My youngest woke me up the night before last (he's 3) because he wanted a drink, he hasn't woke up at night in a long time. I got up and got him a water bottle, only to have him start crying because he wanted a drink of milk. After I got his drink of milk, waited for him to finish it, and got him settled back in bed, my mind started worrying a bit... it wasn't a bit, it was more like a lot. I started thinking more about how he really only likes to drink white milk. I'm not sure if this was bothering me so much because I was exhausted from having been sick the past few days, or if it was just a motherly love thing and I was worrying about honestly being able to provide everything for my children when it came down to it, or if it was a mix of both. It was probably a mix of both. Either way, I couldn't go back to sleep thinking about what I was going to do for milk if we don't have such easy access to a store like we do now. I turned to a group of women that I chat with on Facebook to see what suggestions any of them may have, and then decided to go and see what kind of answers I could find to this problem on my own. Before I go into the solution I found, let me explain this in better detail. I have a hard time getting my son to drink anything else, he just seems to like milk. Plain white milk. He couldn't care less if it's whole milk, 2%, skim milk, or anything like that, as long as it's plain white milk. Do any of you have a child like this?
After all the foods, waters, juices, and drink boxes and mixes I store back for the future 'just in case,' I really didn't know what to do about regular white milk. I've bought the dehydrated milk, made some up and gave it to him to see if he'd drink it before and he definitely doesn't like it. I keep it in stock for cooking with, but as far as him drinking it goes, it's a no go. As soon as it even touched his lips the first time I tried to give him some, he dropped the cup and gave me a look of panic like I was trying to poison him. I've bought the little boxes of milk that can be stored on the shelf, the other kids like them, and he'll drink those if they're cold, but if they aren't cold he won't even put the straw in. Occasionally he'll somewhat drink a juice box, but only if he sees all the other kids drinking one, and even then he just takes a sip or 2 from it and lets the rest just sit on the table until someone picks it up. If I'm drinking a bottled water or a glass of sweet tea, he sometimes wants a drink out of it, but never wants his own and he never drinks more than a sip or 2 of mine. He doesn't like Kool-Aid, and he doesn't like pop. He won't drink chocolate milk out of a cup or little drink box, and will even cry if I hand it to him by mistake. My youngest daughter always drinks it and I sometimes get their cups mixed up if I'm in the middle of doing something else. I've seen my son go from a happy kid to one that is crying like his whole world has came crashing down over an accidental switch up of white and chocolate milk. I used to laugh about having the only kid in the world that won't drink junk, but now I think some sort of fear has set in.
He's not just a spoiled kid either, overall my kids are fairly well disciplined. They don't have a lot of luxury things that most other kids have, and they do chores and everything on a regular basis, even this little 3 year old helps do stuff. He isn't picky at all as far as eating goes, he'll even eat some plain pinto beans with no salt (I throw mini-meals like that on my children sometimes to see how they'll act since you never know how bad things may get one day)... it's just this milk issue. My original plan has always been to go with stocking up those little milk boxes, but I know if we lose power for a length of time in the future, there's not really a way to get them very cold except in one of those zeer pots that I mentioned in a past post. Even then though, how would I come across more milk boxes once they run out or just expire if things haven't straightened back out? A milk cow or goat may be a good idea, but I know fresh milk has a different texture than gallons of milk and I'm pretty sure that goat milk tastes different than cow milk. I have no experience with these animals either, nor do I really have the land to put one on. The other thing is, if things came down to having to be on the move, if we had a cow or goat, I sure wouldn't want to try to lug it around with us if we were on foot. Nor would I want to have to share any water source we found with an animal that would clearly need more than we would.
I went to the store yesterday morning to pick up a few things and to look around to see what kind of milk alternatives I could find. I don't want to take milk from my son right now while he can still drink it as often as he wants to, but I knew that if I didn't get something figured out now, we would have a real problem if things get bad before he (hopefully someday) grows out of this only drinking white milk stage. I passed through the Hispanic aisle and seen a fairly decent sized yellow can of this powdered whole milk that's made by Nestle. It's called NIDO. I read the can over and decided to go ahead and pick one up. I wasn't so sure that he'd want to drink any of it, nor would he like it if I could get him to try it, but I figured it was worth a shot. After I was home and put my groceries away, I decided to mix some up in a pitcher to see how he'd do if I gave him some to drink. I was going to be sneaky about it, but he stood right there watching me the whole time. When he seen me opening the can he stared for a second and asked me what it was. I tried to play it cool and just told him it was milk. He was definitely watching me like a hawk as I mixed it with some bottled water, and then he asked me again what it was, sounding a little confused (poor kid), and I told him again it was milk.
I didn't offer him any after it was mixed. I was sure that if it wasn't cold he wouldn't like it and that would throw away any chance of him ever trying it again in the future. When I went to put it in the fridge he wanted to drink some he said. I told him it wasn't cold yet and did he want to wait until it was cold, but he insisted that he wanted a drink of it. So I put some in the cup and just hoped for the best. He just took the cup, looked inside it, like he was trying to find something, and then took a little drink. He looked at me for a second, repeated back to me that it wasn't cold yet, stared at me for a couple seconds, and then just walked away with the cup in his hand. I watched him as he went around the corner and walked into the living room, thinking that he was going to just set it down somewhere. I watched him hold that little cup for a minute and look inside it a few times, and then he just took another drink. After the first couple drinks he took I noticed he looked inside it, but he ended up drinking it all.
I guess he either likes it, or it's something tolerable enough for his little taste buds. He ended up drinking more of it later, without doing the cup inspection between each sip like he did with the first cup. I guess I'll stock up on that stuff. I tasted it and it didn't seem too bad, it looks thicker than that regular boxed milk I was buying too. It has a 2 year expiration date on it, and each can makes about 53 servings. I guess that's the way I'm going to go, if I can get him into drinking water or something else too, then one can should last him about a month or so and at around $15 a can I don't think that's a bad price. I'll still buy him regular milk and stuff as long as it's available, but at least if worst comes to worst he will drink this NIDO even if it isn't cold. It can be mixed in small one cup portions too, so I don't have to worry about mixing up a whole pitcher just for it to go bad without refrigeration. I'm not sure if any of you are having, or have had, this same 'white milk only kid' experience, but if so I suggest trying this NIDO. I think it's a good alternative and it's whole milk that's fortified with vitamins A, C, and D, and has added calcium, iron, and zinc.
(This post is written on my own opinion, Nestle didn't contact me to write about one of their products for advertisement or anything, so please don't contact me asking for coupons, discounts, or ideas on how to make a profit for writing about a certain product for a company. I just wanted to let readers know before they waste their time asking.)
Showing posts with label Extending Food Storage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Extending Food Storage. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Water Storage 101
I wrote a previous post about Water Filtration & Purification, but today I'm going to talk about water storage. I'm going to go through this in an easy to follow listing for each thing you should know about long-term water storage.
