UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 7 of 8

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No, You’re Not Crazy
By Kellene Bishop

Do you have a skeptical spouse?

How to influence that skeptical spouse when it comes to emergency preparedness efforts is a query I hear frequently in my line of work.  I affectionately call it the “$64 million dollar question.”  Surprisingly, the question isn’t dominated by one particular sex or the other, either.  I guess both men and women are equally skeptical when it comes to this topic.  Obviously, it is tough to have one member of the family focused on something so important without the support of knowledge, enthusiasm and additional expertise from the other.  Being on the same page for this sort of thing boils down to more than just being able to “share in a hobby”—it’s literally lifesaving.  That’s why I address this query with some very specific and deliberate strategies.

1. Money.  Money is usually the number one reason why a spouse is not on board with food storage acquisition.  The minute you go out and put a bunch of money on a credit card to obtain some emergency preparedness supplies, you’ve created a valid barrier.  Even if your spouse was on board with preparedness, that shouldn’t be an acceptable action.  Be just as prudent in acquiring your supplies as you are in the fact that you DO prepare for a rainy day.  I assure you that when you come home with a couple bags of emergency preparedness supplies and are able to tell your spouse that you got them for nearly free or cheap, you will have successfully taken down one of their most strident objections.  Just as many divorces ultimately end as the result of a disagreement about finances, emergency preparedness efforts are thwarted the same way.  If you are prudent and consistent in your preparedness efforts, you’ll be able to prepare without starting World War III in your home.
2. USE and Familiarity.  Any spouse would be understandably frustrated to have their partner bring home a relatively large or significant investment such as a solar oven, a pressure cooker, a Glock handgun, etc., only to have it collect dust and take up valuable space.  No purchase you make for emergency preparedness should be disconnected or “foreign” to you.  You should incorporate it in your life on a regular basis.  It’s really not so much about “emergency preparedness” as it is just plain “preparedness.”  For example, I have a lot of folks who attend my “Bring on the Sun” solar oven class and tell me that they have owned one for ages but never knew how to use it.  Obviously they bought it “for emergencies.”  Argh!  That makes me cringe.  I have to wonder how their spouse felt about tripping over this big lug of inconvenience that was purchased “just in case the aliens attack.”  If you don’t use it folks, it’s no help to you and it doesn’t get attached to a realistic scenario in your spouses mind.  When you can present a delicious meal that was prepared in your pressure cooker, for example, the doubting spouse will simply see the meal as a yummy, simple, and efficient way of cooking—not another expense for a “fantasy ‘what if’ scenario” that they don’t believe will actually occur.  If the use of your tools and preparedness supplies is sporadic, it sends the wrong message to the doubters in your life about your level of commitment to preparedness.  If you’re committed enough to use money out of your family budget to acquire it, then you really should be serious enough to utilize and be familiar with the item as well. 
   

   Pressure canner for canning meat

   I have the luxury of being equally yoked with my husband in our emergency preparedness efforts, but I can assure you that if I were to ask him to get me something that costs more than 50 bucks, I darn well better be prepared to show him the WHY I would like such a tool, and then immediately use it when it comes into the home.  For example, he bought me a large pressure canner for our anniversary recently.  I made sure that I was canning meat that very weekend, showed him how easy it was, and then followed up with making a couple of yummy meals from the results of that canning.  You can bet that he didn’t feel like the purchase was a waste.  (Especially now that I brought home over $50 of FREE steak to can this weekend. :))  If you bring home that handgun, be prepared to practice with it and participate in as many classes as you can.  If you purchase the Food Saver, start using it.  I think you get my point.  (By the way, I’ve discovered that the best bang for your buck on a Food Saver is ONLINE at Costco.  The Food Saver comes with all of the necessary attachments, plus the bags for only $78 bucks, including shipping.  Even in comparison to Ebay, that’s a great deal.) 

3. Education.  Use every opportunity to factually educate your spouse—not preach to them.  For example, make a scrumptious casserole or brisket in your solar oven.  When you present it to your spouse and family for dinner, tell them how easy it was and how it didn’t require any electricity.  You don’t even need to mention the word “preparedness.”  The dots will get connected eventually so that you don’t have to translate everything into plans for an emergency.  If you aren’t able to spend the money on something until your spouse is “converted”, then borrow someone else’s and demonstrate it for them.  You’ll be better off mentally for having used it successfully, and you’ll be better for putting your mind in the position of a student, then a teacher.  It’s a win/win situation with this approach.  In order to properly educate those around you, be sure to be fully educated yourself so that your “teachings” aren’t just theory or supposition.  They are much more readily accepted when delivered this way.
4. Patience.  Your own preparedness efforts take patience and faith.  The same holds true in educating the doubters in your life.  Patience is usually only fortified by consistency.  If the doubting spouse in your life sees a crack in your resolve, they tend to go after it mercilessly.  Make your plan and then execute it with the resources that you have available to you.  Be patient and faithful that those around you will receive their own enlightenment about preparedness little by little as well.  Your example will go a very long way in helping them to understand and internalize for themselves the importance of this mindset.  
5. 

   Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank

   Immersion.  A lot of folks believe that “doomsday” will never come.  They have heard about it for so long that they are just plain tired of hearing it and being beat up by it.  In other words, it’s not a reality to them at all.  To the unbeliever, it’s just a fantasy created by the makers of bottled water, camp stoves, and generators.  One of the easiest ways to educate someone on the reality of preparedness is to help “immerse” them in a world in which such may be needed.  Movies, books, and even “hypothetical questions” like “what do you think we would do if…” are very helpful in educating the mind of someone who may not “get it.”  As I’ve shared previously, I loved the books Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, One Second After by William Forstchen, Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse by James Rawles, among many others.  These are enjoyable books but also enlightening, causing even the most educated “prepper” to consider the reality of areas or possibilities that they may have missed previously.  I also have found the right movies to work towards this purpose as well, such as “Independence Day,” “Twister,” “Outbreak,” “Red Dawn,” etc.  These tactics are beneficial to those who need to mentally expose themselves to the possibility of unexpected events, but they are also great ways to strengthen your mental preparedness, too, as you find yourself mulling over what you’ve read or viewed and ask yourself “What would I do if…?” kinds of questions.

   Clearly I wouldn’t be a preparedness pro instructor if I didn’t also encourage you to take advantage of various classes offered to help you and your family better prepare for disasters.  CERT training for example, doesn’t have to be about handling “the end of the world.”  It can simply be about being a better asset to a community.  But it will also go a long way in helping to transition the mind and the heart of resistant “preppers.”

    Obviously, getting those you love and care for on board with preparedness is an important task.  Unfortunately there isn’t a quick fix for it.  Your efforts will need to be informed, consistent, prudent, and patient.  But I can assure you that by using these efforts, you have the best chance of being successful.  Good luck!

• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 1 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 2 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 3 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 4 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 5 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 6 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 7 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 8 of 8

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 6 of 8

This blog has moved. Please visit us at www.preparednesspro.com.

By Kellene Bishop

Food Storage.  It really doesn’t have to be complicated.

Medical Emergency Preparedness photo c/o ehow.com

When it comes to emergency preparedness, there are actually 10 different components to consider, listed below in order of priority:

1. Spiritual
2. Mental
3. Physical
4. Medical
5. Clothing/Shelter
6. Water
7. Food
8. Fuel
9. Financial
10. Communication

Food storage is only one part, and in order of priority would actually be “#7” out of those ten components.  What that means is there are a whole lot of other components that need attention more than your food storage in order for your food storage supplies to be usable and effective for you.  And yet when I mention “emergency preparedness” to folks, the first thing—and sometimes the ONLY thing that comes to their mind is food storage.  If your mind is fixated on all the obstacles of food storage, then of course it’s going to be overwhelming.  If you feel like you’ve got such a long ways to go yet to be even remotely “ready” then of course it’s going to feel overwhelming.  But just how much more of a burden do people create for themselves by trying to ignore it.  I assure you, if you think it’s tough doing food storage now, try doing it when there’s no food on the shelves, no money to exchange, no possibility of travel, and no way to prepare it.   That’s all you’ll be left with if you attempt to ignore or marginalize what may seem an “uncomfortable” or inconvenient activity.   But if you’re making progress on something that was previously uncomfortable, unknown, or inconvenient, then the feeling of stress and anxiety is eliminated.  You start thinking of what’s possible to accomplish in your preparation efforts.  If you continue in being overwhelmed, you’re likely arrive to a point of paralysis once you realize just how much more there is to preparedness besides food storage.  I assure you that such does not need to be the case.

When I teach my “UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage” class, my goal is to make food storage accumulation and preparation much less taxing on the attendees.  I desire to make it more of a “minor thought” instead of an overwhelming one, and thus free up time and resources to be spent ensuring your preparedness in the other categories.

Thus far I’ve shown you that food storage is cheap or free to accumulate in most instances, it’s easy to prepare, can still taste GREAT—so long as it’s a dish or food that you’re already familiar with—and finally, it’s even easy to prepare without electricity.  In fact, if you actually put into practice what I’ve taught you so far about alternative ways to prepare your foods, while initially you may feel out of your element, I’m certain that you will actually enjoy the alternative cooking recommendations.  In fact, the reasons I use a pressure cooker and a solar oven now in my everyday life is because it takes so much stress and time off my plate as I work from home and teach a bazillion classes.  Additionally it delivers a superior taste, texture and nutrition level than I would experience otherwise.

I think a lot of folks are overwhelmed simply because they don’t have the mental preparation necessary to succeed in their preparation efforts.  Let me give you an example.  What if you saw that your beef prices just raised to $12/pound and were of a lesser quality that you were accustomed to.  That would stress you out, right?  Whereas if you were able to obtain your desired beef for less a tenth of that price, and be assured that it was a quality product, your stress would be alleviated substantially, right?  Well, guess what?  If you go to McDonald’s right now, you can order a “1/3 pound Angus Beef Burger” for only $3.99.  Let’s see.  That makes that beef about $12 a pound.  You also have some serious nutritional concerns with such a burger due to the excess amounts of salt added to it, as well as McDonald’s reputation for using less-than-stellar grade beef.  So, my question is, when you pass that marquis outside of McDonald’s, do you feel a bit of anxiety to think that a “fast food joint” is selling beef for $12 a pound?!  Of course not.  But guess why that is the case?  Because you simply need a little more strengthening in your mental preparedness category.  Let’s explore this thought further. 

