Hello, Hey guys im new to prepping and i was wondering what food should i start storing.
what food to start collecting
- Thread starter richy rich
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Welcome Rich. There are some excellent resources to help you put together your own acquisition list but you'll find that most will recommend water, rice and dried beans to start with. Check out the threads in Prepping 101 and Food for ideas.
Hey, welcome. I personally started with canned soups, pastas and beans. Don't forget water. You can store quite a nbit of food in a maylar bag in a 5 gallon bucket. You can store multiples of one thing or multiple different things. Getting things that won't go bad any time soon. Some things include: rice, wheat and beans. Look around though, others have better plans than me, I stick to comercially canned foods.
Welcome! Cheap and easy preps are indeed rice and Beans. Add on oats! I buy a can of dehydrated veg. Once a month. I stocked 150 boxes of hamburger helper. Put them in mason jars with either dehydrated chicken, beef, or mixed veg. Not all hamburger helper meals require meat. Get creative. I bought 60 boxes of spaghetti and they fill a 5 gallon bucket. I can my ow spaghetti sauce with meat in the sauce. Get a pressure canner and grow your own Vegs, soups, stews, etc. Can them! I want to get a food dehydrator so I can dehydrate my own.
spaghetti and forms of other pasta is great..especilly when you have diffrent ways of fixing each one..just the other day,i prepared 1 pound of spiral pasta with one can of fiasta nacho cheese soup and 2 cans of tuna..only thing about that.is there's only 2 of us here.so thats gonna last a week,if not longer.and that aint good if electric goes out and you gotta keep whats not eaten cold.or when you have to bug out to where there's no electric tobin with..so limit the size of meals to what will be eaten..
Sounds like a good meal though! Ill have to try that. Since we are a family of four, I'm able to can whole meals with no leftovers.
it is good..matter of fact..i gotta admit that it turned out better then i thought it would.. 
yes i amazz my self at times when it comes to what i come up with at times..lol
yes i amazz my self at times when it comes to what i come up with at times..lol
Richy you coupon? If not you should. Save money and stockpile.
couponing and stock pileing can go togeather..just a matter of keeping track of what you already have.then use what coupons you need for every day shoping and for stock pileing at the same time..no one will be the wiser when it comes to who you dont want to know about you prepping..
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Stockpiling during coupon special deals like Super Doubles at Lowes Foods or Krogers Mega Deals is hilarious. Everyone walking around pushing carts and everyone has a coupon binder. Preppers blend in. I have gone o Lowes Foods this week for super doubles and picked up Spam singles in Mylar pouches for .19¢ each, Neosporine for .99¢ each. Dollar tree has banana boat SPF 30. Coupon makes them free. Walgreens has Purex buy one get two free. There are coupons for $1 each one. Use 3 coupons making the laundry detergent $1 each. I live in South Carolina, sunscreen is a must.
always make sure the food you buy is food that yall eat on a daily,weekly monthly basis..and always rotate.that way you know there will always be food there that yall will eat..learn canning if you havent already..it's cheaper to can then buying store food every time..
wow, thanks everyone!! im going to try out couponing and getting some 5 gallon buckets to store food in. right now i only got a 7 gallon jug of water stored that i got about a week ago.
Lol triple post coupons are great. I bought my bow, 10 arrows, target and spare equipment for less then the cost of the bow due to coupons
coupons are great. I bought my bow, 10 arrows, target and spare equipment for less then the cost of the bow due to coupons
Check the bakery departments of your local grocery stores for buckets. I get varying sizes from Lowes Foods. Free!
Check into couponing sites that specialize in your area. You'll find some stores are more "coupon-friendly" than others, meaning their coupon policies may allow you to double-up, etc.
