How are you going to cook your dried uncooked food when you have no fuel?

[cHeroKee]

It was a hard lesson for me to learn but the answer is freeze dried food. Yes, it cost more but you simply add water (cold or hot) and eat. Freeze dried food will take less space, easier too carry, and no need to store excessive fuel to cook it, not unless you want it hot.

Nutritionally compared to dried food, freeze dried food retains the nutrients and enzymes. Knowing that 98% of today's diseases are nutritional deficiencies having all available nutrients during a crisis will be a plus.

[arbilad]

A lot of grains, such as wheat and beans, can be soaked in cold water then eaten. It's not very palatable, but it will do the trick. I'm also trying to get as many different methods of cooking as I can.
Freeze dried does increase your water usage significantly.

[cHeroKee]

A lot of grains, such as wheat and beans, can be soaked in cold water then eaten. It's not very palatable, but it will do the trick. I'm also trying to get as many different methods of cooking as I can.
Freeze dried does increase your water usage significantly.

I looked at soaking things too but decided that it was time consuming and one will need more water in the end. I guess either way you will need water. I don't think freeze dried food will need more water because you can add the water until it is properly constituted.

I was looking at the angle of needing fuel to actual cook the dried food e.g. , where one needs to take up more space, spend more money to buy and storage the fuel, rotate the fuel, etc.... ..

[arbilad]

I just can't afford a food storage of 100% freeze dried. Plus, I love to cook.

[DMGNUT]

There's no reason not to cook food when there are so many options for cooking.
Rocket stoves... no fuel storage needed, just the abundant resource of twigs and leaves.
Solar ovens... no fuel storage needed, just the Sun.
Volcano stoves... store fuel, but no need to rotate (charcoal lasts forever if kept dry), and wait till spring each year when it's on sale for basically half price and stock-up (I keep 600# stored in 3 of the 50 gallon drums).
Kerosene stove/oven... again, store fuel, but no need to rotate, anything that burns kerosene also burns odorless mineral spirits and as a non-petroleum product, odorless mineral spirits has no shelf-life... and it also has the added bonus of an ignition point that puts it just outside of the DOT regulation requiring a flammable or combustible placard, which means you can legally store all you want... I keep a 55 gallon drum in my garage.
There are many other options; alcohol stoves, butane stoves, propane stoves, reflector box ovens, etc, etc.
There are also wonderful items like the Saratoga Jack Thermal Cooker, which lets you save 75% to 80% of your fuel, by starting the cooking process and then letting the heated product (soup, stew, or whatever) sit in what is basically a very well made thermus and use its own retained heat to finish cooking itself.
After a Fireside I attended some years ago, where a church leader from the Welfare Department spoke about his experiences in LA after Katrina, and how vital it was to be able to heat your food... I decided I would really explore the subject and be sure I was prepared in that dept...

[DMGNUT]

By the way... I LOVE freeze dried foods, and have a pretty good amount of it... but it's just way too expensive for me to have it exclusively.
And thanks for starting this thread Cherokee, it's a great subject... and it's great to hear from you again.

[cHeroKee]

There's no reason not to cook food when there are so many options for cooking.
Rocket stoves... no fuel storage needed, just the abundant resource of twigs and leaves.
Solar ovens... no fuel storage needed, just the Sun.
Volcano stoves... store fuel, but no need to rotate (charcoal lasts forever if kept dry), and wait till spring each year when it's on sale for basically half price and stock-up (I keep 600# stored in 3 of the 50 gallon drums).
Kerosene stove/oven... again, store fuel, but no need to rotate, anything that burns kerosene also burns odorless mineral spirits and as a non-petroleum product, odorless mineral spirits has no shelf-life... and it also has the added bonus of an ignition point that puts it just outside of the DOT regulation requiring a flammable or combustible placard, which means you can legally store all you want... I keep a 55 gallon drum in my garage.
There are many other options; alcohol stoves, butane stoves, propane stoves, reflector box ovens, etc, etc.
There are also wonderful items like the Saratoga Jack Thermal Cooker, which lets you save 75% to 80% of your fuel, by starting the cooking process and then letting the heated product (soup, stew, or whatever) sit in what is basically a very well made thermus and use its own retained heat to finish cooking itself.
After a Fireside I attended some years ago, where a church leader from the Welfare Department spoke about his experiences in LA after Katrina, and how vital it was to be able to heat your food... I decided I would really explore the subject and be sure I was prepared in that dept...