Look at it this way, if I was selling a product to you that was cheap or free, easy to use, safe, easily accessible, and it would save your family’s life, you would embrace it in a heartbeat, right?  Well, that’s exactly what food storage is.  The only reason why we think otherwise is because we’ve heard so much to the contrary for so long.  So really, why be overwhelmed with it? 

Now, contrast that with overly expensive, overly complicated, questionable quality and nutrition, inaccessible—especially during an emergency—and definitely NOT lifesaving for your family.  Just how fast would you embrace that?

Keep your food storage as simple as you need it to be.  Increase your knowledge and your food “repertoire” as you desire and in a pace you’re comfortable with.

Keep it as affordable as possible.

Keep it as nutritious as possible.

And keep on storing it.

If you do, you’ll find that “overwhelmed” is quickly replaced by peace and comfort.

• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 1 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 2 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 3 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 4 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 5 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 6 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 7 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 8 of 8

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

Subscribe to Preparedness Pro today and never miss a thing!

 

UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 4 of 8

This blog has moved. Please visit us at www.preparednesspro.com.

By Kellene Bishop

Here’s one simple tip so you never have to worry about HOW to cook what’s in your food storage. 

Many folks just plain don’t know how to cook with their food storage.  When I hear this, I ask people why they’re storing foods that are unfamiliar to them or their family?  Sure there are ideal lists which include long lasting grains and legumes, but if you’re not using such ingredients now to feed your family with, it’s not going to be helpful to them in an emergency.

Think for just a moment what kind of chaos a financial collapse, an earthquake, an act of war, or some other kind of disaster could bring into your life.  Do you really want to complicate things by adding more stress into your life by consuming “foreign foods”?  You and your family are going to crave as much “normalcy” as possible.  Unless you’re already serving your family “Boston Baked Wheat” you don’t want to try it out on them while they are being quarantined for 90 days as the result of a flu pandemic.  In fact, it is exactly these kinds of times that you will want to provide the most comforting favorites for your family.  But…yes, there is a but…

Part of being prepared is being ready to live off of foods which are most nourishing and longer lasting than what your diet may currently consist of in your household.  (To this end I implore parents of picky eaters—or spouses of such—to do all they can to get them to embrace more nourishing foods.)  Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are great now.  But how will they be when you have to make the bread from scratch?  Will your family even touch them?  Don’t panic.  Just start learning the lost art of bread making now.  I can tell you from experience that it’s a heck of a lot more rewarding than besting someone at an online game of Scrabble.  

Try sprouts on a meat sandwich! Photo c/o scanwiches.com

Slowly introduce your family to new things.  For example, my husband, who I can’t get to eat a vegetable unless it’s on a slab of beef, has agreed to try and start putting sprouts on his meat sandwiches.  Why?  Because I am trying to get him used to eating this easy and widely accessible source of nutrition so when we are in the midst of an emergency, he can handle it—not only emotionally, but physically as well.  Being ready to live off those foods doesn’t involve just having the appetite for them.  We need to be prepared to use them and work with them as well.  If you’ve never tried sprouting, don’t think that the sprouter you’ve got in the basement is going to do much for you in a time of crisis.  Using it under such circumstances will only cause you more stress due to its unfamiliarity and you’ll avoid it at all costs. 

You also need to get your body accustomed to eating such foods.  In fact, if most people attempted to go from their existing diet to one containing whole wheat at the majority of their meals, they would actually DIE inside of 30 days due to the dehydration and diarrhea their body would experience in so drastic a dietary change.  This is one reason why I counsel people to store what they eat—at least a 90 day supply—and then work on introducing other, more stable storage foods, into their diet along the way.  Yes, it’s a lot less expensive to store a year’s supply of wheat, legumes, honey, and powdered milk as opposed to the ingredients for your favorite casseroles, Navajo Tacos, and brownie mixes.  But I assure you that those items won’t get used for much of anything if you haven’t already familiarized your family with them prior to a disaster.  So be sure to have at least 90 days of the familiar and then work on familiarizing your family with other foods that will have a great shelf-life in your home.  Remember, stress alters the mind.  It races the heart.  It breaks down the immune system.  If you’re in a quarantine situation, for example, can you really afford to expose anyone in your family to any of these physical stresses simply because you weren’t prepared with a realistic menu for them?  Perhaps now you may better understand why I go to great lengths to learn how to make bread, sprout, store M&Ms, make sour cream out of powdered milk, wax my own cheese, store eggs long-term, and create recipes out of what’s on my shelves, etc.  I do it in anticipation of a situation in which food and nourishment will be a comfort to the mind and the spirit, not just sustain life.  (And yes, there are indeed those times in which M&Ms sustain me. :))

I’ve been asked how I remember where all of my food storage is since it’s scattered all around the house.  I remember because I’m always in it—except when I’m on that blasted diet.  I’m always using what I store.  I’m rotating it.  (In fact I have a Mason jar full—er, half full—of almond M&Ms next to me on my desk as I write this.)  Other than the years supply of MREs we have stored in the back of the basement, there’s not a single nutritional item in my home that is “uncommon” to me.  If you have anything that’s uncommon to you in your food storage, it’s nearly useless.

