# eating from my food stores



## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

i began april first eating only from my food stores, to try to get an idea what I am missing, or needing, and if I can live on what I have. I havent been eating my mountain house meals, I am leaving those for when TSHTF. but my other foods, my dried veggies and so on, I am eating those, mostly making soup/stew type meals, or casseroles ,using rice or pasta or potatoes that I have dried. So far the only thing I feel I need to add more of is meat. It isnt fun eating soup with no meat in it. I have canned tuna, so have made several casseroles using that. I didnt eat my eggs because I dont have egg powder yet in my food stores. anyway, i guess I still have work to do, I need more variety for sure. but its been fun trying it out. no ordering pizza delivery. lol.
now that i have an idea how my food storage is working I will go back to eating my regular food, and putting in more of the foods and variety I need.
I also realise I need a lot more food stored. I could go through this in a short time, and for sure it wouldnt feed my grandsons for long. Sooooo MORE FOOD, more variety, and MORE MEAT! lol


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## Canadian (Dec 14, 2008)

Meat is important for variety. It's also amazing how much food one person can consume in a month. You only get a good idea of how much people really eat once you start stockpiling.


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## The_Blob (Dec 24, 2008)

also, the heat-generating qualities of meat are SO important in a colder environment

location & time of year play a big part in how much food you consume as well

sounds like a fun experiment


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

it seems the best way to add meat to my food stores is to buy freezedried meat. does anyone have any experience or knowledge about TVP?


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## Herbalpagan (Dec 8, 2008)

I think you are so right about meat. I have all the fixings for soups for a long time, but no meat to go in them. I think I will start looking for good meat buys and can some of it up.


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

MaryV said:


> it seems the best way to add meat to my food stores is to buy freezedried meat. does anyone have any experience or knowledge about TVP?


Campbell's has some good RTE (Ready to Eat) canned food and their Chunky Stews (with large cubed meat) would also be a great addition to your food-stores.

If I remember correctly, you live not to far from where they have their processing center in Listowel, ON (Perth). You might be able to locate skids of way-lower priced canned goods.


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

listowel isnt too far, if I had a car. do you mean I could drive to their processing plant and buy canned food?
I got 42 cans of the campbells chunky for 99cents each. wish i had gotten a hundred. the price now is almost 3 dollars. for me, a lot of those soups I add other veggies to and make more meals out of it. I am praying for another sale at 99 cents again.


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## 10101 (Oct 31, 2008)

buy canned chicken, canned beef, canned tuna... Freeze dry is great for long term storage, however, very pricey! The same amount of money will buy you way more canned goods.


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## Canadian (Dec 14, 2008)

I have embraced the can.


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## Queenoflatte (Jan 31, 2009)

*Canned Hams, too!*

I've found canned hams at the dollar store, and at Aldi's for a very cheap price. Eating them as ham didn't taste great, but, putting them in soups, stews, casseroles and frying them in eggs was wonderful. It doesn't take much meat to make a bland soup a bit more flavorful! I just wish there was a good way of preserving Italian Sausages, or Kielbasa. A little of that goes a long way. Not sure I'd trust drying such. . . Any suggestions?


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

i have never seen canned beef or canned chicken here in Canada except for small tins of garbagy chicken for sandwiches. i know in Ohio at my brothers, they buy large tins of canned chicken that is really good, but we dont have it here, sob sob...


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## Canadian (Dec 14, 2008)

Yeah, I can only find the little cans of flaky chicken. You can get the larger rectangular tins of beef (imported from south america) but that's about it. I guess there's no need for tinned beef here since we have so much of it walking around mooing.


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## bittersweetsymphony (Oct 10, 2008)

Canadian said:


> Yeah, I can only find the little cans of flaky chicken.


What you talkin' about Willis?

And Mary, that's very smart of you to try it out instead of just assuming so for when the time comes.
Do your grandkids live around? I know teenage boys will eat you out of house and home! I have 3 of them!! Ahhh! It's gonna take a lot of food to be prepared for these boys but they will also have to learn to live on less. Bummer, I know!!


