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Farm Kitchen:  Food Shortages & Prices  |
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Okie Farm Girl
True Blue Farmgirl
1674 Posts
Mary Beth
McLoud
Oklahoma
USA
1674 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 14 2011 : 6:24:33 PM
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Lisa, canning the chicken is a little different from pressure cooking them. The bones do get softer but they don't turn to mush. More like the bones of baked chicken. If you go to the blog post that Deborah is talking about, there is also a recipe for fried chicken made with the canned chicken. Go to the blog link below and scroll down to the second post. Hope that helps.
Mary Beth
www.OklahomaPastryCloth.com
www.Oklahomapastrycloth.com/blog
The Sovereign Lord is my strength - Habakkuk 3:19 |
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Room To Grow
True Blue Farmgirl
974 Posts
Deborah
Kingston
Georgia
USA
974 Posts |
Posted - Mar 14 2011 : 6:28:28 PM
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Ok Mary Beth...I have read all the post and answered my question. And it sounds like a great idea. Now all I have to do it buy a pressure cooker
Deborah
we have moved to our farm...and love it |
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nubidane
True Blue Farmgirl
2916 Posts
Lisa
Georgetown
OH
2916 Posts |
Posted - Mar 14 2011 : 6:34:34 PM
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Thanks Mary Beth, & Deborah, buy the canner... It is well worth the investment.
I love mine. |
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Okie Farm Girl
True Blue Farmgirl
1674 Posts
Mary Beth
McLoud
Oklahoma
USA
1674 Posts |
Posted - Mar 14 2011 : 6:34:52 PM
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Deborah, good for you! You'll love having a pressure canner. When I make soup for dinner, even though it is just the two of us, I make a BIG stew pot of soup and then put the leftovers in pint jars and pressure can them while I wash dishes after supper. That way, I'll have soup for a bunch more meals later on!
Mary Beth
www.OklahomaPastryCloth.com
www.Oklahomapastrycloth.com/blog
The Sovereign Lord is my strength - Habakkuk 3:19 |
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Old Spirit
True Blue Farmgirl
1498 Posts
Rae
MN
1498 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2011 : 07:43:55 AM
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This is a great forum!! I also make bit batches of chili and soup and can mine as well. Really nice on those days one doesn't feel like cooking or just doesn't have time!!
Rae
Farm Girl #647
...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles:...
Isaiah 40:31
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Oggie
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Ginny
Machias
Maine
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2011 : 3:28:15 PM
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Hi Ladies!
I am so glad you made this thread Kristin! I have been food storing for a long long time but have done so seriously for the last two years. I don't want to sound like a know it all, because I certainly am not, but I will tell you what I've done for myself and six of my closest family and friends. But before I do let me just tell you I work for our County Emergency Management Agency so I have a lot of pamphlets and information at my disposal which really helped in area's other than food. Each County in the USA has one of these agencies which is federally mandated through Homeland Security and our "head" national agency is FEMA. So each one of you could go to your County EMA office and request information to prepare for emergencies. You can prepare for 3 days or 3 years!
Ok this is what I found to be the easiest and most organized way for me. I learned it from a woman by the name of Wendy DeWitt who is a member of the LDS Church in Southwestern USA.
1. Get yourself a three ring binder. In it I have made the following "chapters".
A. any Emergency Preparedeness Plan
Ginny
Farmgirl #2343
www.thedewhopinn.com
"I always have a wonderful time, wherever I am, whomever I'm with."
"Well, I've wrestled with reality for 35 years, Doctor, and I'm happy to state I finally won out over it." Both by Elwood P. Dowd (Jimmy Stewart) in the Movie Harvey
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Oggie
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Ginny
Machias
Maine
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2011 : 4:10:30 PM
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WOW that was strange. I'll continue
B. Tools/Appliances/Equivalencys/Conversions/Length of Storage for Foods
C. My Menu Plan
D. My Inventory of Food and Supplies
E. Other Recipes
F. Other Information
Start with your menu plan. So you aren't wasting money and time, sit down and come up with 7 or 14 days of meals your family likes to eat. Write down each day and each meal and what is eaten at each meal.