How Much Water To Store:
- A good rule to go by is that each person will need one gallon of drinking water per day.
- Pregnant women, children, the elderly, those who are ill, and people living in extreme climates (either really hot, or really cold) should plan for 2 gallons per day.
- This gallon of water per day is the amount needed for drinking only. Store an additional gallon of water per person, per day to cover water that will be needed for cooking and hygiene use.
- If you have pets, remember to put water back for them too. If you have a medium to large dog, 1 gallon of water should be stored for them per day. Smaller dogs and cats will need 1/2 a gallon per day.
- Pets that live in extreme climates, like people, will need that amount doubled.
Best Way To Store Water:
- Choose a place that has little or no light, and try to find a location that is not too cold.
- Choose jugs or containers that are BPA free.
- If buying gallons or containers of water from a store, choose ones labeled 'drinking water' and NOT 'distilled water.' Distilled water tends to absorb the taste of the container. Also, distilled water is nothing more than processed tap water that has been condensed back into liquid form. This process removes fluoride and electrolytes. Lack of fluoride could heighten chances of dental problems, and your body needs electrolytes, such as potassium, chloride, and sodium to stay hydrated.
Shelf Life Of Store Bought Water:
- Store bought drinking water comes with an expiration date on it, usually a year or 2, but according to the FDA it has an indefinite shelf life. (see 4th paragraph under 'FAQ's about Bottled Water')
How To Prepare Your Own Water Containers For Storage:
- Be sure that each container has a tight fitting lid. That is very important.
- Clean the food grade BPA free plastic or glass container(s) by washing the inside, outside, and the lid(s) with hot soapy water.
- Sanitize the inside and outside of container(s) and lid(s) using a solution of 1 teaspoon non-scented household bleach per quart of water.
- Be sure and thoroughly rinse the container(s) and lid(s) with clean water.
How To Prepare (Non-Store Bought) Water For Storage:
Before I get into treating your tap water, I want to say that once you treated your water you should only consider it pure for 6 months. Since you shouldn't add more bleach to water that was previously treated with bleach, please just sanitize the containers and fill them with straight tap water before storing them.
Date the containers and keep them in a dark place in the coolest area of your home or wherever your storage is located. This water will be safe as is for up to 6 months without any further treatment as long as you filled them during a time that you didn't have a boil order or anything going on.
If you plan to store water in larger tanks for future drinking, be sure that you save smaller containers that are of quart, gallon, or 5 gallon sizes so you can treat smaller amounts of water at a time. I can't express how important it is to remember to store back bleach, droppers, and measuring spoons.
If your stored tap water has been sitting for over 6 months from the date you filled them, you'll need to treat the water before drinking it or using it for cooking. This water and bleach mixture will need to sit at least 30 minutes before drinking it to ensure that it has been properly purified. After sitting for the 30 minute period, there should be a slight chlorine scent to it.
- use 2 drops of bleach for 1 quart of clear water
- use 4 drops of bleach for 1 quart of water if it looks cloudy
- use 8 drops of bleach for 1 gallon of clear water
- use 16 drops of bleach for 1 gallon of water that looks cloudy
- use 1/2 teaspoon of bleach for 5 gallons of clear water
- use 1 teaspoon of bleach for 5 gallons of water that looks cloudy
After the water has been treated, be sure and date the container again. This water is only good for 6 months after the treatment date.
Alternative Boiling Water Treatment:
In the event that you have ran out of bleach to treat your water, or if you're allergic to bleach, you should use a boiling method to purify your water.
- Bring water to a rolling boil and let it stay at the rolling boil for a minimum of 1 minute.
- Let the water cool before drinking it or storing it.
- If you choose to store water once you have boiled it, remember to date it. It is only safe for 6 months after boiled. It should be boiled again if not used within the 6 month time period.
Alternative Iodine Tablet Purification:
- I'm not familiar with using iodine tablets. If you choose to stock these back and use them, you should follow the manufacturers instructions that come with them.
- Long-term safety after using iodine tablets isn't clear, so this should be an alternative for water that will be used as soon as the manufacturer's instructions state it is safe to use it. Water treated with this should not be set back in storage for any length of time.
- If you haven't used iodine tablets before and haven't been exposed to iodine in general, be cautious because some people are allergic to it.
How Much Water To Store:
- A good rule to go by is that each person will need one gallon of drinking water per day.
- Pregnant women, children, the elderly, those who are ill, and people living in extreme climates (either really hot, or really cold) should plan for 2 gallons per day.
- This gallon of water per day is the amount needed for drinking only. Store an additional gallon of water per person, per day to cover water that will be needed for cooking and hygiene use.
- If you have pets, remember to put water back for them too. If you have a medium to large dog, 1 gallon of water should be stored for them per day. Smaller dogs and cats will need 1/2 a gallon per day.
- Pets that live in extreme climates, like people, will need that amount doubled.
Best Way To Store Water:
- Choose a place that has little or no light, and try to find a location that is not too cold.
- Choose jugs or containers that are BPA free.
- If buying gallons or containers of water from a store, choose ones labeled 'drinking water' and NOT 'distilled water.' Distilled water tends to absorb the taste of the container. Also, distilled water is nothing more than processed tap water that has been condensed back into liquid form. This process removes fluoride and electrolytes. Lack of fluoride could heighten chances of dental problems, and your body needs electrolytes, such as potassium, chloride, and sodium to stay hydrated.
Shelf Life Of Store Bought Water:
- Store bought drinking water comes with an expiration date on it, usually a year or 2, but according to the FDA it has an indefinite shelf life. (see 4th paragraph under 'FAQ's about Bottled Water')
How To Prepare Your Own Water Containers For Storage:
- Be sure that each container has a tight fitting lid. That is very important.
- Clean the food grade BPA free plastic or glass container(s) by washing the inside, outside, and the lid(s) with hot soapy water.
- Sanitize the inside and outside of container(s) and lid(s) using a solution of 1 teaspoon non-scented household bleach per quart of water.
- Be sure and thoroughly rinse the container(s) and lid(s) with clean water.
How To Prepare (Non-Store Bought) Water For Storage:
Before I get into treating your tap water, I want to say that once you treated your water you should only consider it pure for 6 months. Since you shouldn't add more bleach to water that was previously treated with bleach, please just sanitize the containers and fill them with straight tap water before storing them.
Date the containers and keep them in a dark place in the coolest area of your home or wherever your storage is located. This water will be safe as is for up to 6 months without any further treatment as long as you filled them during a time that you didn't have a boil order or anything going on.
If you plan to store water in larger tanks for future drinking, be sure that you save smaller containers that are of quart, gallon, or 5 gallon sizes so you can treat smaller amounts of water at a time. I can't express how important it is to remember to store back bleach, droppers, and measuring spoons.
If your stored tap water has been sitting for over 6 months from the date you filled them, you'll need to treat the water before drinking it or using it for cooking. This water and bleach mixture will need to sit at least 30 minutes before drinking it to ensure that it has been properly purified. After sitting for the 30 minute period, there should be a slight chlorine scent to it.