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## doc66 (Apr 13, 2009)

We just recently had a "Prep Potluck"--making everything from your prep foods and the results were varried. Some of us used canned meats, mostly chicken, and one even brought a MRE Depot tray of BBQ chicken to try out. It was so-so. If you were starving for meat, it would be okay. I don't keep a lot of meats in my preps, I guess I'm depending on the proteins in my legumes to keep me going. 

I cook from preps all the time, lots of bread making from flour preps and such. It's a good way to find the holes in your supplies.


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

I just am such a bad cook that I really need to try it out, learn how to cook with my dried foods, etc. I dont want to get to that place where the stores are empty of food, and I dont know how to USE what I have here.
so I have to get it together now, figure things out.


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## Lucy (Mar 27, 2009)

Why not learn to can your own chicken and beef ? You can do pork, too. Sausage patties, meatballs, all kinds of things. Ground meat for tacos, too. It will really give you a bigger variety of tasty foods. 
I teach this as part of the classes I do. You are able to can fish, too. Both smoked and fresh.


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## Canadian (Dec 14, 2008)

I love smoked stuff. I've got a bunch of smoked salmon in my horde. The stuff has such a far off expiry date it's amazing. Plus I love the way it tastes.


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

I havent a clue how to do canning. never learned, never seen it done. I am afraid to try it. but it sure would be neat to be able to can chicken and beef.
I will think about it. I gues i would need to buy canning equipment. and a book of instructions. what if I poison us all?


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## Lucy (Mar 27, 2009)

Mary, you have not ever seen anyone can foods ? I have done it for over 35 years. Never poisoned anyone . Only have had a few jars come unsealed over the years. Usually that just happens if they seal, but have a little food under the lid and they come unsealed. You see it and just don't eat those jars of food, of course. If you follow tested recipes and methods, the food will be safe. It is when people try to do their own thing and not follow the guidelines they get sick. I can send you links to some sites to look at recipes and things. There is even a free online course to take. Not sure how it would work with you being in Canada, though. Go here and look :
National Center for Home Food Preservation . That is the same information I teach. Plus, I also have more information about sugar free jams and things. 
Oh, you are missing out ! The beef and chicken just fall apart, they are so moist and tender. I have to heat up whatever else I am fixing and add the meat at the end or it falls apart. It makes the best beef burritos ever. 
So, in my food storage, I have dried milk, canned milk, powd. butter, and things that I am able to use to make sauces with. We can eat creamed chicken over biscuits, all sorts of things from my food storage . I know how to make homemade tortillas. So, you see, you can eat really well from your stored foods. 
Too bad you live so far away. I could teach you, for sure. I can still teach you online. Honest, I can. 
I am getting ready to teach several hundred people again this year. I go up to another city and do seminars for about 3 hours. Usually have about 60 people per class. This is the informational/teaching classes. Then, we also offer hands on canning classes, too, where they actually can foods. We can only do a limited amount of students at those. 
It costs about $100 US dollars to buy a pressure canner. Then, you buy jars and a few other things. I think you have a store up there called Canadian Tire, where people buy the supplies. I easily save that much money each year in what I can for my family. 
Once you have the pressure canner, you will have it forever. The jars have a life of about 12 years, so once you make the investment, it is cheaper to do.
You are able to can potatoes, stew, chili, beans, all kinds of vegetables, pickles, jams, fruits, tomatoes, salsa, marinated mushrooms, so many things. I have hundreds of jars of my homecanned foods. I always have food to select from when cooking. No preservatives added, either. This year we hope to get fresh tuna to can again. 
If you want to learn, starting with something like jam is the easiest. You can use a big, deep stock pot for canning it. No pressure canner needed for jam. 
Let me know if you want to learn. 
When you can smoked salmon, you just smoke it for about half an hour, to get the flavor. Then, it is pressure canned. The flavor intensifies during the processing. So good. Makes the best cheese ball mixed with cream cheese to eat on crackers. My husband also smokes sturgeon. Very, very good, too.


