cookers From Projection Television Lenses

Mr. Rawles, [Since they have been superceded by flat screen HDTV technology, many] old projection-type big screen televisions are being hauled away daily to landfills or “e-waste” collection points. I believe that many preppers who find themselves without sufficient fuel post-Collapse, could benefit from a devices such as the one shown in this video and this video. This easily assembled solar cooker could really stretch the use of precious fuel supplies, and it would cost “peanuts” to construct. Just about all of it could come from salvaged materials. Waiting until after a Collapse to begin searching for the components, however, might be …


Two Letters Re: Storing Coconut Oil

JWR, I work in the oleochemcals industry, just a little info on oil storage. Oxygen is by far your worst enemy when it comes to long term storage for any fat based materials. The oxygen will primarily interact with any of the double bonds located on a fatty acid chain, breaking down the fatty acid and creating the compounds that cause the oil to become rancid. The more unsaturated the oil is the more double bonds that will be available for the oxygen to interact with. Coconut oil is naturally highly saturated (typically ~94%), therefore fewer double bond sites on the …


Letter Re: Fire: Your Partner in Survival

Dear JWR: The excellent article, “Fire: Your Partner in Survival, by Pledger” mentioned the BTU ratings of certain trees. Wanting to know a bit more, I did some searching and found a chart of the BTU ratings of various types of wood. On another note, Pledger’s reference to a cord as 4×8 feet by 16 inches threw me. I looked it up and found that a “full cord” measures 4x4x8 feet, which is the number I was familiar with, ranging from 80 to 100 cubic feet stacked. The web site I found uses 90 cubic feet for its BTU ratings. …


Letter Re: Storing Coconut Oil

Jim, When I was in Costco this week, I noticed that they had Organic Coconut Oil. This coconut oil is a good storage fat because it is very shelf-stable. The manufacturer says it has a shelf life of two years, but a friend of mine told me that she had some that she stored in her basement for 6 years, and when she used it it was just fine.  Coconut oil is definitely healthier for you than Crisco (which is hydrogenated vegetable oil) or hydrogenated lard (the lard you commonly find in the grocery store); we’ve all heard about the …


Letter Re: Hiding What is Mine

Dear JWR: Like most of us I am storing food in preparation of something bad happening. I have some super pails along with regular grocery items as well as some freeze dried items. I have a pantry which has long since been over run with supplies, so I built a couple heavy duty cabinets in which to store my overflow. When the great SEE (Society Ending Event) comes about I am quite sure our government won’t just shrivel up and go away. Quite the opposite, they will go from house to house looking for stored supplies. If they come to …


Surviving Snowmageddon, by Lugknut32

In January, 2012 Washington State went through what the locals called Snowmageddon. My family and I had just returned from being stationed in Germany for the preceding nine years. Some of our belongings were still packed up out in the garage. Mostly my “camping” things. Having just started at the new assignment, I had not yet taken the time to unpack everything. I had bought some heavy duty shelves for the garage (in anticipation of unpacking my gear). While in Germany, I was stationed in Bavaria (Schweinfurt and Graffenwoehr specifically). I had been raised in the Midwest, so I was …


Letter Re: Emergency Bags for Your Vehicle

Dear James, I wish to make a comment about the article on preparing an emergency bag for your car. This is a prudent and good idea. I currently have one for each vehicle I own. The only problem with the article is the choice of food. I have a tendency to leave my emergency bag in my car. The problem arises in the summer when the outside temps start to rise. With the outdoor temp at 100 degrees F the car’s inside temperature is 120 to 130. The MRE entrees only have a shelf life of 30 days at 120 …