Good information.
I agree about having different ways to cook food but my primary goal and way would be freeze dried food rather than rely on fuel as a way to heat/cook food. If you live in the city or even in suburbia you will be competing with many others for fuel. At this point I don't find bugging out a good choice, especially for security reasons. The lone wolf in today's scenarios won't survive. It is better to have some land near by not a retreat that is far away.

[DMGNUT]

I agree completely on the "lone wolf", not making it.
And the only way I can see bugging out being a good plan, is if you live in a very high population area... which is why I'm so happy that the Lord prompted us to move out of the Phoenix valley to Idaho.
We left great high paying jobs, for a year long struggle to find "decent" jobs (for much less pay), but we couldn't be happier. We never would have even considered such a move if it wasn't for the Lord telling us to go.
Now we're in a much bigger home, in a rural area, where we know we can weather whatever comes our way without having to run for the hills. :001_smile:

[arbilad]

Cherokee, have you looked into those home freeze drying machines? DMG, you mean you’re not going to load your food storage into the church truck and go to the tent city with the rest of us?

[DMGNUT]

Cherokee, have you looked into those home freeze drying machines? DMG, you mean you’re not going to load your food storage into the church truck and go to the tent city with the rest of us?

Don't think it'll find me here... or at least, that's my story and I'm sticking with it. :cool (2):

[DMGNUT]

By the way, as for the freeze drying machines... I heard one of our leaders was asked (not too long ago) why they don't speak so much about food storage anymore, and he replied that if you don't have what you need by now, its too late to start.
Now I don't have any idea if that's even partly true... but (in regards to food storage), since I do have a level above what we're asked to have (and more importantly, a level that I'm comfortable with), I don't see that extreme of an outlay of cash, just to add to what I already have, being value added.
If given the time to save what I need, I'll put that same money into high end night vision equipment.

[iggy]

By the way, as for the freeze drying machines... I heard one of our leaders was asked (not too long ago) why they don't speak so much about food storage anymore, and he replied that if you don't have what you need by now, its too late to start.
Now I don't have any idea if that's even partly true... but (in regards to food storage), since I do have a level above what we're asked to have (and more importantly, a level that I'm comfortable with), I don't see that extreme of an outlay of cash, just to add to what I already have, being value added.
If given the time to save what I need, I'll put that same money into high end night vision equipment.

Our local leaders are still teaching -n-preaching Food Storage; Preparedness; Etc. One of the Priesthood holders made an off the cuff remark that all you really need is a 3 month supply. This man thinks that having 2 years supply of firewood is prep enough. If it wasn't for his wife, he wouldn't have enough food to eat each week. She has turned their end of the cul-de-sac double lot into an edible garden. Plus SHE put together a home made green house using cast off windows from the two glass places in the next town. She sews their own clothes, makes quilts to sell at the numerous Farmers markets, and she recently hooked up with a local sheep farmer and buys raw wool from them. Then she cards, cleans, spins and knits/crotchets it. Her daughter in law dyes it. She barters for fresh meat with what she sews, knits and crotchets.

I can't stand her hubby - but I admire and love her to bits. I would love for her to teach me how to crotchet, and she wants to learn how to embroider. What she knows is cross-stitching. I'll put together a booklet on embroidery stitches. Not just pictures alone, but with actual samples.

I don't agree with the too late remark, but I think that if one hasn't even started yet, then perhaps their mind set is in the wrong place.