For example, say there is a $.50 manufacturer coupon for a bag of beans, and a $1.00 store coupon for the same brand of beans. A coupon friendly store will let you use both, so you'd save $1.50 on that bag of beans. Of course, if you get 10 bags of beans, you now just saved $10.50. (assuming they allow you to use multiples, etc.). So, that's what I mean by coupon-friendly store. For an average couponer, expect to spend about an hour to two before a big grocery trip. More extreme couponers spend hours readying for the trip, but of course, save much more.
We typically shave about 45%-65% on average off our bill with coupons....depending on the deals and coupons. So not doing them is like throwing money out the window.
For example, say there is a $.50 manufacturer coupon for a bag of beans, and a $1.00 store coupon for the same brand of beans. A coupon friendly store will let you use both, so you'd save $1.50 on that bag of beans. Of course, if you get 10 bags of beans, you now just saved $10.50. (assuming they allow you to use multiples, etc.). So, that's what I mean by coupon-friendly store. For an average couponer, expect to spend about an hour to two before a big grocery trip. More extreme couponers spend hours readying for the trip, but of course, save much more.
We typically shave about 45%-65% on average off our bill with coupons....depending on the deals and coupons. So not doing them is like throwing money out the window.
Gazrok, you are correct. Coupon friendly stores get first attention! Don't pass up pharmacies either. First aid supplies aren't cheap BUT you can save a great deal with coupons. Especially the "buy three first aid get the free kit" cause that empty bag has a booklet inside filled with coupons for more first aid stuff. Krogers has stopped doubling coupons and they recently bought Harris Teeter so that could impact their coupon policy. Free is better than cheap and cheap is better than retail. Never pay retail!
It's funny, I tried to think if there was anything I pay retail for...the only thing I can think of is gas and horse feed for the most part. Just about everything else, I get some kind of discount, whether it's coupons, bartering, paying cash, shopping sales, etc. Technically, I pay cash for gas, so that's kind of getting a discount at some stations. Sure some grocery items of course, but on the overall bill, I save. I barter for things, love bargain stores, shopping online, thrift/pawn shops, etc. Don't get me wrong, some things, you get what you pay for, so I appreciate quality too, but I still look for a way to save something on it.
For a single individual, that 7 gallon can last you about 9-10 days in stretch mode. In very econo mode (meaning purely for drinking), about max 14 days.
That's a start.
When you start storing foods, there are some steps you have to observe to extend the life of your stores like making sure moisture is kept at a minimum for dried items, food items with expiring dates get rotated, etc.
Plan and Set an initial target (e.g. stores for 2-weeks, then 1 month, etc.). IMO
I'm 15, a young pepper ( not one of those childish litte kids. Lol). The only time I go buy stuff is during the summer, when I work. But every now and then I try to pick up some things from the store.
What you eat now. Don't buy things you don't normally eat or you have wasted your money. Learn to can. Buy a dehydrator. You can wax cheese and it lasts for years. Start with mild cheddar because it ages over time to turn into delicious sharp cheese. Eggs can be rubbed with mineral oil and last for months and months even without refrigeration. You can can butter easily using just your oven. I lasts for five years. You can dry can grains, flour, beans and rice in jars in the oven instead of buying expensive mylar bags and oxygen absorbers. Ask everyone you know if they have canning jars. Estate sales always have canning jars. You can start with a bin and stock a weeks worth of food into it. Then buy another bin and do the same. Keep repeating until you have reached your goal for however many weeks you want to store up. I know someone that does this and she can just pull out one bin at a time and knows everything she needs for a week is in that bin. Great for bugging out too. Grab 4 bins and you know you are good for a month, etc. If you have a smaller family, you may be able to fit more days worth of meals into the bin. Build rain barrels and make your own water filtration system. Don't forget to stock up on vitamins too.