Now decide if you want to store food for 1 month, 1 year, whatever, and multiply each item by that amount. I choose 14 days and 1 year so I have 14 breakfasts, 14 lunches, 14 suppers. Because I am doing 2 weeks I need to divide 2 into 52 weeks in a year and I get 26. So everything I want for this menu I must purchase 26 of. Include your spices, your salt and pepper & oil. If you need 1/4 teaspoon of salt say, then multiply that by your 26 weeks for that meal.
By doing it this way you won't waste money or food because you will buy food you normally eat and will be able to rotate the food so what's in storage is always fresh. You want to be able to rotate your food or you will end up with stale food sooner or later. And why store food no one likes?
Then in the Inventory section I made 26 pages (one page for each letter of the alphabet) and on each page I have columns - Item Name - Need - Have - Date Bought - Buy
When I fill this in I will know exactly what I need to still buy. The date bought will help you in rotation. You can bring this binder with you to the store so if you find something on sale you can easily look it up and buy it on sale.
I keep a grocery list on my refridge and when ever I use an item from my "food storage" I write it on the list so when I go shopping that week I remember to buy it and keep my storage updated. My husband built me shelves in our basement that are 2 feet deep so I can easily store canned items (mine or store bought) and when I buy an item, this is the hard part, I put it at the back of the "line" making me have to move everything forward. Gee, if I could figure out how to do that easier I'd sure like to!
You will of course need to store other items as well, like wheat or flour to make your own bread, but much of what you store should be items you use daily anyway. I started buying beans dried and canned and a lot of what I may have purchased frozen in the past I buy in cans now. Like veggies. I do this because worse case scenario means you probably won't have electricity and therefore everything in the freezer will go quickly.
Which is why canning meat is a great idea! You don't have to do all your meat that way, but you don't want to scramble to can whatever is in the freezer when you are in the middle of a blizzard because you have no electricity and have to can it on your grill or woodstove.
Don't forget to store things like toilet paper, paper towels if you use them, tin foil, etc... I just went around my house and wrote down what I use regularly and how much of it I use to give me an idea of what I need to store. I'll be honest, I am not so good at non-food items but I'm getting there.
Also remember to store water. Don't use plastic milk bottles as the seams will weaken and you will have water every where. You can use soda bottles though. I made my husband drink a ton of ginger ale to get us bottles! I also started buying juice in plastic bottles instead of the frozen kind. I can store it for juice and I can use the empty ones to store water in. I recommend buying drinking water too while a lot of the storage water is good for dishes, flushing the toilet, bathing, brushing teeth, etc...
Another thing I do now since I don't make my own laundry soap is to buy it as liquid form. When I've used the bottle up instead of rinsing it and recycling it, I fill it with water and store it. That way I have soapy water already stored and won't waste my other water for that.
And if you want to get crazy about it all the section called Emergency Preparedness Plan tells me things I learned at work and also is a place to keep other information I need. If you are in a hurricane for example, grab this binder and you probably won't need anything else unless you didn't fill it in. I have contact info for people both out of state and in state in case I am seperated from my family. I have emergency numbers of police, fire, ambulance, etc... I have Dr. phone numbers and info. I even made a list for internet passwords & user ID's. That form is simply Website -User ID - password - Other. I have a page where I list things to grab in an evacuation so I don't have to wonder around my house trying to decide in 5 minutes because there is a forest fire in my back yard.
Plan ahead with things like where your family will meet, not only outside but somewhere else in town or out of state. What will you do with your pets. And this one I bet many people won't think of and that is lock your house if it's still there on your way out and if you have time shut off the gas, water, & electricity.
Another chart I have is a list of any perscriptions: Person - Drug - Strength - Ailment
A list of bank acounts and account #, insurance policies and your number, credit card info front and back. Immunization records, social security card # and drivers license numbers, birth certificate copies, passports or at least copies, and make a CD now of family pictures you don't want to lose by scanning them if you have a scanner.
In the tools/appliance/cookware section I listed all the tools I need to can and do food storage; all ways and tools to use in an emergency (solar oven, coleman stove and fuel, gas grill and gas, and even things like a popcorn maker I can use over a fire because we love popcorn; other tools like an air horn, chaps, gas for generator/bushwacker/mower, etc...