Point being, no one should have trouble cooking with their food storage, because their food storage should contain what they are already consuming and thus what they are already familiar in preparing.  Practice making your food in a Dutch Oven, or in a pressure cooker over a small butane stove, or in a solar oven.  Go to classes to learn how to make the essentials.  They are usually free.  Go through cook books and experiment with “less than fresh” items as substitutes in recipes, such as canned chicken for frozen, canned green beans for fresh, etc.  Find out from your family what their absolute favorite meals are and then find the most efficient way to stock the items for those meals.  We’re not in the dark ages here, folks.  Cooking with your food storage doesn’t have to involve an Indian dance and an archaic tool for grinding your flour.  Even without the luxury of electricity, we still will have the benefit of the luxury of knowledge and technology galore. 

Keep in mind that in a previous article I wrote, I recommended that folks start their food storage by storing their food in “meals” as opposed to “pounds of items.”  In other words, if your family loves waffles, then be sure you have the makings for waffles.  If you have such ingredients sufficient to make them 12 times, then you only have to come up with 29 other meals.  (Or less, depending on how often you want to eat waffles.  I recommend coming up with a great variety for your family though so that they don’t suffer from “appetite fatigue.”)

It all boils down to this: Store what you eat and eat what you store.

• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 1 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 2 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 3 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 4 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 5 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 6 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 7 of 8
• UNDERwhelmed in Food Storage Part 8 of 8

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

Subscribe to Preparedness Pro today and never miss a thing!

 

Fuel for an Emergency

This blog has moved. Please visit us at www.preparednesspro.com.

By Kellene Bishop

Fuel photo c/o pgdb.co.nz

One of the ten areas of emergency preparedness is fuel.  Fuel brings us the much needed light that we will require not only to see, but also to feel good.  It includes any fuel we’ll need for cooking, and the fuel we’ll need for keeping warm.

Before you elect to get a years supply of fuel for these purposes, consider the most basic rules of thumb.

1)     Think safety first

2)     Conserve energy—including yours

3)     Conserve body heat

4)     Confine the heat appropriately

Isopropyl Alcohol photo c/o chemistryland.com

When considering what fuel to store, the safety of it should be your primary concern.  Why store gasoline when you can safely store isopropyl alcohol outside in 55 gallon drums for a lot less money and little risk of combustibility?  (You can usually get free delivery of this alcohol too.)  A few cans of propane is much safer than gasoline, and so is kerosene if stored in a cool, dry place.  Check with your local fire department for maximum storage abilities of these fuels.

Keep in mind that if you store kerosene, Home Depot has a program in which they will buy back your old kerosene after you’ve stored it several years.  They turn around and sell it to the farmers whose diesel engines will still run on it.  To dramatically extend the life of the fuel can, be sure to add a fuel preservative to your gasoline and your kerosene.

If you’re planning on surviving off of firewood, be sure that it’s already cut up—for two reasons.  One reason is to conserve your physical energy.  The last thing you need is to be expending your own energy in the midst of an emergency.  Two, be sure that you don’t have to needlessly use dangerous tools when you’re not fully functional, especially those who may not be familiar with the use of such a tool.  That’s how tragic accidents occur.  What if you are the only one who can chop the wood and you get sick?  What will your family do for fuel?  Try a task that they aren’t as experienced at as you when they’ve had just as much stress and as little nutrition as you?  Definitely not a good idea.

Whatever alternatives of fuel you elect to use, be sure you share the wealth of knowledge on how to use those tools.  One of the most foolish things I see households do is place the majority of the lifesaving information in the hands of one individual.  This is a dangerous supposition that that person will always be around.  Every responsible person in the family should know how to use the propane heater, the pressure cooker, and the alcohol lights, etc.  

Volcano Stove photo c/o barbequelovers.com

When you are considering what tools you’ll use to cook, light, and heat with, consider the cost and accessibility of the fuel the tools will use.  Recently my husband and I purchased a small, collapsible Volcano Stove.  We have lots of means to cook with if necessary, but the price was only $99 and it was a multi-fueled tool.  It will cook off of charcoal, wood, and propane (which also means tightly rolled newspapers, too).  That made it very attractive so that we don’t have to rely on just one fuel for our cooking.  Another cooking tool we have is a kerosene heater that has a grid on the top so while we’re heating our surroundings (with ventilation, of course), we can also be boiling water, or cooking on the same component.  We also have some Joy Cook stoves that are commonly used in Korea.  With only one can of butane and my pressure cooker, I have been able to cook three meals a day on my Joy Cook stove for an entire three weeks.  

