General of Darkness
23rd September 2014, 01:02 PM
I was considering buying some additional Mountain House buckets, I just having a weird feeling so I came across this comment that was against it and I like the thinking.
People, you are killing me.
Why are you going to buy overpriced "survival food" that you have to put away for who-knows-how -many-years and depend on it to be good when you need it? These "meals" are low in nutrients, high in salt and chemicals, and generally just not very good. They're OK, I've eaten most of them... they're a a fun novelty on a hiking trip... but stuff you can get in your local supermarket is much better.
Here's what you do:
Buy a nice lockable heavy-duty plastic storage bin. Go to the supermarket and search the aisles... take your time and look around. Look for packaged food that will last up to a year. That's right... just ONE year. Figure out how much of a particular item you find will be enough for one reasonable serving. Get three times that amount. Do this for thirty (30) different food items. That gives you ninety (90) serving of food, three meals per day for thirty days, ONE MONTH of food.
If you want to get particular (as I do), make 10 of those items of food breakfast items, so you have 30 days of breakfast, and the rest is lunch or dinner. Don't forget a set of cheap salt & pepper shakers! (hit up a fast food joint and grab a few handfuls of individual condiment packets, too... they're free!) Take everything home, get a notepad, and write down each item as you place it into your storage bin. Keep the list in the bin with the food. Now you have ONE FULL MONTH of emergency food for one person (or 10 days for three people), secure storage, and a way to keep track of what you have eaten, and what you have left. Obviously, if you want to keep a month's worth of food for more than one person, you'll have to do some math here and buy more, and probably another storage bin for each person. I'm not going to walk you through that. Figure it out.
Now, mark the outside of the bin clearly with a marker or label, however you want, with the date you filled the bin.
After one year, EAT THE FOOD!!!! Be sure you make note of anything that didn't keep too well, anything you want to replace with something else, or any other notes.
Now take your list with your notes to the store and do it all over again. OH, stop complaining, you lazy bastard!!! Yes, do it again. Buy a new FRESH supply of emergency food that won't go to waste, and a variety that YOU hand-picked to your liking.
Some ideas:
-ANYTHING canned is good. 1 can is a nice full serving (maybe two servings), and you don't need to worry about finding/adding/measuring/heating water. Freeze dried food is great until you're short on water, short on fuel to boil water, or short on time to stop and cook a meal. It's nice to just open a can and eat. Chef Boyardee and SPAM were originally designed as military rations! Some people will argue this point, saying that cans are too heavy. Yeah, they are... if you're BACKPACKING all of your food across the state. If it's sitting in your basement or getting loaded into the back or your truck, it's fine. Plus, again, that's less water you need to carry/find/purify/boil.
-Jarred food is good, too... but remember glass breaks... careful there.
-Get a nice big jar of peanut butter and a couple different flavors of jams or jelly... they'll last forever. Who cares if you don't have bread...a few spoonfuls of each and you've got plenty of energy. That goes for honey, too.
-Packets of noodles or rice (I like Lipton/Knorr pasta and rice sides. They call to add butter, but they're fine without it). But beware of dried noodles in cups... lots of wasted space inside and they're an odd shape that wastes space inside your bin.
-Bullion cubes are great to add to a cup of hot water for simple soup, and they take up very little space in your bin.
-Pop tarts are sealed in mylar, and a nice breakfast item warmed over your lantern or on a hot rock... or eat cold!
-Powdered milk is good to have for a hundred things... I've made milkshakes in the middle of the woods with no blender or ice!
-Mashed potato packets- get rid of the box, more wasted space.
-JERKY. Need I say more? Yes I do... Buy it for $6 an ounce or make your own for 1/16 that cost.
...ETC... Like i said, take your time, look around, and look at each food item in a new way, with a new purpose.
I have 4 bins, one for me, one for my wife, one for my son, and one with random spare food items. I filled all four for $110. That's 270 servings of food (one full month for each of us!) plus 90 servings of backup/spare/alternate food and condiments... all for $0.30 per serving!!! 30 CENTS PER SERVING!!!! This Mountain House food, for example costs SIX TIMES that much, almost $2.00 per "meal" (one serving is very small and bland) plus you still need to add water to each.
Also, buy either a large 5-gallon water-cooler type jug of water, or a few cases of bottled water, and put it on top of your emergency food bin. Good to have.
Now you have plenty of food you can depend on. If you have to leave your home for whatever reason requires you to, grab your bins and your cases of water, pack them in your truck or SUV, and go. A good idea is to have a portable stove to take with you if you need to leave your home, or if your electricity or gas service is interrupted.
PLEASE stop buying "survival food" and whatever you do, DO NOT buy cases of "Emergency Water" packets!!!