I would love a freeze dry machine. Would love a bigger house on a minimum of 1 acre. Would love another room - where I can set up tables/counters to do more seed sprouting, dehydrating and have my comfy chair and floor lamp so I can embroider or color. Dreams - wishes - with some effort they can become realities.

[DMGNUT]

Iggy, I think you may be right about the "too late" being a mind set.
If you haven't even started on your food storage yet... then you most likely never will.
Meaning it's too late for that person, but not necessarily too late in the game for someone just getting started.

[mirkwood]

There are also wonderful items like the Saratoga Jack Thermal Cooker, which lets you save 75% to 80% of your fuel, by starting the cooking process and then letting the heated product (soup, stew, or whatever) sit in what is basically a very well made thermus and use its own retained heat to finish cooking itself.

http://www.easypreparednessllc.com/what-is-thermal-cooker/

[mirkwood]

Unless you are capable (and willing) to sink thousands of dollars right now into food and preparedness, I think it is too late.

[DMGNUT]

By the way, Mirk is being modest... He's the one who taught me about the Saratoga Jack Thermal Cookers.
By buying one of these items (which is about the same as a case of #10 cans of some foods) I in effect, increased by 4 or 5 times, the amount of stored fuel I have... and I have a significant amount of stored fuel.
And just for the record, I bought 2 of the cookers... you can never have too much of a good thing.

[cHeroKee]

Cherokee, have you looked into those home freeze drying machines? DMG, you mean you’re not going to load your food storage into the church truck and go to the tent city with the rest of us?


I did look into the freeze dryer equipment but decide the time to prepare, energy needed and my time was not worth the expensive cost to by one. I'm in a good position to buy freeze dried food on top of my already #10 canned dried food storage. My thinking of having dried food is not having the need to compete with others for fuel to cook.
When the time comes it will be nasty and dangerous to venture out for supplies, even in your own neighborhood. I think people just don't understand this future problem and other problems coming. Once this civil order topples, it will be every man for them-self, whether in Utah or else where. This scares me, especially for all the Utah Mormons that are not prepared. It is my believe that this will cause a massive grey area for the unprepared in-terms of right and wrong, where they justification stealing and doing other sinful needs by justifying their actions for survival. People talk about how the Mormons will be organized, etc.... . by local leadership. The Leadership are men and will probably succumb to deceive, steal, ........ for their own survival. I look around at my own local leadership and find that their "prepare for every needful thing" is at zero. I don't know if they are hoping for the miracle of Manna or what when the time comes.

[DMGNUT]

Cherokee, whatever they're hoping for... if they haven't bothered to prepare, it will be for naught.

[DMGNUT]

I like this thread, so I'm reviving it... even though it isn't really that old. :001_unsure:

[Earthling]

I also bought the small and large Saratoga Jack thermal cooker, plus 2 sun ovens, a boatload of Dutch ovens, propane & butane stoves, a charcoal/Propane combo BBQ, made a Wonder Box, and now have a new bread/pizza oven in my new outdoor fireplace. Is that prepared enough? ;-) yes I have fuel too

[DMGNUT]

I also bought the small and large Saratoga Jack thermal cooker, plus 2 sun ovens, a boatload of Dutch ovens, propane & butane stoves, a charcoal/Propane combo BBQ, made a Wonder Box, and now have a new bread/pizza oven in my new outdoor fireplace. Is that prepared enough? ;-) yes I have fuel too

Oh my, you're dangerously close to being considered an extremist by other church members. (but not me, you just made my day :worshippy:)

[Earthling]

thank you :-) Wait! I forgot my old-fashioned wood/coal stove that will heat a third of my house and I can cook on the whole surface with all that cast iron cookware I've been accumulating . . . not to mention in it's oven that has a glass door & thermometer! oh yea baby! It actually looks like an antique but was made about 20 years ago. There are 3 places in Canada that still make them for cabins, Amish, etc. using the over 100 year old plans. And it's pretty too . . .