Also, consider conserving your fuel as much as possible, especially when you’re cooking.  Once you bring a pressure cooker up to high, you can remove it from the heat, turn off your heat source, and wrap the pressure cooker in towels—it will continue to cook for up to an hour.  That’s a whole lot of fuel-free cooking.  The solar oven is even more fuel-friendly in that regard.  If you have sunshine, you have an oven that will cook anything that you can cook in your regular oven, with the exception of frying.  Better yet, nothing will scorch or burn in your solar oven and the clean up is also a breeze, thus conserving your own physical energy.  This way I’m conserving the majority of my fuel for light and heat instead of just cooking.  I use my pressure cooker and my solar oven on a very regular basis so that I’m familiar with it even in the midst of a crisis, and so that it brings comfort to my family and friends. 

Dutch Oven photo c/o cityweekly.net

This leads me to my final reminder in this area of preparedness.  USE that which you are planning on using to survive a crisis.  Use it now when it’s convenient.  Don’t buy it and then stash it away until a crisis hits.  What if it’s not in working order?  What if it’s missing a part?  Also, waiting to use something until the crisis hits will only use up more of your vital physical fuel as you expend a lot of it through stress.  Remember, prepare in comfort of panic in chaos.  For example, if you have a Dutch oven that you’re planning on using in a crisis, great.  But be sure you’ve used it enough before a crisis so that you’re comfortable with it.  Besides, Dutch oven cooking is yummy.  So if you enjoy it now, when it comes time to having to use it, it will feel more like a comfort to your family rather than a science-fiction survival mode.  The more you use these items, the more you can truly be prepared because you will notice parts and components that will make your job easier that you may not have thought of previously.  For example, I use my pressure cooker all the time.  As such, I notice that the rubber seal that goes in the lid of the pan eventually gets old and thus doesn’t seal as well.  So, in the interest of truly being prepared, I’ve stocked up on a surplus of those rubber seals so that when my life is reliant on the proper function of my pressure cookers, I’m not left starving.  

Fuel doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive.  Ways to keep your family warm and cook for them are usually one-time purchases that will ensure you’ve got a full life beyond, even in the midst of an emergency.  

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

Subscribe to Preparedness Pro today and never miss a thing!

 

10 Things I Wish I Had Known About Food Storage 10 Years Ago

This blog has moved. Please visit us at www.preparednesspro.com.

By Kellene Bishop

I hate having to learn dumb lessons.  Don’t you?  As I’ve looked back and realized all the simple tricks and strategies I’ve learned over the last 10 years, I cringe at the thought of all of the money, time, anxiety, and energy I’ve wasted.  So I decided to share them with you.  You’re sure to learn something in this list!  I hope you’ll learn from my mistakes NOW!

1. Yeast will last indefinitely if stored in your freezer!  Outside the freezer it only lasts a year, but inside that freezing climate it lasts over 5 years—so far.  When I use it in my bread, I just use it directly from the freezer into my bread dough with no problem.  I cringe at the though of all of the yeast I’ve wasted over several years.
2. I can obtain food storage for FREE or better, and certainly inexpensively, if I just use coupons and an organized system!  Now that’s really something to cringe about!  I acquired a great deal of my food storage over the years from Costco, but now that I can get name brands for free or dirt cheap elsewhere, I figure I can’t afford to shop at Costco, thanks to coupons! It really IS worth using coupons.  I can’t believe I was so pious to think that coupons were “beneath me.”
3. Cooking with a pressure cooker is a sanity saver.  They are fast, nutritious, fuel friendly and SO easy to use!  I wish I hadn’t been afraid of them way back when.  I’m so grateful that a patient teacher showed me their merits!  
4. Yes, you can CAN MEATS!  And it’s the easiest thing in the world to can.  Simply stuff the RAW meat into a mason jar with a bit of salt, put the clean lids on it, put the jars in your pressure canner for the recommended period of time, and VOILA!  You have BETTER THAN CANNED meat.  (The canned stuff you buy has been processed twice.)  This meat will be SO tender, so juicy, and will save you a BUNDLE over the canned stuff!  (Let’s see.  Tastes better.  25% cheaper.  Easy to do. Dang!  I wish I could relive the last 10 years!)
5. Cheese wax is a God-send!  I can have all of the REAL cheese I want if I simply use cheese wax to preserve it!  The cheese will keep for 25 years using this method.  Now I’ve got Swiss, Monterey Jack, Colby, Mozzarella, Parmesan, Cheddar, Gouda, Blue Cheese, and even a delicious smoked cheese literally sitting pretty in my food storage!  If I had known about cheese wax 10 years ago, I would have made much better use of the cheese sales over the years and never tried that nasty processed stuff.
6. Preserving eggs that I buy from the store is a snap!  After I wrote a lengthy article on egg preservation, I discovered that a quarter cup of warmed mineral oil, coated on my eggs that I buy from the grocery store works great.  I then can store them pointed side down in a Styrofoam carton, in a cool, dry place.  I don’t have to get the eggs FRESH from a farm.  And I don’t have to stack them carefully in anything.  How’s that for easy?!  I have WHOLE, REAL eggs for up to 9 months!  Forget the bran flakes, the paraffin wax, the salt storage.   Just some mineral oil is PERFECT.  WOW!
7. I never have to live without yummy chocolate again!  I can buy all of the candy bars, Hershey kisses, chocolate chips, peanut M&Ms, Dove chocolates, Lindt chocolates, stuff them in a Mason jar, and with my trusty Food Saver jar attachment, seal their goodness for YEARS!  (I like getting them on sale after a holiday)  This also works for ANYTHING that doesn’t require refrigeration.  When I open the jar years later, they still taste as fresh and yummy as they would have on the day I bought it!  
8. ONLY store what you eat.  If I don’t eat it, I won’t eat it, and thus it’s a waste of money.  If you can’t eat wheat, DON’T store it.  If you can’t stand the taste of powdered milk, store canned milk or soy milk instead.  Fortunately I’ve learned to prepare all my oddball foods that weren’t previously in my regular diet, but it sure would have saved me some headaches if I had done things differently.  If I store what I eat, the rotation is a cinch!
9. You can have meals already made, cooked, and stored in a Mason jar!  You can bake bread, cake, cookies, casseroles, pudding, and more, in a Mason jar, seal it, and they will last for SEVERAL years!  That way you don’t have to figure out how to cook up something every day while you’re enduring a crisis.  Do it in comfort now, so you can live in comfort even in the worst of disasters!  
10.    