- use 2 drops of bleach for 1 quart of clear water
- use 4 drops of bleach for 1 quart of water if it looks cloudy
- use 8 drops of bleach for 1 gallon of clear water
- use 16 drops of bleach for 1 gallon of water that looks cloudy
- use 1/2 teaspoon of bleach for 5 gallons of clear water
- use 1 teaspoon of bleach for 5 gallons of water that looks cloudy
After the water has been treated, be sure and date the container again. This water is only good for 6 months after the treatment date.
Alternative Boiling Water Treatment:
In the event that you have ran out of bleach to treat your water, or if you're allergic to bleach, you should use a boiling method to purify your water.
- Bring water to a rolling boil and let it stay at the rolling boil for a minimum of 1 minute.
- Let the water cool before drinking it or storing it.
- If you choose to store water once you have boiled it, remember to date it. It is only safe for 6 months after boiled. It should be boiled again if not used within the 6 month time period.
Alternative Iodine Tablet Purification:
- I'm not familiar with using iodine tablets. If you choose to stock these back and use them, you should follow the manufacturers instructions that come with them.
- Long-term safety after using iodine tablets isn't clear, so this should be an alternative for water that will be used as soon as the manufacturer's instructions state it is safe to use it. Water treated with this should not be set back in storage for any length of time.
- If you haven't used iodine tablets before and haven't been exposed to iodine in general, be cautious because some people are allergic to it.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Introduction To Clay Pot Refrigeration
Remember when I said something about clay pot refrigerators in the last post? Let's go over them now. I'm going to tell you how these are made, what makes them work, and then share a couple links to articles and videos about them. I don't think these would be good for anything more than storing fresh produce or maybe for cooling drinks, but being able to lengthen the fresh state of fruits and vegetables alone makes it pretty handy. I don't currently have one, but as long as I can make my way through my to-do list, I should have one in the near future that I can share progress, updates, and notes about. Let's get started.
You'll need:
1 large clay or terracotta pot (one with no holes in the bottom, or you'll need to close them)
1 smaller clay or terracotta pot (again, no holes)
Sand
Water
1 Towel
What to do:
*When you choose your pots, make sure that the smaller one will fit inside the large one. There will need to be a couple centimeters of space in between the pots.
*Place enough sand in the base of the large pot so that when the smaller one is set inside, the tops of both pots are level.
*Fill the area in between the small and large pots with sand, making sure to fill it all the way to the top.
*Pour cool water into the sand, giving it plenty of time to absorb. Gradually add water until the sand can't hold any more, being careful not to overflow it into the smaller pot.
*After your clay pot fridge is set up, wet your towel in cool water, squeeze out as much of the excess water as you can, and lay it across the top so it can start cooling your 'fridge' down.
*Check the temperature inside with either a thermometer, or just your hand, until it cools down. After it cools, you're ready to put in your fresh produce or whatever else you decide to keep inside.
This clay 'fridge' works through evaporation. As the water is evaporated from the sand, it pulls the heat from the inner pot with it.. kind of like when your body sweats and you feel cooler. If you keep the pot in a dry climate and allow it to have the complete outter surface ventilated, without sticking it in some corner where the surface is blocked from air flow or anything, it'll work best. If it's in a humid climate, the pots won't cool so easily either, so sticking it in a root cellar or something is also a no go.
Like I mentioned, I don't know that this would be good for anything other than produce or drinks, but if the temperature was monitored and found to be stable at fridge-like temperatures, I don't see why other things couldn't be stored in it. The sand will need to be checked a couple times a day to make sure it keeps the moisture needed to work.
If you want to see how one is made and watch temperature checks on half-hour intervals, you may want to watch
Zeer Pot Fridge: Cool your food or drinks with no electric needed
You can also check out MixCatCom's channel for more DIY videos
If you're interested in reading more about these, you can click through these links:
Off-Grid SHTF Survival: Ancient Technology For Refrigeration
Zeer Pot Fridge
There's a lot of articles and videos on these, but nothing really covers anything new or different from everyone else's content. It's all a very basic concept.
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I'll answer any questions to the best of my knowledge if you have them, and I'd also love to read your comments and thoughts. Don't forget that I'm trying to find other blogs, sites, and YouTube channels with similar content that I may not have stumbled across yet, so please share yours (or your favorites). Please take a second to subscribe if you haven't and don't forget to share this with others who may find this useful.
You'll need:
1 large clay or terracotta pot (one with no holes in the bottom, or you'll need to close them)
1 smaller clay or terracotta pot (again, no holes)
Sand
Water
1 Towel
What to do:
*When you choose your pots, make sure that the smaller one will fit inside the large one. There will need to be a couple centimeters of space in between the pots.
*Place enough sand in the base of the large pot so that when the smaller one is set inside, the tops of both pots are level.
*Fill the area in between the small and large pots with sand, making sure to fill it all the way to the top.
*Pour cool water into the sand, giving it plenty of time to absorb. Gradually add water until the sand can't hold any more, being careful not to overflow it into the smaller pot.
*After your clay pot fridge is set up, wet your towel in cool water, squeeze out as much of the excess water as you can, and lay it across the top so it can start cooling your 'fridge' down.
*Check the temperature inside with either a thermometer, or just your hand, until it cools down. After it cools, you're ready to put in your fresh produce or whatever else you decide to keep inside.
This clay 'fridge' works through evaporation. As the water is evaporated from the sand, it pulls the heat from the inner pot with it.. kind of like when your body sweats and you feel cooler. If you keep the pot in a dry climate and allow it to have the complete outter surface ventilated, without sticking it in some corner where the surface is blocked from air flow or anything, it'll work best. If it's in a humid climate, the pots won't cool so easily either, so sticking it in a root cellar or something is also a no go.
Like I mentioned, I don't know that this would be good for anything other than produce or drinks, but if the temperature was monitored and found to be stable at fridge-like temperatures, I don't see why other things couldn't be stored in it. The sand will need to be checked a couple times a day to make sure it keeps the moisture needed to work.
If you want to see how one is made and watch temperature checks on half-hour intervals, you may want to watch
Zeer Pot Fridge: Cool your food or drinks with no electric needed
You can also check out MixCatCom's channel for more DIY videos
If you're interested in reading more about these, you can click through these links:
Off-Grid SHTF Survival: Ancient Technology For Refrigeration
Zeer Pot Fridge
There's a lot of articles and videos on these, but nothing really covers anything new or different from everyone else's content. It's all a very basic concept.
***************************************************************************************************************
I'll answer any questions to the best of my knowledge if you have them, and I'd also love to read your comments and thoughts. Don't forget that I'm trying to find other blogs, sites, and YouTube channels with similar content that I may not have stumbled across yet, so please share yours (or your favorites). Please take a second to subscribe if you haven't and don't forget to share this with others who may find this useful.
