Emergency Nutrition

During a lean time or a diaster you may need to eat differntly than you would have in times of abundance. If you are unaccustom to eating certian foods and dishes, you will likely add to your stress in the moment. When people talk about being prepared they often point to their shelves of stockpiled staple ingredients and foods. However, there is often little discussion of the recipes those foods will go into. This is why is it important to now only store foods of sustanence but to also know how to cook them by practicing during times of abundance and incorporating them into your weekly menus.

Practice

Like any skill, if it is not practiced it is not known. Understanding the concept of something is not the same as execution of skill. Cooking is no different. When you do not have your normal kitchen and tools available you will need to use alternatives. You (and your family/group) need to be versed in cooking with different methods and in varying conditions.

Start with using a propane fueled camp stove. These devices generally have two burners and can support most stovetop dishes. But practice is important as these stoves need to be operated outdoors and conditions outdoors are different than cooking in your kitchen.

Rice and Beans

Rice and beans together form a complete protein because they provide all nine essential amino acids when combined. Therefore these two components are often stockpiled. The logic makes sense. But when you consider these foods need to be cooked with water, an element which may be scarce in times of disaster, these foods become less feasible.