     

    Solar ovens are the bomb–not just in an emergency, but every single day the sun shines!  I LOVE cooking in mine.  I haven’t found anything that I can’t cook in it that doesn’t turn out wonderful!  I’ve essentially tripled the life of the fuel that I have stored, since I won’t need to use any of it on cooking anymore except on cloudy or rainy days!  Not having to worry or pay for a years supply of fuels such as propane, kerosene, fire wood or isopropyl alcohol, makes the price I would pay for a solar oven well worthwhile. So… like any woman, I bought two! 🙂

I’ll be writing more about each of these items later, if I haven’t done so already.  The point is food storage can be GLORIOUSLY DELICIOUS.  You don’t have to do without and it doesn’t have to be expensive and boring either.  One dollar a day, per person, will provide you with absolutely comforting and delightful meals regardless of your challenging circumstances.  Enjoy!

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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Beans Under Pressure

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By Kellene Bishop

Since I know that anyone who is serious about having an emergency preparedness supply of food is bound to have beans, I thought that this would be a vital article today.

Besides, I was craving yummy beans today, so I decided to share with you yet another e-z p-z pressure cooker recipe.

The great thing about a pressure cooker is that you do NOT have to soak your beans ahead of time. By all means, you can, but it is not required. Yet one more way to save time and energy in an emergency.  The following recipe is super simple.  The key to cooking beans in a pressure cooker is to cook at the low heat level in order to avoid the foaming. However, with a Kuhn-Rikon pressure cooker, you don’t have much problem with this either so long as you do not exceed, by even a millimeter, the 2/3 full mark.

In my storage we have dried pinto beans, kidney beans, butter beans, lima beans, garbanzo beans, and more. This recipe is actually a GREAT start for each of those types of beans. (Although you don’t need to “smash” them unless you’re making “refried beans.”)  Also, keep in mind that adding the salt in the beans will also help to avoid any “foaming” when you release the pressure.  Feel free to season the beans additionally with liquid smoke, or Tabasco sauce, and other great spices.

Pinto Beans

2 c. dry pinto beans
½ cup of minced onion
2 lg. garlic cloves (or 2 heaping tablespoons of minced garlic)
1 tsp. oregano
4 sprigs fresh cilantro or 1 tsp. dry cilantro herb
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. pepper (or more to taste)
½ Tbsp salt
6 1/2 c. water
6 qt. pressure cooker

(Optional: Soak pinto in hot water in a covered medium saucepan for 1 hour.) At the very least you need to rinse the beans in warm water. Drain beans, then put them in the pressure cooker. Add the remainder of your ingredients. Seal lid of pressure cooker. Cook over medium-high heat for 50-60 minutes depending on desired tenderness. Release pressure simply by taking the cooker off of the heat. Let the pressure come down naturally. Mash cooked beans. Serve with your favorite compliments such as warm tortillas.

Additional options: Throw in some canned diced SPAM, ground beef, or leftover ham.

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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Another Pressure Cooking Hit—Leg of Lamb

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By Kellene Bishop

 

To me Easter Sunday requires a great family meal, but for me it has to include some lamb.  However, after fighting a cold for nearly two weeks and knowing that I had a full day of church ahead of me, I just couldn’t see my way to cooking it the “normal way.”  So I pulled out my trusty pressure cooker and commenced my magic.  

 

 

First rinse off the leg of lamb with cool water.  (It usually comes with a netting from the store.)  

 

 

With a small paring knife cut deep but small in width “X” shapes throughout the side where the majority of the fat is.  Stuff garlic deep into these X pockets.  Then rub with a small amount of salt and black pepper. 

 

 

On medium-high heat, sear the lamb in your pressure cooker on all sides.  (Keep the netting on until you’re finished with this process.)  Once you’ve sufficiently seared the lamb, remove it from the hot pan, return it to the heat, and slowly pour in ½ cup of cooking wine.  (I use sherry for a lamb.) 