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Introduction To Drying And Smoking Meats
Have you thought about what you're going to do if/when the grid goes down and there's no power to run a fridge or freezer to store meat in? Alternative options like backup generators or planning to use an RV fridge are great ideas, but they won't last forever. We'll talk about clay pot refrigerators in a future post, but it's not really something that's good for holding big amounts of anything inside and fresh meat doesn't last too long when just refrigerated anyway. Everyone should practice and familiarize themselves with drying meat. In this post I'm going to cover two ways for drying meat that have been practiced for centuries, by using nothing more than air and the sun or smoke. Neither process requires any electricity and each way will safely prepare meat for storage without refrigeration for quite some time.
The microorganisms that spoil meats need a certain level of moisture in order to grow. Drying meat drops the moisture below the level needed, making the growth of the microorganisms discontinue. Just about any lean meat can be dried. Beef, buffalo, deer, goat, and fish are probably the most common and best choices, pork should be avoided because of its high fat content that can make it go rancid much quicker. The nutritional properties of meats after they're dried remain the same for the most part, and the process itself is fairly simple. Dried meats can last for months without refrigeration, I read that in some cases it may be stored for years when packaged right... when attempting to save meats that long, they'll need to be thoroughly inspected for foul smells, discoloration, or other signs of spoilage before being consumed.
Since drying meat is just a matter of exposing the meat to the sun and air, or air and smoke, to make it lose tissue moisture, the fresher and thinner the meat is sliced, the safer the process will be. Meat needs to be de-boned, trimmed, and then sliced into thin uniform strips or thin steak-like cuts for each batch that is dried. If the meat has been frozen at any time, you'll need to make sure that it is completely thawed or the drying process will be uneven resulting in quickly spoiled meats. Additionally, salting meats before either drying process helps in a couple ways. It'll not only add some flavor and help pull moisture out of the meat, it also makes the surface of meats unattractive to insects that feed on the moisture excreted from the muscle tissue. Only salts without additives (like iodine) should be used. Then the meat is suspended with hooks, loops, or clips from racks or ceilings, or it can be set flat on drying racks. No piece of meat should touch another to ensure the proper air circulation needed to dry it out.
Centuries ago, people hung meats out to dry in the sun, without any protection from the elements. This is still an option today if you have the right climate, but I'm not sure I would attempt this procedure and then just cross my fingers that dogs or dirt wouldn't get to it. Solar dehydrators and smoke houses are probably the best options. Remember that we aren't covering the electric food dehydrator method because we may not always have electricity. I looked around trying to find the best written step by step directions for building your own solar dehydrator and smoke house, just to be slapped with seemingly endless results. After sifting through them all, I believe I have found the best step by steps to share. I'll share links to the articles and videos below. If you don't have time to thoroughly look them over now or if you'd like to refer back to them later, bookmarking the links would be a good idea.
*To make your own solar dehydrator, click below. The article, although not my own, is very thorough and includes not only the materials needed, but also step-by-step instructions for constructing your own solar dehydrator.
How To Make A Simple Solar Food Dehydrator
Be sure and click on to page 2 after you looked this over, it goes over the steps to making the shelving that you lay the meat on to dry.Watch the Simple DIY Solar Food Dehydrator video to go along with the article, and you can always check out more about To Do It Yourself World by clicking the name.
*For instructions on building a smoke house, click the link below. This content isn't mine either, but the content is probably some of the best instructions I found for making a smoke house.
DIY Smoker- How To Build A Smokehouse From Pallets for Less than $100
After you've looked over the article, watch the video that goes along with it. DIY Smoker: How To Build A Smokehouse From Pallets For Less Than $100. You can check out more about DIY Ready - Projects & How To by clicking the name.
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Have you ever dried or hard smoked any meat? I'd love to hear your stories, or just your comments if you have any. I'm interested in checking out other blogs, sites, and YouTube channels that I may not have stumbled across yet, so please share yours (or your favorites). Please take a second to subscribe if you haven't and don't forget to share this with others who may find this useful.
The microorganisms that spoil meats need a certain level of moisture in order to grow. Drying meat drops the moisture below the level needed, making the growth of the microorganisms discontinue. Just about any lean meat can be dried. Beef, buffalo, deer, goat, and fish are probably the most common and best choices, pork should be avoided because of its high fat content that can make it go rancid much quicker. The nutritional properties of meats after they're dried remain the same for the most part, and the process itself is fairly simple. Dried meats can last for months without refrigeration, I read that in some cases it may be stored for years when packaged right... when attempting to save meats that long, they'll need to be thoroughly inspected for foul smells, discoloration, or other signs of spoilage before being consumed.
Since drying meat is just a matter of exposing the meat to the sun and air, or air and smoke, to make it lose tissue moisture, the fresher and thinner the meat is sliced, the safer the process will be. Meat needs to be de-boned, trimmed, and then sliced into thin uniform strips or thin steak-like cuts for each batch that is dried. If the meat has been frozen at any time, you'll need to make sure that it is completely thawed or the drying process will be uneven resulting in quickly spoiled meats. Additionally, salting meats before either drying process helps in a couple ways. It'll not only add some flavor and help pull moisture out of the meat, it also makes the surface of meats unattractive to insects that feed on the moisture excreted from the muscle tissue. Only salts without additives (like iodine) should be used. Then the meat is suspended with hooks, loops, or clips from racks or ceilings, or it can be set flat on drying racks. No piece of meat should touch another to ensure the proper air circulation needed to dry it out.
Centuries ago, people hung meats out to dry in the sun, without any protection from the elements. This is still an option today if you have the right climate, but I'm not sure I would attempt this procedure and then just cross my fingers that dogs or dirt wouldn't get to it. Solar dehydrators and smoke houses are probably the best options. Remember that we aren't covering the electric food dehydrator method because we may not always have electricity. I looked around trying to find the best written step by step directions for building your own solar dehydrator and smoke house, just to be slapped with seemingly endless results. After sifting through them all, I believe I have found the best step by steps to share. I'll share links to the articles and videos below. If you don't have time to thoroughly look them over now or if you'd like to refer back to them later, bookmarking the links would be a good idea.
*To make your own solar dehydrator, click below. The article, although not my own, is very thorough and includes not only the materials needed, but also step-by-step instructions for constructing your own solar dehydrator.
How To Make A Simple Solar Food Dehydrator
Be sure and click on to page 2 after you looked this over, it goes over the steps to making the shelving that you lay the meat on to dry.Watch the Simple DIY Solar Food Dehydrator video to go along with the article, and you can always check out more about To Do It Yourself World by clicking the name.
*For instructions on building a smoke house, click the link below. This content isn't mine either, but the content is probably some of the best instructions I found for making a smoke house.
DIY Smoker- How To Build A Smokehouse From Pallets for Less than $100
After you've looked over the article, watch the video that goes along with it. DIY Smoker: How To Build A Smokehouse From Pallets For Less Than $100. You can check out more about DIY Ready - Projects & How To by clicking the name.