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

Lucy, i have been looking on line for pressure canners, there is one that seems to be the best, all american, but even the smallest one I am looking at 250 or 300 canadian dollars. canadian tire has pressure cookers, is that the same thing? here is the webpage that shows some of them, please take a look and let me know if any of these is for canning. it seems like the lagostina one is for canning, but i am not sure. thanks!

Canadian Tire


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

Ditto. All the pressure canners I've seen are in the $200- $300 area. That's why I don't have one yet and I *really* want one. Help please Lucy


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## Lucy (Mar 27, 2009)

A cooker and canner are not the same. You cannot can in a cooker. They heat up too fast and cool down too quickly to be safe. Part of the time it takes for both of those is included in the safe processing time.
It must hold at least 4 quart sized jars to be used.
The All American are the most expensive and do cost that here, too. You have no gasket to ever replace, plus it has both a dial and a weighted gauge system. The dial can be used, but not relied upon for accuracy if you have no way to get it tested.
A dial gauge MUST be tested before initial use and each year. For you in Canada, I have heard you have no way to get them tested. So, I offer a solution. You can get a Presto canner, then buy a three piece weight set and use it instead of relying on a dial gauge. Mirro brand has only a weighted gauge system.
Yes, I can send a link. Here I get Presto. Mostly because they are on sale here, plus the parts are more easily found. I test canner gauges, yet I use the weight set on mine. It is easier to just listen to it "jiggle" instead of watching the dial gauge the whole time. 
http://info.ag.uidaho.edu/pdf/PNW/PNW0421.pdf
You won't find the information online or any place else about adding the three piece weight set to the Presto. It is something I figured out. Yes, I had it verified from the lady who wrote the USDA guidelines to be a safe method. I also contacted Presto about it. 
That is the only downfall to Presto or Mirro, you have to get a new gasket once in a while. I have only replaced mine once in over 30 years, to give you an idea of how long they can last. They are much lighter in weight. I cannot use an All American as I can't lift one. I am also not crazy about the way you have to clamp it down with all the bolts. Just my personal preference. It depends upon what features you want.


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## Lucy (Mar 27, 2009)

This is the kind I use. http://www.gosale.com/292626/presto-01781-23qt-pressure?gclid=CPb95N6d8pkCFRFMagodIwWNQg I have 2 of them. This is a good price. Walmart carries the 16 quart sized for about the same price. The 16 quart is not large enough in my opinion. If you get the 23 quart you can put in 7 quart jars, or 16 pints, or 24 half pints. You stack the jars. Use a rack between the layers. You can order extra racks or get some of those cake cooling racks. I got some small ones for a bbq grill that I use. 
You order part number 50332 from Presto. Then you use the weight for your altitude. Most people need the 10 lb. weight. The 5 lb. is in case you want to can fruits in it. 
You can also use the canner for a water bath canner . Just leave the lid on, but not tightened down. You only need one canner, not both types. Besides you are not supposed to use any of those blue speckled ones with a ridged bottom on an electric stove. 
If you have a glass top stove, you may or not be able to can on one. They can crack from the weight or cycle on and off and not keep the temp. right to keep the pressure up or in a BWB canner, the water may not keep boiling. You would have to find another heat source in that situation. Check your stove manufacturer to see if you can use your stove for canning. With an electric stove, you need to get a special canning element or you will burn up the one on your stove. It will be too heavy and it will break the element.
How do I know ? I ruined 2 electric stoves before I learned this.


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## MaryV (Jan 31, 2009)

thanks Lucy, thanks for the great info.
If I wrecked my landlords stove, i would be in big doooookey. lol.
I think I will leave the canning for now. Its more than i can handle right now but I will keep this in mind.


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## preparednesspro (Apr 17, 2009)

MaryV said:


> So far the only thing I feel I need to add more of is meat. It isnt fun eating soup with no meat in it. I have canned tuna, so have made several casseroles using that


Way to go, Mary, for using this test to see how well you do on your food storage! You can also get canned chicken, canned beef, canned sausage and even spam. I know it gets a really bad rap, but spam will last FOREVER.

I routinely post recipes that only require ingredients from my food storage on my blog. Here's an easy and yummy spam recipe. Enjoy! EZ Preparedness Recipes « Preparedness Pro


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