1. Store basic foods and cook from scratch.
2. Wendy DeWitt’s storage program.
3. Storing Freeze Dried food and water.
4. Combining these and canning foods.
This week we will start with Storing basic foods and cooking from scratch.
How much would a person need for a year if they stored basic foods like wheat, rice etc?
The chart is found in my free book STORE FOOD which you can download by double clicking the link at the right. It originally came from a pamphlet titled “Food Production and Storage” by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. These amounts are equivalents for an average adult and provide 2300 calories per day.
Food Items per adult (Multiply each of these numbers by the number of people in your family to see how much you need to buy.)
Grains: Wheat. rice, corn, millet, others etc.
You need 300 lbs.
Nonfat Dry Milk 75 lbs
Sugar or Honey
60 lbs
Salt
5 lbs
Fat or Oil
20 lbs
Dried Legumes and beans
60 lbs
Canned Protein
60 lbs
Fruits & Vegetables canned, dried or freeze dried
365 lbs
Water: 2 week supply
14 gallons minimum amount. Ideal is 56+ gallons per person
Garden Seeds Buy Heritage
As I mentioned earlier, one year we took our tax refund and purchased one year's supply of basic foods. When we were in school and on a very limited budget, we couldn’t afford to buy much meat. When we began eating almost exclusively from our food storage using the foods above, we ate mostly grains, legumes, vegetables with some canned meats. We were very surprised at how well our family fared. The kids were healthy with few colds and other school spread illnesses. We had energy and felt good.
When eating these basic foods we need to understand protein. Our body uses protein to build and repair tissues. We also use protein to make enzymes, hormones, and other body chemicals. Protein is an important building block of bones, muscles, cartilage, skin, and blood. There are 9 essential amino acids that form proteins that are essential in our diets. All animal products contain these complete proteins – red meat, chicken, fish, milk, yogurt, butter, ice cream etc. That means when you have any animal protein in a meal, you get a complete protein that the body can use.
When you eat grains, legumes and beans, you need to combine them to make a complete protein.
Combinations include: Nuts or seeds with whole grains (peanut butter on whole wheat toast) Whole grains with beans (beans and rice; hummus and pita bread; bean-based chili and crackers; refried beans and tortillas) Beans with nuts or seeds (salad with chickpeas and sunflower seeds).
Think about the kind of food you enjoy eating. If you eat a lot of meat and few grains and beans, you may feel that a vegetable protein diet will not be satisfying, nor fully nutritious. We have found that beans, grains, nuts and seeds are highly nutritious, easily prepared and provide important roughage for the body. Prepared properly they are filling and satisfying to the appetite. Vegetable proteins compliment meat and can be combined for interest and nourishment.