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Have you ever dried or hard smoked any meat? I'd love to hear your stories, or just your comments if you have any. I'm interested in checking out other blogs, sites, and YouTube channels that I may not have stumbled across yet, so please share yours (or your favorites). Please take a second to subscribe if you haven't and don't forget to share this with others who may find this useful.
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Here's an offer for fellow prepping and survival bloggers, or sellers of prepping and survival supplies. I have ad spaces on this blog that you can rent, I would even consider adding a page for advertisement alone. If you're interested, please send an email to messagemagpie@gmail.com to discuss options, or for more information. You must include the phrase 'Ad Space On Magpie Prepper' in order for me to open the email, and please do not include clickable links in the body because it may be automatically sent to spam. Once I receive the initial message, I can add your email to my contact list ensuring that I'll receive future emails from you.
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Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Introduction To Home Canning
I previously posted content about storing foods in BoPET (Mylar-type) bags and oxygen absorbers, the kind of food storage I'm going to talk about now is canning. I've done some canning before, but I'm no where near a 'pro' at it. This post isn't just to help others learn about canning, I'm using the research for writing this to help me understand it better too. In a mini science nutshell, canning gives fresh foods a longer shelf life because it removes oxygen, prevents mold and bacteria from growing, and it kills off botulism spores before they can grow into the botulism toxin. I'm not personally sure how long home canned foods are good for because everything I've ever canned gets eaten within a few months, but quite a few informative articles I've read suggest that the shelf life is anywhere from one to two years. That's no where near as long as store bought canned foods last, but at least you'd be healthier without all the preservatives and it's a great addition to your food storage. Be sure to check out the bottom of this post when you finish reading it, I have some some general questions of my own that you may be able to answer, please leave any questions you may have in the comments so we can discuss those too. I'm also going to share links to articles I read for my research, direct you to a couple good tutorial videos, and share a few good recipe sites with you.
Let's start with the basics of canning, starting with the jars and lids. The glass jars, like Mason jars, come in an assortment of sizes - half pint, pint, pint and a half, quart, and half gallon. I usually can in the half pint and pint size jars, that way I know the contents will be used before they go bad once I open them. The mouth (opening) of the jars are threaded and comes in a standard size of two and three-eighths inches or in a wide mouth size of three inches. This sizes don't make much of a difference, but when it comes to re-using the jars you'll need to make sure you get the right size lids. The lid comes in two pieces - a flat metal lid and a threaded metal screw-on band that holds the flat lid in place. The flat lid has a resin type compound that'll soften up during the canning process. The compound will slightly melt around the mouth of the jar, forming a gasket type seal as the heat escapes, taking the oxygen with it. These jars have an indefinite life, as long as they don't become chipped, cracked, or broken in any way. The flat lids on the other hand, may only be good for five years from the manufacturer date if new. I've tried to read around about re-using the flat lids, or if there's a compound I can buy to re-use them, but all information leads to no. I've seen boxes of wax in the canning isle at Walmart, but I'm not quite sure if it's for canning lids, or something else.
Before starting the canning process, all the jars and lids need to be cleaned and sterilized. It's a fairly simple procedure. (1) Thoroughly wash and rinse each jar, flat lid, and band with hot soapy water. (2) Choose a pot that is deep enough to completely set the jars inside with the opening facing up. (3) Add enough water to the pot to completely fill and cover each jar with at least 2 inches of water. (4) Using high heat, bring the water in the pot to a boil and let it stay at a rolling boil for 10 minutes. This time will vary with higher altitudes. (5) After the water has boiled for the necessary time, turn off the heat and carefully drop in the lids, along with the grasping end of the tongs you will be using. (6) The lids and tongs need to sit in the hot water a minimum of 10 minutes, but can be left for longer. Don't take the lids out until they are ready to be put on the jars. (8) To be sure that the jars stay sanitized until the process is finished, the jars need to be lifted out of the pot with the tongs, dumped out, and then set mouth side up on a clean paper towel or towel. You can let the jars sit for a minute or so before actually filling them, but the filling will need to be done as soon as possible to ensure that the jar doesn't cool. Pouring hot foods/ingredients into a cool jar could cause them to crack or even burst.
Now that the basic information for the jars, lids, and their sterilization
is out of the way, let's talk about canning methods. There are two different methods to choose from, pressure canning or in a boiling water bath. I don't personally have any hands on experience with the pressure canners, but since I read up on them I'll try to explain. A pressure canner is a heavy-duty kettle type piece of equipment with screw clamps, a vent, and a way to monitor and control pressure. Before each use, you'll need to clean, inspect, and assemble the equipment, being sure not to get the gauge wet or bump it around. The pressure gauge should be checked before each canning season and from what I understand, you should be able to have this done at your local county extension office. As far as the step by step directions go for using a pressure canner, you'll need to thoroughly read the instructions manual that comes with it and then save it for future reference. Now for how it works. Water comes to a boil at 212 degrees F, but pressure canners have the ability to bring the food contents inside the jars to 240 degrees F or higher. Since plain vegetables, soups, animal products, and any other low acid foods with a pH level of 4.6 or above need a minimum of 240 degrees F to properly eliminate botulism, pressure caning is the only safe method to use.
The other canning method, and the one I 'm pretty familiar with, is a boiling water bath. Water bath canning is done with nothing more than a deep pot with a lid, and a rack that will set down inside the pot. I personally use a 15.5 quart sized stock pot that came with a steam tray that sits in the bottom, I think I paid around $20 for it when I bought it. If you can foods in larger quantities, you can find much larger pots than the one I have. Since botulism spores can't grow into the botulism toxin in acidic foods, water bath canning is great for acidic fruits, pickled vegetables, jellies, jams, and any other food that have, or can be altered to have, a pH of 4.6 or less. The pH can be brought to needed levels with additions of citric acids like lemon or lime juice, or vinegar. When you are preparing the pot for the canning, you'll need enough water to ensure that once the \jars are lowered in, they will be covered with about 2 inches of water. The tops of the jars should never be above the water at any time once the process begins. Depending on the contents you're canning, there are guidelines for head space (the space between the contents and the lid) and the time they need to be in the boiling water. If the water stops boiling for any reason, bring the water back to a boil and restart the timer for the processing time. Once this time period is complete, turn the burner off or remove the pot from the heat and leave the lid on for about 5 minutes before opening it. Letting it sit for 5 minutes gives a higher success rate for the seals and allows the contents to settle before you remove them.
Using tongs, take the jars out of the pressure canner or the boiling water bath, and set them on a towel to cool. A cool counter top could shock hot jars causing them to crack, or maybe even burst. Make sure you pick a good place where they won't be in the way because they should cool over night at least. I like to leave them for at least 24 hours and then make sure the seals took right before I store them away. I do a simple test by pushing on the center of the lid. If it doesn't pop up then the seal should be fine. After that test passes, I carefully remove the screw on lid band and grasp the edges of the flat lid, carefully picking up the jar about an inch or 2 to make double sure the seal took. That's the extent of my seal testing, but according to a few things I've read, you can also check the seal by tapping a spoon on it. I guess you can tap the bottom of the spoon on the top center of the lid. If it makes a higher pitched ping sound then they're sealed correctly, but a dull sound could mean they didn't, unless there's food touching the inside of the lid, which will make a dull tap sound anyway... a little weary on this testing method, so I'll just stick to my regulars.
