Category: Food Storage & Cooking

Some Advice for Newbie Preppers, by Jillie

Around two years ago, I was sitting at my friend’s house visiting and he tells me about the supposed end of the world on December 21st, 2012.  At first I thought he was feeding me a line of horse manure.  He went on to tell me that he was going to buy the car of his dreams that he wouldn’t be able to afford, rack up his credit cards, get a big loan and live it up.  He wasn’t going to have to pay it back anyway, the world was going to end and we were all going to die.  …


Cooking the Farmyard Fowl for Modern Eaters, by Irishfarmer

In an austere situation, or even an economically challenged one, what do you do with those old hens, the ones eating more than laying, and especially, extra males, like all those roosters that hatched or came with the hatchery order?  We’re not talking here about raising broilers from the hatchery, feeding and sweating over them for the required number of weeks, doing the killing all in one or two days and then packing them into the freezer.  This article is for the person who is facing eating real barnyard birds.  It is also for the person whose family is used …


Letter Re: Sugar and Spice Will Always Be Nice

In the interest of honest and complete coverage of the topic, I’d like to clarify and expand upon the comments made by a contributor about the "brown sugar" typically marketed in the United States and Canada.   Brown Sugar is indeed just white sugar with molasses added to it. But what is not clear to most people is that molasses is what is left over when you refine sugar cane or sugar beets into white sugar.   Some sugars labeled “turbinado” or “demerara” sugars are made from partially refined sugar-juice that have had some of the water driven off by …


What Made Me Begin Preparing for TEOTWAWKI, by Elizabeth in the Northeast

I woke up a few months ago. Literally, I woke up one day and realized if TSHTF, I was toast. In a big way. It all started with Hurricane Sandy. I live in a coastal town in the Northeast. The beach is a comfortable twenty minute walk from my home. Three streets behind me is Water Street, so named because not only is home to various Marina’s and marine supply stores, it has a tendency to flood every high tide. I woke up the morning Sandy hit to an eerily lit sky. Even though a hurricane was heading our way …


Letter Re: Food Storage in the Southern United States

Sir: As a Central Texas Prepper, I have solved my food storage problem affordably, as follows: On my property there was an existing 20 foot by 24 foot sheetrock walled tool shed. I gutted this building and installed slabs of 8 inch styrofoam panels against interior walls. These blocks of foam were salvaged from floating docks on a local lake as most people were installing plastic floats under their docks. The styrofoam blocks were free for the taking..As the floats were used and had been in the water in some cases for years, they looked gross and smelled bad also. …


Letter Re: Sugar and Spice Will Always Be Nice

Dear Editor: My father worked for many years at a sugar factory, and I can tell you there is no such thing as a natural “brown sugar”.  Brown sugar is simply post-production white sugar with molasses added.   As you make your recipe, use slightly more than the called for amount of brown sugar–maybe an extra teaspoon or two, and then add molasses.  If the recipe calls for light brown sugar, add a little molasses.  Dark brown sugar? Just add more molasses.    Also, because you’re storing the components separately, your “brown sugar” never gets hard as a rock, because you mix it at …


Sugar and Spice Will Always Be Nice, by Vic in Iowa

Many of the things we love today, and take for granted, will probably be very hard to come by, if things fall apart. This long list certainly includes condiments. You may be ready to grow your own food, and purify your own water. I hope you are. And you hopefully have tons of wheat and rye and rice and beans packed away, to fall back on while you learn to produce all the food you need. (I figure it may take me 3 years to get self-sufficient, and have stocked up accordingly.) But even if your pantry is stocked deep, …


Two Letters Re: Food Storage in the Southern United States

Dear JWR: I’m writing in response to Gary from Georgia’s request for food storage help. We also live in Georgia and storage is an issue for us too.  I hope other readers have some suggestions for us as well. Currently we are considering three options: 1.  Dig a root cellar and store the food in there (expensive & time consuming) 2.  Purchase a few 30 or 55 gallon barrels with screw on lids, fill them with a good variety of very long term food sealed well in individual mylar bags (we might even double bag them just in case there …


The Po’ Mans TEOTWAWKI Guide, by R.B.

Useful tips and advice for the rest of us. Don’t have lots of money? Just started prepping when it hits the fan? This guide is for you. Free of charge! Tip #1: Bug-in Chances are that you won’t be in such immediate danger (dirty bomb, lava about to engulf your house, spiders like in that Arachnaphobia movie) that you actually have to leave your home. Most likely the government will stop functioning or the power grid will be down for a long time. Of course, there is always risk of civil unrest, but that is not likely to effect your …


Letter Re: Food Storage in the Southern United States

Hello, I am searching for the answer to a question I am sure has been answered, but I have not been able to locate.  I live in Georgia and have been stocking up on foods.  I have very limited storage space in the house and have started to consider the need to move food stores out to the garage or up into the attic (I have no basement).  Our summers are extremely hot.  Many foods cannot be left in the extreme heat, and I am sure people in colder climates face the inverse problem.   It is not yet a issue for me, …


Into Bear Country, by George F.

As a result of moving into remote retreat areas, you may begin to have encounters with North America’s bear population. Even in suburban/urban areas, a lack of hunting and the return of forests has seen bears make a comeback, raising the likelihood of a bear-human encounters. Even if you live somewhere with a low likelihood of bear encounters, you should know the proper actions and make preparations, because bears can turn up anywhere. I’m going to outline the steps for bear camping, keeping your homestead secure from bears, traveling in bear country, tactics for a bear encounter, and bear defenses …


Long Distance Bug Out Planning, by J.B. in Georgia

There is a plethora of good, sound information and articles on SurvivalBlog.com that I have researched, absorbed, and adapted into much of what we have done to prepare.  I would like to personally extend my gratitude to all the contributors of this subject and let them know that the information they have freely shared has been very helpful.  In addition, there are countless other informative sites, books, and organizations gained from this web site that has also been very useful.  This article describes our particular situation, the challenges, and planning to make our escape from the crowded suburbs of Atlanta …


Moving to An Asset-Orientated Life by Greg G.

If you’re a long-time reader of this blog you know what to do to get prepared. Stock up on food for short and near term survival, find a location where like minded people live. Become physically fit and active, and train in self defense. But all of these things cost money. My article goes towards moving to an asset orientated lifestyle to achieve your goals. When you’re cash poor, it is tough to even think about planning. If you read these articles about guns and survival food, and retreat locations and wonder, while the dispute between .223 and .308 is …


A Widow’s View of Preparedness, by Catherine T.

I am a widow of over three years whose youngest son was serving our country in the Middle East when my husband’s death happened.  My husband lost his job and was forced into early retirement before his death.  I will not go into the details of all the turmoil then and of having a child home with injuries of war.  In a SHTF situation there will be many people with war injuries in our own neighborhoods.  My other children and I are so glad he is still alive.  My income dropped further not long after this.   It was the end …


The Fourth Essential, by Bob B.

As any survivalist quickly learns, the “three basic essentials” to survival are air, water and shelter. However, I learned to realize that there is a fourth basic essential, that being a stove–which provides a way to reliably purify the water, cook the food and make the shelter more comfortable. Of course, there are many types of water filters, solar ovens and warmer clothing for those needs but, somewhere along the line, the ongoing need for a practical, portable, concealable, quick and highly-efficient means of heating will be needed. SHTF heating that can purify your water, cook your food and warm …