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Topic: Food Storage

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tkhooper avatar
Subject: Food Storage
Date Posted: 3/18/2014 10:55 AM ET
Member Since: 1/12/2012
Posts: 266
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Hi all I am looking for recipes that use basic food storage and for recipes that store well.  I'd love any help you could give me.  I'm putting together something for my church and only want recipe that people have first hand experience with.  Thanks for all your help.

okbye avatar
Barb S. (okbye) - ,
Date Posted: 3/18/2014 2:21 PM ET
Member Since: 3/14/2011
Posts: 5,767
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Long term storage like freezing?

tkhooper avatar
Date Posted: 3/21/2014 11:48 AM ET
Member Since: 1/12/2012
Posts: 266
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either freezing or canning or self mixes like the baking mix that is a off-shoot of biscuit.  

craftnut avatar
PBS Blog Contributor medal
Date Posted: 3/21/2014 7:43 PM ET
Member Since: 7/10/2011
Posts: 2,353
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Still not exactly sure what you are wanting.  Just about any casserole can freeze well.  Did you want things that can serve a crowd, or individual meals for taking to invalid homes?  Are you cooking there, so mixes to make breads or soups?   Canning would depend on the equipment that you have available and the produce you have as well, is there a garden at the church where you want to preserve the harvest?  Give us a bit more as to your goals.

tkhooper avatar
Date Posted: 3/22/2014 11:56 AM ET
Member Since: 1/12/2012
Posts: 266
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The goal is to be able to create healthy meals for one year for a family of 4 using just the things you have on hand.  So canned goods, dry goods, are more what I am looking for that frozen foods although some of those are good to have on hand to for those night when fixing a meal is just to much effort.  Also for those times when the electricity goes out for long enough that things start to defrost and need to be cooked.  Making tv dinners out of those items is a great idea if the electricity comes back on in time to do it.

craftnut avatar
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Date Posted: 3/22/2014 8:49 PM ET
Member Since: 7/10/2011
Posts: 2,353
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The operative word there is healthy.  A healthy diet is rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meat/poultry/fish or other sources of protein, low fat dairy - hard to do in long term shelf stable.  Things that are shelf stable are mostly carbohydrates, pasta, flour and so on, or canned.  Canned is awful - too much salt, no nutrients in any canned vegetable or fruit. 

But, beans with rice are a complete protein, and both are shelf stable for a long time.  You will have the hardest time with vegetables - if you can't have fresh, then frozen is best.  Few vegetables come in glass, unless you love artichokes and marinated mushrooms - and these are expensive and have fewer nutrients than frozen or fresh.  Tomato sauces would give you some vegetable servings, just be sure to buy in glass containers not metal.  There are some processed fruits that come in plastic packed in water, but those will be expensive.  There are some low sodium canned proteins like chicken or tuna, but you have to read labels.  Frozen foods keep well up to a year if frozen in airtight containers.  Cheese and butter can be frozen.  Powdered milk would get you by when baking, and in a pinch, reconstituted for cereal.  Baking soda and baking powder for making bread are essential, keep the extras in the freezer.  Vacuum packed nuts could also provide protein.  Peanut butter and mayonnaise can be kept on a shelf until opened so they could be considered shelf stable.

Have you thought about getting one of those vacuum sealers?  That might help keep frozen things from getting freezer burn.  All of the above assumes you want to prepare full meals from scratch.

Not from scratch, bread and muffin mixes keep well, and some only require adding water - Betty Crocker and Krusteaz ones are good.  Other than that, I don't use premade boxed meals like hamburger-helper and the like, so can't advise about things like that.