You may notice that the exterior of your jars seem a bit cloudy once they finish processing too, especially if you used tap water. Even if your tap water isn't really hard water, the smallest traces of lime and other minerals can leave the exterior of your jars mucked with mineral deposits. You can add a cup of white vinegar to the water you submerge the jars in before it's hot. This will keep your jars crystal clear on the outside and it'll make the pressure canner or pot easier to clean. Having a chalky looking exterior doesn't effect the quality or safety of the contents in it, but sometimes it feels strange (to me) pulling out a cloudy jar. If you already have some cloudy jars because you hadn't added the vinegar on previous canning sessions, you can clean them off with vinegar too. I've read some suggestions about submerging the jars into warm water that has vinegar in it, but I can't help but feel like if I stuck jars that already cooled into hot water again, it may mess up the seal or something, but I could be wrong. I just dip a clean hand towel in white vinegar and wipe it off, then rinse the whole jar in cool water and dry it. Even though the crystal clean appearance on the outside of your jar makes no difference as far as quality or safety, jars that are sticky or have other food residues on the outside do need wiped off to avoid attracting ants or any other pests.
Once all your jars are properly processed, wiped off if needed, cooled, and the seals are checked, it's time for you to put them away somewhere. Be sure and write whatever food the jar contains and write the date that you canned them. I always write it all on the flat lid so I can re-use the jars for future canning without them being marked up already. Storing them without the screw on band in a dark, clean, and dry place is best, as long as the temperature of the area keeps between 50-70 degrees F. I just put mine in the pantry. Remember to put the newest jars in the back of your stock and pull the older ones forward so they are stored for first in - first out use, just like with everything else that has an expiration date. Again with the shelf life. I've never had anything that I canned last more than a few months before it was eaten, but some research leads me to believe that home canned foods are good for a year for sure, possibly up to 2 years depending on the contents and the atmosphere they're kept in. Now for some telltale signs of spoilage. If you see any leaking, bulging, or swollen lids, or if the jar has cracked, chipped, or broken, throw it away without opening it. If you open a jar because you don't notice any of the previous signs that they went bad and any foam or liquid spurts out, throw it away. Clean it up any spills with a diluted bleach water to make sure you get rid of any botulism or other bad bacteria. If no liquids spurt out but the contents are discolored, smell bad, or are moldy, throw them away too. Never taste any home canned foods to make sure they're good or not. Even the smallest taste test that contains botulism toxins can be deadly.
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Now I have some questions of my own, let's see if you can answer any or just discuss them with me in the comment section below:
Do you personally know of a longer shelf life for any specific home canned foods passed the 2 year mark? If so, what was the shelf life and what were the contents of the jar?
Do you know of a way to re-use the flat jar lids?
Have you seen the brick of wax in the canning section at Walmart, or any other store? If so, is it for canning and have you ever tried it?
Would you trust re-using the lid if you were able to scrape off the old compound and put on a new compound?
Do you have another way to check the seal on your lids?
What are some of your favorite things to can?
Have you canned bacon or heard of anyone who has?
Have you canned any other meat? If so, what kind?
What questions do you have?
****************************************************************************************************************
Before I go, I want to share some links with you. I didn't pull anything word for word from these, but this post was partially summarized through some of these. I do not own any of the content or videos in the following links.
General Canning Information
Boiling Water Bath vs. Pressure Canning
Safe Water Bath and Pressure Canning
National Center For Home Food Preservation
Cooperative Extension System Offices
Ball - Fresh Preserving
Canning 101 - video
Canning 101 Pressure vs. Water Bath - video
Canning, Pickling, and Preserves 101 - recipes
Recipe Index - recipes
I hope you enjoyed this post. Please be sure and subscribe if you haven't already, answer some of my questions if you can and ask any that you have, leave a comment if you have one, and share this with others that may find it useful. Check back in a couple days to see the next food storage method on the list, it's a good one. Until then...
Let's start with the basics of canning, starting with the jars and lids. The glass jars, like Mason jars, come in an assortment of sizes - half pint, pint, pint and a half, quart, and half gallon. I usually can in the half pint and pint size jars, that way I know the contents will be used before they go bad once I open them. The mouth (opening) of the jars are threaded and comes in a standard size of two and three-eighths inches or in a wide mouth size of three inches. This sizes don't make much of a difference, but when it comes to re-using the jars you'll need to make sure you get the right size lids. The lid comes in two pieces - a flat metal lid and a threaded metal screw-on band that holds the flat lid in place. The flat lid has a resin type compound that'll soften up during the canning process. The compound will slightly melt around the mouth of the jar, forming a gasket type seal as the heat escapes, taking the oxygen with it. These jars have an indefinite life, as long as they don't become chipped, cracked, or broken in any way. The flat lids on the other hand, may only be good for five years from the manufacturer date if new. I've tried to read around about re-using the flat lids, or if there's a compound I can buy to re-use them, but all information leads to no. I've seen boxes of wax in the canning isle at Walmart, but I'm not quite sure if it's for canning lids, or something else.
Before starting the canning process, all the jars and lids need to be cleaned and sterilized. It's a fairly simple procedure. (1) Thoroughly wash and rinse each jar, flat lid, and band with hot soapy water. (2) Choose a pot that is deep enough to completely set the jars inside with the opening facing up. (3) Add enough water to the pot to completely fill and cover each jar with at least 2 inches of water. (4) Using high heat, bring the water in the pot to a boil and let it stay at a rolling boil for 10 minutes. This time will vary with higher altitudes. (5) After the water has boiled for the necessary time, turn off the heat and carefully drop in the lids, along with the grasping end of the tongs you will be using. (6) The lids and tongs need to sit in the hot water a minimum of 10 minutes, but can be left for longer. Don't take the lids out until they are ready to be put on the jars. (8) To be sure that the jars stay sanitized until the process is finished, the jars need to be lifted out of the pot with the tongs, dumped out, and then set mouth side up on a clean paper towel or towel. You can let the jars sit for a minute or so before actually filling them, but the filling will need to be done as soon as possible to ensure that the jar doesn't cool. Pouring hot foods/ingredients into a cool jar could cause them to crack or even burst.
