This And That

I’m constantly finding out new things from my research,  which I mostly do during the middle of the night when I can’t sleep. For instance, I printed out directions for making a home still (not QUITE as easy as my sons claim), reviewed ways to store meat by salting, which my father’s family in Canada lived off when he was growing up, but is nearly impossible in the South, and stay current on new techniques and ideas from farm blogs and some small-time preppers, like me.

One of the blogs I was reading recently mentioned something I had not considered, but is worth pursuing. While at the grocery store, pick up a couple of extra cans of, and watch for good sales on, canned meals that already have meat added. For instance, pork and beans (the better brands contain hunks of ham and ham fat) and canned chili with hamburger meat. While the ratio of meat to fillers may be small, having some cans of these foods will allow you to serve your family a meal containing meat without having to break into your more-expensive cans of pure meat. Corned beef hash, canned beef ravioli, and many canned soups also contain meat. While shopping, look at labels and read, read, read. The more cans of food you can store that provide a tasty meal with meat, the more your Stores will stretch, and you’ll be able to provide many meals in an emergency very inexpensively.

Don’t forget to also store honey. Honey can last, literally, forever, and is a great substitute for sugar, which is a little more difficult to store long term. Also, when you can afford to, stock up on dry milk. This can be reconstituted by adding water and, while your family may not appreciate the flavor straight from a pitcher, it can be used in baking and cooking when there is no milk on your horizon. You can add a touch of sugar and a drop of vanilla to enhance the flavor for drinking. Most dry milk comes in pouches or bags that you may want to repackage to ensure a longer shelf-life. I’ve added cans of Gatorade mix that can be reconstituted with water and will help replace needed nutrients (essential electrolytes) in hot weather, lemonade mix for a treat, and Tang, which provides needed Vitamin C. All of these are in a powder form and can easily be stored for many, many years, if kept moisture-free. Mostly, we will just drink water, but it’s nice to have alternatives and the Gatorade takes on a medicinal purpose if a family member is ill or becomes overheated during the summer months. I’ve also managed to store up a little bit of hot chocolate for special occasions or to share with families that have young children. 

Try shopping at a different grocery store than usual occasionally. It always amazes me when I shop someplace different and find products I’ve never seen before. Recently, I found pepper pastes in tubes that pack a ton of flavor in a very small package. These are very easy to store and are encased in heavy plastic tubing that doesn’t allow air permeation. I also read on a blog several months ago that diced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce should be a staple in every cook’s kitchen. I wasn’t familiar AT ALL with this product, so I researched a little further. Chipotle peppers are just jalapeño peppers that have been smoked. I decided to try them out and bought a small jar. After 2 or 3 uses, I absolutely agreed with the author of that blog. They add a little smokiness and just a tiny bit of heat to anything you’re cooking. I found myself using them in soups, omelettes, and many other items I make, in addition to Mexican recipes. The jars of diced ones can get a tiny bit pricier than I want to pay, so I began buying the cans (instead of jars) of whole chipotles in adobo sauce, bringing them home, and putting several through my food chopper. I then scraped all the deliciousness into a clean jar, cut the label off one of the cans, and taped it across my jar with clear packing tape. I now have a very large jar full, and it cost less than half of the much smaller jar of diced ones I had purchased earlier.

I fear I’m rambling today, but I wanted to record some of my random thoughts. I guess we’ll entitle today’s post “This And That”.