With any time left I may have after it is clear to me that TSHTF, I am going to grab my potatoes and apples! Both can last quite a while if stored in cool, dark places.
My kitchen was taken apart last week and should have the new one in place after the 20th. Then, I will be getting a new pantry!!! RW, your last grab list looks just like mine, except for the winter veggies. I would have to swap that for more Nido. Meximart - here I come. I doubt there will be much of a run there.
BTW, make sure you have a place to secure your foods from smells. Our dog was skunked on Memorial day, and it still smells. I did however find all the beans in glass jars that I put away last fall. They are doing fine.
I should add dry cereal and tons of water with that Nido.
My experiment with potatoes,carrots and turnips did not turn out good. They were in the coolest part of the basement, dry, out of sun and went bad in a few weeks. What I’ve learned is that squashes (almost any type) sweet potatoes, onions, garlics are holding up much better, going on two months now. I’m now experimenting with different types of apples- gala has already failed the test. I’m trying Red Delicious, Spartan, Granny Smith and Golden Delicious now. My hubby has a thermometer gun thingie that I can aim at any flat surface and know the exact temperature. That’s how I know my test subjects have been in the coolest area. I wish I had a cold room.
Ganygirl - you got me interested in Nido and I found a great review: http://www.emptybowl.com/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=287
I’m going to have to go track some down.
Fresh milk is on my jump list too, I can usually find expiration dates close to a month out.
Nido is very very good. I have quite a bit of it in my pantry as I prefer whole milk to skim. I still have instant non-fat powdered milk for baking etc… but the Nido is the “drinking” milk storage.
My last minute items (assuming I feel it is reasonably safe to do a last minute run) will be fresh veggies and fruits - to last as long as possible. I would likely top off my cheese and butter in the freezer as well.
Nido (because of its fat content) has a shorter shelf life than non-fat dry milk.
Some of the new milks that take out additional fat but leave the fat taste in (Over the Moon and Smart Milk are two kinds in my area) have longer shelf lives than regular milk, usally for 6 weeks or so. It’s more expensive but tastes good (it really does taste better) and will be worth every penny for my kids’ sake.
I haven’t gotten any dry milk yet. Dreading the very thought of it. My local supermarket has two brands, Carnation and State Brand. Is there any recognizable difference between them? I don’t have a huge amount of money to invest in expensive preps, so I’ll probably just get dry milk and get used to it. I’d probably only use it on cereal anyway.
I’m half-hoping that if/when TSHTF, I will find that I can buy fresh milk from the farmers down the road, but I need something else as a back-up.
I also have a supply of rice milk and soy flour for the lactose intolerant in the household. Soy flour can be mixed with water into a pathetic version of soy milk, which is terrible to drink, but works in cooking.
For powdered milk - lots and lots of Ovaltine and chocolate syrup!
I have read - but do not know of my own experience - that powdered milk tastes much better if it is made up 12 hours before use. I don’t know how safe that would be without refrigeration.
I ordered and have received a “Biohazard: Authorized Personnel Only” sign, orange and black. Plastic, poly topcoat. Very convincing looking! medco.com
unpathedhaunt – at 23:14 lol, thats funny, I saw some yellow baricade tape (DANGER KEEP OUT)that got similar ideas running in my head, LOL!
Powdered milk, skim, is much better if it has time to sit in the fridge overnight. The whole is good right away if the water is cold. Buy the cheap powdered milk for cooking/baking, but the carnation has my vote for drinking skim milk. The cheap stuff may also be better, it is to me, with a little condensed milk in it.
The Nestles table cream, at the Meximart, is not sour and is very good if you whip some into a small amount of milk and then add that to the larger pitcher. It keeps in the can for a long time without refrig. The Nido will keep about 1 1/2 to 2 years according to the date on the cans I have. I buy the very large containers, and they make about 4 gallons each ( I have 10). I do have boxed and canned skim milk.
BTW, I read that article months ago and found the Nido later. I am glad I read it, as it made the decision to go with Nido easier. I need more.
I’m trying to prep now in such a way that “topping off” won’t be necessary. I know that we’ll miss some of the fresh stuff but I have a feeling that I’d rather sink my money into stuff that I know I’ll be able to use in the long run than saving out $$$ to try and make a run at the last second.
What is the difference between condensed milk and evaporated milk and which is better for general prepping. Thanks in advance
NJ Jeeper – at 08:34
Condensed milk is “sweetened condensed milk” and is what they use for fudge and other baking and cooking.
Evaporated milk is milk that has had about 50% of the water removed.
Evaporated milk is what you want more often than not unless a recipe specifically calls for condensed milk.
Thanks for that tip. Fluwikie is an invaluable source for us preppers.
By the way I am not sure where I saw it, here or another thread that B & M canned bread looks like a winner to me. Supposedly able to find it for $2.50 for a one # can that last for a couple of years (?).
It seems taht local shopping is much cheaper than internet ($4.50) per can.
Nimbus – at 07:43 and Mari – at 08:26 - because of your notes regarding Nido and the review, I decided to look into purchasing this product. First I wanted to find out what the rated shelf life is. I found a great food storage site through google that recommends you either vacuum sealed or use oxygen absorbers to extend the shelf life to two years.
This is the site I found (food storage tips, water storage, etc.) that some of you might find interesting: http://tinyurl.com/knlvv
mmmelody47 - Thanks - that site you have provided has answered many, many questions…
I suggest that you switch to skim milk now, and then slowly start mixing dry milk into the skim untill evenually you are drinking all dry milk. Thats what I did with my family, and I promise you they didn’t even notice it. Now the only thing we use is dry milk.
Thom – at 10:24 - you know….I think that site was already provided somewhere here on the fluwikie. I kinda re-found it by accident. It goes to show all new people starting out here….read all of the stuff on the home page of the wiki - there’s just incredible amounts of useful information within those links.
Some things can’t be kept close to other things. At well sweep farm, Cyrus Hyde has his apples in on wooden box, his potatoes in another not more than a foot apart. I meant to ask if the fumes from apples aren’t detrimental to potatoes, but forgot to as he was handing us the carrots from the sanded container. I think some fruit exudes ethanol, or something that will spoil other things. I should ask at a produce farmers stand. Just as things kept in a fridge will be mushy while tomatoes ripening on a window sill will be firm. Actually I think the wiki has been a wonderful instructive compendium, far better than home economics in school which I found tedious in the extreme, but I found schooling in general to be a boring waste of time. Life itself is the best teacher in the world. Some teachers are worthless, and others can make the tedious fantastically rewarding. I put the wiki forward as one of those teachers that make the ordinary special.
Please use the instructions at the bottom of the page to make links.
Old Thread - Closed