Now that the basic information for the jars, lids, and their sterilization
is out of the way, let's talk about canning methods. There are two different methods to choose from, pressure canning or in a boiling water bath. I don't personally have any hands on experience with the pressure canners, but since I read up on them I'll try to explain. A pressure canner is a heavy-duty kettle type piece of equipment with screw clamps, a vent, and a way to monitor and control pressure. Before each use, you'll need to clean, inspect, and assemble the equipment, being sure not to get the gauge wet or bump it around. The pressure gauge should be checked before each canning season and from what I understand, you should be able to have this done at your local county extension office. As far as the step by step directions go for using a pressure canner, you'll need to thoroughly read the instructions manual that comes with it and then save it for future reference. Now for how it works. Water comes to a boil at 212 degrees F, but pressure canners have the ability to bring the food contents inside the jars to 240 degrees F or higher. Since plain vegetables, soups, animal products, and any other low acid foods with a pH level of 4.6 or above need a minimum of 240 degrees F to properly eliminate botulism, pressure caning is the only safe method to use.
The other canning method, and the one I 'm pretty familiar with, is a boiling water bath. Water bath canning is done with nothing more than a deep pot with a lid, and a rack that will set down inside the pot. I personally use a 15.5 quart sized stock pot that came with a steam tray that sits in the bottom, I think I paid around $20 for it when I bought it. If you can foods in larger quantities, you can find much larger pots than the one I have. Since botulism spores can't grow into the botulism toxin in acidic foods, water bath canning is great for acidic fruits, pickled vegetables, jellies, jams, and any other food that have, or can be altered to have, a pH of 4.6 or less. The pH can be brought to needed levels with additions of citric acids like lemon or lime juice, or vinegar. When you are preparing the pot for the canning, you'll need enough water to ensure that once the \jars are lowered in, they will be covered with about 2 inches of water. The tops of the jars should never be above the water at any time once the process begins. Depending on the contents you're canning, there are guidelines for head space (the space between the contents and the lid) and the time they need to be in the boiling water. If the water stops boiling for any reason, bring the water back to a boil and restart the timer for the processing time. Once this time period is complete, turn the burner off or remove the pot from the heat and leave the lid on for about 5 minutes before opening it. Letting it sit for 5 minutes gives a higher success rate for the seals and allows the contents to settle before you remove them.
Using tongs, take the jars out of the pressure canner or the boiling water bath, and set them on a towel to cool. A cool counter top could shock hot jars causing them to crack, or maybe even burst. Make sure you pick a good place where they won't be in the way because they should cool over night at least. I like to leave them for at least 24 hours and then make sure the seals took right before I store them away. I do a simple test by pushing on the center of the lid. If it doesn't pop up then the seal should be fine. After that test passes, I carefully remove the screw on lid band and grasp the edges of the flat lid, carefully picking up the jar about an inch or 2 to make double sure the seal took. That's the extent of my seal testing, but according to a few things I've read, you can also check the seal by tapping a spoon on it. I guess you can tap the bottom of the spoon on the top center of the lid. If it makes a higher pitched ping sound then they're sealed correctly, but a dull sound could mean they didn't, unless there's food touching the inside of the lid, which will make a dull tap sound anyway... a little weary on this testing method, so I'll just stick to my regulars.
You may notice that the exterior of your jars seem a bit cloudy once they finish processing too, especially if you used tap water. Even if your tap water isn't really hard water, the smallest traces of lime and other minerals can leave the exterior of your jars mucked with mineral deposits. You can add a cup of white vinegar to the water you submerge the jars in before it's hot. This will keep your jars crystal clear on the outside and it'll make the pressure canner or pot easier to clean. Having a chalky looking exterior doesn't effect the quality or safety of the contents in it, but sometimes it feels strange (to me) pulling out a cloudy jar. If you already have some cloudy jars because you hadn't added the vinegar on previous canning sessions, you can clean them off with vinegar too. I've read some suggestions about submerging the jars into warm water that has vinegar in it, but I can't help but feel like if I stuck jars that already cooled into hot water again, it may mess up the seal or something, but I could be wrong. I just dip a clean hand towel in white vinegar and wipe it off, then rinse the whole jar in cool water and dry it. Even though the crystal clean appearance on the outside of your jar makes no difference as far as quality or safety, jars that are sticky or have other food residues on the outside do need wiped off to avoid attracting ants or any other pests.
Once all your jars are properly processed, wiped off if needed, cooled, and the seals are checked, it's time for you to put them away somewhere. Be sure and write whatever food the jar contains and write the date that you canned them. I always write it all on the flat lid so I can re-use the jars for future canning without them being marked up already. Storing them without the screw on band in a dark, clean, and dry place is best, as long as the temperature of the area keeps between 50-70 degrees F. I just put mine in the pantry. Remember to put the newest jars in the back of your stock and pull the older ones forward so they are stored for first in - first out use, just like with everything else that has an expiration date. Again with the shelf life. I've never had anything that I canned last more than a few months before it was eaten, but some research leads me to believe that home canned foods are good for a year for sure, possibly up to 2 years depending on the contents and the atmosphere they're kept in. Now for some telltale signs of spoilage. If you see any leaking, bulging, or swollen lids, or if the jar has cracked, chipped, or broken, throw it away without opening it. If you open a jar because you don't notice any of the previous signs that they went bad and any foam or liquid spurts out, throw it away. Clean it up any spills with a diluted bleach water to make sure you get rid of any botulism or other bad bacteria. If no liquids spurt out but the contents are discolored, smell bad, or are moldy, throw them away too. Never taste any home canned foods to make sure they're good or not. Even the smallest taste test that contains botulism toxins can be deadly.
****************************************************************************************************************
Now I have some questions of my own, let's see if you can answer any or just discuss them with me in the comment section below:
Do you personally know of a longer shelf life for any specific home canned foods passed the 2 year mark? If so, what was the shelf life and what were the contents of the jar?
Do you know of a way to re-use the flat jar lids?
Have you seen the brick of wax in the canning section at Walmart, or any other store? If so, is it for canning and have you ever tried it?
Would you trust re-using the lid if you were able to scrape off the old compound and put on a new compound?
Do you have another way to check the seal on your lids?
What are some of your favorite things to can?
Have you canned bacon or heard of anyone who has?
Have you canned any other meat? If so, what kind?
What questions do you have?
****************************************************************************************************************
Before I go, I want to share some links with you. I didn't pull anything word for word from these, but this post was partially summarized through some of these. I do not own any of the content or videos in the following links.
General Canning Information
Boiling Water Bath vs. Pressure Canning
Safe Water Bath and Pressure Canning
National Center For Home Food Preservation
Cooperative Extension System Offices
Ball - Fresh Preserving
Canning 101 - video
Canning 101 Pressure vs. Water Bath - video
Canning, Pickling, and Preserves 101 - recipes
Recipe Index - recipes
I hope you enjoyed this post. Please be sure and subscribe if you haven't already, answer some of my questions if you can and ask any that you have, leave a comment if you have one, and share this with others that may find it useful. Check back in a couple days to see the next food storage method on the list, it's a good one. Until then...