 

 

With a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan while the cooking wine heats up.  Be sure to scrape off all of the yummy bits of meat that was left while it was being seared.  Remove the netting from the lamb and then add one cup of water and replace the lamb in the pressure cooker. 

 

 

Place the lid on and bring to full pressure.  Cook based on 20 minutes per pound.  When it’s finished you will indeed have a juicy lamb.  I love eating mine with mint jelly and some cooked rice.  Yummy!

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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Pressure Cooking Pot Roast

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Last Friday I elected to nurture an injury with some real, home cooked food.  I was really craving a pot roast, but didn’t want to put the traditional time and energy into it.  So what did I do?  I talked my assistant through the step-by-step process of making a yummy pot roast in under an hour!  And it was so good, my husband finished it off before I had a chance to have seconds (darn it).

 

So how did I accomplish such a feat?  I used my pressure cooker.  So in the event that you’re still waffling around about purchasing one, I’m going to share the wealth with you (Just as a reminder, I recommend the Kuhn Rikon brand – aka Duromatic).

 

1. In your pressure cooker, put two tablespoons of oil.  On med-high heat, sear your pot roast (about 2 to 4 pounds) on all sides. Once it’s nicely seared, remove the pot roast from the pressure cooker and add 1 cup of red cooking wine.
2. Scrape the bottom of the pressure cooker with a wooden spoon, being sure to loosen all of the flavorful bits from the bottom.
3. Add the pot roast back to the pressure cooker along with 2 cups of water and one envelope of Lipton Onion Soup mix.
4. Bring the water to a boil, and then cover the pressure cooker. Allow the pressure to come up to high, then turn the heat down sufficient to maintain the high pressure.  Cook the pot roast for 20 minutes per pound.  
5. Once roast is finished cooking, release the pressure completely.  
6. Add 2 heaping cups of potato wedges (because you don’t have to cut them small with a pressure cooker), 2 cups of baby carrots and a couple stalks of chopped celery. Be sure to add the potatoes first to make room for the smaller items, and be sure that you do not fill your pressure cooker more than two-thirds full. 
7. Add an additional cup of water.
8. Bring the water to a boil and recover the pressure cooker.
9. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes.
10. Release the pressure and enjoy a yummy, tender pot roast and perfectly seasoned vegetables!

Again, I wholeheartedly recommend a pressure cooker so that you can preserve your own physical energy, your fuel, and water.  It cooks faster and more nutrient rich than any other method available.  The new models that have been made as of late are much safer than what you might remember your grandmother using.  They really, really are an asset to any kitchen now, or in an emergency.  

 

 

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

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Why You Will LOVE a Pressure Cooker!

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A couple years ago I was interviewed by a magazine and asked what was it that I couldn’t live without?  I replied that other than my husband, I couldn’t live without my pressure cooker — but it was a close tie.  J  I am so absolutely in love with all of the features of a quality pressure cooker, that I’m out to convert every person who considers themselves a cook, or concerned with emergency preparedness.

 

When I mention a pressure cooker to most, they have images of one blowing up in their grandmother’s kitchen, or at least making some frightening hissing and clanking noise.  A lot of people only think of a pressure cooker for canning.  But here’s the good news.  You can cook like an absolute pro in no time with a pressure cooker today.  They’ve come a long way since their initial popularity during World War II.  And the good quality ones are a must in every kitchen.  The one that I highly recommend is a Kuhn Rikon.  It has 3 safety features on it and has a fabulous quality otherwise.  But let’s cut straight to the perks of a pressure cooker.  Bottom line, if I had to choose between a microwave and a pressure cooker, I would hands down go with a pressure cooker.  You’re reducing the cooking time of at least two-thirds and yet you don’t sacrifice flavor, tenderness, or quality.

 

Here are a couple of examples of cooking times: whole beef or pork roast with the BEST gravy every – 45 minutes.  Artichokes – 15 minutes.  Whole, long-grained rice – 5-6 minutes.   Risotto – 8-10 minutes.  Cheesecake – 12 minutes.  Frozen chicken breasts –  10-12 minutes (and VERY tender).  Mashed Potatoes, 3-5 minutes.  Whole lamb, 35 minutes, etc, etc.

 

Do you love a good pot roast?  How about creating a fabulous pot roast with the most effortless savory gravy in under 45 minutes?  Once you make mashed potatoes in this thing, you’ll wonder how you ever did without it.  How about getting home from work wondering what in the world to prepare and only see frozen chicken breasts in the freezer?  With a pressure cooker you can take those frozen chicken breasts and a jar of BBQ sauce and have a yummy, tender chicken dish in less than 15 minutes!

 

What a pressure cooker does is exactly what the name implies.  It creates a hot sealed pressure within the pan to cook anything inside.  You’re creating 8 pounds of pressure per square inch above external pressure.  Typical boiling heat is 212 degrees. However, with a pressure cooker, you’re cooking on high at 254 degrees Fahrenheit.  Due to the sealed system, your not losing any of the flavor or moisture from your food, in fact, you’re infusing it!

 

You will need less water, less spices, less fuel for heating and less time with your pressure cooker. 

 

Here are a few of points that I love to make when it comes to using a pressure cooker.