When storing your flour, sugar, wheat etc... you mentioned the plastic pails. I get mine for free from our local grocery store. In the deli section they get these huge pails of frosting. When they are empty the store recycles them but many stores may just throw them out. So I ask if they have any empty ones. I bring them home and wash them VERY WELL. Then I make sure they are dried VERY WELL before I put anything in them. I also put them up off the floor, even if it's just a couple of inches.
I have a list of alternatives for electrical appliances and tools so if I have an electric can opener I normally use (I don't but some may) I make sure I have a manual one. Or instead of a blender use an old fashion food chopper or handcrank blender.
I found conversions which will help too, I think at allaboutfoodstorage.com It tells you that one egg is the same as 1 TBsp. of powdered egg and you need 3 TBsp. of water to go with it.
Kristine was mentioning the cost of food rising. It will continue to rise, I think we are in for a shock soon. The same Land o Lakes butter I paid $1.99 for at Thanksgiving is now $4.49. Politics aside, I am in a survey at asamom.org where we have been tracking the prices of food since November and I believe from Nov. 7 to Feb. 2 it's gone up 3.8% and gas has gone up 10%. You can go there and see, I think it's on the front page.
I could offer to make you one of these binders but you would have to pay for the supplies and the ink so really you are better off doing your own. I don't have time to do it for too many ladies.
just make sure, if you make it, fill it, and use it, DON'T LOSE IT BECAUSE ALL OF YOUR INFORMATION IS IN IT AND COULD BE STOLEN! But if you keep it at home in a safe place, you should be ok. Maybe take your inventory section to the store in a smaller folder.
Ok, my hands are tired, hope this helps you all.
Ginny
Farmgirl #2343
www.thedewhopinn.com
"I always have a wonderful time, wherever I am, whomever I'm with."
"Well, I've wrestled with reality for 35 years, Doctor, and I'm happy to state I finally won out over it." Both by Elwood P. Dowd (Jimmy Stewart) in the Movie Harvey
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Oggie
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Ginny
Machias
Maine
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2011 : 4:44:05 PM
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One more thing I was told but haven't tried it yet. This is a good time though. I was told if you put mineral oil on your hands and roll an egg in it and the put the egg in a styrofoam egg container that the egg will stay good for one year. It has to be styrofoam so it doesn't soak up the mineral oil. I just can't wrap my head around that but I thought I'd put it out there. Instead, we have real chickens.
Ginny
Farmgirl #2343
www.thedewhopinn.com
"I always have a wonderful time, wherever I am, whomever I'm with."
"Well, I've wrestled with reality for 35 years, Doctor, and I'm happy to state I finally won out over it." Both by Elwood P. Dowd (Jimmy Stewart) in the Movie Harvey
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herbquilter
True Blue Farmgirl
891 Posts
Kristine
Bonney Lake
Wa
USA
891 Posts |
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Okie Farm Girl
True Blue Farmgirl
1674 Posts
Mary Beth
McLoud
Oklahoma
USA
1674 Posts |
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Oggie
True Blue Farmgirl
526 Posts
Ginny
Machias
Maine
USA
526 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2011 : 7:46:03 PM
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My pleasure ladies, we really need to thank Wendy though!
Ginny
Farmgirl #2343
www.thedewhopinn.com
"I always have a wonderful time, wherever I am, whomever I'm with."
"Well, I've wrestled with reality for 35 years, Doctor, and I'm happy to state I finally won out over it." Both by Elwood P. Dowd (Jimmy Stewart) in the Movie Harvey
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earthmamaT
True Blue Farmgirl
96 Posts
Tammy
portola
California
96 Posts |
Posted - Mar 19 2011 : 12:21:29 PM
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Kristen THANK YOU for the link to Wendy's site. I really feel that between world conditions and food prices this is becoming a very timely subject!!
Tammy ~
"Be the change you want to see in the world" Gandhi |
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Farm Kitchen: Food Shortages & Prices |
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Food Shortages & Prices
