Starting out

[DRM2014]

We're just starting to make a list of our food storage supple for bugging in. There's 3 of us, our son is almost 2. I've just got a couple questions to start with.

I'm making lists of what we eat regularly and trying to figure out how much. I know 6 months-1year is the desired amount of food to be stored. A very small portion of our monthly budget is going towards our prepping, and I have things like first aid and clothing to account for also. Are there any foods you recommend buying and stocking up on before venturing out to buy wants?

We have a freezer in the garage for our meats and breads. My husband gets meat at cost through his work, and we portion it and seal it with our food saver. Are there any unusual pros/cons about stocking up on frozen foods (other than the obvious power loss). We also freeze things like corn which could cut down on the need for so many cans, but again, any unusual cons about maintaining a large supply of frozen food?

Are there any secrets to sealing and storing dehydrated food, like jerky? We're in the market for a dehydrator but I don't want my work ruined because I didn't know something about storing it.

Most of our storage will be vacuum sealed with our food saver. I've read about Mylar bags but can't really tell if that's better for my needs.

Thanks!!!!


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[jimLE]

Are there any secrets to sealing and storing dehydrated food, like jerky?

yes to the dehydrator..2 things.1st,make sure the fan is on the top,or bottom.i hear those do and work better.

vacuum sealed is good...do either of you do home canning?i had bought a pressure cooker 2 years ago.but didn't really get into it,untill this year.and yes,i love it.and even a no-vice can home can foods.

 

[DRM2014]

yes to the dehydrator..2 things.1st,make sure the fan is on the top,or bottom.i hear those do and work better.

vacuum sealed is good...do either of you do home canning?i had bought a pressure cooker 2 years ago.but didn't really get into it,untill this year.and yes,i love it.and even a no-vice can home can foods.

We don't can. My sister in law is an expert at canning but we haven't worked a weekend for her to come up and get me started.


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[Dani]

Freezing is a great modern option, especially with the vacuum sealer, for everyday life, but if you loose electricity for an extended period of time, you are literally screwed. Yes, you can dehydrate, can, smoke, and pot meat at that time. Only thing is, it take around 2 1/2 hours per batch when you are canning meat products and depending on your canner size, only 7 quarts or 14 pints at a time. Dehydrating (Jerky) can always be done in the sun when the power is out. I would choose the hang option verses screen method to try and keep critters from getting to it. Smoking would need some sort of smoke house and a lot of wood to keep it fed. Then the potting meat option, I would only do it during winter months unless you have a cellar and can keep it in a cool place. Down south we have to much humidity and it get way hot here, think maybe there too? These are the options our ancestors used but I would not want to have to wait to do a whole freezer full when I was out of power and I end up canning frequently throughout the year. Oh and another option that I almost forgot about is pickling your meat. I have yet to do this method yet. I have read that if it is not used up soon enough, it is like eating mushy meat. Veggies, I freeze, dry and of coarse can.

 

[Dani]

As for the stocking up part, I would check out local ads and try to plan your pantry around those and what you eat. I ended up buying 31 Knorr Pasta side dishes for 25 cents each that were marked down at the store cause they were overstocked and still had about a year and a half shelf life. Holiday season is coming up and that is a great time to stock up on baking needs when they go on sale. White rice stores well and you can get that stuff really cheap. I keep things like flour sugar cornmeal and rice in big 5 gallon food grade buckets. Got them from my time working at a grocery store (icing buckets from bakery and pickle buckets from deli). Restaurants will have those buckets too and will probably be more than happy to save them for you. I do not do the mylar bags and have never had a problem in the 20 + years I have stored my food this way. I do use and rotate out regularly. That is the key, use what you have and replace as you go when it goes on sell. Well that is my two cents worth of rambling.

 

[Brent S]

My thoughts on starting out is don't just stock food to be accumulating food. Stock the things you normally eat and like. As Danilgrl said, use your stores you've saved, and rotate and replenish as you do. I started out and dry canned about 30 quarts of dry beans. I only eat beans like that about twice a year, so I'm good for 15 years there.... I also stocked up on some storebought canned goods that I didn't normally eat. Lots of those went to the local food bank as they neared expiration. Now I'm a lot more careful about what I store. As I mentioned above, dry canning is a good option too. There are several posts here on it that you can search.

 

[jontte]

..and something your baby eats...though they learn to eat what you give them,if things go bad it's nice to have food for the little one that goes down easily,as they can be picky eaters at times.

 

[Gazrok]

Are there any foods you recommend buying and stocking up on before venturing out to buy wants?

Mostly what others have said, but some things that store well:

Rice
Dry Pasta
Dry Cereal
Mashed Potato Flakes
Dry Corn
Dry Beans

All of these store well in buckets, and are easy to rotate through and use.

Also, canned veggies of course. Preferably in a can big enough to where one can will feed your family without leftovers. (that way, you can keep less cans around and get more bang for the buck...usually). Sometimes though, you'll just get a good sale on these. Don't be afraid to wait for a sale to stock up!