A can here, a can there.... swipe from the pantry (hehehe.... looting pre-SHTF).... and in no time, you would have a hefty stock
Things that I do for my food is when we go to the store I buy extra cans. (Last week I bought 5 extra) then I toss them with my BOB and wait for the next time we go when I grab an extra can or 2. That way I always have extra (up to about a month for 1 person) and I know what to get next. One thing that is sorta like an added bonus is most of my cans are pull tops
I haven't actually started yet, as I am very new to prepping, but here is what I have on my list so far:
Rice, Beans,Oats, Peanut Butter, Ramen Noodles, Mac and Cheese, Nuts, Dried Fruits, Canned Meats and Veggies, Powdered Milk, Sugar, Salt, Pepper, Tea, Coffee, Tea Bags.
I am sure things will get added and subtracted as I really get into the process.
Rice, Beans,Oats, Peanut Butter, Ramen Noodles, Mac and Cheese, Nuts, Dried Fruits, Canned Meats and Veggies, Powdered Milk, Sugar, Salt, Pepper, Tea, Coffee, Tea Bags.
I am sure things will get added and subtracted as I really get into the process.
Water is the first thing to start collecting (either real water or a way to get at drinkable water.) But water isn't food is it, lol...a belly full of water isn't going to do much for you (except maybe make you pee!)
Some folks say rice, beans, etc...but if you don't like rice and beans or don't know what to do with rice and beans then don't store that.
Store what you eat and/or what you WILL eat.
I stored rice and beans early on but then I had to figure out what else to eat with rice and beans! So, now I really look at what I do eat and I try to store those types of food.
I like the concept of one jar meals...a jar full of everything I'd need to make a meal...pasta, dehydrated or freeze dried veggies, meat, seasoning, sauce, etc,,,all I need to add is water and somewhere to cook it. Canned foods like stew etc can serve the same purpose but I don't eat that stuff! However, in a pinch I WILL eat that!
But, for a younger person who doesn't have years of cooking experience I would think for now that canned foods you can purchase (or scrounge) would be good. Try to think about eating the same thing day in and day out...if you can't see yourself eating that for every meal then make sure you have a variety of foods...
Some folks say rice, beans, etc...but if you don't like rice and beans or don't know what to do with rice and beans then don't store that.
Store what you eat and/or what you WILL eat.
I stored rice and beans early on but then I had to figure out what else to eat with rice and beans! So, now I really look at what I do eat and I try to store those types of food.
I like the concept of one jar meals...a jar full of everything I'd need to make a meal...pasta, dehydrated or freeze dried veggies, meat, seasoning, sauce, etc,,,all I need to add is water and somewhere to cook it. Canned foods like stew etc can serve the same purpose but I don't eat that stuff! However, in a pinch I WILL eat that!
But, for a younger person who doesn't have years of cooking experience I would think for now that canned foods you can purchase (or scrounge) would be good. Try to think about eating the same thing day in and day out...if you can't see yourself eating that for every meal then make sure you have a variety of foods...
Personally I am planing on canning/jarring when I get back home. I also plan on starting a massive garden when I get home also. As for rice and beans: I plan on having a few differemt kinds of beans and I know how to cook a few different meals with them. I eat everything that I store
Like Tyler said, eat what you store. In SHTF situations, it would not be good to be adjusting to a new diet (you might get the runs) at the time.
Remember the 3 rule:
3 days without water, you die
3 weeks without food, you die
(there are a lot more, just can't recall them right now)
Remember the 3 rule:
3 days without water, you die
3 weeks without food, you die
(there are a lot more, just can't recall them right now)
One of the main reasons rice and beans should be core staples in any preppers stockpile is because they do NOT need to be cooked to be eaten. Actually, most things don't. With rice and beans, just add water and let it sit until it's reconstituted. I do think you need to be sure you have plenty of food that does not need to be reconstituted with water, as well.
Personally, if it's edible, I'll eat it if I'm in a situation where it's all I have. Even if that means rice and beans at every meal for a year. Any food is better than no food. And I guarantee if you get hungry enough, you'll eat anything too.
Personally, if it's edible, I'll eat it if I'm in a situation where it's all I have. Even if that means rice and beans at every meal for a year. Any food is better than no food. And I guarantee if you get hungry enough, you'll eat anything too.
