Best food emergency planning

[catherine]

LOL catherine.....
I've never heard that rendition. I'm used to the "Beans, beans, the musical fruit.....the more you eat the more you toot."

Well, that's a take-off on the real lyrics--as a "mostly" vegetarian, I'm trying to debunk one of the common barriers to embracing beans! (your digestive tract DOES adapt, trust me.)

[CathyA]

Just curious catherine..........do you eat them already cooked from a can, or do you soak them overnight from hard beans?

[Blackdog Lin]

Well, that's a take-off on the real lyrics

What do you mean "the real lyrics", catherine? The real lyrics are

Beans beans the musical fruit
the more you eat the more you toot
the more you toot the better you feel
so let's have beans for EVery meal!



(We are also bean lovers, though they still.....affect our digestive systems, shall we say. And in the spirit of this emergency preparedness food thread, I can say that I started out, in '09, with a stockpile of - let me check my notebook - around 60 lbs. of various dried beans, which we vacuum-packed with a Foodsaver and oxygen absorbers. In the last 2 years we've been eating down on them instead of buying new at the grocery - I estimate I am down to about 40 lbs. now. And every bag I open from the stockpiles has cooked up and tasted as fresh as any you could buy today. Dried beans store very well properly vacuum-packed.)

[CathyA]

I think the "effects" from beans can vary greatly, depending on a person's individual GI tract. I bought a can of organic beans once that just about did me in.
I agree........I think storing dried beans is a great way to be "prepared". They have tons of carbs, but are very nutritious......which is what you'd need if you couldn't get much of anything else to eat.
Do they hold up well in the freezer long term? (but of course, in a power failure, your freezer wouldn't do well).

[meri]

In my experience the unpleasant side effects of eating legumes can be greatly reduced by a) soaking and cooking instead of buying canned and b) preparing them with herb called satureja or savory.

[Tiam]

Well, that's a take-off on the real lyrics--as a "mostly" vegetarian, I'm trying to debunk one of the common barriers to embracing beans! (your digestive tract DOES adapt, trust me.)

I'm not sure if that's ever been the case for me. To me, some beans are the ultimate comfort foods. I eat lots of beans. But, no, I can't say my digestive tract has ever "adapted".

[awakenedsoul]

I was thinking about my stockpile today. I made a lemon poppyseed loaf with flour, sugar, milk, BP, salt, oil, nutmeg, and milk from my stockpile. My chicken had laid an egg yesterday, so I used that. I picked a few lemons off of my lemon tree, and zested one for flavor. Once the bread has cooled, I'll cook the lemon glaze on my stove, and poke holes in the bread so it seeps into all of it. It's nice not to have to go to the store when you pull out a recipe...
My mom always had plenty of food stockpiled, and it was a really good, secure feeling.

[Spartana]

I think you're referring to one of those "secondary disasters" that Rosie spoke about in her thread.

Ha Ha - Yeah. Or maybe a Weapon of Mass Destruction :-)! I actually don't have a bad side effect from beans but I imagine if I was living on them daily that might be a different story. Time to stock up on Beano!

[Tiam]

In order to be prepared for an emergency, I wanted to have a weeks worth of food for myself and a couple of other family members. So, I dutifully filled the cupboard with sauces and beans and canned meats. I felt like I reached a sustainable point for a week. Plus water. Now, I'm struggling to empty the thing, because the food is getting dated and the truth is, I just don't use it much. It just isn't food I use too much. Disappointing. I don't have tons of money. Just giving away the food to food banks is frustrating.

[awakenedsoul]

Tiam,
Bummer. I don't buy a lot of canned goods for that reason. I stockpile more the things I eat all the time and enjoy. I've eaten a lot of foods past their "best by" date, and they've been fine. I just don't do it with spoiled meat or poultry. With sour milk I'll make biscuits. I'm baking with yeast that I bought a couple of years ago at Costco. Same with the flour I use for baking. (I keep bay leaves in the canister with it.) Hope it works out for you and your budget. It's a a drag to feel like you're wasting food, especially when you don't have much money...