Category: Food Storage & Cooking

When I think of Dutch Oven cooking I usually have visions of campfires and Scout Camp, of apple cobbler and savory stews. But as I further my preparations for TEOTWAWKI I realize that I want my Dutch ovens at my retreat. Any heavy pot with lid can be used and called a Dutch oven. But when I say Dutch oven I am referring to the three legged cast iron (or aluminum) covered pot that is normally used outdoors.  Much of the information I give you is basic and you may wish to explore these topics in depth. One of the …

Jim: To follow up on a recent post: According to canning sources, it is the Vitamins A, C, B1, B2 that are the most susceptible to degradation over time with  33%- 50% losses immediately upon canning and additional losses of 5-20% per year (based on storage conditions).  Let us look at best (33% loss at canning and 5% per year ) and worst case (50% loss at canning and 20% per year) losses per year for five years. Percentage of Remaining Vitamins: Storage Period Best Case Worst Case Year One 62.7% 40% Year Two 59.5% 32% Year Three 56.6% 26% Year Four 53.7% 20% Year Five 51% …

James Wesley, Rawles: Sometime in the middle 1990s I put away four litre (quart) jars of tomato sauce. Now, at least 20 years later I opened, processed and consumed this tomato preserve. The storage was in a cool, dry, dark and undisturbed location. The product was cooked, skin-removed italian tomato. The canning process I had used was simple: cook, skin, fill, bottle, water bath, etc. The result was acceptable.  Although I had to cut away the ring with a can piercer to loosen (destroy) the ring on the jar – the cap (lid) was intact. There was no bulging or …

Jim: I did some research on the storage life of yeast. I started with this article: Red Star Yeast which sates: “Each package and jar of dry yeast is stamped with a ‘Best if Used by’ date.  This date is two years from the date the yeast was packaged.  The month and year reflect when you should use your yeast by.  The last 4 digits are for manufacturing purposes and have nothing to do with when to use the yeast by. “Example of code: FEB 2010 08 09 – Use by February 2010 “Unopened  packages and jars should be stored in a …

I wish I could remember the exact moment I became a “prepper”, although I would much rather use the term “aware”.  I’m sure everyone has that “A-ha” moment that sets them on the path to enlightenment, and that brings me to the subject of the day.  I would like to re-introduce canned food to all of those food snobs out there, because I once was one. Yes, it’s true – for me it was always “freshly caught”, “freshly killed”, “never frozen”, “minimally processed” and most especially “organic”. As a child of the 1950s I was the unwilling guinea pig of …

Dear JWR: Stockpiling food has been performed for centuries.  Our earliest ancestors were hunter gatherers.  If they didn’t save up food for the winter, their existence would most certainly be doomed.  It has been recorded that in hard times throughout history people have re-learned preservation techniques that would ensure their survival for the months and years ahead.  I believe we are in a similar trend at the moment. Most everyone has a reasonable supply of food in the pantry for convenience purposes.  On the other hand some people, like our neighbors who we have affectionately named the “Pod People”, exist …

With the current economic climate and the recent drought, there is a lot of concern about an impending increase in food prices.  As I browse through homesteading blogs and review comments from recent news articles, more and more people that have not been a part of the “prepper  movement” in the past are now starting to open their eyes and see a need to increase their food stores.  When you first begin to build your pantry, it is helpful to think about the purpose of food storage:  The true goal of storing food is to be able to provide enough …

After you have spent the summer growing all of that fresh produce, it always seems like everything ripens all at the same time.  There are many ways that you can preserve those fruits and vegetables for the winter; canning, dehydrating, freezing, and root cellar.  I do not have a root cellar, so I rely completely on canning, freezing, and dehydrating.  To dehydrate your produce you will need a food dehydrator or you can simply use the sun and sundry them.  Some items such as apples, potatoes, pears, et cetera need to be pre-treated to prevent browning.  You have the choice …