 

1)     You can make so much in a pressure cooker—from roasts, to stews, even to desserts such as cheesecake.

2)     Even if you have some meat that’s suffered a bit of freezer burn, you can salvage it in your pressure cooker because moisture is infused into it. 

3)     So long as you have sufficient moisture/liquid in your dish, you don’t have to worry about over cooking or burning a dish.  A meat dish, for example, may not end up turning out in the consistency you had imagined should you forget about it for a few minutes, but it will still be tasty.  It just may determine whether you need a knife or not for the dish. 

4)     I love to dump a bunch of chicken in the pressure cooker, cook it about 7 minutes per pound, and then just use a fork to shred it with—effortlessly. I can then use the broth for other dishes and the chicken for the myriad of casseroles I make.  Add just a tad bit of veggies and you’ve got a very inexpensive chicken broth!

5)     Foods are healthier with a pressure cooker.  When you cook green beans, peas, or broccoli, you’ll discover that even though their sufficiently cooked and tender they are still a beautiful green.  The reason is the nutrients and color don’t escape with the evaporating steam.  It stays in the pan under pressure! The pressured steam actually intensifies the flavor of your foods, so your vegetables actually taste fresher!

6)     Instead of boiling the pasta, then making the sauce and adding everything else, you can literally throw it all in there and end up with a GREAT dish.

7)     When you cook potatoes for mashed potatoes dish you will notice a difference when you prepare the potatoes in the pressure cooker. You do not need to cut the potatoes in small pieces. I usually just cut the potato in fourths and then cook them.  You will need very little mashing afterwards, and you can easily add garlic to infuse a yummy taste in your potatoes as well!

8)     When you make a pot roast (or any kind of roast) you can seer it right in the pressure cooker, then add your liquid and seasonings.  Cook the meat and then the last 10 minutes you add the vegetables.  When you’re done, you will have a YUMMY gravy that’s just the right consistency as it will be naturally thickened with the starches in your potatoes and carrots.  And the roast will be fork tender as well! Ooh. I’m getting hungry just writing about this!

9)     Artichokes typically take about 45 minutes to cook.  Only 10 to 15 minutes in pressure cooker though, and they are much more flavorful!

10) Rice and risotto cook effortlessly in a pressure cooker as well.  And you can really spice things up with small amounts of seasonings too.

11) In the event of an emergency, if you need to conserve water, fuel, and personal energy, a pressure cooker will really come in handy.  If you bring the pressure cooker up to high pressure, you can turn off the heat source, wrap the pressure cooker up in towels, and then continue to cook the contents for as much as another hour (Not that I can think of anything that takes an hour to make in a pressure cooker).  Even in everyday cooking you will find that it takes significantly less fuel or electricity to cook your items.

12) Pressure cooker will keep your food warm without ruining it.  My husband never seems to come for dinner right when I’m ready.  I don’t mind so much when I’ve used a pressure cooker though because dinner will stay nice and warm and meat will simply get more tender. (Although I do hate it when he’s late when I’ve made vegetables… sometimes you don’t want them more tender)

Bottom line, there’s a whole new world of successful cooking waiting for you with a pressure cooker.  And it’s a great asset in the event of having to cook in an emergency.  In fact, in many of the European countries that don’t have a reliable source of fuel and electricity whenever it’s desired, you will see 2 or 3 pressure cookers in every kitchen.  It’s a realistic way of life for them.  And it’s an exciting way of life for you to take on.  It makes your life easier, your food healthier, and maximizes your time in the kitchen.  

 

So give it a try.  You’ll love the benefits now and later. 

Here’s one of my favorite recipes for a pressure cooker.  It’s a luxury comfort food.  I like to buy the Italian cheese mix at Costco – it comes in a clear plastic container.

Four Cheese Italian Risotto (Serves 6-8)

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 cups Arborio rice (found in Harmon’s and Target)
• 1/2 cup dry white wine, or white cooking wine
• 4-1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I use an Italian 4-cheese blend)
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. pepper
• ½ tsp. fresh ground nutmeg (optional)

PREPARATION: Combine 1 Tbsp. of the butter and all of the olive oil in the pressure cooker and heat, uncovered, over medium-high heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the onion begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes.  Be careful not to brown the onion or the butter.  Stir in the rice to coat the grains with the fat and onion mixture, and cook about 1 minute longer.  Add the wine and cook, stirring, until it is mostly absorbed by the rice.  Add 4 cups of the broth.  Cover the pressure cooker according to the manufacturer’s instructions, increase the heat to high, bring the pressure up to high, and cook for 10 minutes.  Turn off the heat and release pressure quickly, according to manufacture’s instructions.   Remove the lid.  Add the remaining 1/2 cup broth, 1 Tbsp. butter, and the cheese and stir well to combine with the rice. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.  Serve immediately.  Serves 4-6

If you would like Kellene Bishop to present an Emergency Preparedness message for your community or church group, please contact us at 801-788-4133.  Ms. Bishop is an experienced speaker and demonstrator on Emergency Preparedness topics and has created a great “Preparedness Party” platform which makes the learning of such a topic more enjoyable for all.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved.

You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

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