Whatcha got in the fridge? How about the cupboard? If a hurricane was headed right at your FACE would you feel comfortable not going to the grocery store and beating an old lady to death over a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk? Most people wouldn't. That's why stores are so awful when there is any sort of looming threat that may keep us indoors for more than a couple days. The reality of the situation is a lot of families don't have the means to stock food for even days much less weeks. I think that's sad. Donate to your local food bank. Or don't this isn't a charity blog. You're here to take care of you and yours and there's nothing wrong with that. Health nuts tell us we need around 2200ish calories a day to stay fit and that a family of 4 will eat about 12-16 pounds a day. Remember a 35 year old man, woman, or… other is gonna need a bit more than a 3 year old kid so your situation will vary. I already told you to have water on hand and this will be important for food prep but you will also want to make sure you have a means of cooking, or heating water for rehydrating food, without power. This could be gas (oven, grill, or camping stove), a generator to run something electric, or a good old fashioned fire. Sure there's a lot of food you can eat cold but a warm meal has benefits beyond nutrition. "So what do I need?" You ask in desperation! "Foods in the freezer? Foods in a can? FOODS in a mylar bag, freeze dried with oxygen absorbers?!" The answer might surprise you. It's yes. Let's learn.
Tier 1 - Beenie weenies anyone? If you don't like Beenie weenies you get the hell out! That is a snow day classic. That's really what we're talking about in a tier 1. Inclement weather, power outages, so on and so forth. Most people have enough food to make it a few days but what if it's a blizzard or a storm that knocks out the power and traps you in the house for a week. Food in the fridge will hold temp for a day or two but not long and the freezer will start to defrost almost immediately but should be ok for a few days as well. Try to keep the doors closed to keep out the heat (not to keep in the cold, that's not how it works Kristen! You see a fridge/freezer actually pulls heat out of the inside, dropping the internal temperature and then expels that heat out of the… you don't care do you?) Moving on! Long story short, if you think power is only going to be out for a day or so, skip the fridge and heat up a can of something tasty and relax. If we're thinking weeks, hook up the old generator. If you don't have one, eat what's in there and/or throw it out. Food spoils very quickly and can be quite hazardous under the right circumstances. You should at the minimum have a weeks worth of easy prep food and and food supplies for any snow day or hurricane party.
Tier 2 - You'll need to start looking at some more long term food options and start stocking them outside of your day to day pantry. Rotate food from your storage to your cupboard and then replenish your storage that way your emergency food always has the most shelf time. I recommend canned foods that have a best by of 3 years out or more. Rotate as needed or when they get under a year of said date. Sure cans will last a lot longer than the date posted provided there are no dents or dings but why not give everything as much shelf time as possible. You'll also be less likely to run out of beans for chili night! Speaking of beans… dried beans, rice and pasta are great to have on hand as well. But make sure you are pairing things to go with them. Sure you can eat plain spaghetti noodles but, ew. You should also start taking a look into some even more stable options. Freeze dried foods can last decades under the right conditions and yea they are a little more expensive but be thrifty. Check sales. I prefer Mountain House for complete meals and Augason Farms for the individual stuff. They both have tons of option from single serving bags to #10 cans to cases good for weeks or months. We also use them for camping to try out new varieties and get a sense of what we like.
Tier 3 - This brings us to what happens when all your tasty treats are gone and there are no more Sunday grocery trips in your future. Seeds and bullets my friend. Or arrows. Or a slingshot! Better practice though. I highly recommend getting comfortable in the garden if you have the space to do so and stock a heirloom seed bank for getting started. For the meat, well, you ever seen Bambi? Get used to it. People have lived longer this way than we do now. Besides, deer meat is very good for you, much healthier than beef. Rabbit and squirrel ain't too bad either. If this makes you uncomfortable it's no problem, just dig a real big hole and throw yourself in it.
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