That would make you stupid. Good luck everyone!
People, you are killing me.
Why are you going to buy overpriced "survival food" that you have to put away for who-knows-how -many-years and depend on it to be good when you need it? These "meals" are low in nutrients, high in salt and chemicals, and generally just not very good. They're OK, I've eaten most of them... they're a a fun novelty on a hiking trip... but stuff you can get in your local supermarket is much better.
Here's what you do:
Buy a nice lockable heavy-duty plastic storage bin. Go to the supermarket and search the aisles... take your time and look around. Look for packaged food that will last up to a year. That's right... just ONE year. Figure out how much of a particular item you find will be enough for one reasonable serving. Get three times that amount. Do this for thirty (30) different food items. That gives you ninety (90) serving of food, three meals per day for thirty days, ONE MONTH of food.
If you want to get particular (as I do), make 10 of those items of food breakfast items, so you have 30 days of breakfast, and the rest is lunch or dinner. Don't forget a set of cheap salt & pepper shakers! (hit up a fast food joint and grab a few handfuls of individual condiment packets, too... they're free!) Take everything home, get a notepad, and write down each item as you place it into your storage bin. Keep the list in the bin with the food. Now you have ONE FULL MONTH of emergency food for one person (or 10 days for three people), secure storage, and a way to keep track of what you have eaten, and what you have left. Obviously, if you want to keep a month's worth of food for more than one person, you'll have to do some math here and buy more, and probably another storage bin for each person. I'm not going to walk you through that. Figure it out.
Now, mark the outside of the bin clearly with a marker or label, however you want, with the date you filled the bin.
After one year, EAT THE FOOD!!!! Be sure you make note of anything that didn't keep too well, anything you want to replace with something else, or any other notes.
Now take your list with your notes to the store and do it all over again. OH, stop complaining, you lazy bastard!!! Yes, do it again. Buy a new FRESH supply of emergency food that won't go to waste, and a variety that YOU hand-picked to your liking.
Some ideas:
-ANYTHING canned is good. 1 can is a nice full serving (maybe two servings), and you don't need to worry about finding/adding/measuring/heating water. Freeze dried food is great until you're short on water, short on fuel to boil water, or short on time to stop and cook a meal. It's nice to just open a can and eat. Chef Boyardee and SPAM were originally designed as military rations! Some people will argue this point, saying that cans are too heavy. Yeah, they are... if you're BACKPACKING all of your food across the state. If it's sitting in your basement or getting loaded into the back or your truck, it's fine. Plus, again, that's less water you need to carry/find/purify/boil.
-Jarred food is good, too... but remember glass breaks... careful there.
-Get a nice big jar of peanut butter and a couple different flavors of jams or jelly... they'll last forever. Who cares if you don't have bread...a few spoonfuls of each and you've got plenty of energy. That goes for honey, too.
-Packets of noodles or rice (I like Lipton/Knorr pasta and rice sides. They call to add butter, but they're fine without it). But beware of dried noodles in cups... lots of wasted space inside and they're an odd shape that wastes space inside your bin.
-Bullion cubes are great to add to a cup of hot water for simple soup, and they take up very little space in your bin.
-Pop tarts are sealed in mylar, and a nice breakfast item warmed over your lantern or on a hot rock... or eat cold!
-Powdered milk is good to have for a hundred things... I've made milkshakes in the middle of the woods with no blender or ice!
-Mashed potato packets- get rid of the box, more wasted space.
-JERKY. Need I say more? Yes I do... Buy it for $6 an ounce or make your own for 1/16 that cost.
...ETC... Like i said, take your time, look around, and look at each food item in a new way, with a new purpose.
I have 4 bins, one for me, one for my wife, one for my son, and one with random spare food items. I filled all four for $110. That's 270 servings of food (one full month for each of us!) plus 90 servings of backup/spare/alternate food and condiments... all for $0.30 per serving!!! 30 CENTS PER SERVING!!!! This Mountain House food, for example costs SIX TIMES that much, almost $2.00 per "meal" (one serving is very small and bland) plus you still need to add water to each.
Also, buy either a large 5-gallon water-cooler type jug of water, or a few cases of bottled water, and put it on top of your emergency food bin. Good to have.
Now you have plenty of food you can depend on. If you have to leave your home for whatever reason requires you to, grab your bins and your cases of water, pack them in your truck or SUV, and go. A good idea is to have a portable stove to take with you if you need to leave your home, or if your electricity or gas service is interrupted.
PLEASE stop buying "survival food" and whatever you do, DO NOT buy cases of "Emergency Water" packets!!!
That would make you stupid. Good luck everyone!