Friday, June 27, 2014
Introduction To BoPET (Mylar) Bags and Oxygen Absorbers
I've been pretty busy over the last week or so. Between packing up almost everything in my home so I could deep clean, sorting everything and getting rid of things that I didn't really need anymore, and taking a day trip to meet someone new, I've been too busy to post even the smallest bit of content for you all. I apologize. For quite some time I've been searching far and wide for the best information I can find regarding every aspect of storing food, so I figured that since I feel like I know quite a bit about this now, it would be a good thing to start back up with. There's a variety of options to choose from when it comes to storing foods long term, but in this post I'm going to focus on the use of Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers. I'm going to share some of the better information and videos I've found, but I don't own any of these videos or articles. They were all created and posted by someone else. Clicking each name will take you to their site, profile, or channel, and title names will take you to the original location I found them at. Regardless of what source good information comes from, I'm happy to share it when I know it's correct and will come in handy.
Using oxygen absorbers with this Mylar packaging really aids in extending the shelf life of the foods being stored, but knowing which size to use is important to ensure the oxygen is removed right. The video 'Selecting the Proper Oxygen Absorber Size When Storing Food Long Term' is a mathematical breakdown of the selection process, it was posted on YouTube by TacticalGunGuy. Don't just click and watch the video, make sure you click his name to check out his YouTube channel, be sure and subscribe if you like it. He's got some good videos. Mostly regarding tactical topics (of course), but those will come in handy... especially since that isn't currently something I'm very familiar with and will probably post very little about unless that changes. Although these oxygen absorbers are great for a long list of foods, you need to steer clear of them when you're packing things like brown or white sugar and drink mixes. These need some oxygen to keep them clumping as hard as a brick These oxygen absorbers can be bought online and in some retail stores, but according to the video 'Homemade O2 Absorbers' posted by Irish_17, it's fairly easy make your own. That may be something I'll have to try some day soon.
Once you know the guidelines for what kind of bags to get and what sizes of oxygen absorbers you need, you'll of course need to know how to do the actual repackaging. There are commercial irons, but they could cost hundreds of dollars when bought new. It may be something you'd like to invest in, but clothes irons and hair straighteners are a much cheaper device and are just as effective. You can watch the video 'Working With Mylar Bags 101' by 7TrumpetsPrepper for the general idea of how to fill and seal smaller quantities. Even though I prefer to store things in smaller packages because it seems easier to transport, you may find it more convenient to use larger bags. In that case, I suggest watching Bison Risk Management seal up some large bags in the video 'Tutorial: Long-term Food Storage In Mylar Bags Ans Food Grade Buckets.' Again, don't just watch these videos, check out their channels and be sure to subscribe if you like them. Every bit of correct information, regardless of who it comes from, could be the difference between survival and death if S really does HTF.
Here are some additional articles you can read over, it's just some interesting explanations, tidbits, tips, and info:
Survival Basics: What The Heck Are Oxygen Absorbers?
31 Gallon Garbage Cans For Food Storage
Using Mylar Bags In Food Storage
****************************************************************************************************************
Don't stop your research about Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers with this post, take some time and look up more information on them. It'll be well worth your time. Over the next few posts I'll be covering additional options for preparation and repackaging to lengthen the shelf life of different foods, so be sure and check back in. In the mean time, you should check out more information on Mylar bags, and maybe even do a little pricing so you could get your own. You can find some really good deals, just make sure you look at feedback to make sure it's the real deal and not just painted plastic. Don't forget that I'm interested in checking out other blogs and sites that I may not have stumbled across yet, so please share yours or your favorites if you have them. Please take a second to subscribe, share this with others who may find this useful, and don't forget to comment.
Dry beans, rice, dried corn, whole wheat, oats, rye, barley, pastas, white sugar, salt, flour, whole spices, and powdered milk are just some of the foods that I feel need to be stocked in the biggest quantities. These foods, along with so many others, can be stored in Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers which lengthens their shelf life. Before we get into this, 'Mylar' is actually a trade name, just like "Hostaphan' and 'Melinex.' A bag made of BoPET (biaxially-oriented polyethylene terephthalate) is what I'm specifically talking about. The science behind this material is very simple, especially when combined with the oxygen absorbers. It keeps out the main elements that make food go bad: oxygen, light, and water. Storing these packages in buckets or containers with tight fitting lids will give an extra barrier from the elements and protect it from additional problems like insects and rodents. A solar blanket made of this material can also be cut down and sealed to the preferred sizes to suit your needs.
Using oxygen absorbers with this Mylar packaging really aids in extending the shelf life of the foods being stored, but knowing which size to use is important to ensure the oxygen is removed right. The video 'Selecting the Proper Oxygen Absorber Size When Storing Food Long Term' is a mathematical breakdown of the selection process, it was posted on YouTube by TacticalGunGuy. Don't just click and watch the video, make sure you click his name to check out his YouTube channel, be sure and subscribe if you like it. He's got some good videos. Mostly regarding tactical topics (of course), but those will come in handy... especially since that isn't currently something I'm very familiar with and will probably post very little about unless that changes. Although these oxygen absorbers are great for a long list of foods, you need to steer clear of them when you're packing things like brown or white sugar and drink mixes. These need some oxygen to keep them clumping as hard as a brick These oxygen absorbers can be bought online and in some retail stores, but according to the video 'Homemade O2 Absorbers' posted by Irish_17, it's fairly easy make your own. That may be something I'll have to try some day soon.
Once you know the guidelines for what kind of bags to get and what sizes of oxygen absorbers you need, you'll of course need to know how to do the actual repackaging. There are commercial irons, but they could cost hundreds of dollars when bought new. It may be something you'd like to invest in, but clothes irons and hair straighteners are a much cheaper device and are just as effective. You can watch the video 'Working With Mylar Bags 101' by 7TrumpetsPrepper for the general idea of how to fill and seal smaller quantities. Even though I prefer to store things in smaller packages because it seems easier to transport, you may find it more convenient to use larger bags. In that case, I suggest watching Bison Risk Management seal up some large bags in the video 'Tutorial: Long-term Food Storage In Mylar Bags Ans Food Grade Buckets.' Again, don't just watch these videos, check out their channels and be sure to subscribe if you like them. Every bit of correct information, regardless of who it comes from, could be the difference between survival and death if S really does HTF.
Here are some additional articles you can read over, it's just some interesting explanations, tidbits, tips, and info:
Survival Basics: What The Heck Are Oxygen Absorbers?
31 Gallon Garbage Cans For Food Storage
Using Mylar Bags In Food Storage
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Don't stop your research about Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers with this post, take some time and look up more information on them. It'll be well worth your time. Over the next few posts I'll be covering additional options for preparation and repackaging to lengthen the shelf life of different foods, so be sure and check back in. In the mean time, you should check out more information on Mylar bags, and maybe even do a little pricing so you could get your own. You can find some really good deals, just make sure you look at feedback to make sure it's the real deal and not just painted plastic. Don't forget that I'm interested in checking out other blogs and sites that I may not have stumbled across yet, so please share yours or your favorites if you have them. Please take a second to subscribe, share this with others who may find this useful, and don't forget to comment.
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